Death and Romance Led to Jesus || Very Important Women #3

The Holy Spirit is in the middle of this series. As I progressed through the book of Genesis, this series was to be the next one in the book. I had scheduled this series back early in the winter. However, I just realized that Mother’s Day has just passed, and celebrating the influential women in our lives will continue. How fitting to continue our series, “V.I.W.: The Very Important Women in Jesus’ Family Tree.”

This series focuses on four women: Tamar, Rahab, Ruth, and Bathsheba. We’ll discuss their roles in the family tree and what we can learn from their stories.

In the third part of this series, we will focus on Ruth.

Ruth 4:13-22

13           So Boaz took Ruth into his home, and she became his wife. When he slept with her, the Lord enabled her to become pregnant, and she gave birth to a son.

14           Then the women of the town said to Namoi, “Praise the Lord, who has now provided a redeemer for your family! May this child be famous in Israel.

15           May he restore your youth and care for you in your old age. For he is the son of the daughter-in-law who loves you and has been better to you than seven sons!”

16           Naomi took the baby and cuddled him to her breast. And she cared for him as if he were her own.

17           The neighbor women said, “Now at last Naomi has a son again!” And they named him Obed. He became the father of Jesse and the grandfather of David.

18           This is the genealogical record of their ancestor Perez: Perez was the father of Hezron.

19           Hezron was the father of Ram. Ram was the father of Amminadab.

20           Amminadab was the father of Nahshon. Nahshon was the father of Boaz.

21           Salmon was the father of Boaz. Boaz was the father of Obed.

22           Obed was the father of Jesse. Jesse was the father of David.

Ruth was David’s grandmother. Ruth was an outsider in the community. Her husband had just died, and she was left alone with her mother-in-law. She wanted to stay with her instead of returning to her hometown. Naomi, her mother-in-law, had this perspective.

Ruth 1:12-13

12           No, my daughters, return to your parents’ home, for I am too old to marry again. And even if it were possible, and I were to get married tonight and bear sons, then what?

13           Would you wait for them to grow up and refuse to marry someone else? No, of course not, my daughters! Things are far more bitter for me than for you, because the Lord himself has raised his fist against me.”

Orpah, who was married to her other son, left her. Ruth did not. Naomi tried to send her off again, but she refused. Ruth’s perspective was this:

Ruth 1:16-17

16           But Ruth replied, “Don’t ask me to leave you and turn back. Wherever you go, I will go; wherever you live, I will live. Your people will be my people, and your God will be my God.

17           Wherever you die, I will die, and there I will be buried. May the Lord punish me severely if I allow anything but death to separate us!”

Ruth was a Moabite woman, but that didn’t stop her from worshiping God, nor did it stop God from accepting her worship and blessing her greatly. We often call the Israelites God’s chosen people, but God loved everyone. The Israelites were the people through whom the rest of the world could know him, which was later shown through Jesus. Acts 10:35 says, “in every nation, he accepts those who fear him and do what is right.” God wants all of us to worship him and uses all people to share that with others, regardless of sex, race, or status. Ruth was the perfect example of this. Although Ruth belongs to a people that Israel often despised, she was blessed because of her faithfulness. She became a great-grandmother of King David and a direct ancestor of Jesus. She shows the world that no one should feel disqualified from serving God. God can use everyone in every circumstance to build his kingdom.

These two would be inseparable, especially since Ruth is from outside the community. Ruth crossed paths with Boaz, who recognized her hard work and dedication to caring for Naomi. Why would this man of wealth and influence treat this foreigner so kindly?

Ruth 2:11-12

11           “Yes, I know,” Boaz replied. “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.”

Ruth showed admirable qualities: hardworking, loving, kind, faithful, and brave. These qualities created a good reputation because she showed them constantly throughout her life. Her past was her story that others judged her by. Yet, her character remained the same wherever she did or whatever she did. Her reputation with Naomi’s community was one of her most valuable assets, similar to how reputations are formed by how we act and treat others. Those who observe you at work, in public, at home, or at church will notice the nature of your true character. Good character comes by consistently living out the truth revealed in His Word – no matter who we are with or where we are. As your character grows, so grows your reputation for being a person of trust, truth, and commitment to honor God in all you do.

She shared the interaction with Naomi, who was joyous for her. She encouraged her to stay with him through the entire harvest season. Naomi recognized the positive impact Boaz made on her family, caring for the widowers and the grievers.

Ruth 3 is a weird love story about how she attracted Boaz. I wouldn’t recommend trying this, but who am I to stop you. Naomi told Ruth to wash up, put on perfume, and dress up. Ruth isn’t to be seen by him until he’s done eating and drinking. Ruth is to watch where he lies down and then go and uncover his feet and lie there with him. She did everything Naomi said, and Boaz was happy about it.

Ruth 3:11-13

11           Now don’t worry about a thing, my daughter. I will do what is necessary, for everyone is town knows you are a virtuous woman.

12           But while it’s true that I am one of your family redeemers, there is another man who is more closely related to you than I am.

13           Stay here tonight, and in the morning I will talk to him. If he is willing to redeem you, very well. Let him marry you. But if he is not willing, then as surely as the Lord lives, I will redeem you myself.

We pick back up in Ruth 4 with the two of them being married and continuing Jesus’s family line. THE END!

God brought great blessings from Naomi’s tragedy, even more significant than having “seven sons.” Naomi became the great-great-grandmother of King David, seeing her family line continue after her two sons died. Naomi continued to trust the process that God set in place through Ruth. And God blessed her for it. It’s a story that tells us even in our sorrow and calamity, God will still bring blessings. When tragedy strikes, think about Naomi’s story, and remember to believe in God to provide what’s needed. It’s easy to dwell in the pity. Instead of doing that, trust God. God will walk alongside you in those hard times.

To some, Ruth is just a lovely story about a lucky girl. In reality, the events shown in the book of Ruth were part of God’s prep work for the births of David and Jesus. Ruth would’ve been unaware of how her decisions would impact her future and THE future. We also won’t know the entire purpose and importance of our lives until we reflect from the perspective of eternity. We must decide how we live based on God’s eternal values. Shortcuts and living for temporary pleasures are not good ways to advance. Because of Ruth’s faithful decision-making and obedience, her life and legacy were so impactful that she could see the results. It’s a reminder to us to live in faithfulness to God, knowing that the significance of our life will extend beyond our lifetime. The rewards outweigh any sacrifices made.

As I was finishing this study, so many memories of my work at the previous church came back. One of the key things that stuck out was how those observing you would see your true character. When I was put under the heat lamp, the people making the big decisions were not the people who indeed observed me. When they did, they were observing me with rose-colored glasses. Many people who saw what I was genuinely doing and how I was doing it had completely opposite statements from what the others had to say. The ones who say what I saw doing, how much energy I put into it, how much effort I put into things, the details behind what I was doing. They saw, and they had no voice. When I was terminated, they stuck with me, though. They stayed close by me while walking through my valley of the shadow of death. They knew the real me, flawed and all, acknowledged my wrongs, and stayed with me. I had my reasons for returning to work, which some knew, and it cost me a lot. It cost me sanity, happiness, excitement, pleasure, and joy for a job I loved. It would’ve been easy to leave, but God had me stay and sacrifice to show them the proper side of the story. Ruth sacrificed and stayed and saw blessings from it. I sacrificed and stayed and saw justice form because of it. May you find power in her story and your story.

In the next part, we will wrap up this series by discussing Bathsheba. Until then, stay blessed.