Seven Stories - Ruth, A Faithful Woman
Ready, Set, GROW!!
Stories of FAITHFULNESS
    At a church in Binford, North Dakota, an elderly woman, Mary, fainted and struck her head on the end of the pew. Immediately, an EMT in the congregation called an ambulance.
    As they strapped her to a stretcher and got ready to head out the door, Mary regained consciousness. She motioned for her daughter to come near. Everyone thought she was summoning her strength to convey what could be her final words. The daughter leaned over until her ear was at her mother’s mouth. “My offering is in my purse,” she whispered.
Fresh Illustrations for Preaching & Teaching (Baker), from the editors of Leadership.
Couple Married 72 Years Die Holding Hands
    In October 2011, Gordon Yeager, 94, and his wife Norma, 90, died exactly one hour apart after 72 years of marriage. They were holding hands when they died.
    The couple left their home in Marshalltown, Iowa, to run some errands in town, but they never made it. A car accident sent the couple to the emergency room with broken bones and other injuries. When they were transferred to intensive care the nurses knew not to separate them. But, even in the hospital, they were more concerned about each other.
    Their son Dennis Yeager said, “She was saying her chest hurt and what’s wrong with Dad? Even laying there like that, she was worried about Dad. And his back was hurting and he was asking about Mom.”
    When it became clear that their conditions were not improving, they moved them in beds side-by-side so they could hold hands.
    Gordon died at 3:38 P.M. holding hands with his wife as the family they built surrounded them.
    Their son Dennis said,
    “It was really strange, they were holding hands, and dad stopped breathing but I couldn’t figure out what was going on because the heart monitor was still going. But we were like, he isn’t breathing. How does he still have a heart beat? The nurse checked and said that’s because they were holding hands and it’s going through them. Her heart was beating through him and picking it up.”
    At 4:38 p.m., exactly one hour after Gordon died, Norma passed away too.
    Dennis Yeager said, “They just loved being together …. They were old-fashioned. They believed in marriage till death do you part.”
    Dennis also added, “I don’t believe there was a big secret to their marriage. Sometimes one or the other would get mad, but they worked everything out. In the end, they chose each other, and that was it. They were committed.”
sources: KCCI Des Moines, “Couple Married 72 Years Dies Holding Hands” (2-14-12); Christina NG, “Iowa Couple Married 72 Years Dies Holding Hands, an Hour Apart,” ABC News (10-19-11)
    Beautiful stories of faithfulness.
    As we continue with Seven Stories, today we look at one of the two books named after a woman - Ruth. The other book is Esther.  Since this is not the most well-known book in the Bible, let’s do some foundational study to start.
Background (comments edited from Fire Bible)
    Historically, the book of Ruth describes events in the life of an Israelite family during the time of the judges.  Last week we looked at Gideon from Judges.
    Geographically, the setting for the first 18 verses is the land of Moab (east of the Dead Sea). The rest of the events took place in or near Bethlehem.
    The book traces Ruth’s descendants up to King David.  It most likely was written during the time when David was king.
Purpose
    Ruth was written to describe how a young Moabite woman who showed deep loyalty and love became the great-grandmother of Israel’s King David.  It tells about a godly family whose faithfulness served as a supreme example during the time of great spiritual and moral decline.  We saw the impact of that spiritual decline last week with how God used Gideon.
    The story of redeeming, saving love opened during a famine that caused Elimelech to leave Judah and move his family to Moab. Things got worse when Elimelech died.  Later his two sons died in Moab. This left Naomi, the mother and the two daughters-in-law as widows.  All three were in a very difficult position in that culture at that time.
Let’s get an overview of the whole story.
Ruth 1:1-9 NLT
1 In the days when the judges ruled in Israel, a severe famine came upon the land. So a man from Bethlehem in Judah left his home and went to live in the country of Moab, taking his wife and two sons with him. 2 The man’s name was Elimelech, and his wife was Naomi. Their two sons were Mahlon and Kilion. They were Ephrathites from Bethlehem in the land of Judah. And when they reached Moab, they settled there.
3 Then Elimelech died, and Naomi was left with her two sons. 4 The two sons married Moabite women. One married a woman named Orpah, and the other a woman named Ruth. But about ten years later, 5 both Mahlon and Kilion died. This left Naomi alone, without her two sons or her husband.
6 Then Naomi heard in Moab that the LORD had blessed his people in Judah by giving them good crops again. So Naomi and her daughters-in-law got ready to leave Moab to return to her homeland. 7 With her two daughters-in-law she set out from the place where she had been living, and they took the road that would lead them back to Judah. 8 But on the way, Naomi said to her two daughters-in-law, “Go back to your mothers’ homes. And may the LORD reward you for your kindness to your husbands and to me. 9 May the LORD bless you with the security of another marriage.” Then she kissed them good-bye, and they all broke down and wept.
    Orpha listened to Naomi and returned home.  Ruth insisted on going on with Naomi.  They returned to Bethlehem.  The people were excited to see Naomi return.  But she was sad for the great loss of her husband and sons.
    They arrived in Bethlehem in late spring, at the beginning of the barley harvest.  Survival was going to be a real issue for them.  God had given as part of His law that needy people could glean crops from fields after the harvesters had gone through them.  Naomi sent Ruth out and she went to the field of Boaz, a wealthy and influential relative.  She sent there to gather grain.
    Boaz saw her there and asked who she was.  He found out she was Naomi’s daughter-in-law.  Boaz told her to gather all the grain she wanted from his field.  She could work with the harvesters.  He warned the people to treat her kindly.  He told her to feel free to drink from the water they supplied to the workers.  He said she should join the workers for meals, and she could bring some leftovers home.
    Ruth was extremely grateful for his kindness and expressed to Boaz.  When she got home she showed Naomi the bountiful harvest she got and told her the whole story.
    Ruth worked with them through the barley harvest, and then joined them for the wheat harvest.
    As we go on, I need to help you understand an important term.
    Kinsman Redeemer: It comes from the law of Moses, Leviticus 25.  It speaks of a person whose right it is, because of being the nearest relative, to redeem or buy back a forfeited inheritance.  It was his right to purchase or acquire a relative’s property to keep it in the family.  He could redeem it from whoever had bought it.  This is the picture of Boaz, who was one of the nearest relations to Elimelech.  He married Ruth, an heiress of Elimelech, and reentered into the possession of her estate.
    The prophetic picture is that Jesus is our kinsman redeemer, we have been purchased, redeemed, through the Blood of Jesus.     Naomi gave Ruth instructions as to how to approach Boaz as her kinsman redeemer.  She followed her instructions exactly.  This was important for Boaz knew the customs and the law.  He recognized what was happening.
    Boaz told Ruth he would do what was right.  There was another person who was a closer relative.  He had to talk with him first to see if he wanted to marry Ruth and redeem the inheritance.  It turned out he didn’t want to do that.
    Boaz and Ruth were married.  They had a son and named him Obed.  Obed was the grandfather of King David.  Jesus was born from the line of King David.
    Ruth’s faithfulness was rewarded in ways far beyond anything she could ever imagine.
Mysterious Congo Missionary Deaths - an example of faithful.
    The daughter of missionaries to the Congo Republic told Pastor Leith Anderson this story: As a little girl, she participated in a daylong rally to celebrate the 100th anniversary of the coming of missionaries to that part of Africa. At the close of a long day of speeches and music, an old, old man stood before the crowd and insisted on speaking. He soon would die, he said, and if he didn’t speak, information that he alone possessed would go with him to his grave.
    He said that when the missionaries arrived, his people thought them strange and their message dubious. The tribal leaders decided to test the missionaries by slowly poisoning them to death. Over a period of months and years, missionary children died one by one. Then, the old man said, “It was as we watched how they died that we decided we wanted to live as Christians.”
    Those who died painful, strange deaths never knew why they were dying or what the impact of their lives and deaths would be. But through it all, they didn’t leave. They stayed because they trusted Jesus Christ.
Leith Anderson, “Mystery Martyrs,” Men of Integrity, (January/February 2004)
    We never know what God can accomplish through our faithfulness.
    The book of Ruth begins with great sorrow.  It ends with great joy and fulfillment — for Naomi, Ruth, Boaz and all of Israel.
    I want to quickly point out three applications of this book, although there are several more we could talk about.
Ruth 1:16 NLT
But Ruth replied, “Don’t ask me to leave you and turn back. Wherever you go, I will go; wherever you live, I will live. Your people will be my people, and your God will be my God.
    Where you go, I will Go.  She was faithful to serve whatever the cost and inconvenience.
    Your God will be my God.  Ruth turned from the gods of her childhood to serve the Creator God.  Faithfulness to God is vital.
14 At mealtime Boaz called to her, “Come over here, and help yourself to some food. You can dip your bread in the sour wine.” So she sat with his harvesters, and Boaz gave her some roasted grain to eat. She ate all she wanted and still had some left over.
15 When Ruth went back to work again, Boaz ordered his young men, “Let her gather grain right among the sheaves without stopping her.
16 And pull out some heads of barley from the bundles and drop them on purpose for her. Let her pick them up, and don’t give her a hard time!”
    Here we see God’s provision.  I love the thought that he told them to leave extra for Ruth to pick up, do it on purpose.  Handfuls on purpose.  God has no problem providing for His people.  Ruth was rewarded for her faithfulness and service.
Ruth 4:14 NLT
Then the women of the town said to Naomi, “Praise the LORD, who has now provided a redeemer for your family! May this child be famous in Israel.     Some background.  At one time Naomi thought God had forsaken her.  Ruth 1:21 NLT
I went away full, but the LORD has brought me home empty. Why call me Naomi when the LORD has caused me to suffer and the Almighty has sent such tragedy upon me?
    Times of difficulty are God’s opportunity for advancing his purposes.  Naomi thought God had abandoned her, but that was not true.
    God does not abandon His children.  He is always there for us, no matter what the situation looks like.

    God honors faithfulness.  This is one of the most important characteristics we must develop as believers.  Out of faithfulness will grow God’s presence and power.  We prove faithfulness and grow in our relationship with Jesus.  Then, there is no limit to what God can do through YOU.