1 00:00:11,840 --> 00:00:15,520 Naomi had a kinsman of her husband's, a 2 00:00:15,520 --> 00:00:18,640 mighty man of wealth, of the family of 3 00:00:18,640 --> 00:00:20,780 Elimelech, and his name was Boaz. 4 00:00:22,040 --> 00:00:26,700 And Ruth the Moabitess said unto Naomi, Let 5 00:00:26,700 --> 00:00:29,480 me now go to the field, and glean 6 00:00:29,480 --> 00:00:32,840 ears of corn after him, in whose sight 7 00:00:32,840 --> 00:00:34,120 I shall find grace. 8 00:00:35,120 --> 00:00:39,780 And she said unto her, Go, my daughter. 9 00:00:40,640 --> 00:00:43,240 And she went and came, and gleaned in 10 00:00:43,240 --> 00:00:45,100 the field after the reapers. 11 00:00:45,100 --> 00:00:51,180 And her hap was, the chance was, that 12 00:00:51,180 --> 00:00:53,300 she alighted on a part of the field 13 00:00:53,300 --> 00:00:56,280 belonging unto Boaz, who was of the kindred 14 00:00:56,280 --> 00:00:57,100 of Elimelech. 15 00:00:58,220 --> 00:01:01,300 And behold, Boaz came from Bethlehem, and said 16 00:01:01,300 --> 00:01:03,580 unto the reapers, The Lord be with you. 17 00:01:04,300 --> 00:01:06,920 They answered him, The Lord bless thee. 18 00:01:07,700 --> 00:01:11,020 Then said Boaz unto his servants that were 19 00:01:11,020 --> 00:01:14,300 set over the reapers, Whose damsel is this? 20 00:01:14,300 --> 00:01:16,980 And the servant that was set over the 21 00:01:16,980 --> 00:01:19,780 reapers answered and said, It is the Moabitess 22 00:01:19,780 --> 00:01:22,860 damsel that came back with Naomi out of 23 00:01:22,860 --> 00:01:23,900 the country of Moab. 24 00:01:24,420 --> 00:01:27,100 And she said, I pray you, let me 25 00:01:27,100 --> 00:01:30,120 glean and gather after the reapers among the 26 00:01:30,120 --> 00:01:30,520 sheaves. 27 00:01:30,580 --> 00:01:34,200 So she came, and hath continued even from 28 00:01:34,200 --> 00:01:37,560 the morning until now, that she tarried a 29 00:01:37,560 --> 00:01:38,360 little in the house. 30 00:01:38,360 --> 00:01:41,920 Then said Boaz unto Ruth, Hearest thou not 31 00:01:41,920 --> 00:01:42,400 my daughter? 32 00:01:42,780 --> 00:01:45,260 Go not to glean in another field, neither 33 00:01:45,260 --> 00:01:48,280 go from hence, but abide here fast by 34 00:01:48,280 --> 00:01:49,120 my maidens. 35 00:01:49,860 --> 00:01:52,100 Let thine eyes be on the field that 36 00:01:52,100 --> 00:01:55,300 they do reap, and go thou after them. 37 00:01:55,920 --> 00:01:57,760 Have I not charged the young men that 38 00:01:57,760 --> 00:01:59,300 they should not touch thee? 39 00:02:00,040 --> 00:02:02,220 And when thou art athirst, go unto the 40 00:02:02,220 --> 00:02:04,440 vessels, and drink of that which the young 41 00:02:04,440 --> 00:02:05,080 men have drawn. 42 00:02:05,080 --> 00:02:08,780 Then she fell on her face, and bowed 43 00:02:08,780 --> 00:02:10,900 herself to the ground, and said unto him, 44 00:02:12,140 --> 00:02:14,900 Why have I found grace in thine eyes, 45 00:02:15,500 --> 00:02:19,940 that thou shouldest take knowledge of me, seeing 46 00:02:19,940 --> 00:02:22,780 I am a stranger? 47 00:02:25,160 --> 00:02:28,120 A preacher by the name of Chris Austin, 48 00:02:28,240 --> 00:02:30,940 one of the early church fathers, and he 49 00:02:30,940 --> 00:02:34,000 referring to Boaz and this particular incident says, 50 00:02:34,560 --> 00:02:37,280 Observe that what has happened to Ruth is 51 00:02:37,280 --> 00:02:39,440 analogous to what happened to us. 52 00:02:39,960 --> 00:02:42,340 For she was a stranger, and had fallen 53 00:02:42,340 --> 00:02:44,360 into extremist distress. 54 00:02:45,040 --> 00:02:48,420 But Boaz, when he saw her, neither despised 55 00:02:48,420 --> 00:02:51,440 her poverty, nor condemned the lowliness of her 56 00:02:51,440 --> 00:02:51,860 family. 57 00:02:52,760 --> 00:02:55,360 So the Lord Jesus took up the church, 58 00:02:56,000 --> 00:03:00,300 and chose the stranger who lacked possessions for 59 00:03:00,300 --> 00:03:01,020 His bride. 60 00:03:01,960 --> 00:03:04,200 Well let me sketch in the scene, in 61 00:03:04,200 --> 00:03:06,780 case you're not familiar with the Old Testament, 62 00:03:07,120 --> 00:03:09,900 in case you're a stranger within the gospel 63 00:03:09,900 --> 00:03:12,380 field this morning, you've come casually into this 64 00:03:12,380 --> 00:03:15,340 tabernacle and at this moment you're not too 65 00:03:15,340 --> 00:03:17,680 sure as to what it is that I 66 00:03:17,680 --> 00:03:19,800 am making reference about. 67 00:03:19,800 --> 00:03:25,280 Well, Ruth and Naomi have returned to Bethlehem 68 00:03:25,280 --> 00:03:27,580 from the land of Moab. 69 00:03:28,420 --> 00:03:30,160 Ruth is not a Jew. 70 00:03:30,320 --> 00:03:32,400 She was originally a Moabites. 71 00:03:33,320 --> 00:03:35,840 They have come back having lost everything, Naomi, 72 00:03:36,300 --> 00:03:37,940 her husband and her two sons. 73 00:03:38,600 --> 00:03:42,000 Ruth, well, she has rejected her home and 74 00:03:42,000 --> 00:03:46,360 rejected her country, and she has accompanied Naomi 75 00:03:46,360 --> 00:03:50,380 to this city, which in history has such 76 00:03:50,380 --> 00:03:51,400 a great place. 77 00:03:52,080 --> 00:03:55,480 So here are these two poverty stricken women. 78 00:03:56,320 --> 00:04:00,160 And one morning Ruth determines that because she 79 00:04:00,160 --> 00:04:02,640 will not beg for her bread, that she 80 00:04:02,640 --> 00:04:06,400 will go out into the harvest fields for 81 00:04:06,400 --> 00:04:07,420 its harvest time. 82 00:04:08,300 --> 00:04:11,640 And there she will follow the reapers, and 83 00:04:11,640 --> 00:04:14,560 she will claim what is the right or 84 00:04:14,560 --> 00:04:16,720 was the right in those days of the 85 00:04:16,720 --> 00:04:19,380 poor, of going along by the borders of 86 00:04:19,380 --> 00:04:22,440 the field and taking what particular grain she 87 00:04:22,440 --> 00:04:25,560 could find as it was missed by the 88 00:04:25,560 --> 00:04:28,400 reapers or as it fell from their hands. 89 00:04:29,160 --> 00:04:31,040 So here we have one of the most 90 00:04:31,040 --> 00:04:33,540 graphic pictures in the Old Testament of a 91 00:04:33,540 --> 00:04:35,420 rural harvest scene. 92 00:04:36,140 --> 00:04:37,860 You can almost hear the swish of the 93 00:04:37,860 --> 00:04:40,720 blade as the reapers go into the fields 94 00:04:40,720 --> 00:04:44,680 around Bethlehem and as they cut down the 95 00:04:44,680 --> 00:04:45,100 crop. 96 00:04:46,080 --> 00:04:48,600 And here, as John Keats tells us in 97 00:04:48,600 --> 00:04:51,200 one of his lovely poems, we view the 98 00:04:51,200 --> 00:04:54,760 sad heart of Ruth when sick from home, 99 00:04:55,320 --> 00:04:59,180 she stood in tears and in the alien 100 00:04:59,180 --> 00:04:59,920 corn. 101 00:05:01,040 --> 00:05:04,220 Well watch Boaz as he first of all 102 00:05:04,220 --> 00:05:06,340 comes into this tract of land. 103 00:05:07,070 --> 00:05:10,120 He is the owner of this portion of 104 00:05:10,120 --> 00:05:13,440 the field, and his servants greet him. 105 00:05:14,320 --> 00:05:16,920 And he in turn lovingly greets them, the 106 00:05:16,920 --> 00:05:17,880 Lord bless you. 107 00:05:18,820 --> 00:05:20,820 And Boaz in the fifth verse we discover 108 00:05:20,820 --> 00:05:24,540 makes some inquiries to who the foreign lady 109 00:05:24,540 --> 00:05:27,200 is with his reapers, where does she come 110 00:05:27,200 --> 00:05:27,560 from? 111 00:05:28,520 --> 00:05:30,940 The information is supplied. 112 00:05:31,760 --> 00:05:38,040 And then Boaz makes his first encounter with 113 00:05:38,040 --> 00:05:38,480 Ruth. 114 00:05:39,740 --> 00:05:43,120 And here I say is typified, is foreshadowed 115 00:05:43,120 --> 00:05:46,180 for you and for me the way that 116 00:05:46,180 --> 00:05:50,400 a greater redeemer than Boaz shall make encounter 117 00:05:50,400 --> 00:05:53,620 with those who he has come to help. 118 00:05:54,560 --> 00:05:57,740 Boaz, we're told in the first verse, was 119 00:05:57,740 --> 00:05:59,180 a mighty man of wealth. 120 00:06:00,160 --> 00:06:02,020 So was our Lord Jesus. 121 00:06:03,200 --> 00:06:06,080 Boaz was attracted to a woman who was 122 00:06:06,080 --> 00:06:07,420 desperately in need. 123 00:06:08,740 --> 00:06:10,200 So was our Lord Jesus. 124 00:06:11,480 --> 00:06:15,820 Boaz would transfer some of his wealth in 125 00:06:15,820 --> 00:06:17,420 the favor of Ruth and Naomi. 126 00:06:18,480 --> 00:06:20,680 We read in the Gospels, or rather in 127 00:06:20,680 --> 00:06:24,360 the New Testament, that we know, reminds the 128 00:06:24,360 --> 00:06:27,340 Apostle Paul, we know the grace of our 129 00:06:27,340 --> 00:06:27,960 Lord Jesus. 130 00:06:28,240 --> 00:06:30,760 How that though he was rich, yet for 131 00:06:30,760 --> 00:06:32,700 our sakes he became poor. 132 00:06:32,880 --> 00:06:35,560 That through his poverty he might make others 133 00:06:35,560 --> 00:06:36,020 rich. 134 00:06:36,840 --> 00:06:39,440 Here then I say is typified the ministry 135 00:06:39,440 --> 00:06:43,340 of the kinsman redeemer, even our Lord Jesus. 136 00:06:44,140 --> 00:06:47,320 And so we watch this scene as the 137 00:06:47,320 --> 00:06:51,600 mighty, rich, and tender-hearted Boaz goes towards 138 00:06:51,600 --> 00:06:53,880 this insignificant Moabites. 139 00:06:55,180 --> 00:06:58,020 And we marvel as we see not only 140 00:06:58,020 --> 00:07:03,160 literally this historic picture, but we find it 141 00:07:03,160 --> 00:07:06,600 to be typifying our own experience of the 142 00:07:06,600 --> 00:07:09,480 Lord Jesus Christ and his love towards us. 143 00:07:10,040 --> 00:07:11,920 So if you'd like a title for my 144 00:07:11,920 --> 00:07:16,140 address this morning, how about study, or studies, 145 00:07:16,800 --> 00:07:19,080 in the affection of the kinsman. 146 00:07:19,080 --> 00:07:23,380 Now notice first of all then his winsomeness 147 00:07:23,380 --> 00:07:28,180 as he makes an approach to Ruth. 148 00:07:28,940 --> 00:07:31,000 I read to you the words of the 149 00:07:31,000 --> 00:07:32,080 eighth verse again. 150 00:07:32,980 --> 00:07:36,800 Then said Boaz unto Ruth, Heareth thou not 151 00:07:36,800 --> 00:07:37,460 my daughter? 152 00:07:38,580 --> 00:07:40,640 Go not to glean in another field? 153 00:07:41,680 --> 00:07:45,880 Neither go from hence, but abide here fast 154 00:07:45,880 --> 00:07:47,300 by my maidens. 155 00:07:48,460 --> 00:07:51,880 Is it not singular, is it not gripping 156 00:07:51,880 --> 00:07:54,940 that he refers to this unknown foreign woman 157 00:07:54,940 --> 00:07:56,740 as daughter? 158 00:07:57,740 --> 00:08:00,820 He puts her at her ease immediately. 159 00:08:01,760 --> 00:08:04,180 And we read that it was the custom 160 00:08:04,180 --> 00:08:06,860 of the Lord Jesus Christ when he approached 161 00:08:06,860 --> 00:08:09,260 people to refer to them by their name, 162 00:08:10,300 --> 00:08:12,560 Zacchaeus, Mary. 163 00:08:13,240 --> 00:08:16,640 The gospel says that the Lord Jesus knows 164 00:08:16,640 --> 00:08:17,400 his sheep. 165 00:08:18,380 --> 00:08:20,180 And that means that if you have found 166 00:08:20,180 --> 00:08:23,740 yourself this morning, by chance so to speak, 167 00:08:23,900 --> 00:08:26,980 in this tabernacle listening to my voice, you 168 00:08:26,980 --> 00:08:29,840 may be unknown to me, but you're not 169 00:08:29,840 --> 00:08:34,159 unknown to the God of Boaz, to the 170 00:08:34,159 --> 00:08:36,039 one who became the God of Ruth. 171 00:08:37,000 --> 00:08:40,380 He calls his people by name. 172 00:08:41,260 --> 00:08:44,300 And what is more, Boaz in no way 173 00:08:44,300 --> 00:08:46,480 despises what Ruth is doing. 174 00:08:47,480 --> 00:08:49,760 He realizes that she's a gleaner. 175 00:08:50,680 --> 00:08:54,800 He knows her penury, her poverty-stricken condition. 176 00:08:55,900 --> 00:08:58,280 And you might think that a mighty man 177 00:08:58,280 --> 00:09:01,560 like Boaz with wealth and authority invested in 178 00:09:01,560 --> 00:09:03,700 him, one of the elders of the city 179 00:09:03,700 --> 00:09:05,800 of Bethlehem, would have nothing to do with 180 00:09:05,800 --> 00:09:06,340 this woman. 181 00:09:07,580 --> 00:09:11,320 So poor, she has to follow his reapers. 182 00:09:12,760 --> 00:09:14,940 But in no way does he despise her. 183 00:09:16,220 --> 00:09:18,820 Rather, he has a concern to make her 184 00:09:18,820 --> 00:09:20,300 work more productive. 185 00:09:21,720 --> 00:09:23,420 Don't lean in any other field. 186 00:09:24,800 --> 00:09:25,440 Stay here. 187 00:09:26,600 --> 00:09:29,220 And he has a word on the side 188 00:09:29,220 --> 00:09:31,600 to his servants to ensure that more grain 189 00:09:31,600 --> 00:09:35,900 falls within the reach of Ruth than would 190 00:09:35,900 --> 00:09:37,200 naturally be the case. 191 00:09:38,600 --> 00:09:40,900 And that's a point that's worth picking up 192 00:09:40,900 --> 00:09:42,900 and amplifying, is it not? 193 00:09:43,600 --> 00:09:46,920 That Jesus is always concerned to make our 194 00:09:46,920 --> 00:09:48,060 work more productive. 195 00:09:48,360 --> 00:09:50,560 That's one of the reasons why he encounters 196 00:09:50,560 --> 00:09:51,060 us. 197 00:09:52,100 --> 00:09:53,600 Here are a group of men fishing. 198 00:09:53,740 --> 00:09:54,440 They're frustrated. 199 00:09:55,120 --> 00:09:56,380 The hours have gone by. 200 00:09:56,380 --> 00:09:59,940 They've invested all the night in their task, 201 00:10:00,260 --> 00:10:02,300 endeavoring to catch fish. 202 00:10:02,880 --> 00:10:06,140 But they have been eminently unsuccessful. 203 00:10:07,240 --> 00:10:09,340 And Jesus comes around and he says, You 204 00:10:09,340 --> 00:10:11,440 know, fellas, if you just go back, I 205 00:10:11,440 --> 00:10:13,160 know it's the early hours of the morning. 206 00:10:13,420 --> 00:10:15,380 It's not the right time to engage in 207 00:10:15,380 --> 00:10:15,680 fishing. 208 00:10:15,940 --> 00:10:18,120 But just go back into your boat and 209 00:10:18,120 --> 00:10:20,200 cast your net on the side that I 210 00:10:20,200 --> 00:10:20,700 command. 211 00:10:21,560 --> 00:10:23,500 And I tell you, your work will be 212 00:10:23,500 --> 00:10:24,200 more productive. 213 00:10:25,300 --> 00:10:28,120 The Lord Jesus does not despise these men 214 00:10:28,120 --> 00:10:31,060 because they were fishermen and unsuccessful that night. 215 00:10:31,780 --> 00:10:34,180 He involves himself with their toil, and his 216 00:10:34,180 --> 00:10:36,140 concern is to make them more productive. 217 00:10:37,060 --> 00:10:40,860 And that's precisely his relationship to you and 218 00:10:40,860 --> 00:10:45,580 to me, involved in the rough and tumble 219 00:10:45,580 --> 00:10:49,300 of our lives, concerned to make us effective 220 00:10:49,300 --> 00:10:53,600 and productive in service for our fellow men 221 00:10:53,600 --> 00:10:56,740 and, more importantly, in our service for God. 222 00:10:57,920 --> 00:11:03,820 And notice also, regarding Boaz and Ruth, that 223 00:11:03,820 --> 00:11:06,700 the former will supply the latter's need without 224 00:11:06,700 --> 00:11:08,640 taking away her independence. 225 00:11:11,260 --> 00:11:13,040 He appreciates the initiative. 226 00:11:14,060 --> 00:11:15,280 That is Ruth's. 227 00:11:15,800 --> 00:11:18,460 He knows of her kindliness towards Naomi. 228 00:11:19,140 --> 00:11:22,800 He wants to secure that independence and to 229 00:11:22,800 --> 00:11:23,760 add to it. 230 00:11:24,900 --> 00:11:27,080 And this, to me, suggests a picture that 231 00:11:27,080 --> 00:11:29,680 unravels one of the theological knots within the 232 00:11:29,680 --> 00:11:30,000 Bible. 233 00:11:30,460 --> 00:11:32,640 I speak of the sovereignty of God. 234 00:11:33,300 --> 00:11:35,640 The absolute sovereignty of God. 235 00:11:36,920 --> 00:11:39,460 And the lack of ability of men and 236 00:11:39,460 --> 00:11:40,820 women to save themselves. 237 00:11:42,180 --> 00:11:44,340 Salvation is within the hands of God to 238 00:11:44,340 --> 00:11:44,900 dispense. 239 00:11:44,900 --> 00:11:46,640 And yet the Bible does not blush to 240 00:11:46,640 --> 00:11:49,240 say, work out your salvation with fear and 241 00:11:49,240 --> 00:11:49,680 trembling. 242 00:11:50,700 --> 00:11:51,700 Here is Boaz. 243 00:11:51,940 --> 00:11:53,440 He is the owner of the field. 244 00:11:54,240 --> 00:11:58,700 And he is complimenting Ruth on her initiative. 245 00:11:59,700 --> 00:12:02,600 And in a sense, he is endeavoring to 246 00:12:02,600 --> 00:12:05,500 get her to retain her independence. 247 00:12:06,100 --> 00:12:09,280 But if she will cooperate with him, then 248 00:12:09,280 --> 00:12:11,500 the result of her labor will be that 249 00:12:11,500 --> 00:12:14,080 much more beneficial to her and to Naomi. 250 00:12:14,080 --> 00:12:17,660 And the Bible declares this, that if we 251 00:12:17,660 --> 00:12:21,760 seek God, if we use an initiative which 252 00:12:21,760 --> 00:12:24,540 perhaps unknown to us is promoted by the 253 00:12:24,540 --> 00:12:27,640 Holy Spirit, he will bless that initiative. 254 00:12:28,080 --> 00:12:29,820 He will marry it to his grace, to 255 00:12:29,820 --> 00:12:33,160 his benevolence, so that your work in the 256 00:12:33,160 --> 00:12:37,600 gospel field shall bring many rich rewards, a 257 00:12:37,600 --> 00:12:41,260 veritable harvest of blessing for you and for 258 00:12:41,260 --> 00:12:42,540 those to whom you minister. 259 00:12:43,780 --> 00:12:47,000 The winsomeness of the kinsman redeemer. 260 00:12:48,320 --> 00:12:51,560 His manner of approach is delightful, a study 261 00:12:51,560 --> 00:12:53,080 in human relationships. 262 00:12:54,120 --> 00:12:57,300 He does not despise her standard in life. 263 00:12:58,740 --> 00:13:01,560 And he will in no way take away 264 00:13:01,560 --> 00:13:02,900 her independence. 265 00:13:04,100 --> 00:13:05,260 His winsomeness. 266 00:13:06,080 --> 00:13:08,320 But stay a while in these two verses 267 00:13:08,320 --> 00:13:10,620 and let's dig further, for there's much more 268 00:13:10,620 --> 00:13:11,460 to be discovered. 269 00:13:11,960 --> 00:13:14,120 A spiritual harvest is latent here. 270 00:13:14,680 --> 00:13:18,260 Not only the winsomeness of the kinsman redeemer, 271 00:13:18,420 --> 00:13:22,780 but also the genuineness that his words have 272 00:13:22,780 --> 00:13:24,280 within them. 273 00:13:24,520 --> 00:13:27,980 Go not to glean in another field, neither 274 00:13:27,980 --> 00:13:29,100 go from hence. 275 00:13:29,480 --> 00:13:31,400 You see the repetition there. 276 00:13:32,360 --> 00:13:34,760 It smacks of sincerity. 277 00:13:36,780 --> 00:13:38,900 Here's a woman, I repeat, she's a foreigner. 278 00:13:39,640 --> 00:13:41,300 It's obvious that she's not a Jewess. 279 00:13:41,540 --> 00:13:44,240 What's she doing on Boaz's tract of land? 280 00:13:44,460 --> 00:13:46,260 Why not send her off somewhere else? 281 00:13:46,560 --> 00:13:50,200 There are no markers to determine which land 282 00:13:50,200 --> 00:13:52,240 belongs to Boaz and which belongs to his 283 00:13:52,240 --> 00:13:52,600 neighbours. 284 00:13:53,100 --> 00:13:55,520 Why should his land be impoverished by this 285 00:13:55,520 --> 00:13:55,700 woman? 286 00:13:56,000 --> 00:13:56,880 Send her away. 287 00:13:58,500 --> 00:14:01,680 But no, he's genuine in his concern for 288 00:14:01,680 --> 00:14:01,920 her. 289 00:14:02,740 --> 00:14:06,080 As genuine as the Lord Jesus Christ is 290 00:14:06,080 --> 00:14:11,380 toward us, Boaz receives a stranger into his 291 00:14:11,380 --> 00:14:11,900 land. 292 00:14:13,240 --> 00:14:14,760 And shall I tell you something, friend? 293 00:14:14,980 --> 00:14:17,700 No man comes, no woman comes into the 294 00:14:17,700 --> 00:14:21,500 family of God without first having been a 295 00:14:21,500 --> 00:14:22,020 stranger. 296 00:14:23,040 --> 00:14:27,180 We all come as Moabiteses to the gospel 297 00:14:27,180 --> 00:14:30,820 field and perhaps we fear within our hearts 298 00:14:30,820 --> 00:14:33,240 that the owner will dispatch us, will send 299 00:14:33,240 --> 00:14:35,320 us about our business, will say we have 300 00:14:35,320 --> 00:14:36,340 no rights there. 301 00:14:37,780 --> 00:14:39,600 For sure enough, we have no right. 302 00:14:40,480 --> 00:14:42,060 We don't own the field. 303 00:14:42,740 --> 00:14:45,780 We don't qualify to benefit from the harvest. 304 00:14:46,820 --> 00:14:49,240 But the glorious thing about our kinsman-redeemer 305 00:14:49,240 --> 00:14:50,880 is that he says, You who've got no 306 00:14:50,880 --> 00:14:53,180 rights, you who've got no money, you who've 307 00:14:53,180 --> 00:14:55,560 got no qualifications at all, you come. 308 00:14:55,560 --> 00:14:58,280 My field's a big field. 309 00:14:59,480 --> 00:15:01,560 The harvest is a bumper crop. 310 00:15:02,800 --> 00:15:04,880 There's room for the roots of the 20th 311 00:15:04,880 --> 00:15:05,380 century. 312 00:15:06,400 --> 00:15:09,060 There's room for all to come in here, 313 00:15:11,660 --> 00:15:13,740 gone up to glean in another field. 314 00:15:15,520 --> 00:15:17,140 Don't go from hence. 315 00:15:18,580 --> 00:15:22,920 The words have a human touch within them. 316 00:15:23,620 --> 00:15:26,000 I read once of a Roman general who 317 00:15:26,000 --> 00:15:28,960 had this to say, and his remark is 318 00:15:28,960 --> 00:15:29,580 significant. 319 00:15:30,220 --> 00:15:32,120 He was speaking about some of the need 320 00:15:32,120 --> 00:15:33,100 in the Roman Empire. 321 00:15:33,480 --> 00:15:34,580 I am a man. 322 00:15:35,600 --> 00:15:38,740 Nothing that concerns men can be of indifference 323 00:15:38,740 --> 00:15:39,380 to me. 324 00:15:40,920 --> 00:15:45,720 So Jesus Christ was and is a man, 325 00:15:45,900 --> 00:15:47,520 albeit the God-man. 326 00:15:48,720 --> 00:15:52,180 And nothing that involves humanity leaves him indifferent 327 00:15:52,180 --> 00:15:52,900 and cold. 328 00:15:54,120 --> 00:15:58,900 He came to mount a rescue work so 329 00:15:58,900 --> 00:16:02,880 that sinners might be helped by his ministry. 330 00:16:03,700 --> 00:16:05,640 He came to bring the bread of life 331 00:16:05,640 --> 00:16:08,520 so that those who were starving may receive 332 00:16:08,520 --> 00:16:12,080 food and enter into the experience of salvation. 333 00:16:13,900 --> 00:16:17,600 I'm a man, and there's nothing that affects 334 00:16:17,600 --> 00:16:20,000 humanity to which I can be indifferent. 335 00:16:21,760 --> 00:16:25,840 Go not to glean in another field, neither 336 00:16:25,840 --> 00:16:31,420 go from hence, but abide here fast. 337 00:16:32,540 --> 00:16:36,040 As though he were saying, Ruth, it wouldn't 338 00:16:36,040 --> 00:16:38,140 be to your benefit to be found in 339 00:16:38,140 --> 00:16:39,340 any other field. 340 00:16:41,480 --> 00:16:43,700 Though you didn't know it, you were divinely 341 00:16:43,700 --> 00:16:44,500 led here. 342 00:16:46,120 --> 00:16:48,800 There's no particular tract of land that can 343 00:16:48,800 --> 00:16:53,320 meet your requirements as my tract, for my 344 00:16:53,320 --> 00:16:54,840 servants are at my disposal. 345 00:16:55,040 --> 00:16:56,680 They will do what I tell them to 346 00:16:56,680 --> 00:16:59,740 do, and I will work in your interest. 347 00:17:02,520 --> 00:17:04,260 I don't know what brought you into our 348 00:17:04,260 --> 00:17:06,460 church this morning, though we praise God for 349 00:17:06,460 --> 00:17:10,460 every person who comes, and the warmth of 350 00:17:10,460 --> 00:17:13,900 welcome of our brotherly inland was very genuine 351 00:17:13,900 --> 00:17:15,240 and spoke for us all. 352 00:17:16,900 --> 00:17:20,020 And let us say this, and you'll appreciate 353 00:17:20,020 --> 00:17:25,640 the way that I'm expressing it, we're glad 354 00:17:25,640 --> 00:17:29,640 that you've come into this particular land, into 355 00:17:29,640 --> 00:17:33,720 this particular area, because here is something that 356 00:17:33,720 --> 00:17:34,620 can do you good. 357 00:17:35,720 --> 00:17:38,040 Here are gospel blessings that we can share 358 00:17:38,040 --> 00:17:38,580 with you. 359 00:17:39,560 --> 00:17:41,160 Here is the Spirit of God who is 360 00:17:41,160 --> 00:17:43,360 involved not only with my life, the elders' 361 00:17:43,680 --> 00:17:46,380 lives, the deacons' lives, but every ordinary person 362 00:17:46,380 --> 00:17:47,680 in this congregation. 363 00:17:47,680 --> 00:17:49,380 Don't go elsewhere. 364 00:17:50,480 --> 00:17:53,320 Don't make your involvement be away from the 365 00:17:53,320 --> 00:17:57,140 gospel field, for if that's the case, then 366 00:17:57,140 --> 00:18:00,800 what you're really seeking you can never find, 367 00:18:01,520 --> 00:18:04,100 and that which your heart craves after will 368 00:18:04,100 --> 00:18:06,560 never be delivered to you. 369 00:18:07,460 --> 00:18:08,800 Stay in this field. 370 00:18:09,720 --> 00:18:12,420 Stay within the orbit of a gospel ministry. 371 00:18:13,560 --> 00:18:15,800 Come within the province of this book and 372 00:18:15,800 --> 00:18:17,100 its promises. 373 00:18:17,860 --> 00:18:19,980 Come within the shadow of this table and 374 00:18:19,980 --> 00:18:21,240 all that it represents. 375 00:18:21,520 --> 00:18:22,620 Don't go elsewhere. 376 00:18:23,780 --> 00:18:26,440 Ruth can find no satisfaction in any other 377 00:18:26,440 --> 00:18:30,420 field than that one which is by Bethlehem, 378 00:18:30,420 --> 00:18:35,480 under the jurisdiction of the Redeemer, Boaz. 379 00:18:36,780 --> 00:18:38,840 It wouldn't be good for you to be 380 00:18:38,840 --> 00:18:40,600 found in another field, Ruth. 381 00:18:41,640 --> 00:18:42,440 Stay here. 382 00:18:42,440 --> 00:18:45,300 Let us remember the affections of the kinsman 383 00:18:45,300 --> 00:18:54,080 Redeemer, his winsomeness, his genuineness, and his comprehensiveness 384 00:18:54,080 --> 00:18:57,680 in his love towards this young woman. 385 00:18:58,840 --> 00:19:01,100 Sometimes we sing a hymn, and perhaps I 386 00:19:01,100 --> 00:19:03,900 should have selected it this morning, full salvation, 387 00:19:04,100 --> 00:19:08,040 full salvation, and this is what we believe 388 00:19:08,040 --> 00:19:09,620 the Lord Jesus dispenses. 389 00:19:10,320 --> 00:19:12,580 He doesn't just save us. 390 00:19:12,680 --> 00:19:13,380 He keeps us. 391 00:19:13,460 --> 00:19:14,720 He fills us with his Spirit. 392 00:19:15,080 --> 00:19:18,060 He gives us gospel blessing upon gospel blessing. 393 00:19:19,160 --> 00:19:23,180 And here you see in the ministry of 394 00:19:23,180 --> 00:19:27,800 Boaz towards Ruth, the whole idea typified. 395 00:19:27,920 --> 00:19:29,820 Here is comprehensive affection. 396 00:19:31,000 --> 00:19:33,600 What does a woman on her own in 397 00:19:33,600 --> 00:19:35,620 a foreign town require? 398 00:19:36,400 --> 00:19:39,360 In land where there are ordinary people working, 399 00:19:39,780 --> 00:19:40,720 she needs fellowship. 400 00:19:40,980 --> 00:19:43,140 She needs companionship in a word. 401 00:19:43,920 --> 00:19:47,020 So what does Boaz say to Ruth? 402 00:19:48,000 --> 00:19:52,360 Abide here fast by my maidens. 403 00:19:53,360 --> 00:19:55,780 And when you come within the gospel family, 404 00:19:56,760 --> 00:19:59,140 there are brothers and sisters and mothers and 405 00:19:59,140 --> 00:20:02,060 fathers that God gives you without number here 406 00:20:02,060 --> 00:20:02,840 on this earth. 407 00:20:03,380 --> 00:20:05,380 This was the reply of the Lord Jesus 408 00:20:05,380 --> 00:20:07,360 to Simon on one occasion when he said, 409 00:20:07,520 --> 00:20:10,360 Lord, we've given up everything and followed you. 410 00:20:11,320 --> 00:20:15,060 And Jesus, in his reply, said, Simon, that 411 00:20:15,060 --> 00:20:15,920 may be the case. 412 00:20:16,440 --> 00:20:18,080 And I know what you're saying, but listen, 413 00:20:18,960 --> 00:20:21,320 you never give up anything in following me 414 00:20:21,320 --> 00:20:23,020 without receiving a hundredfold. 415 00:20:24,340 --> 00:20:28,600 Abide here fast by my maidens. 416 00:20:29,640 --> 00:20:31,940 What else does a woman require when she's 417 00:20:31,940 --> 00:20:33,960 in such a circumstance as was Ruth? 418 00:20:35,300 --> 00:20:35,840 Protection. 419 00:20:37,040 --> 00:20:38,380 Stay with verse 9. 420 00:20:39,380 --> 00:20:41,460 Have I not charged the young men that 421 00:20:41,460 --> 00:20:43,020 they shall not touch thee? 422 00:20:44,460 --> 00:20:46,720 And when I place my life within the 423 00:20:46,720 --> 00:20:49,080 disposal of the Lord Jesus, when I cling 424 00:20:49,080 --> 00:20:51,880 to him for salvation, he not only saves 425 00:20:51,880 --> 00:20:53,880 me, he protects me. 426 00:20:54,720 --> 00:20:57,120 Says the apostle Paul, what shall separate me 427 00:20:57,120 --> 00:20:58,080 from the love of God? 428 00:20:59,060 --> 00:21:00,600 And he goes on and he gives a 429 00:21:00,600 --> 00:21:03,280 whole catalog of things that possibly might. 430 00:21:04,240 --> 00:21:05,040 And then he says, no. 431 00:21:05,980 --> 00:21:08,580 I'm in the protection of my kinsman redeemer, 432 00:21:08,780 --> 00:21:10,780 and there is no power on earth, under 433 00:21:10,780 --> 00:21:13,280 the earth, or in heaven that can put 434 00:21:13,280 --> 00:21:16,700 a wedge between me and that. 435 00:21:19,080 --> 00:21:20,040 And refreshment. 436 00:21:21,240 --> 00:21:23,060 If you're working in the fields, don't you 437 00:21:23,060 --> 00:21:23,800 require this? 438 00:21:23,800 --> 00:21:25,880 Must not this be part of the blessing 439 00:21:25,880 --> 00:21:27,820 that your kinsman redeemer will give you? 440 00:21:28,720 --> 00:21:30,300 The latter part of verse 9. 441 00:21:31,580 --> 00:21:33,320 When thou art a thirst, go unto the 442 00:21:33,320 --> 00:21:35,600 vessels and drink of that which the young 443 00:21:35,600 --> 00:21:36,560 men have drawn. 444 00:21:38,120 --> 00:21:39,720 Here is water for Ruth. 445 00:21:41,480 --> 00:21:43,980 Water that is almost akin to the water 446 00:21:43,980 --> 00:21:46,480 of salvation of which the gospel makes reference. 447 00:21:47,760 --> 00:21:50,020 Notice that this water was already provided. 448 00:21:50,300 --> 00:21:52,620 It was already waiting for Ruth before she 449 00:21:52,620 --> 00:21:55,780 ever entered into that tract of land, as 450 00:21:55,780 --> 00:21:58,520 indeed the salvation that Jesus offers you was 451 00:21:58,520 --> 00:22:01,680 ready before you entered into this, the precincts 452 00:22:01,680 --> 00:22:02,420 of this church. 453 00:22:04,040 --> 00:22:08,400 And notice that it is available to Ruth. 454 00:22:08,520 --> 00:22:10,060 It's freely offered to her. 455 00:22:10,980 --> 00:22:13,240 And she can take it whenever she is 456 00:22:13,240 --> 00:22:13,740 thirsty. 457 00:22:14,920 --> 00:22:17,680 And I point you to our kinsman redeemer, 458 00:22:17,680 --> 00:22:19,960 even Jesus, as he dies on the cross. 459 00:22:20,820 --> 00:22:22,680 And I tell you that he sunk a 460 00:22:22,680 --> 00:22:23,280 well there. 461 00:22:24,180 --> 00:22:27,180 And there's liquid salvation that's available for you 462 00:22:27,180 --> 00:22:29,120 and for me to drink of. 463 00:22:29,220 --> 00:22:29,760 It's free. 464 00:22:30,880 --> 00:22:33,540 It's manufactured just for you, just for your 465 00:22:33,540 --> 00:22:35,920 requirements, just for my requirements. 466 00:22:37,440 --> 00:22:41,100 The comprehensiveness of the love of the redeemer. 467 00:22:45,300 --> 00:22:47,540 Have you noticed, and I say this in 468 00:22:47,540 --> 00:22:51,500 closing, that in the third verse we come 469 00:22:51,500 --> 00:22:56,180 across this peculiar expression in Scripture describing Ruth 470 00:22:56,180 --> 00:22:58,920 entering into Boaz's territory. 471 00:22:59,860 --> 00:23:02,480 Her hap was to light on a part 472 00:23:02,480 --> 00:23:04,380 of the field belonging unto Boaz. 473 00:23:05,360 --> 00:23:07,320 And that word hap is an old-fashioned 474 00:23:07,320 --> 00:23:07,600 word. 475 00:23:07,700 --> 00:23:09,940 It's a Jacobean word, in vogue when this 476 00:23:09,940 --> 00:23:12,500 book was translated into English, but it needs 477 00:23:12,500 --> 00:23:12,980 updating. 478 00:23:14,340 --> 00:23:16,240 And so you could use the word chance. 479 00:23:17,060 --> 00:23:18,960 Does that surprise you that you can find 480 00:23:18,960 --> 00:23:20,280 the word chance in the Bible? 481 00:23:20,780 --> 00:23:23,180 If it does, then let me disarm you 482 00:23:23,180 --> 00:23:26,060 of any prejudices because Jesus told the parable 483 00:23:26,060 --> 00:23:28,480 of the good Samaritan and he says, by 484 00:23:28,480 --> 00:23:30,280 chance, Luke, what is it? 485 00:23:30,780 --> 00:23:32,860 12, Luke chapter 12, I believe so. 486 00:23:33,380 --> 00:23:35,680 By chance a priest went down, by chance 487 00:23:35,680 --> 00:23:37,800 a Levite went down, by chance a Samaritan 488 00:23:37,800 --> 00:23:38,300 went down. 489 00:23:40,040 --> 00:23:41,860 But it's just chance on the human level. 490 00:23:43,640 --> 00:23:45,960 The lot is cast, says Solomon, into the 491 00:23:45,960 --> 00:23:48,760 lap, but the disposing of it is the 492 00:23:48,760 --> 00:23:49,180 Lord. 493 00:23:50,240 --> 00:23:54,320 Shakespeare, there's a divinity that shapes our ends, 494 00:23:54,760 --> 00:23:56,540 rough-hew them how we will. 495 00:23:57,900 --> 00:24:01,580 By chance on the human level, Ruth enters 496 00:24:01,580 --> 00:24:02,920 into that field. 497 00:24:04,280 --> 00:24:07,460 And Boaz will be there, Boaz who can 498 00:24:07,460 --> 00:24:10,680 minister to her, Boaz who will ultimately take 499 00:24:10,680 --> 00:24:13,420 the part of the kinsmen and redeem her 500 00:24:13,420 --> 00:24:17,080 and Nehemiah and rescue them from their abysmal 501 00:24:17,080 --> 00:24:17,980 circumstances. 502 00:24:21,950 --> 00:24:24,090 Is it by chance that you came into 503 00:24:24,090 --> 00:24:25,410 the tabernacle this morning? 504 00:24:26,690 --> 00:24:29,410 By chance that I felt so impelled to 505 00:24:29,410 --> 00:24:32,730 give you this word that I came into 506 00:24:32,730 --> 00:24:33,410 this pulpit? 507 00:24:34,550 --> 00:24:36,150 Not by chance at all. 508 00:24:37,530 --> 00:24:42,450 There's a Redeemer, you see, who's winsome, who's 509 00:24:42,450 --> 00:24:47,190 genuine, who's comprehensive in his affections towards you 510 00:24:47,190 --> 00:24:49,050 and towards me. 511 00:24:50,010 --> 00:24:53,750 Will you not recognize him as Ruth recognized 512 00:24:53,750 --> 00:24:54,170 Boaz? 513 00:24:54,890 --> 00:24:58,610 Will you not say, Lord Jesus, I've come 514 00:24:58,610 --> 00:24:59,870 into your gospel field. 515 00:25:00,970 --> 00:25:03,390 Let me feast from the corn that is 516 00:25:03,390 --> 00:25:07,570 there, satisfy my heart with good things, forgive 517 00:25:07,570 --> 00:25:10,350 me my sin, and because you bled and 518 00:25:10,350 --> 00:25:13,510 died to save me, I ask that you 519 00:25:13,510 --> 00:25:16,310 will enable me to enter into a relationship 520 00:25:16,310 --> 00:25:20,870 with you that will last in time and 521 00:25:20,870 --> 00:25:21,690 throughout eternity. 522 00:25:23,370 --> 00:25:27,810 We continue next week to discover what Ruth's 523 00:25:27,810 --> 00:25:31,250 reaction was to Boaz's invitation. 524 00:25:32,230 --> 00:25:32,950 Amen. 525 00:25:33,770 --> 00:25:35,990 Father, we bless you, the majority of us 526 00:25:35,990 --> 00:25:39,670 in this sanctuary, for the day when by 527 00:25:39,670 --> 00:25:42,230 chance, as it were, we strayed into the 528 00:25:42,230 --> 00:25:49,130 gospel field and your son, our spiritual Boaz, 529 00:25:49,250 --> 00:25:52,850 drew alongside and bid us welcome and said 530 00:25:52,850 --> 00:25:55,870 that there was food and there was drink 531 00:25:56,670 --> 00:26:01,570 and there was protection and fellowship and so 532 00:26:01,570 --> 00:26:03,150 many heaped up blessings. 533 00:26:04,310 --> 00:26:06,170 We praise you that his words were not 534 00:26:06,170 --> 00:26:06,710 empty. 535 00:26:07,550 --> 00:26:09,630 He fulfilled all that he promised. 536 00:26:10,630 --> 00:26:13,730 We thank you, Lord, that we're still gleaning 537 00:26:13,730 --> 00:26:17,830 in that tract of land, and we praise 538 00:26:17,830 --> 00:26:21,130 you for all that our relationship with you 539 00:26:21,130 --> 00:26:22,120 increasingly means. 540 00:26:23,370 --> 00:26:26,610 Now, Lord, continue with us as we remember 541 00:26:26,610 --> 00:26:31,170 the death of our kinsman and his mighty 542 00:26:31,170 --> 00:26:31,770 resurrection. 543 00:26:32,370 --> 00:26:33,270 Amen.