Meat for the Hungry

www.sarahbmartin.wordpress.com Ruth 4:1-10 Ruth waited, Boaz confronted, and the nearer kinsman declined. But why? Why was Boaz, the near kinsman, able to redeem, where the nearer one could not? Quickly assessing the opportunity, this closer relative realized having Ruth for a wife, would ruin his inheritance. He would be spending his own money to purchase something his children would not inherit. Elimelech’s field would accede to the child he fathered for Mahlon, and he was unable or unwilling to share his inheritance. Therefore, today we come to the most important lesson of this series.

So it has come to this. Through sobs of disbelief and anguish, a strong arm supported her. She took one last gaze upward into the sweet face of the baby she cradled, the boy she nurtured, and the incredible man he had become. How can this be? His once pleasant face now swelled, distorted, bruised and bloodied from the beating. Thorns stabbed his head and his body wrenched in pain. Hanging on this cross, wooden shards relentlessly gouged his open wounds. Thick, rusty spikes gored his hands and feet. Sweat and blood-striped agony gripped him. Yet, his eyes were full of love, not anger. He nodded one last goodbye and she felt John’s nudge. She wanted to stay and protest, to scream aloud the injustice of it all, but how could she watch him die? How could God let this happen? Bewildered, she stepped back.

www.sarahbmartin.wordpress.com Filled with nervous energy, Ruth could barely eat breakfast. Dare she consider the enormous sack of barley occupying their tiny kitchen an engagement gift? Naomi thinks so. Sweet Media But, what about the nearer kinsman? How long will it take Boaz to discuss the matter with him? Will he come to inform her of the outcome immediately, or will he delay until tomorrow? Ruth wanted to marry Boaz and no one else.

sarahbmartin.wordpress.com Before we can move our thoughts to the city gate and Boaz meeting with the closer relative, we must understand the Law of God in relation to the near kinsman. In Leviticus 25:25, God gave a close relative the right to redeem or buy back a possession a poor brother or kinsman had sold. With Deuteronomy 25:5-10, God conveyed His requirement for a man to marry his brother's widow, if they had no child to carry on the family name. When the surviving brother married the widow, the law would consider her firstborn son to be the son of her dead husband. A brother could refuse this familial obligation, but at great cost. The widow would then publicly shame him by spitting in his face and removing his sandal, thus disgracing his name in all Israel.

lisswoodcraftfolk,org,uk If you, like me, live in the north, then you too, are looking forward to warmer weather. I know my calendar says spring, but I haven’t yet seen enough sunshine, to blast away those winter blues. Where, oh where, is the green ? Hey, did you ever say or write a word that instantly sparks a memory? For me, just typing the word “ green ” brought one to mind. It reminded me of the Wordless Book. Now, this is not the message I had planned to write, but do any of you know what I mean?

sarahbmartin.wordpress.com Ruth 3:12-18:   Silvery moonlight illumined the threshing floor as Boaz gazed at Ruth. Barely able to make out her facial features, still he knew her eyes were full of hope. In his heart, he felt they were to wed, but there was another, a nearer kinsman who might stand in their way. Boaz was well acquainted with this man, and although he hated even the thought of his grubby hands on Ruth, Boaz knew the law favored the closer relative. Trying not to alarm Ruth, Boaz spoke softly, gently whispering his dilemma in fulfilling her request. “Yes, I am a close relative; however, there is a kinsman closer than I. We will speak in the morning and if he chooses to redeem you, then the matter is out of my hands. But, if he cannot, then I will. Stay here until dawn. It is not safe for you to travel back to your home at this hour of the night.”

sarahbmartin.wordpress.com Emerging from her hiding place, Ruth carried out Naomi’s instructions to the last detail. While Boaz slept, “… she came softly, uncovered his feet, and lay down . Now it happened at midnight that the man was startled, and turned himself; and there, a woman was lying at his feet.” ( Ruth 3:7-8) When we study the book of Ruth, we must remember the symbolism our great God has built into this amazing true story. Ruth, as we have seen in past lessons, represents the church, the bride of Christ, and Boaz, our Lord Jesus Christ. Therefore, where we find Ruth in relation to Boaz is important. She is at his feet. This is a place of submission, a position of humility, and an attitude of surrender and expectation. Ruth, helpless and vulnerable, looked to Boaz for hope and a future.