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The
book of Ruth is a beautiful story that reveals God’s
great grace and love. It describes the events in the
lives of two women who quite literally went from rags...to
riches - from...
...mourning to joy...
...emptiness to satisfaction...
...shame to glory...
...barrenness to fruitfulness...
These women experience redemption and recover the faith,
hope and love that they thought were lost forever. Their
story ends in victory, but it begins with the bitterness
of loss.
THE BITTERNESS OF LOSS (chapter 1)
Background:
Imagine for a minute that you are a young married woman
with two sons. Times are hard and political enemies
are constantly threatening the country you live in.
Your husband is a farmer, and rain is scarce, so the
crops are poor. Despite his best efforts, he has difficulty
putting enough food on the table for you and the children.
After much talk and more tears, the decision is made
to move to another country - away from family and friends
- in hopes of finding a brighter future for the boys.
But
what if the future does not grow brighter? What if things
actually get worse after your daring move? What if after
moving away and raising your sons to adulthood, your
husband unexpectedly dies? What if your sons marry foreign
women who know nothing of your family heritage and traditions...and
then they themselves grow sick and die? How would you
feel?
What
Naomi has lost:
This is the description that the Bible gives us of Naomi’s
life in Ruth 1:1-5. Words cannot adequately describe
the despair that Naomi must have been experiencing at
this time in her life. Everything (except her own health)
had been taken from her. She had lost the companionship
and provision of her husband. She also lost the future
provision that her sons would have given her. She had
left her homeland in search of a better future, and
instead finds herself alone in a strange culture, with
no one to take pity on her except her two young daughters-in-law.
Unfortunately, in the culture of her day, that did not
count for much.
But
the situation is even more desperate than that. Naomi
knew that when she and her husband left their hometown
of Bethlehem for the country of Moab, they were stepping
outside of God’s clearly defined boundaries of
safety and provision. Only a few generations before,
Jehovah, the God of Israel, had brought the nation of
Israel out of slavery in Egypt to a land of their very
own...The Promised Land. He had very clearly explained
that if they continued to love Him first and foremost
and obey His instructions that they would be blessed;
their children would be healthy, their crops would be
prosperous, and their borders would be secure. But if
they were disobedient and rebellious, they would face
grave consequences. (see Deuteronomy 28-30) When Naomi
and her husband moved to Moab, they had effectively
lost faith in the God of Israel to provide for them
and so they placed their future in their own hands.
What
Naomi does next:
Now Naomi finds herself alone. She hears a rumor. A
rumor that Jehovah “...had come to the aid of
His people by providing food for them...” (Ruth
1:6) She decides to return to Bethlehem.
The decision to return to her homeland at this point
in her life could not have been easy for Naomi. She
has been brought very low by her circumstances, and
yet she realizes that unless she returns to the Promised
Land, and submits to God’s sovereign will in her
life, she will never be able to receive His great provision.
Naomi
is not happy about the move back. She does not even
appear hopeful that things will get better. She discourages
her daughter-in-law, Ruth, from accompanying her because
she knows that she can’t offer her a brighter
future. In fact, “When they arrived in Bethlehem,
the whole town was stirred because of them, and the
women exclaimed, ‘Can this be Naomi?’”
(Ruth 1:19) They didn’t even recognize her!
Naomi’s
response, “‘Don’t call me Naomi [which
means pleasant]...call me Mara [which means bitter]
because the Almighty has made my life very bitter. I
went away full, but Jehovah has brought me back empty.’”
(Ruth 1:20,21)
Naomi
returns home a broken and weary woman. But she does
return. And although she expects to return alone, Jehovah
gives her a new companion, Ruth, who becomes a tremendous
blessing to her, as we shall see. Naomi’s losses
have been bitter, indeed, but they have brought her
to a place of humility where she is willing to receive
anything that Jehovah has to give. Anything.
What
Naomi’s story means to us:
Naomi’s experiences in Ruth chapter 1 illustrate
the biblical principles of repentance and rest. The
Lord Jesus Christ has invited us into a living relationship
with Jehovah - our heavenly Father - and the Bible often
refers to this relationship as entering rest.
Just
as the Israelites were to rest in the Promised Land,
so we are to rest in the relationship that we share
with Jehovah. We come to the place of trust, knowing
that our heavenly Father will take care of us...that
He will forgive our sins as we confess and turn from
them, and He will give us all that we need for life
and godliness.
The
Bible says that, “If we confess our sins, He is
faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify
us from all unrighteousness.” (1 John 1:9). No
matter how far we have wandered from His will, we only
need to acknowledge our need of the Father, confess
our failings to Him, turn away from our sinful activities
and return to sweet fellowship with Him.
What
will you do next?:
Where do you find yourself today? Have you stepped outside
of God’s clearly defined boundaries for your life?
Are there some things you need to leave behind in order
to experience the sweet fellowship of our Heavenly Father
once again? Don’t worry about people’s responses.
Don’t worry about how inadequate you feel. Just
return to the Lord Jesus, and take from Him whatever
He is willing to give. I believe you will be overwhelmed
with His kindness and generosity. Naomi and Ruth were.
Written
by Christine Wichert
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