Ruth Chapter 1 cont.

Ruth 1:10-17

And they said to her, “Surely we will return with you to your people.” ¹¹ But Naomi said, “Turn back, my daughters; why will you go with me? Are there still sons in my womb, that they may be your husbands? ¹² Turn back, my daughters, go—for I am too old to have a husband. If I should say I have hope, if I should have a husband tonight and should also bear sons, ¹³ would you wait for them till they were grown? Would you restrain yourselves from having husbands? No, my daughters; for it grieves me very much for your sakes that the hand of the LORD has gone out against me!” ¹⁴ Then they lifted up their voices and wept again; and Orpah kissed her mother-in-law, but Ruth clung to her. ¹⁵ And she said, “Look, your sister-in-law has gone back to her people and to her gods; return after your sister-in-law.” ¹⁶ But Ruth said:

      “ Entreat me not to leave you,
       Or to turn back from following after you;
      For wherever you go, I will go;
      And wherever you lodge, I will lodge;
      Your people shall be my people,
      And your God, my God.

 ¹⁷ Where you die, I will die,
      And there will I be buried.
      The LORD do so to me, and more also,
      If anything but death parts you and me.”

As I read these verses I stand in awe of his Love!  Even though I just finished several weeks of teaching from this book it is like tomorrows newspaper.  The Word of God is so lovely!

As we continue on in this chapter we see these two young ladies who do not want to let go of their loving mother in-law.  American culture teaches us that mother in-laws are the bride of Satan, but the Bible suggests that they are like anyone else.  Believers belong together.  There are some believers that don’t always work well together we see that with the apostles in the early Church, but when we share a fellowship with God it is so much easier to get along.  There are two young women here.  Orpah leaves and goes back home, but Ruth “clung” to Naomi.  Orpah is a picture of the normal reaction.  Ruth is a picture of the road less travel.  I don’t think there is evidence to condemn Orpah but most commentators do.  However we cannot deny that she was leaving a Godly woman going back to very ungodly village to live among heathens.  The thing is Naomi told her to do that and she would not have been welcomed in Judah because she was Moabite.  I want to pause with that thought.

How many times have we criticized the ungodly for being heathen but yet if they had walked by the Church doors we squirm?  Recently we went into our auditorium at Church and prayed around the area that the teens sit.  We asked God to bring in the lost.  We don’t care what they wear or what they look like, but we want to tell them about Christ.  I believe we can not compromise the principles of the faith under any circumstances, but if someone is lost it is our job to go out of the way to lead them to Christ.  Homosexuals are not welcomed in most Churches today.  How will they get saved?  Are you witnessing to them?  Paul said that “we are saved by grace obtained by faith”.  In Romans he said that “faith comes by hearing of the Word of God”.  Therefore we have to compel the lost to come in.  Orpah knew she was not welcomed in Judah because Judah and Moab had been to war to many times.  We compel not by compromise and change of the moral standards and teaching principles of the Laws of God, but rather we love!  In my experience in Church there are those who have the Churches who allow open sin and then you have those who are too good to admit they have ever sinned.  It is sometimes hard to find balance.  Where the spirit of the Lord is there is Liberty!

The Calvinist says well if there called of God they will be saved no matter what.  Jesus said “I have come for the lost sheep of the House of Israel”.  He then told the apostles after he resurrected to go to Jerusalem and from there the entire earth.  In other words it is our job to share the gospel. 

Well here once again I started preaching and got off track.  Please check back as we look at Ruth’s decision to stay with Naomi.  Until then go serve The King!

Jesus Saves,

RR