Submission: Ruth presents herself to Boaz
Ruth 3:1–7
December 4 2011
A simple act of faith brings the dawning of a new day
For many years, Naomi’s life has been extremely hard, and I don’t necessarily mean physically hard, for they were that, but spiritually hard, especially since the death of her husband and both her sons. When Naomi lost those three individuals in her life, she in many ways became more than destitute. It is one thing to be homes less and apparently helpless when in your own country, but Naomi was both of these in a foreign country.
Her faith I can imagine was like most of those in the nation of Israel at the time, lack luster at best. Remember why Elimelech took his family out of Bethlehem in the first place; there was a drought in the land, and why was there a drought in the land, the people of Israel had stopped following God.
25 . . . All the people did whatever seemed right in their own eyes.
Naomi had gotten word that God had restored the land and it was once again producing crops, so she decided to return home. Not because of her restored faith in God, but for the simple fact that at least she could at least be less hopeless while she was in her home country.
When Naomi returned home she was still very bitter towards God and what He had put her through, at least from her perspective.
20 Naomi answered the people, “Don’t call me Naomi. n Call me Mara, n because the Almighty has made my life very sad. 21 When I left, I had all I wanted, but now, the Lord has brought me home with nothing. Why should you call me Naomi when the Lord has spoken against me and the Almighty has given me so much trouble?”
But oh what a difference a day can make. When Naomi woke up one morning, she was still very bitter and would not even give a simple blessing to Ruth as she went out to look for food that day for the two of them. When Ruth returns home that night, not only did she return with food for Naomi, she returned with a hope that Naomi could not have even imagined at the start of that day. Now all of a sudden, Naomi’s life takes on new purpose and meaning since a man by the name of Boaz came into Ruth’s life. Naomi stops focusing on her life and starts focusing on getting Ruth a better life. Naomi takes time to Ruth how to have a better life and in the end she is blessed also.
Dietrich Bonhoeffer, the martyred German minister called Jesus Christ “the man for others,” and the title is appropriate. Jesus taught us this simple fact; . It’s when we serve others that we ourselves receive the greatest joy and satisfaction.
3 When you do things, do not let selfishness or pride be your guide. Instead, be humble and give more honor to others than to yourselves. 4 Do not be interested only in your own life, but be interested in the lives of others.
When Ruth returned home that night after working in the field and told Naomi all that had happened that day, Naomi knew that Boaz was interested in Ruth. Now there was all kinds of eligible men that would have most likely loved to have married Ruth, but it was only Boaz that could not only give Ruth a bright future, he was the only one that could also restore Naomi
In this time period it was common for the parents to arrange the marriage of their children, so what Naomi does over the next few verses is not out of place. . So Naomi sets the stage to get Ruth married.
As we go through the rest of the book of Ruth, I want us to keep a simple fact in mind. This book is more than just a story of a Moabite widow marrying a wealthy Jew, it is also a picture of how those who were enemies of God (you and me) can have a relationship with Christ.
These next few verses give us the steps to get us past simply the leftovers and the gifts, as good as they are, but they give us a way to belong to the one who can provide. What’s more important; the gift or the giver.
As the owner of the filed, Naomi knew where Boaz was going to be spending the night, in the field protecting the grain harvest, so she knew that she had to work quickly in order to get Ruth prepared to meet Boaz. As mentioned earlier, there would be many other men who would be willing to marry Ruth, but there was only one that could actually be a true blessing to Ruth, one that could actually redeem her and that was a kinsman.
These next steps that Naomi takes Ruth through is the rituals of a bride preparing herself for marriage.
Ezek. 16:9–12
9 “ ‘Then I bathed you with water, washed all the blood off of you, and put oil on you. 10 I put beautiful clothes made with needlework on you and put sandals of fine leather on your feet. I wrapped you in fine linen and covered you with silk. 11 I put jewelry on you: bracelets on your arms, a necklace around your neck, 12 a ring in your nose, earrings in your ears, and a beautiful crown on your head. 13 So you wore gold and silver. Your clothes were made of fine linen, silk, and beautiful needlework. You ate fine flour, honey, and olive oil. You were very beautiful and became a queen. 14 Then you became famous among the nations, because you were so beautiful. Your beauty was perfect, because of the glory I gave you, says the Lord God.
Every day in the United States, 450 billion gallons of water are used for homes, factories, and farms, enough water to cover Manhattan to a depth of ninety-six feet. In the East, the heat and the dust made frequent washing a necessity; but water was not always plentiful.
With regard to the Jews, the Law of Moses required ceremonial washings, and taking a bath and changing clothes usually preceded a special event Genesis 35:2
2 And Jacob said to his household and to all who were with him, “Put away (turn away from = Repent) the foreign gods that are among you, purify (Remove = wash / burn purpose to cleanse) yourselves, and change your garments.
When we seek a relationship with someone we always want to put our best foot forward. We do that by taking off our dirty clothes, taking a bath and putting on our nice clothes. Its one thing for Boaz to have taken a liking to Ruth in her present condition, but it is quite another for Ruth to intestinally think that Boaz a wealthy individual will take her to be his wife if she continues to live like this.
God has seen and met every single person in their present condition. He accepts you in this condition, the question that we have to ask is can we expect God to continue accept us if we are unwilling to change?
This idea of God being separate or set apart was nothing new to the nation of Israel. For them to approach God in their present condition was not an acceptable thought so in order to approach God they knew that they had to symbolically wash their present condition away for to do any less meant death.
Exodus 30:20 When they go into the tabernacle of meeting, or when they come near the altar to minister, to burn an offering made by fire to the Lord, they shall wash with water, lest they die.
God is willing to wash our records totally clean, but it will only happen if we are willing to surrender the things that defile us before God. This is what Jacob was telling his family when he told them to “PUT AWAY THE FOREIGN GODS.”
What is your foreign god? What do you allow to enter your lives through your eyes, ears and mouth. What books or magazines do you read that do not edify God? What music do you listen to that is disrespectful? What things do you we put into your bodies that disrespect how God designed them to work? We must be willing to separate ourselves from the things that defiles us and ultimately grieves God as our Father.
If we are willing to do that then God says that He will purify us. That washing takes place in our baptism. Too many Christians today rush into the presence of God without first washing themselves clean of the world and they wonder why their worship seems empty and just routine.
1 Peter 3:21
21 Baptism, which corresponds to this, unow saves you, not as a removal of dirt from the body but vas an appeal to God for a good conscience, wthrough the resurrection of Jesus Christ,
It is this simple act that allows the net step to take place.
Eastern peoples used fragrant oils for three basic purposes;
The aspect of anointing oil takes on a much more spiritual aspect than the above mentioned physical aspects; it also represents the presence of the Holy Spirit working on our lives.
Some people today will circumvent the idea of taking a bath and just apply more perfume or cologne in the hopes of it covering up the stench that is underneath, and it may work for a short period of time, but the idea of cologne and perfume is to enhance and not cover up. With that thought in mind when do most people apply perfume, but after bathing?
Dr. A.W. Tozer say, “If God were to take the Holy Spirit out of this world, much of what the church is doing would go right on; and nobody would know the difference.”
In essence Dr. Tozer is saying that we may smell good, but are we actually doing any good? The World just like the church is very good at tossing money at the issues, just don’t ask me to get involved.
Where is the failure or disconnect at?
Acts 2:38 “Change your hearts and lives and be baptized, each one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.
We want to circumvent a step in the process and think it will work. Hope that putting on a good face, (i.e. casting money), will cover up the stench of what’s really underneath when God is asking each one of us to become part of the force to actually clean up the stench.
After Ruth got out of her field clothes and took a bath and put on perfume do you think she put her filed clothes back on to go meet Boaz? Not a chance
3. Changed clothes (Ruth 3:3c). Ruth probably didn’t have a large wardrobe, but she would have one special garment for festive occasions. Naomi had the faith to believe that Ruth would soon be going to a wedding!
In Scripture, clothing carries a spiritual meaning. After Adam and Eve sinned that day in the garden they tried to cover up in their own form of clothing, but it was not acceptable to God. It was only by God’s apparel, and that of the shedding of blood that they could come into His presence. No other garment was acceptable.
Matthew 22:11 -12 “When the king came in to see the guests, he saw a man who was not dressed for a wedding. 12 The king said, ‘Friend, how were you allowed to come in here? You are not dressed for a wedding.’ But the man said nothing
We can’t come into God’s presence in our own righteousness, “All the right things we have done are like filthy pieces of cloth.”
If we are obedient to His will and seek to please Him, then our garments will be white; but if we’ve sinned, we must confess our sins and seek His cleansing
3 Wash yourself, put on perfume, change your clothes, and go down to the threshing floor. But don’t let him know you’re there until he has finished his dinner. 4 Watch him so you will know where he lies down to sleep. When he lies down, go and lift the cover off his feet and lie down. He will tell you what you should do.”
There was nothing improper about this procedure, for it was the only way Ruth could offer herself to her kinsman redeemer. She had to put herself at the feet of the lord of the harvest, and he would do the rest.
Suppose that on her way to the threshing floor, Ruth decided to take a different approach. Why lie at the feet of the man you want to marry? Why uncover his feet and then ask him to put a corner of his mantle over you? Certainly there ought to be a better way! Had she used another approach, Boaz would have been confused; and the entire enterprise would have failed.
The Old Testament priests knew how to approach God because He gave them their instructions in the law. New Testament Christians know how to approach God because in the Word He has told us what is required. Whether in our private communion with the Lord or in public worship, we have no right to alter the principles of approach that God has laid down.
Like the Prodigal Son (Luke 15:11–24), lost sinners can come to the Lord just as they are; and He will receive them and change them. But God’s own children must “conform to the rules” if they want to fellowship with their Father (Heb. 10:19–25
5. Ruth promised to obey (Ruth 3:5). “All that you say to me I will do” (NKJV). She was not only a hearer of the Word, but she was a doer. A willingness to obey the Lord is the secret of knowing what He wants us to do and being blessed when we do it.
The will of God is not a cafeteria where we can pick and choose what we want. God expects us to accept all that He plans for us and to obey Him completely. Coming to God with a hidden agenda and with reservations in our hearts will only lead to grieving the Spirit and missing God’s best.
For those astute individuals listening, what about repentance? Ruth did that when she refused to go back to her people and her gods when Naomi tried to send her back in Ruth 1:16 – 17. All this time Ruth has been hearing the truth and now she has been given further instructions on what it takes to become a family member in Israel. Today, you also have been given further instructions on how to become a child of God.