Boaz has covered all the bases and effectively has told everybody, I am her guardian. Hands off. Don't get in her way and give her water. Whenever she wants to drink, you watch out for her. No wonder verse 10 tells us that when he communicates this to Ruth, Ruth falls on her face, bowing to the ground.
This is the Old Testament version of a curtsy and said to him, why have I found favor in your sight that you should take notice of me since I am a foreign. Last time on Wisdom for the Heart, we began looking at the story of how Ruth and Boaz met one day in a field belonging to Boaz. We saw that Boaz treated Ruth with love and dignity right from the start. Ruth didn't just happen to stumble into a random field one day.
And Boaz didn't just happen to notice her gleaning and fall in love with her. Nothing just happens. And we'll see that in detail today. We didn't have time to complete this lesson last time. So we're bringing you the conclusion today.
Steven's going to review a little bit and then he'll conclude this lesson called No Such Thing as Chance. Let me stop here and pull out of just this brief biography, some principles, two of them before we move on about character. Number one, even when most people have forgotten God, it's possible to develop godliness. In the middle of this generation, a man named Boaz rides out to his fields and greets everyone in the name of the Lord. And understand his tribesmen were no longer convinced that God would be worth following.
Boaz says to his employees, listen, God is not only worth following implied in this greeting, but I hope you sense him today as you work. Number two, even when your culture around you becomes self-centered, it's possible to be self-sacrificing. This is a time when everyone was doing whatever they wanted to do. It was a dog-eat-dog world these days.
Yet here is a man who cared about people, even people lower down on the ladder, on a lower rung in society. Now the law of Moses dictated that a farmer was to leave the corners of his field for the poor. It also dictated they were to allow others to come along and reap what was fallen. In fact, fallen fruit couldn't be gathered by the farmer that was left for the poor. Even though this was dictated, hey, these are tough times. No doubt throughout Israel there were farmers who refused. They forbade gleaners. They would send their own farmhands back into the field to get whatever was left behind. These were tough times. These were not times for the laws of mercy and grace and generosity. They were for Boaz. He evidently here will care about the needy and the downtrodden by keeping the law he will find his wife.
Imagine that. Well we better move on to verse 2 or they will never meet. And Ruth, the Moabitess, said to Naomi, please let me go to the field and glean among the ears of grain after one in whose sight I may find favor.
And she said to her, go, my daughter. So she departed and went and gleaned in the field after the reapers and she happened to come to the portion of the field belonging to Boaz who was of the family of Elimele. In Bible times, reapers from what I have learned would grab the stalk with his left hand and with his right with a short sickle. He'd lop it off near its roots. Once he gathered a handful, he'd lay it down and others would come along or perhaps he if they didn't have enough employees and they'd tie those into bundles and then they'd work their way through the field and someone would collect the bundles. The reapers would work very carefully. There wouldn't be much left over. In fact, gleaning for fallen stalks or grain left behind was tantamount to eking out an existence.
It'd be like somebody in our culture trying to make a living walking along the road collecting aluminum cans. Notice verse three. And she happened to come to that portion of the field belonging to Boaz.
Here Ruth has decided to help out her mother-in-law to survive. She goes to a field. And the Hebrew language in that phrase literally reads, she chanced to chance upon the field belonging to Boaz.
I love that. What looks like a chance, a coincidence is divine providence. She chanced to chance upon the field belonging to Boaz. Now remember here for her, this is just an ordinary decision. There are no lights flashing.
There's not a band playing out on Boaz's field. Come this way, Ruth. There are no greeters saying come through this gate, Ruth, and find your destiny.
No help like that. She's just making a decision. She just says, huh, I think I'll go over there.
I see some people gleaning and maybe they'll let me come along too. So she enters into that field and begins to glean to the world. It was blind chance. But you are immediately struck, aren't you, with this being nothing less than the providence of God's direction.
This is Proverbs three, five and six in living color. In all your ways acknowledge him and he will direct your path. Is this a coincidence?
Not a chance. Finding out the ways God arranged this initial meeting between Boaz and Ruth, as we'll see, is interesting as it shows the hand of God behind the scenes. In fact, one of the things my wife and I like to find out about people whenever we're with couples is we'll ask them how they met. It's always fascinating to find out how they met one another and eventually, you know, went out on that first date and then married.
We heard an interesting story a number of years ago about one couple who attended our church a number of years ago. They were both attending Bible college getting ready to graduate just before this young man graduated. A friend gave him the name and address of a girl her brother had dated. Evidently, this young gal's brother didn't work out and she knew this young man and she said, you know, here's a commendable young lady and she gave him her name and phone number.
And that was it. He put the piece of paper in his wallet and forgot all about it. Two years later, he's now in the ministry and he's preaching and one night he cleaned out his wallet and found in there that little piece of paper with this girl's name and address on it. He wondered if she'd gotten married and on a whim, on a chance, he wrote her a letter asking her if she'd be interested in meeting him sometime. When the letter arrived, it just so happened to be that she was coming back from a conference where she had committed her life to full-time Christian work. She wrote him back and said, I would be willing to meet you if you're ever in town. So, eventually, this young man had a couple of preaching opportunities nearby. I'm sure he created them out of nothing to get into town. He arrived in town. On the day he arrived in town, World War II had just ended and as a result, two national holidays were declared by the U.S. government and his meetings ended up being canceled. He had nothing to do for two days and as a result, the girl's father invited him to stay in their home. He was either wanting to get rid of his daughter or out of his mind, one of the two.
Eight weeks later, two months later, Paul and Betty Jane Freed were married. Guidance from the Lord is promised but it just comes on the heels of ordinary decisions. There are no visions, no writing in the sky, no bands playing. But when your heart says the same thing that Ruth's heart said, the God of Israel will be my God and Boaz evidently had a personal relationship with Yahweh and he wanted people to sense his presence. David said it this way, the steps of a good man are ordered by the Lord, Psalm 37 23. And so now, just a few decisions here and there and Ruth is gleaning in the field that just so happens to belong to Boaz. And wouldn't you know it, Boaz just so happens to decide to come visit that field this very morning, verse 4. Now behold, I like that.
Now look, if you can believe it, is the idea. Boaz came from Bethlehem and said to the reapers, may the Lord be with you and they said to him, may the Lord bless you. Then Boaz said to his servant who was in charge of the reapers, whose young woman is this? Now, and he says, may Yahweh be with you, may you sense his presence and they say, may God bless you and that's about when he spots this young lady and everything freezes. He takes a breath and then asks his servant, whose young woman is this?
This is the Hebrew equivalent of a whistle. You guys know how to do that? Have you forgotten? On the count of three, let's see if you know. Ready, one, two, three. Don't look at me when you do that.
That's kind of weird, okay? Look at your wife or your girlfriend. Try it again. Ready, one, two, three. There you go.
Somebody's making big points back there. You can't believe we did this in church. I can't either.
We're going to edit this whole thing. I do remember doing that to my older daughter when she was about four or five, just for fun to see what she did. She didn't understand. She kind of looked at me and so I gave me an opportunity to prepare her and explain.
I said, honey, look, that's one day some young guy's going to do that to you and what he means is he thinks you're pretty and he wants your attention and so when that happens, you just run away from him and come home to daddy. Here's the servant's response. Verse six. She is the young Moabite woman who returned with Naomi from the land of Moab and she said, please let me glean and gather after the reapers among the sheaves. Thus she came and has remained from the morning until now and she's been sitting in that house for a little while.
Now slow down a minute. Verse eight informs us that Boaz is going to go and meet her. At this moment she's resting. He spotted her in this house.
Could have been a lean too shanty for all we know. So between the greeting and the spotting of her and the servant telling him about her and going to talk to her, there's some elapsed time. In fact, between seeing her and going to talk to her, there's enough time for him to formulate in his mind a plan. There's enough time for him to already tell his employees what to do about her because he'll tell her what he's told them. So we have a little bit of time here where he can engineer this moment, where he can get just the right words.
It's no different then than now, right? I mean, meeting that girl you are interested in takes strategy. It takes thought and creativity, especially if you're really interested in her. In fact, some of you guys remember, some of you guys are single and will remember the first time you asked that. Girl, it's terrifying, right? Everything about your self-worth is on the line. You are giving this individual the opportunity to tell you you're worth something or you are worth nothing, right? One author said it's like handing a girl a loaded gun, pointing the barrel directly at your chest, saying will you go out with me and then waiting for her to pull the trigger. It's interesting, I'm in this text. Today, by the way, just so happens to be the anniversary of my first date with Marsha 31 years ago. Happy anniversary back there. I'd watched her all semester.
She's in my British literature class, finally went over, got up the nerve, asked her out and she said yes. I mean, isn't that a miracle? What's so miraculous about it, huh?
It was, trust me. So Boaz, he works up this speech. Look at the detail he's put into this, verse 8. Boaz said to Ruth, listen carefully, my daughter.
Do not go to glean in another field. Furthermore, do not go on from this one, but stay here with my maids. Let your eyes be on the field which they reap.
Go after them. Indeed, I have commanded the servants not to touch you, and when you are thirsty, go to the water jars and drink from what the servants draw. He has figured everything out, every conceivable thing to keep Ruth from ever leaving his field. She can follow freely behind the reapers. She can drink from the company water cooler, which is going to save her a lot of time. She doesn't go back to Bethlehem to refresh herself. And in a little while, she'll be given a free meal. Now you notice that Boaz has already commanded his men not to touch her.
That phrase can mean don't injure her. They may not have wanted competition for the fallen grain. I mean, who is she anyway? Where'd she come from? Those who are gleaning, they don't want anybody else. They're just a stalk here and a stalk there. They might push her down or treat her roughly.
He's already given the directive. It could mean don't injure her. The phrase is also translated to have sexual relations in Genesis chapter 20 verse 6. Here's a young woman without protection. She's alone. She's vulnerable.
She is a foreigner, which means she is without legal protection in Israel. Who could she tell and who would care? Boaz has covered all the bases and effectively has told everybody, I am her guardian. Hands off. Don't get in her way. Don't lay a hand on her. Give her water.
Whenever she wants to drink, you watch out for her. No wonder verse 10 tells us that when he communicates this to Ruth, Ruth falls on her face, bowing to the ground, this is the Old Testament version of a curtsy, and said to him, why have I found favor in your sight that you should take notice of me since I am a foreigner? Remember, Ruth doesn't know Boaz is related to Naomi.
Boaz does. Ruth only knows that this wealthy landowner is showing extreme kindness to her and outsider. She can't quite figure it out. But then Boaz tells her why. He tells her what he knows about her. Look at verse 11. He says to her, all that you have done for your mother-in-law after the death of your husband has been fully reported to me.
See, he already knew this about her. And how you left your father and your mother and the land of your birth and came to a people that you did not previously know. May the Lord reward your work. May your wages be full from the Lord, the God of Israel, under whose wings you have come to seek refuge. Boaz is saying, in effect, Ruth, I already know everything about what you've been through, the death of your husband, your commitment to Naomi, your conversion to the God of Abraham, leaving your family, leaving everything about your home. And I love what he said to her. Verse 12, look at it again. He says, may the Lord reward your work and your wages be full from the Lord, the God of Israel, under whose wings you have come to seek refuge. Man, this guy walked with God, didn't he?
Why haven't we heard more about Boaz over the years? Why are there books out there for men, single men, especially on character and how to treat a woman? This man's brief appearance in scripture is convicting, frankly, to every man in this auditorium. He and Ruth have only recently met and he's already talking about God. He's doing more than just dropping God's name. He's actually advocating for God. He is recommending God to her. He is saying God is trustworthy. Listen, I know what you've left.
I know what you've lost. I want you to nestle up under the wings of the Almighty and rest assured, he is trustworthy. He will watch over you. And then he says, I'm going to pray that God will reward you because of the decisions you've made.
Boaz, he probably could have proposed then and there and had a wife. Two more principles from this initial encounter. Number one, a permanent foundation for a romantic relationship is a vital relationship with Jesus Christ.
Let me speak for a moment to every single person especially. If that guy or girl you're interested in walks with God, it will not take you very long to discover it. If after one date their acknowledgement of God and the things of God doesn't come shining through, whether it's he prayed before you ate or he or she made reference to church or to the Bible, don't go past one date. I don't believe in evangelistic dating. I don't think dating is for discipleship either, although that will be part of it. I've told countless individuals over these 23 years of ministry after they've told me a little bit about what they've seen in the other person and they've got questions and they've got concerns, I've told so many of them, go home, put on your tennis shoes, lace them up real tightly and run.
I don't have a verse that says it just that way, but put on your tennis shoes and lace them up and run. Those nagging doubts about his character or her character or about all that you'll get in making decisions to move forward, but you have enough. I have dealt with people on the other side who refused to run, who lowered the standard, who made their choices apart from prayer and obedience to scripture, who thought it would be better to marry an uncommitted Christian or even an unbeliever rather than remain single. The foundation for a relationship is a relationship with Jesus Christ.
Number two, permanent attraction between a man and a woman goes beyond the physical dimension and involves the spiritual dimension. Jay Vernon McGee pointed out in his commentary on Ruth something that I missed my first time through. He pointed out the fact that nowhere in the book of Ruth are we told what she looked like, and we're not even told what Boaz looked like.
We don't know if he was six feet tall or five feet eight inches and a half. None of that. Boaz was smitten by her, no doubt, but what ultimately attracted this very eligible bachelor to her was her commitment to God and her character in life.
That was it. Ladies and gentlemen, this encounter then has all of the makings of something that God will bless. This first encounter out there in that Bethlehem field, though, is anything but a chance or a coincidence. God has been developing two paths that, in a matter of months, will become one path. Consider this. They both are acknowledging God in all their ways, and God is directing their paths together.
That was a lesson called No Such Thing as Chance. Thanks for joining us today here on Wisdom for the Heart. This is the Bible teaching ministry of Stephen Davey. Stephen is the pastor of the Shepherd's Church in Cary, North Carolina. In addition, Stephen is also the president of Shepherd's Theological Seminary. Shepherd's Seminary is equipping and training pastors and Christian leaders for a lifetime of service. But even if you don't feel called to full-time Christian ministry, Shepherd's Theological Seminary can equip you to better understand God's Word. You can study online right where you live. There's also a very unique one-year program where you can relocate to this area for a year. During that time, you would study God's Word, experience authentic community, grow in discipleship, take a trip to Israel and do some study there, and earn your master's degree in theological studies.
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