The Kinsman Redeemer

Q: What does the Bible say about kinsman redeemer?

The Bible presents Boaz as a kinsman redeemer in the Book of Ruth, symbolizing Christ's redemptive work for His people. The concept of a kinsman redeemer is rooted in the Old Testament, particularly in the Book of Ruth. Boaz, as Ruth's kinsman redeemer, illustrates the Gospel message, where he steps in to redeem Ruth and Naomi from their poverty and despair. This act serves as a foreshadowing of Christ, who is our ultimate kinsman redeemer, having taken on human flesh to save His people from sin and death. The role of a kinsman redeemer included the responsibility to buy back what was lost and to provide for the family, which Boaz exemplified as he protected Ruth and restored her rightful place.

Q: How do we know Jesus is our redeemer?

Jesus fulfills the role of redeemer by paying the price for our sins, as prophesied in Scripture, and demonstrated through His sacrificial death. We affirm that Jesus Christ is our redeemer based on the fulfillment of Old Testament typology and the explicit teachings of the New Testament. Just as Boaz redeemed Ruth through legal and familial obligation, Christ redeems us through His sacrifice. The Scriptures declare that He bore our sins and reconciled us to God, fulfilling the demands of justice against sin. Passages such as Ephesians 1:7 illustrate this point; in Christ, we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of His grace. Thus, through His substitutionary atonement, believers are assured of their redemption and eternal life.

Q: Why is God's grace important for Christians?

God's grace is fundamental for Christians as it is the means by which we are saved and enabled to live a life pleasing to Him. Grace is central to the Christian faith, being the unmerited favor of God that leads to salvation. In Ephesians 2:8-9, we learn that by grace we are saved through faith, and this is not our own doing; it is the gift of God. This notion of grace highlights the sovereignty of God in salvation — that it is His initiative that brings us to faith. Furthermore, grace empowers believers to live according to God’s will, providing strength in our weaknesses and assurance of His ongoing presence. Understanding grace helps Christians avoid the trap of legalism and cultivates a heart of gratitude and worship, as we realize that all we have is a gift from God.

I read the story some years ago of a very young preacher who was invited to speak to a
congregation in a little Welch village, and he considered it quite an
honor So he studied and prepared for
several days. And then the time came for him
to preach. And he stood before the congregation
and delivered the message that he felt impressed to bring to
them. And when he finished the message,
he felt quite good about it. And he was standing down in front
of the pulpit shaking hands with the people as they fouled by. And he spotted in the line an
old white-haired elder for whom he had great respect
and admiration. And as the people were coming
by and expressing their appreciation for the message, the old elder
finally stood face to face with the young man. And he didn't say a word. He
just put out his hand. And would have passed on by,
but the young man drew him back. And he said, I'm interested to
know what you thought of my message. And the bold, old gentleman said
to him, it was a very poor sermon, and started to leave. And he
pulled him back again. And he said, I don't understand.
He said, I thought it was a good sermon. Well, the old man said
it was a poor sermon, son. He said, but I studied, and I
worked hard on that sermon. He said, that was obvious. You
prepared. And it was obvious. He said,
but I had some good illustrations. Didn't you think I had some good
illustrations? He said, you had some good illustrations
and you illustrated well. Still a poor sermon. The young man said, well, my
delivery. Did you find fault with my delivery? No. He said,
you're a polished speaker, young man. You'll go far. But it was
still a poor sermon. He said, why do you say that?
He said, son, because there was no Christ in your sermon. Any
sermon that does not have Christ in it is a poor sermon, no matter
how well it's prepared or illustrated or delivered. And the young man wouldn't leave
him alone. And he said to the old man, he
said, but Christ was not in the text. And the old gentleman said, son, Christ is in every text. To Him give all the prophets
witness. He said Himself, search the Scriptures,
for in them you think you have life. They are they which testify
of Me. And I say unto you, in every
text there is a road that leads to the cross of Jesus Christ. And your business, son, as a
preacher, is to find that road Get on it as soon as you can. Well, in the book of Ruth, we have Christ. Have you seen Christ in the book
of Ruth? About all the average person knows about the book of
Ruth. Now, be honest. Be honest. about all the average
person knows about the book of Ruth is that little speech that
Ruth made to Naomi. That's right. And the average
preacher, when he preaches from the book of Ruth, that's what
he preaches from, that speech that Ruth made when Naomi was
trying to get the two girls to stay in Moab and let her go back
to Judah alone. And Ruth said, don't make me
leave you. Where you go, I go. Where you
lodge, I lodge. Your God will be my God. Your
people will be my people. And where you die, I'll die.
And where you're buried, that's where I'll be buried. And God,
do so to me if that's not true." And when we preach on that, and
I admire her. Believe me, I do. That was a
great, great, great testimony. Outstanding. Devotion, loyalty,
faithfulness. I tell you, God was taking her
to Judah. That wasn't all born of Ruth,
that was born of the grace of God that he put within her. If it hadn't been for the grace
of God, she'd have stayed down there just like the other girl
did. But when we read that and preach
from that, we come away with high thoughts of Ruth and no
thoughts of Christ. But let me tell you, let me give
you this morning what is the message of the book of Ruth.
God didn't devote four chapters to a pagan girl who stuck by
her mother-in-law. You see, a man called Elimelech,
who was a wealthy and prosperous Jew, he sold out. He had property
and cattle and holdings. He had two sons, Elimelech, his
wife Naomi, and two boys. And things got tough, got a little
tough in Judah and Bethlehem, so he sold out and he made the
terrible mistake of leaving the country God had given to Abraham
and his people and went to a pagan, heathen, idolatrous society in
Moab. And he wasn't there long until
he died. And his two boys married Moabite women. And these two
boys lived with these Moabite women, Ruth and her, and the
other girl, Orpha, they lived with them only ten years and
both these boys died. And they only heard that back
in in Judah that things were better, that God was blessing
and had given rain and crops were growing and the people were
more prosperous, but she was broke. She was poverty stricken. She didn't have a thing. Her
husband had died some years since and our two boys were dead and
she was a widow and she had nothing. Had no welfare programs then
or social security or anything like that. She had nothing. And
she told these girls, I've got to go back to Judah. I've got
to go back to where I can get something to eat. I've got some
friends and kinfolks up there and I'm going back home. Now
you stay here and marry, do what you want to. And that's when
Ruth said, I'm going with you. So the two of them, verse 19,
let's look at it, Ruth 1, verse 19. So the two of them went,
they journeyed, they walked evidently, I'm sure they did, just the two
of them. And they came to Bethlehem. And it came to pass when they
would come to Bethlehem that all the city, the ladies evidently
were out by the well or somewhere out there in the gardens or wherever
they were, but they saw these two women coming. I picture them,
Naomi, now up in years and stooped quite a bit, wrinkled and sorrow
and trouble and poverty had taken away her strength and beauty.
She's bent over and here's this young lady with her and they're
both dressed very poorly, very poorly. They'd been on the road
a long time, face dusty and hair pulled back and scarf over their
heads and walking in old clothes, ragged probably and all the city
was moved about them and they said, is this Naomi? Is this the person that left
here? When she left, she left with her husband and two sons,
and they rode out with plenty, evidently a chariot and wagons,
and took some cattle with them, and they were prosperous people.
You see, he sold his land, got a good sum for it. He was going
to another country, and here she comes back walking, and years
older, and poverty-stricken. You see, that's a picture of
the fall, that's a picture of what happened to us. That's a
picture of what happened to us in the Garden of Eden. That's
a picture of our terrible fall. You see, Adam was a king, prince,
genius, had plenty, and he fell. And they said, is this Naomi?
And I look at me and you, and I go to the rest homes. The other
day, Darsh and I went up to Decatur, Georgia to visit Brother
Breedlove's son. Pastor Breedlove's son, who was
in a terrible accident almost a year ago. A train hit his truck
and he had severe head injuries. And it's been this long. even
getting some rehabilitation. We went to see him. And this
is an entire home of young men, all in their 20s and 30s, who've
had head injuries, brain damage. And it's so sad. It's just so
sad. They're wandering around there
and can hardly walk. And they have the strangest look
on their faces. And they'll come up to you. you
know, want to shake hands with you. They have that blank look
and expression on their faces. And the one said he used to be
a singer. And then in the room I saw a picture of a handsome
young man in a tuxedo like I see just standing in front of me
a lot down here in weddings. And he was just so handsome. And he said that's him sitting
out there in the wheelchair all bent over like this. And when these women gathered
around this woman, and they said, is this the one that left here?
Is this Naomi? Is this the beautiful, prosperous,
wealthy woman? She said, no. Don't call me Naomi. Don't call me pleasant and sweet.
You just call me bitter. Bitter, bitter, bitter. The Almighty
hath dealt bitterly. with me. I'm not the same. I went out full, prosperous,
wealthy, healthy, happy, and I came back empty. And that's us. I look at those
young men and I say, is this the man God created in His image?
Is this the man? Is this human? Is this what God
made? Is this what God created and
said it's good? When God made Adam and Eve, that
beautiful couple, so brilliant and handsome and happy and kingly
and princely and powerful, and God said it's good! Now look
at us. Old and bent and broken and sinful
and dying and wretched and See, that's what's happened. That's what's happened. We don't
look anything like what Spurgeon told a story one time. He said
that during the time of depression in England, in London, that the
tabernacle organized a soup line to feed hungry people off the
streets. And he said that the ladies of
the tabernacle and the men fixed up a line where people off the
streets could just come in and get a bowl of soup and go sit
down and eat it. And he said he was standing there
one day behind the person serving the soup and he looked in line
and there stood a man and Spurgeon said those clothes he had on
were not just common beggar clothes, those were the clothes of a gentleman.
They were worn, and they were ragged, and they were dirty,
but they were fine linen and fine clothes. He said, I recognize
that that man at one time had been a gentleman, but now dirty
and beard grown and poverty stricken, he stood in those what were once
fine clothes now tattered and torn and worn, and he held out
his the bowl to get some soup, and he caught Spurgeon's eye. And his eyes kind of dropped
down, Spurgeon said. Then he looked back up at him
and said, Mr. Spurgeon, I've seen better days. I've seen better days. We have
too, way back yonder. And we may retain just enough
of the image of God that it might be said we were created in His
image. But we have fallen so far and
so low, so wretched, so poverty-stricken beggars. That's what Cecil calls
us all the time, mercy beggars. Beggars, dunghill dwellers. And
that's what came back. Well, all right, let's move on. So Naomi returned and Ruth the
Moabitess, her daughter-in-law with her, which returned out
of the country of Moab, and they came to Bethlehem in the beginning
of the barley harvest. You know what barley is? I didn't know either. But barley
is kind of a, it's a thing that grows and it's similar to wheat,
but barley back then was used by poor people only. It's a poor
crop. It's used for bread. But it was
usually mixed with wheat, mixed with something to give it a little
bit of value. Usually it was just fodder for
the horses. That's what barley was. But the poor people used
it for bread. And this was the barley harvest.
There was a lot of barley growing. And chapter 2 now, verse 1, And
Naomi had a kinsman of her husband's, a fellow that was kin to her
husband, a mighty man of wealth, of the family of Elimelech, and
his name was Boaz. And Ruth the Moabite said to
Naomi, let me now go to the Theor, and glean ears of corn, that
is barley, after him in whose sight I should find grace. And
Naomi said to her, go my daughter. Now let me tell you something
here. It was a custom back here, it was a custom, that when the
barley harvest was going on, and they didn't harvest with
the big tractors and things like that, they had the fellas with
the with the scythes, as you call them, you know, they cut
the barley and cut the wheat and cut the grain and they bundled
it up in bundles. But when they were cutting it
and bundling it, there were pieces of barley left. And it was the
custom to allow poor people. Now this is the poorest, this
is an embarrassing thing. This is the poorest of people
who have no land, who have no homes, who have nothing, to allow
them to follow the reapers. and pick up whatever they left.
They'd carry little sacks and they'd pick up here and there
and yonder. Here goes the reapers and here
comes the ragged poor beggars back there picking up whatever
they could, hands full, and taking them home and doing what they
could with it. And that's what Ruth went out there to do. She
told her mother, they didn't have anything. And she said,
I'm going out and follow the reapers. If somebody will let
me get in their field and follow the reapers and pick up some
whatever I can, so we can eat something. And Naomi said, go,
and Naomi's old and not able. So Ruth, the young woman, went
out. All right, verse 3. And she came and leaned in the
field after the reapers. Verse 3, chapter 2, and her hap,
the word is it happened. Now, my friends, you know this
preacher, and I know you, and I know what we believe, what
this Bible teaches. There are no accidents with God.
I said from the start, when they were down in Moab, there's no
accident that Ann Limelech went to Moab. He went after Ruth while
he went after her. There's no accident. She decided
to come to Judah. God enabled her. God led her.
God determined she'd be there. And she went out in this field,
and she happened. to light on the part of the field
belonging to Boaz. This is that kin, folks. This
is that fellow that's kin to Elimelech, her dead father-in-law. This is that wealthy, mighty,
powerful man who owns half the county. And he was a kindred
of Elimelech. All right, verse 4. Now watch
this. And behold, it just so happened about that time when
Ruth walked out in the field, here comes Boaz. Do you believe
that? Do you believe it just happened? Do you believe it's
an accident? Oh no, that's a divine grace, divine predestination. She went out there in the field,
this little ragged girl, this little boy-bite woman, widow,
pick up some things, and Boaz came riding out on his beautiful
white stallion with his saddle blankets, you know, and his...
And Boaz said to the reapers, verse 4, Lord be with you, Lord
be with you. And they said, Lord bless you
too. Then said Boaz to the servant over the reapers, he said, who's
the young lady there? He took notice of Ruth. This
mighty, wealthy, powerful man. There are a lot of folks out
there in that field, a lot of reapers, a lot of servants. This
is the barley harvest, the sun's shining. They're going to get
the crop in before the rain came, you know. And all these folks
out there and all these beggars and all, and this girl had all
this stuff on, pulled out over her head and carrying it, picking
up things, and he said, who's that? And I'll tell you this, he was
attracted to her. And his attention went to her
before she ever saw him. She wasn't even mindful of him.
She certainly, if she had looked up and seen him, she wouldn't
have looked back again because she was so far beneath him and
far beyond any recognition on his part. She would have been
afraid to speak to him in her beggarly condition. But, ah,
he loved her. He loved her. Christ loved us
even when we were dead in sins. Christ loved us even when we
were beggars. Enemies. Enemies. Far beneath Him. Like the love
of Boaz for Ruth is the love of my Lord for me. And I'll tell
you this. He said to the reapers, down
here in verse 8, chapter 2, verse 8, Well, he said to Ruth, he
went over to her and he said, now my daughter, verse 8, hear
me, hearest thou not my daughter? You don't go in another field,
don't go from hence, you stay fast by my maidens, and let your
eyes be on the field that they do reap, and you go thou after
them, have I not charged the young men, they won't touch you.
And when you are thirsty, you go to the vessels and you drink,
of that which the young men have drawn. They're going to draw
water for you. All these folks are going to be your servants,
take care of you. And when you're thirsty, you go drink of the
water that they've drawn. And they're not going to touch
you, I'm going to protect you. Look at verse 15, And when she
had risen up to glean, Boaz commanded his young men, saying, Let her
glean even among the sheaves. Let her get out there where it
hadn't even been cut yet. Oh my, don't you reproach her.
Don't you shame her. Don't you hurt her. And why don't
you just let fall also some handfuls on purpose. In other words, when
you're cutting there and bundling up, just take a great big bundle
and throw it back there where she is. You know something? I see this picture here. I see
this picture of us. Here's a heathen. This woman's
a heathen. She's not even an Israelite.
She's a heathen from Moab. And here she is in his field
and she's ragged and dirty and a beggar and so far beneath him. And here this man of quality
and character and wealth and power sets his affection on her
and he takes care of her even in her poverty. He draws a hedge
around her and says, don't you touch her. Don't you touch him.
When she wants something to eat, you give it to her. When she
wants something to drink, you give it to her. She didn't have
any love for him. She didn't even know him. She
didn't know he was kinfolks. And I'll tell you this, our Lord
has a people in this dirty race, in this foul and corrupt community.
He's got a people among the They have a tribe, kindred, nation,
tongue, and they have not only the Moabites, but the Irish.
He even loves some Irish. Did you know that? And some of
you Italians, he loves some of you all. And some of these Greeks,
and some of these Jews, and some of these blacks, and some of
these Chinese, and Japanese, and Koreans, and the Lord has
a people. And he sent his love on them,
and that he takes care of them from the cradle to the grave.
He takes care of them for they know Him, for they love Him,
for they come to Him, for they have any recognizable relationship
with Him. But He owns them. He looked at
Ruth and said, She's mine. You fellas be good to her. Be
good to her. She didn't know it, but He knew
it. He knew it. Well, boy, she got a whole lot
of money. You can imagine. It says down
here in verse 19, and her mother-in-law said to her, where have you gleaned
today? She came in, let's read verse
18. So she took it up, she gleaned the ephraim. Somebody said that
was from a half a bushel to a bushel. But she got about a bushel of
barley and took it up and went to the city, and her mother-in-law
saw what she had gleaned, and she brought forth and gave to
her that she had reserved after she had survived. And her mother-in-law
said, Where have you gleaned today, and where did you rout
us now? Blessed be he, that man, whoever
he was, it did take knowledge of you. Bless that man, whoever
he was. And she showed her mother-in-law
with whom she had routed. And she said, well, the man's
name with whom I walk today is Boaz. Oh, boy. Boy, when she said Boaz, when
she said Boaz, that's the magic name. Naomi, verse 20, said to
her, daughter-in-law, blessed is he of the Lord who has not
left off his kindness to the living and the dead. and my dead
husband and sons. And they always said to her,
do you know who Boaz is, daughter? Boaz, that man is next of kin
to us. One of our next kinsmen. Underscore
that right there. One of our next kinsmen. Do you
have a Bible that says in the margin, one that has the right
to redeem? Is that what your Bible says?
One that has the right to redeem. Well, do you know this is in
the book of Ruth over and over again? Chapter 2, verse 1, Naomi had a kinsman,
underscore it. Chapter 2, verse 20, this man
is our near next kinsman, our kinsman. Chapter 3, verse 9, Look at it. He said, Who are
you? She said, I'm Ruth. Thy handmaid
spread, therefore, thy skirt over thy handmaid. Thou art a
near kinsman, one who has the right to redeem. Chapter 4, verse
14, And the women said to Naomi, Blessed be the Lord, which hath
not left thee this day without a kinsman, one who has the right
to redeem. Now where does that come from?
Well, turn back to the book of Leviticus, chapter 25. I'm going
to give you this briefly, Leviticus 25. You see, this land wasn't a big
land, Bethlehem, Judah, or any of the places that the Jews occupied. So, God said in chapter 25 of
Leviticus, verse 23, the land shall not be sold forever. For
the land is mine, and you are strangers and sojourners, and
in all the land of your possessions you shall grant a redemption
for the land. If your brother be poor and has
sold away some of his possessions, and if any of his kin, his kinfolks,
come to redeem it, then shall he redeem that which his brother
sold." In other words, when you sold a piece of land after so
long a time, a near kinsman could buy it back for you, everything
you sold. And if you didn't have a near
kinsman to buy it back, 49 years, it all came back anyway. Year
of Jubilee, don't you remember? So the land never was given over. Maybe we ought to tell the Japanese
out here in this country that in seven years kinfolks can buy
it back. And in 49 years it comes back
anyway. That's right. Better. Well, that's
the way it was there. But you had to have a kinsman.
Now watch it. That kinsman had to be able to buy it. He had
to be a kinsman first. He had to be kin to you. A stranger
couldn't buy it. It'd be the same thing selling
it again. But a kinsman. Secondly, he had to be able to
buy it back. And thirdly, he had to be willing. He had to
be willing. And so Naomi, she just got excited. She said, he's our kinsman. He's
our kinsman. He can... Here's Naomi and her
daughter-in-law, Ruth, sitting down there in utter poverty.
They had nothing. See, the Father had sold everything. Sold it down the river. They
had nothing. Our Father sold us down the river,
Adam. We don't have a thing. I'm telling
you, spiritually, we don't have a leg to stand on, or a spot
to build on. We're poverty-stricken. But we
got a kinsman. Christ is my blood of my blood and bone of my bone
and flesh of my flesh. He's my kinsman. He's kin. He's made like unto his brethren. We studied that this morning.
He came to this earth and took on himself flesh and bones and
blood and walked this earth. He's my kinsman. And he's powerful. He's able to restore my soul. He's able. Because he has somewhat
to give. He's a high priest and he has
blood to offer. And He's with Him. That's why He came. He restores my soul. Christ came
to redeem us. Christ came to give us back,
to buy back for us. He had to pay the price to justice
and to the law who owned us. And He bought us back. Now, what
are we going to do? Alright, verse chapter 3. Verse 1, chapter 3, Then Naomi
her mother-in-law said to Ruth, My daughter, shall I not seek
rest for thee, that it may be well with thee? Now is not Boaz
our kinsman? There's that word again, our
kindred, with whose maidens you were today. Behold now, he wintereth
barley tonight in the threshing floor. I know where he is. We
need to listen to these old dear ladies, you know it. And old
men, that's right. They know something about the
gospel. And this dear old lady was talking to this young girl,
and she said, now you want, I desire the best for you, verse 3. Now
you wash yourself, and you anoint yourself, you put on your raiment,
get out whatever you got that's best. And you go down to the
threshing floor, and don't you say anything to this man. He
doesn't owe you anything. Now wait a minute, he's rich
and powerful, prestigious, And He's our kinsman, but we got
ourselves in this mess. He doesn't owe us anything. He
doesn't have to redeem us. I wish we'd get that through
our head. God doesn't owe us anything. People rush into the
Lord's presence and demand things of God Almighty. That's not the
way. Well, I'm going to accept Jesus.
Well, you better find out if He'll accept you. That's right,
in your arrogance and pride, and God owes you this, that,
and the other. And Naomi was telling this girl, right, she
said, don't you say anything to him until he's finished eating
and drinking. And it shall be when he lies
down to rest that you mark the place, you watch where he lies
down, and you go in and uncover his feet. That's some instruction
to give a young, beautiful girl, isn't it? You go uncover his feet, and
you lay down at his feet. I preached not long ago on a
sinner that found mercy at his feet. Do you remember? Mary always
sat at his feet. And he told Martha, he said,
she's chosen the good thing. You humble yourself. You come
down. You humble yourself, girl. This
man's powerful and wealthy and he's our kinsman. He's able to
redeem us. But you let him know that you
know that if he does it, it'll be grace. and not death. So don't you try
to act like an equal. You get down at his feet. He'll
tell you what to do. And she said to her mother, Mother-in-law,
all that you say to me, I'll do. And she went down into the
floor and did according to all her mother-in-law bad her. And
when Boaz had eaten and drunk, 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 lay down at his feet. He said, dogs
lie down at people's feet. That's right, and all dogs go
to heaven, too. Don't they? This was a Gentile
dog. That's what she was. That's what
you are, too. Excuse me. That's what I am. And it came
to pass at midnight that the man was afraid and turned to
himself, and behold, a woman lay at his feet. And he said,
Who are you? She said, I'm Ruth. thy handmaid,
spread therefore thy skirt over thy handmaid, you're the only
one who can redeem me. You're my near kinsman. You can
redeem me." Oh, I like that, don't you? You're my only hope.
And he said, Blessed be thou, the Lord, my daughter. Now, you
can't carry a picture earthly. See, a parable is an earthly
story with a heavenly meaning. But since it is an earthly story,
it's going to have twists and turns that cannot be applied
to that perfect, heavenly, spiritual truth and gospel. So you have
him bragging on her and things like that, and God doesn't brag
on us. He said, verse 10, Blessed be thou of the Lord, my daughter.
Thou has shown more kindness in the latter end than at the
beginning, inasmuch as thou followest not young men, whether poor or
rich. And now, my daughter, fear not. I'll do to thee all that
is required, for all the city of my people doth know thou art
a virtuous woman. And now it is true, I am thy
near kinsman. There it is again. I'm the one. But wait a minute, Ruth. I've
got a flash of light here. There's a kinsman nearer than
me. There's another fellow that's
got the first claim on you. Somebody else has got to be satisfied
before I can do this. Alright, read on. Tell you this
night, and in the morning, And it shall be in the morning that
if he will perform unto thee the part of a kinsman, if he
can buy back what your lost inheritance, then we'll let him do the kinsman
part. But if he'll not do the part of the kinsman, I will.
I'll do the part of the kinsman. As the Lord liveth, you lie down
till the morning." And she laid his feet till the morning. And
she arose. He took up her case now. He's
on her side. He always has been, but he is
now openly. So the next morning, She rose
before one could know another, and he said, Let it not be known
that a woman came to this floor. And he said, Bring the veil thou
hast upon thee, and hold it. And when she held it, he measured
six measures of barley, laid it on her, and she went to the
city. How good he was to her, like our Lord does. When she
came to her mother-in-law, she said, Who art thou, my daughter? And she told her all that the
man had done to her, and she said, These six measures of barley
gave he me, for he said to me, Go not empty to your mother-in-law.
And then the mother-in-law said, Sit still, my daughter. Sometimes
people think I'm a little too... I give people too much time to
figure this thing out. But Naomi told her that, said,
You sit still. Sit still until you know how
the matter will fall. You wait on God. He went on,
the man not rest until he's finished this thing this day. He's going
to finish what he set out to do. You sit still. You'll finish
it. So, then went Boaz chapter 4. I'm going to wind this up. Now
watch it. Then went Boaz up to the gate. Boaz comes to the gate
with one purpose. To redeem Ruth. Isn't that right? He wants Ruth. So he came to
the gate and sat down. Behold, a kinsman, of whom Boaz
spake, came by, unto whom he said, Ho, such a one, turn aside
and sit down here. He turned aside and sat down.
Brethren, where are you going? You know who has a claim on you
and me? The law of God. The justice of God. Isn't that
right? The law of God. That's right. God has put a law
on everybody. Everybody is under God's law.
And so Christ has to deal with the law. He's going to redeem
me. He's got to deal with the law. Isn't that right? And so
he took ten men of the elders of the city and said, sit down.
And they sat down. And he said to the kinsmen, now
Naomi that's come again out of the country of Moab, sell us
a parcel of land, which was our brother Limelech's. And I thought
to advertise thee saying, buy it before the inhabitants and
before the elders of my people. If you'll redeem it, redeem it.
If you'll not redeem it, tell me that I may know. For there's
none to redeem it besides thee and I after thee." And he said,
well, I'll redeem it. The law said, I'll redeem it.
And then Boaz said, well, when you do, what day you buy the
field, the hand of Naomi, you must buy it also of Ruth. the
wife of the dead, to raise up the name of the dead upon her
inheritance." In other words, he says to that near kin, you
got to marry Ruth and raise up sons. And he said, I can't do
it. I can't do it. Verse 6, I cannot
redeem it myself, lest I mar my own inheritance. The law takes
a look at me. Our Lord said unto the law, you
redeem him. The law said, I'll redeem him.
And he takes a look at me and said, I can't. I can't redeem him. If I take
him into the house, I don't become law anymore. I'm ruined. Justice
of God. Christ said to justice, you redeem
him. Justice says, I'll redeem him. And then he looks at me
and you and says, I can't redeem him. If I got to be a part of
him, if I got to take him in, if I got to declare him holy
and perfect, ain't nothing I can do for him. Or I'll mar my own
character. And Boaz said, well, I'll take
her. I'll take her. Oh boy, oh boy. And Boaz, verse
9, said to the elders and all the people, you witnesses this
day, I've bought all that was Adam's. That's what Christ said. All that was Chilean's and Malan's
and the hand of Naomi, moreover Ruth the Moabitess, the wife
of Malon, I purchased to be my wife. Isn't that beautiful? I made
her my wife, and our Lord Jesus Christ bought us and made us
His bride. And you know who Ruth was? Read
on down here. So Boaz, verse 13, took Ruth,
she was his wife, he went into her, the Lord gave her conception,
she bear a son, and the women said to Naomi, they sang praises,
that's what I'm doing this morning. I'm doing what these women did.
I'm just telling you, blessed be the Lord who didn't leave
you without a kinsman. Blessed be the Lord who didn't
leave you without a Redeemer. Blessed be the Lord who didn't
leave you without somebody to love you and save you. That His
name may be famous in Israel. Oh yeah. So, verse 16, Naomi
took the child and laid it in her bosom and became a nurse
to it. And the women, her neighbors,
gave it a name. This little boy got a name. This
is the son born to Naomi, grandson. See, they just use this interchangeably. Like, that's Bob's son there,
but he's my son too, you know. And Naomi, that's her son too. It's Ruth's son, born of Boaz. What was his name? Obed. Well,
who's Obed? He's the father of Jesse. Who's
Jesse? He's the father of David. Oh,
isn't God good? scraggly-haired, stringy-haired,
poverty-stricken, bankrupt bum of a girl that wandered up from
Moab, she became the great-grandmother of King David. You talk about
a mother in Israel. Oh, the grace of God. But I'm
telling you, folks, don't give me this you-do-it-and-God-does-it
part. It's all of grace. It's all of grace. And I'm sure
Ruth went to her grave praising God for His grace. He sought
me. He bought me. He found me. And He brought me home. My kinsman
redeemer. Alright, let's sing a closing
hymn. Let's sing number 475 to the new tune, Redeemed. Number
475.

The Kinsman Redeemer

What does the Bible say about kinsman redeemer?

How do we know Jesus is our redeemer?

Why is God's grace important for Christians?

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The Kinsman Redeemer

What does the Bible say about kinsman redeemer?

How do we know Jesus is our redeemer?

Why is God's grace important for Christians?

Sermon Transcript

About Henry Mahan

Comments

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