Intro Story

• Twilight Zone Clip – S01E12 – What You Need 3:30–4:45

[Welcome]. The Twilight Zone

Previously on Ruth

• Ruth and Naomi have lost everything and leave Moab for Israel.
• 1:19 – “Excited by their arrival”
• Naomi was bitter, Ruth decided to glean
• Happened upon Boaz’s field
• Made the big, bold ‘ask’.
• Boaz says ‘Yes’ and tells Ruth to stay in his field and with his harvesters, who will make sure she is safe.

Now, let’s pick it up in verse 9b.

The Passage

9b “And when you are thirsty, help yourself to the water they have drawn from the well.”

Notice the inversion here! Typically it is the role of women and foreigners to draw water, meaning that Israelite men would typically be the beneficiaries of this work. But here we have Israelite men drawing water for a foreign woman. What a reversal! An inversion! A subversion of expectations. Boaz goes above and beyond in granting Ruth’s bold request. Not only is she allowed to glean and gather, but he also provides her with protection and water to keep her body fuelled for the work ahead.

10 Ruth fell at his feet and thanked him warmly. “What have I done to deserve such kindness?” she asked. “I am only a foreigner.”

“Fell at his feet” is kind of an undersell here. Ruth would have dropped to her knees, then bowed down in front of Boaz until her forehead touched the dirt. She is making herself prone and vulnerable to her benefactor. This is a posture of submission. She is recognizing that even though she has asked for more than her legal provision, Boaz has granted her even more than that. And don’t forget – because Boaz hasn’t – that Ruth isn’t just gleaning for one. She has Naomi, wallowing in a pit of self-pity, also depending on her to provide sustinance.

Ruth recognizes that she is nobody. Ruth recognizes that she is owed nothing. And Ruth recognizes that she has nothing to offer outside of her gratitude. And she says as much when she closes her response with “I am only a foreigner”. An outsider. An other. 

11 “Yes, I know,” Boaz replied.

And Boaz knows this, too! But if Boaz knows this, then why is he so kind? Is he always this way? Is he aware – SPOILER ALERT – that Naomi and Ruth are relatives of his, and so he feels the need to take care? Does he perhaps have romantic designs? Let’s keep reading.

11 “But I also know about everything you have done for your mother-in-law since the death of your husband. I have heard how you left your father and mother and your own land to live here among complete strangers. 12 May the Lord, the God of Israel, under whose wings you have come to take refuge, reward you fully for what you have done.”

Do you remember back at the end of Ruth (1:19) when we learned that Naomi and Ruth’s arrival in Bethlehem caused a stir? A buzz? Well that stir buzzed all over town. I wonder if everyone knew Ruth and Naomi’s story!

The point is this: Boaz knew Ruth’s story. He knows her loss. He knows her sacrifice. He knows her priorities. He knows her… heart. Perhaps this has influenced Boaz’s generous spirit? But that’s not all, Boaz says a little prayer where he pray that the Lord will reward Ruth fully.

Reward you fully. This phrase means to pay a debt. It brings with it the idea of wholeness, restoration, and completeness. Ruth and both given and lost so much, and Boaz recognizes that no amount of generosity on his part can bring about that completeness, wholeness, that restoration that Ruth needs. This is not a skill that lies in human hands. All the stuff, all the things cannot bring wholness, it cannot make us complete. Rather that is the Lord’s work to do. But let’s stick that in our pocket for now.

13 “I hope I continue to please you, sir,” she replied. “You have comforted me by speaking so kindly to me, even though I am not one of your workers.”

Interestingly, the word translated in the NLT as “me” actually means servant. And a lower form of servant than the other workers she mentions. This is to say, even if I were considered one of your servants, I would still be a foreigner – an outsider – and not entitled to their rights and priviledges. Ruth does not seek to elevate herself. We see this over and over and over again from her. Ruth is not trying to claw her way to the top. Ruth is not fighting for status. Ruth is not fighting for position. She is not seeking personal gain, simply to meet the needs of her family. Another thought that we should perhaps stick in our pockets for later.

Also notice that Ruth – eternally self-effacing – clearly states her goal. To please her benefactor. She has seen, rather quickly, the fruits of a life lived with loyalty, respect, hard work, and trustworthiness. Not only can she feel good about her decisions, but she is also afforded external blessings as well. When we choose a life of humility that seeks to do what is righteous, we will be walking in the blessing of God.

Let’s keep going.

14 At mealtime Boaz called to her, “Come over here, and help yourself to some food. You can dip your bread in the sour wine.” So she sat with his harvesters, and Boaz gave her some roasted grain to eat. She ate all she wanted and still had some left over.

‘Mealtime’ here simply means lunch. Here again Boaz goes above and beyond. Not only does he let Ruth glean, and gather, and have access to the water, and have protection from the men… he actually feds her lunch. And more than that, she is invited in to sit with the harvesters! She is a part of the inner circle. The more Ruth fails to seek prominence and position, the more she is elevated. There is something to be said for finding contentment in our circumstances. Even when we know we want something else; something different; perhaps something more. Maybe some here today can identify with that.

[ Always wanted a family; Kelly when least expected ]

Let’s keep going…

15 When Ruth went back to work again, Boaz ordered his young men, “Let her gather grain right among the sheaves without stopping her. 16 And pull out some heads of barley from the bundles and drop them on purpose for her. Let her pick them up, and don’t give her a hard time!”

Boaz just cannot stop himself. He just keeps on giving and giving and giving. I wonder if maybe he sees the joy in Ruth as he offers her gleaning, gathering, protection, water, and a prepared meal. And wants to keep on blessing her. There is something contageous about blessing others, isn’t there?

[ Bible College blessing story ]

And you know what? I can’t help but wonder if God, our heavenly father feels the same way about blessing us. Let’s take a look at our final section of scripture for this morning.

17 So Ruth gathered barley there all day, and when she beat out the grain that evening, it filled an entire basket.[a] 18 She carried it back into town and showed it to her mother-in-law. Ruth also gave her the roasted grain that was left over from her meal.

It filled a basket. It filled an entire basket. What exactly is an “entire basket”. An entire basket would have been roughly 22 pounds of grain. You know the milk jug in your fridge right now? This haul would have been 5.5 of those filled with grain. Collected by one person. And all in a single afternoon. Ruth was so blessed that it was enough to sustain both her and Naomi for at least two weeks.

What

Here again we see a beautiful allegory of our relationship with God in Ruth’s relationship with Boaz. We see a person in need come before someone of means. Someone who knows their story, and understands their motivations. Someone who wants to bless a person of pure intent and good character. Someone who has the means amd the desire to meet the needs of a person in need.

But this allegory does fall short, because even a man of great means like Boaz recognized that only God could fully repay Ruth for all that she had lost. Only God could heal her of her past trauma. Only God could make her whole again.

Why

Here’s the thing. Maybe you need to be made whole here today. 

Maybe there’s a hole in your heart because you’ve lost something. Or someone. Maybe you’ve been deeply hurt by someone you loved. You know, I know, these types of hurt can wound deeply. And there is value in grieving that pain. But you also don’t need to hurt forever. God can bring healing, He can bring hope, He can bring peace. Like Ruth, God can complete you, restore you, repay you.

Maybe you are in a situation where you feel stuck. Maybe you feel like your stuck in a rut that you cannot get out of. God can deal with that, too. You’re looking for a change in your relationships, living situation, career. God can bring wholeness into that aspect of your life as well! Maybe He will give you something new, but maybe He’ll renew your passion for where you are. Maybe He’ll renew your committment. Either way God can bring healing into that situtation.

Maybe you are feeling small and insignificant. Maybe you feel like you don’t fit. Or don’t belong. Maybe you feel like an outsider, trying to find your place. Maybe you feel like a failure. God welcomes within all those without. He sees the unseen. He notices the unnoticed. He recognizes the unrecognized. Here again, the Lord God is capable of bringing wholeness and healing. God can give you the kind of contentment and joy that no attempt to fit-in or stand-out ever could. Let God bring completeness into your life today.

How

Remember those two thoughts we saved in our pockets earlier? 1) We cannot do heal ourselves, that is the work of God. 2) We shouldn’t try to make ourselves more important than we are. These both come down to the same thing. God is in control and God is in charge. 

This might sound cliché, but the fact is that the only way you’re going to get that healing, that wholeness, that completeness you are looking for is by trusting God. Like Ruth, you can make a big, bold request to God, but you wait for Him to say “yes” or “no”. Work hard at everything you do, even when it’s difficult. Even when it’s something you don’t want to do – maybe especailly when it’s something you don’t want to do. If it’s something you don’t have any control over, you lean hard into God and pray that he would take the burden from you.

We ought… no… we MUST be willing to lay down our hopes and desires at God’s feet and allow Him to direct our path. He may give you back your dreams and tell you to run with them, but He may give you something wholly unexpected and ask that you run with it instead.

I’ll leave you with these parting words from that great orator Mick Jagger:

You can’t always get what you want No, you can’t always get what you want But if you try sometimes You just might find You get what you need

Amen. Let’s worship our Good, Good Father together.