Turn with me to Ruth chapter
3 this evening, if you would please. Ruth chapter 3, continuing
in our study of this wonderful book of redemption. That's the
theme of our song. That's what we've been singing
about tonight. Our Redeemer, the redemption found in the Lord
Jesus Christ. Ruth chapter 3, just to review
a little bit, when a limeleck whose name, by the way, means
my God is king. When he left the land of promise
for the idolatrous nation of Moab, he took his family with
him. And our father, Adam, did the
same thing. As the head of our house, so
to speak, our federal head, the representative of his people.
Adam's disobedience plunged his family into the depths of sin
with him. We, like Naomi, we went out full,
but we've come back empty. And like Naomi, whose name means
my delight, our names were changed to Myra. We went from being God's
delight to being bitter. Please know that Adam's sin and
disobedience didn't catch God off guard. I just shudder when
I hear men say such things. Heard a man say one time that
he believed God was sovereign, and because of that, he had a
backup plan. Well, a sovereign God doesn't
need a backup plan. He purposed everything to come
to pass, just as it did. All things that come to pass
in divine providence happen according to the will and the purpose of
God. And that's where we can rest,
because the same God has promised that He's gonna work all things
together for our good. Romans 8, 28, we believe that,
don't we? He's working all things together
for our good. To them that love the Lord, not
the whole world, but to them who love the Lord, who are be
called according to His purpose. Providence had ordered these
events to bring Naomi and her two daughter-in-laws to hunger.
And God in mercy and grace sent someone to tell them that there
was plenteous bread in the city of bread where God had chosen,
God's chosen nation dwelt. But Orpah kissed Naomi goodbye. but Ruth claimed to her. I just
love the thought of that. I can just see them on the road
there together as Orpah went back to her family and friends,
but Ruth grabbed on to her and held on to her with dear life.
Lord, keep us cleaving to thyself and still believe me. It's important
for us to know that Ruth and Naomi not only needed bread,
but they needed everything. They needed everything because
they had lost everything and they had nothing. You and I have
nothing. We've lost everything. Does that
sound like anyone you know? Is that not what happened to
us? We lost everything. We have nothing and we are nothing. That doesn't offend me. That's
the truth. That's the need that God has revealed to me that I
have to keep me cleaving to my Lord and Savior. If Naomi was
to be removed from her ruin, according to the law, she would
need a redeemer. A near kinsman who could justly
buy back all that she had lost. Does that sound like someone
you know? And Ruth, the Moabite idol worshiper, according to
the law, needed a husband to raise up seed in the name of
her dead spouse. And oh, how Boaz's actions toward
Ruth picture our Lord's care of and for His elect people.
We have such a Redeemer as that. Praise Him all the day long for
such a Redeemer as mine. He's worthy of my praise, worthy
of my worship. Boaz took notice of her as she
gleaned in his fields. And it's in the gospel fields
of the Lord Jesus Christ that we too glean. I hope that you
glean tonight handfuls of God's precious purpose. We glean there
because the Lord predestined us to do so. And it's there that
our Redeemer takes notice of us. And it's there that He gives
us eyes to see Him and Him alone. Our Lord Jesus said, you've not
chosen me, but I've chosen you and ordained you that you should
go and bring forth fruit and that your fruit should remain.
That whatsoever you shall ask of the Father in my name, He
may give it to you. And He's gonna see to it that
you get it because He's throwing down constantly handfuls of purpose
for us. It's there that Boaz issued orders
that Ruth was not to be molested. In chapter two, verse nine, Boaz
charged the young men not to touch her. And that word touch
there means much more than just mistreat. It means to lie with
a woman, mistreating her in an intimate way. That is exactly
what this world religion does to folks today. You know it and
I know it. They molest them. Is that not what the Lord ordered
concerning us? Isaiah 54, 17, No weapon that
is formed against thee shall prosper. And every tongue that
shall rise up against thee in judgment thou shalt condemn. This is the heritage of the servants
of the Lord, and their righteousness is of me, saith the Lord. And then again, Romans 8, 28,
we know that all things, all things, everything happens, works
together for the good of them that love God, to them who are
called by His grace according to His sovereign purpose. And
as we already know, because God gives us the end of Ruth's story
and ours, you know, and reading a book or watching
a movie, sometimes I can't wait to get to the end. But that's
kind of the drama and the excitement, but we already know the end.
We know how this story ends, and we know how our story ends.
And I'm glad to know that. I'm glad to know that in this
case. Boaz marries Ruth, and from their
lineage, not only comes David, the psalmist, the king, but Christ,
the Messiah. And these things were all according
to God's great purpose in the redemption of His people. And
Ephesians 1 tells us that, Blessed be the God and Father of our
Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with all spiritual blessings
and heavenly places in Christ. No blessings apart from Christ.
According as He has chosen us, where did He choose us? In Him,
in Christ. before the foundation of the
world, that we should be holy and without blame before Him
in love, having predestinated us." Having predestinated us.
Predetermined us. That's not a dirty word. That's
a glorious word. He predetermined us unto the
adoption of children by Jesus Christ Himself, according to
the good pleasure of His will. It pleased God to make you His
people. That's hard for us to conceive,
to understand, but it's so true. To the praise of the glory of
His grace, wherein He hath made us accepted in Christ the beloved.
In whom, Christ, we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness
of sins according to the riches of His grace. It's all about
Him. It's all about Him. It's His grace. We're accepted
in Him. Our redemption is through His
blood. The forgiveness of sins is by
His work of righteousness He did for us. And it's according
to the riches of what? His grace. Christ, a hundred
us nothing. That's the score, isn't it? who
had saved us and called us with a holy calling, not according
to our works, but according to His own purpose and grace, which
was given us in Christ Jesus when before the world began.
We can't take any credit for it. It was given to us before
we ever were. Our salvation, dear friends, is ordered and
in all things sure. In a world of unsure things,
we have this as our hope for sure. And that's what David,
Ruth's great grandson, said years later upon his deathbed. He said,
although my house be not so with God, and though our house also
may not be so with God. All of us have family members
who Christ has not revealed himself to, and some of us are going
through some tough times with family. But though it not be
so with my house, yet, yet, what a glorious little word. He hath
made with me an everlasting covenant, ordered in all things and sure. For this is all, this is all
my salvation, all my desire. God makes it all our desire.
although he make it not to grow. It may not yet appear, dear friends,
that God has made this spiritual prosperity to grow outwardly
or inwardly, for we see through a glass darkly. But then when
we're with Christ face to face, Now we know in part, but then
we shall know even as we are known, perfectly known by our
Lord who loved us and gave himself for us. And in the book of Ruth,
we have such a picture of the child of God being drawn by grace
and taught to rest in Christ. And I'm learning to lean, I'm
learning to lean on him. Still learning, still learning. I haven't obtained, still learning.
Boaz commanded Ruth to glean in his field. He commanded handfuls
of purpose to be dropped for, according to Ruth chapter two,
verse 17. So she gleaned in the field until
evening time and beat out that she had gleaned. And it was about
an effa of barley. Has Christ commanded you to glean
in God's word? If he has, you will, just like
Ruth, and you'll do so until evening, as long as the day of
grace lasts. Every child of God will and must
be gleaning until the end of the gospel day so that they receive
the abundance of bread. Handfuls of purpose, that's what
it is. Redeeming love has been my theme
and shall be till I die. Now here in chapter three, we
have such a story of redeeming love and we see Ruth coming to
Boaz in the manner specified by Naomi, her mother-in-law.
What a picture we have here of how a chosen sinner approaches
Christ. I don't know that there's any
better example of that in all the word of God. No doubt Naomi
in many ways represents the motherly aspects of God's church. Wise counsel that she gave to
Ruth, counsel that enthusiastically praises God's grace, counsel
that points a sinner to the Lord Jesus Christ. That's what we
desire to do in our preaching, is point men to Christ, women
to Christ. Counsel that secures the marriage
of a spiritual widow with the kinsman redeemer. Verse 1, Then
Naomi her mother-in-law said unto her, that being Ruth, My
daughter, shall I not seek rest for thee, that it may be well
with thee? And now is not Boaz of our kindred
with those maidens thou wast? Behold, he went with barley to-night
in the threshing-floor. Wash thyself therefore, and anoint
thee, and put thy raiment upon thee, and get thee down to the
floor. But make not thyself known unto the man, until he shall
have done eating and drinking. And it shall be, when he lieth
down, And thou shalt mark the place where he shall lie, that
thou shalt go in and uncover his feet, and lay thee down,
and he will tell thee what thou shalt do." You know, religion
today is all about witnessing. I heard that all my life. We
need to witness. I worked for a religious man
once who set out each and every day to witness to 10 people. That was his goal in life, to
witness to 10 people. And first and foremost, religion
today, nor this religion man that I worked for, know how to
give a true witness because neither of them know the true Christ.
And all it does is make one religious because then they think that
they themselves have done something great for the Lord. but they
give a false witness. Now that word witness is defined
as a person who gives evidence and proof of something in question. In a court of law, that's what
a witness does. A witness is someone who has
knowledge of a particular event or charge, and they testify to
the truth, to the truth of what they saw, what they heard, or
what they know. You can't testify to the truth
of something that you yourself have not seen or experienced. We talked about that this past
Sunday. We can't do that anymore than
we can, as we say, come back from where we haven't been. If what you have seen or experienced
is not true, then you cannot give a true witness. But here
Naomi gives Ruth wise counsel to the truth of who Boaz is and
who he is to both of them. Not just Naomi, but to Ruth. He's our near kinsman. He was
one who could redeem them. Naomi proved to be a true witness. And she told Ruth, my daughter,
shall I not seek rest for thee? that it may be well with thee.
She truly had Ruth's best interest at heart. She desired true rest
for Ruth. She witnessed, she testified,
and she told Ruth the only way that she could truly have this
rest is with Boaz, the near Kinsman
Redeemer. And friends, Jesus Christ is
the true rest of every weary sinner. who desires to be saved. And God's got to give them that
desire. Churches today want to get your name on the church roll.
They want to get you on the membership roll. It's all about numbers.
It's all about money. It's all about building a physical
worldly kingdom, not a heavenly spiritual one. But the true church,
the true church of God, encourages men and women and warns them
to believe on Christ, because that's all the rest that we'll
ever obtain. We rest from our works because
Christ has fulfilled the law on our behalf. True witnessing
is to tell sinners that Christ is the kinsman redeemer. There's
no one else that can redeem you. No one. Knowing that is the only
way that it may be well with our soul. Naomi said, and now
Boaz is our kindred. Oh my, Christ has redeemed all
God's elect people from the curse of the law. How? Being made a
curse for them. For cursed is everyone that hangeth
on a tree. Galatians 3.13. He alone is able
to deliver us from the dominion of our sin nature. No one else
can. We certainly can't deliver ourselves.
Christ alone is able to redeem our bodies into the glorious
liberty of the sons of God. If the son therefore make you
free, you shall be free indeed, John 8, 36. And we, Paul said,
we've grown within ourselves, waiting for the adoption to with
the redemption, the redemption of our body. This is about redemption. I'm interested in God's redemption. The true witness of the church
is to tell needy sinners where Christ is to be found, saying,
behold, he went with barley tonight in the threshing floor. Now the
threshing floor here is a picture, an example, metaphor, whatever
you want to call it, for where the gospel is preached. This
is where Christ will be found. Where is Christ to be found?
Where His gospel is preached. Where two or three are gathered
in His name, there He is in the midst of them. gathered with
them in the preaching of the gospel. That's where Christ will
be found. If a sinner is to hear the voice of the Savior, they
will be where his voice is heard in the midst of his gathered
people. They will be there where the gospel is preached. If not,
then they have no true need. No true need. Our Lord is now
working in this world, which is His threshing floor. And He's
winnowing His people through His gospel, and He's separating
the wheat from the chaff. You and I can't separate them.
We can't tell the difference. But He can. He can. Whose fan is in His hand, and
He will thoroughly purge His floor and gather His wheat into
the garner. But He'll burn up the chaff with
unquenchable fire. Matthew 3.12. Naomi had confidence
in the Redeemer and what Boaz could do and would do. And we preach the gospel and
we're confident that it's the soul means that God uses to save
them that believe. We don't have any confidence
in ourselves, but we've got all confidence in Him who loved us
and gave Himself for us. And her instruction to Ruth,
It's God's instruction to us. It's to lay at the Redeemer's
feet and trust Him to tell her what she must do. When the believer
falls at Christ's feet in total submission, they can be absolutely
assured that He'll speak to them. Isn't that how you Come to Him. He spoke to you. He spoke to
your heart through the preaching of His gospel. It's at His feet
where He assures them that He will save them to the uttermost
and will be the rewarder of them that diligently seek Him. God
will be gracious to whom He'll be gracious. But I've never seen
turned down one who desired for Him to be gracious. Have you? Nowhere in the Scripture will
you find it. God will show mercy to whom He will show mercy. But
I've never discovered Him to not show mercy to one who wants
it. That's how the child of God comes
to their Redeemer. They come humbly, knowing that
God resists at the proud and giveth grace to the humble. Verse 5, And she said unto her, Ruth said unto Naomi, all that
thou sayest unto me, I will do. And she went down unto the floor
and did according to all that her mother-in-law bade her. And
when Boaz had eaten and drunk and his heart was merry, he went
to lie down at the end of the heap of corn and she came softly
and uncovered his feet and laid her down. I immediately think
of that harlot who washed the feet of our Lord Jesus with her
tears and dried them with her hair. The Scripture says she
did what she could. She did what she could. It's
the same with Ruth and it's the same with every child of God.
Ruth ventured all that she was, all that All that was her future, her
redemption, on the goodness of Boaz. Naomi told her, get down
to the floor. Fall at the Redeemer's feet.
We must see the urgency in this. If we're desirous to obtain mercy
and favor, grace will bring you down to Christ's feet. No higher
place. No higher place for the sinner,
desire and redemption. That's where the woman of the
city, which was a sinner, was found. That's where Mary, who
chose the good part, was found at Christ's feet, listening to
His word. The new heart responds to the
gospel and says, all that thou sayest unto me, I will do. And she went down to the floor
and we all must come down. To be risen up, we've got to
come down. To live, we've got to die. There's no higher place
than at the feet of Christ. You know, Naaman was a leper.
He came in all his pomp and arrogancy and grandeur to Elijah. Elijah
didn't even come outside. Didn't even come outside to meet
him. He sent his servant and told Naaman to go wash in the
Jordan, and it made him mad. He said, well, I surely thought,
doesn't he know who I am? I'm the great Naaman, the great
Syrian captain. Doesn't he know who I am? Yes,
he knows that you're a nobody that needs somebody to redeem
you. But when Naomi told Ruth, wash
thyself therefore and anoint thee, and put thy raiment upon
thee, and get down to the floor, that's exactly what she did.
See, friends, if you're lost, if you're poor, if you're needy,
and we all are, in real danger of death, and we are, and God
gives you instruction through the preaching of the gospel,
you'll listen, and you'll do what it commands. Verse 8, And
it came to pass at midnight that the man was afraid, and turned
himself, and behold, a woman lay at his feet. And he said,
Who art thou? It's dark. And she answered,
I am Ruth, thine handmaid. Spread therefore thy skirt over
thine handmaid, for thou art a near kinsman. Here we see the
sinner's confession. When Boaz was startled by Ruth,
by what she did, he said, who are you? Who is this at my feet? And she boldly replied, I'm Ruth. I am Ruth. Do you know what Ruth's
name means? It means I am friend. I am friend. The name Ruth means compassionate
friend. She knew that Boaz knew her name.
Boaz had heard of her. He'd already been so merciful
and gracious to her. Just as the Lord knoweth them
that are His. and confessing her name, she's
confessing what she was. Boaz knew she was a Moabite. Boaz knew she was a stranger
to the land of Bethlehem, Judah. Boaz knew that she was a mercy
beggar. That's why she's leaning in his
field. But she was made a compassionate friend. He had compassion on
her. He loved her. She was poor, she
was bankrupt, she didn't have a penny in need of redemption.
But she confessed, I am thine, handmaid. I belong to you. In her answer, she confesses
that she was willing to be Boaz's servant. She is that one who
came to his house at the edge of the field. The one Boaz bid
to come to his table. The one Boaz commanded to glean
in his field. Does that sound familiar? She's
confessing that she was Boaz's handmaid to show mercy and grace
if he was willing to do so. That's how we come to Christ.
Lord, if I will, you can make me whole. Being at his feet,
she sought his favor and she found grace in the eyes of the
Lord. The word maidservant is a word
that can mean female slave. It was then that she made her
plea. She said, spread therefore thy skirt over thine handmaid. She's asking Boaz to cover his
handmaid with his garment. And that was a symbol of covenant
relationship. It was actually a symbol of marriage. She was saying, Lord, Redeemer,
Make me your wife, make me your bride. That's where God brings
all His people. That's where He brings all His
people. Now on what grounds does she dare ask such? On the grounds
for thou art my kinsman. Thou art my near kinsman." She
asked mercy from Boaz according to the Word of God, which declared
that Boaz was the one who had the right to redeem her. She's
asking Boaz for mercy. She's asking Boaz for grace. She's asking Boaz to take her
as his own. Like that leper that came to
the Lord Jesus and bowed at His feet, she's saying, Lord, if
Thou wilt, Thou can make me clean. Like that publican who smote
on his breast in the temple, Ruth is saying, have mercy on
me, thee sinner. Ruth didn't come feeling entitled. Why do folks today think they're
entitled? They feel like if they, profess Christ or come to Christ
or join the church or whatever, that they're doing God a favor. That's the feeling of entitlement.
But a true bonafide sinner, one that God has revealed to them
their sin, they won't come that way. She came to him in the darkness
of night. Outside of Christ, that's the
only way we can come. She came to him in the position
of a slave. That's the only way we can come.
Unworthy. Unworthy. She knew that He was
the One who had the right to redeem her. Look at verse 10. And he said, blessed be thou
of the Lord, my daughter, for thou hast showed more kindness
in the latter end than in the beginning, than at the beginning,
in as much as thou followest not young men, whether poor or
rich. And now, my daughter, fear not.
I will do to thee all that thou requirest. For all the city of
my people doth know that thou art a virtuous woman. This response that falls from
Boaz's lips is just dripping with grace. And grace to this
Moabite woman whose race was cursed by God. You and I were
a fallen, idolatrous race just like she was, dead in trespasses
and sin until God showed mercy to us. God made us virtuous only
in Christ. By sending the Lord Jesus to
do for us all that God requires of us. And the gospel is seen
in what Boaz says. I will do to thee all that thou
requires. That's the gospel. I will do
to thee, Luann, all that God requires of thee. I will do to
thee, Sharon, All that thou requires. That's exactly what Christ has
said and done for us. All that God requires of us.
All that we could not do for ourselves. Our great Redeemer
has done it for us. Because of Christ's substitution
for us, we are unable to look to no other but our kinsman Redeemer
alone. Because of Christ's substitution,
Ruth followed not the young men, whether rich or poor. In this
world of religion, men and women follow that which best suits
them. They follow, profess to follow Christ so that they might
get something out of it. whether it be health, wealth,
or favor with men. It doesn't have anything to do
with God, but with the believer, it has everything to do with
God. Every sinner drawn of God, the Father who comes to Christ,
begging for mercy, shall hear Christ declare through His Word
to their heart, fear not, I will do to thee all that thou requires. Look at verse, 12, the grace
of the Holy Spirit of God has made every sinner that comes
to Him altogether virtuous. Verse 12, and now it is true
that I am thy near kinsman. Howbeit, there is a kinsman nearer
than I. No doubt that Boaz was a willing
redeemer, but there was something that had to first be settled.
Something must first be done before he could redeem Ruth and
take her to be his wife. There was a kinsman nearer than
he was. There was a kinsman that had
the first right of her redemption. And that issue must be settled
before he could justly redeem her. But as we will see, this
one, though he could redeem her, he would not redeem her. And
then really, you could say he couldn't do it. If he wasn't
willing, he couldn't do it. It was because of the weakness
of the flesh, and that being our flesh. Therefore, by the
deeds of the law shall there no flesh be justified in his
sight. You see, friends, this is so
important. The Lord Jesus could not redeem
us unto himself until and unless the law and the justice of God
was satisfied first. Sin must be punished before the
sinner can be redeemed. God must be honored in the salvation
of the sinner. God can't just sweep our sin
under a rug. It's got to be dealt with. The
wages of sin is death. The soul that sinneth, it must
die and it shall die. God cannot forego His wrath and
justice to save a sinner. God being holy, His law being
holy, must have His justice, which is also holy, satisfied
before God's law, because God's law requires death to the one
who offends it. There's a nearer punishment got
to be dealt with. If that sentence of death isn't
paid in full, then the law of a holy God doesn't mean anything.
Look at verse 13. Terry this night, and it shall
be in the morning, that if he will perform unto thee the part
of a kinsman, well, let him do the kinsman's part. But if he
will not do the part of a kinsman to thee, then will I do the part. of a kinsman to thee, as the
Lord liveth, lie down until the morning." Just rest. Just rest. Don't worry about
it. You're going to be redeemed one way or the other. And the
law can't redeem you. So the Redeemer will. When Ruth
told Naomi, what it transpired. She was like, it's going to be
all right, Ruth, it's going to be okay. And that's what preachers
try to tell God's sheep. It's going to be all right. It's
going to be okay. Everything's going to be all
right. There are two rests found here. Naomi desired for Ruth
to rest and Boaz would not rest until he had redeemed her. Boaz
had given her everything. He gave her grain that he himself
threshed, pitching the handfuls of purpose to the elect of God. He gave her pure grain without
chaff. That pictures Christ giving us
his unadulterated word. And when Ruth returned home,
Naomi assured her of Boaz's faithfulness. That's what we, the church, do
in our preaching. We assure the chosen sinner of
Christ's faithfulness to us. That's the only reason we can
say everything's gonna be all right. Being confident of this
very thing, that He which hath begun a good work in you will
perform it. He will perform it until the
day of Jesus Christ. Faithful is He that calleth you
who also will do it. What a wonderful, wonderful picture
we have of our Lord here in mercy and grace done for us. May God
enable us to fall at Christ's feet, desiring the redemption
that only He can give. If we do, we can be assured that
He will do all that every needy sinner requires, for He's the
one that causes us to desire it. I leave you with the words
of Isaiah, found in Isaiah chapter 55, verse 7. Let the wicked forsake
his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts, and let him
return unto the Lord. That's what Ruth did. That's
what Naomi did. And he'll have mercy upon him,
or her, and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon. You know who that word pardon
means something to? a convicted criminal. It means
something to him. That word pardon means the same
thing as the word redeem. Isn't that something? I am so
thankful that our kinsman redeemer The Lord Jesus Christ redeemed
us according to His mercy and grace. Not anything that we did,
not anything that we deserved, not anything that we earned.
I never grow tired of that message of grace. That's what it is.
The grace of our kinsman Redeemer.