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Light Of His Word The Sermons of Pastor Mike Walls Freedom Baptist Church Used By Permission Psalms 119:105 Thy word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path. |
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Light Of His Word The Sermons of Pastor Mike Walls Freedom Baptist Church Used By Permission Psalms 119:105 Thy word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path. |
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IN THE FIELD OF GRACE
Ruth 2:4-17
Introduction: Last time we saw how Boaz was helping Ruth. She was steadfast and that must have impressed him. I have said this several times and will repeat more and more but Boaz is a picture or type of the Lord Jesus. God always blesses faithfulness in His children. It is sometimes an immediate thing. But usually it is in the long run that you will see His hand of blessing.
He gave instructions in regards to her safety. As I said last time, many times people who are native to a place will pick on those who are not. My wife told me of a couple who were missionaries in Russia and some of the trials that they endured. The folks in Russia were picking on them was part of it. This is a form of prejudice and that is sinfully wrong and wicked. But Ruth did not have to worry. The boss had spoken and his men listened.
Boaz made provisions for her need of supply. Jesus takes care of us in some many marvelous ways. He provided salvation. He provided scriptures for our hungry souls.
“But my God shall supply all your need according to his riches in glory by Christ Jesus.”
Ruth
was in the right place at the right time and doing the right thing.
She had sought grace and found it in Boaz’s field. So today
we want to move on.
III. HIS COMFORTING WORK Vs. 10-14
A. Her Amazement Vs. 10
“Then she fell on her face, and bowed herself to the ground, and said unto him, Why have I found grace in thine eyes, that thou shouldest take knowledge of me, seeing I am a stranger?”
Ruth finds herself humbled by her grace. Here is this man who was a rich man. He shows grace to her. Is it any wonder that she was humbled and amazed?
There are times when the thought of what He has done for you and me is overwhelming. Philippians 2:5-11
“Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus: Who, being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God: But made himself of no reputation, and took upon him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men: And being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross. Wherefore God also hath highly exalted him, and given him a name which is above every name: That at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of things in heaven, and things in earth, and things under the earth; And that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.”
Isaiah 53:3-10
“He is despised and rejected of men; a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief: and we hid as it were our faces from him; he was despised, and we esteemed him not. Surely he hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows: yet we did esteem him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted. But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed. All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way; and the LORD hath laid on him the iniquity of us all. He was oppressed, and he was afflicted, yet he opened not his mouth: he is brought as a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before her shearers is dumb, so he openeth not his mouth. He was taken from prison and from judgment: and who shall declare his generation? for he was cut off out of the land of the living: for the transgression of my people was he stricken. And he made his grave with the wicked, and with the rich in his death; because he had done no violence, neither was any deceit in his mouth. Yet it pleased the LORD to bruise him; he hath put him to grief: when thou shalt make his soul an offering for sin, he shall see his seed, he shall prolong his days, and the pleasure of the LORD shall prosper in his hand.”
Does grace still amaze you? Let me illustrate from what we used to be before grace found us and some of what we are since grace found us.
I have sixty-one things that were true before we were saved. But I will only give a few.
1. I was on the broad way (road) leading to destruction.
“Enter ye in at the strait gate: for wide is the gate, and broad is the way, that leadeth to destruction, and many there be which go in thereat”
2. I was lost. Luke 19:10
3. I was condemned already because of my unbelief.
“He that believeth on him is not condemned: but he that believeth not is condemned already, because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God.”
4. I was a lover of darkness. John 3:19
“And this is the condemnation, that light is come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil.”
5. I was under God's abiding wrath and awaiting God's coming wrath.
“He that believeth on the Son hath everlasting life: and he that believeth not the Son shall not see life; but the wrath of God abideth on him.”
“Then said he to the multitude that came forth to be baptized of him, O generation of vipers, who hath warned you to flee from the wrath to come?’
“Let no man deceive you with vain words: for because of these things cometh the wrath of God upon the children of disobedience.”
Here are some of the truths that happened after grace found us. This shows our riches in Christ. There are two hundred and fifteen. But once again, I will only give a few.
1. My salvation is fully accomplished.
“When Jesus therefore had received the vinegar, he said, It is finished: and he bowed his head, and gave up the ghost.”
He did not say, "I am finished." Many churches teach about much a dead Christ of a Crucifix and little of living Christ of the resurrection. He is no longer on the Cross. He is alive. What can a dead Christ do for someone? They have failed to see the finished work of Calvary. They are trying to finish it for Him with their rituals and ceremonies. Calvary's final moments say the work for our salvation was done.
He did not say, "I am done- it is all over with me." Men will have to bring their own merits as a supplement to mine in order to be saved. How much would be sufficient if it took our own merits.
The meaning is crystal clear- He said "It" not "I" is finished.
Here is a portion of what Jesus meant when He said that phrase- “It is finished”. This statement is actually just one word in the Greek- Tetelestai. What a meaning this word is!
The fullest meaning is this: It was finished and as a result it is forever done. It can be proclaimed this way also "It stands finished forever."
The spirit of the word is found in what the word means. Tetelestai is a farmer's word. When a baby animal is born in his heard that is so beautiful and seemingly without any defects the farmer gazes at the creature with happily delighted eyes and says "Tetelestai".
Tetelestai was an artist word. When the painter or the sculptor had put the last finishing touches to the vivid landscape or the marble bust, he would stand back to admire his masterpiece. When viewing it and sees that nothing more is to be corrected, he proclaims "Tetelestai".
Tetelestai is the soldier's word. When the Roman soldiers would return after battle and was bring the spoils of war home on their shields. They would march back into the city with their heads high shouting "Tetelestai!" "Tetelestai!" This may be why the Roman centurion said in Luke 23:47 "Now when the centurion saw what was done, he glorified God, saying, Certainly this was a righteous man." Give me your imagination for a moment. All the events of this eventful day have been different than any other that the Roman centurion has seen or heard. Above all the noise of the crowd, he hears "Tetelestai". He knows the word. He may have used that word himself. Maybe he asked a fellow soldier if he heard it too. Here he hears the supposed victim of Calvary give the cry of victory. "Tetelestai!" "Tetelestai!"
F. W. Boreham in his book “A Handful of Stars” says this about these words of Calvary. "And when, in the fulness of time, the Lamb of God offered Himself on the altar of the ages, He rejoiced with a joy so triumphant that it bore down His anguish before it. The sacrifice was stainless, perfect, finished! He cried with a loud voice, "Tetelestai!" and gave up the ghost."
The soundness of these words is thus. "It" shows the torment of the penalty of the accumulated sin of all men. "It" was the suffering of the full punishment of the guilt of all time. "It" was the experience of the combined hells of that entire offended God. The Scripture bears this thought out.
Isaiah 53:6
“All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way; and the LORD hath laid on him the iniquity of us all."
Isn’t make you amazed when you think about your salvation was finished on that day? Reflecting upon the actual death of Christ should humble us with this thought- what was it that caused the Lord to come and die for us.
2. I have eternal life as a present possession.
“Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that heareth my word, and believeth on him that sent me, hath everlasting life, and shall not come into condemnation; but is passed from death unto life.”
“And this is the record, that God hath given to us eternal life, and this life is in his Son. He that hath the Son hath life; and he that hath not the Son of God hath not life. These things have I written unto you that believe on the name of the Son of God; that ye may know that ye have eternal life, and that ye may believe on the name of the Son of God.”
Time does not allow me to go off the beaten path to explore eternal life. But eternal means eternal. The Bible says what it means and means what it says.
3. I have Jesus Christ as my present possession.
I have Jesus now. I don’t have to wait. He came in the day I was saved. This is life that I have since He came in is different.
4. I know the one, true God. John 17:3
“And this is life eternal, that they might know thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent.”
“And we know that the Son of God is come, and hath given us an understanding, that we may know him that is true, and we are in him that is true, even in his Son Jesus Christ. This is the true God, and eternal life.”
5. I have been justified by His grace.
“That being justified by his grace, we should be made heirs according to the hope of eternal life.”
When we think about her amazement and compare ourselves with her, we should also be amazed.
B. His Announcement Vs. 11-12
“And Boaz answered and said unto her, It hath fully been shewed me, all that thou hast done unto thy mother in law since the death of thine husband: and how thou hast left thy father and thy mother, and the land of thy nativity, and art come unto a people which thou knewest not heretofore. The LORD recompense thy work, and a full reward be given thee of the LORD God of Israel, under whose wings thou art come to trust.”
Boaz tells Ruth that he knows about her deeds and he knows about her faith in the Lord. He prays that she will receive a full reward for the service she rendered to Naomi.
Let me give a few words here for the struggling saint. People may call into question your actions and your motives, but he Lord knows your heart.
1st Samuel 16:7
“But the LORD said unto Samuel, Look not on his countenance, or on the height of his stature; because I have refused him: for the LORD seeth not as man seeth; for man looketh on the outward appearance, but the LORD looketh on the heart.”
One day, there will be a full reward given to the faithful child of God.
2nd Timothy 4:6-8
“For I am now ready to be offered, and the time of my departure is at hand. I have fought a good fight, I have finished my course, I have kept the faith: Henceforth there is laid up for me a crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, shall give me at that day: and not to me only, but unto all them also that love his appearing.”
A few months ago, I was reading this portion of scripture in my devotions. I saw something here I had never seen before this. The Lord placed a principle in scripture in regards to the Jewish people. Let me give the principle first. Let’s turn back to Genesis chapter twelve. Genesis 12:1-3
“Now the LORD had said unto Abram, Get thee out of thy country, and from thy kindred, and from thy father’s house, unto a land that I will shew thee: And I will make of thee a great nation, and I will bless thee, and make thy name great; and thou shalt be a blessing: And I will bless them that bless thee, and curse him that curseth thee: and in thee shall all families of the earth be blessed.”
The Lord told Abraham that He would bless those who bless the Jewish people. Ruth had done her best to be a blessing to her mother-in-law. Let’s do the math so to speak. Ruth is a Gentile. Naomi is Jewish. Ruth was a blessing to Naomi and so the Lord repaid her kindness according to His promise.
This church has been and will continue to be a blessing to the Jewish people. The Lord showed this principle to me and then I passed it on to the church. I want to share a portion of this with you. Jewish Missions in this church started with a few dollars a month of one missionary. A few months later, I saw part of the fruits of that decision for our family. In October 1993, the Lord opened the doors for my family to buy a 1,700 sq. ft. doublewide trailer with a brick foundation sitting on 1 1/2 acres in the country with a full size garage for $45,000 and no down payment and just a 15-year note. Only a good and gracious God could provide this. Part of the blessing is that the original asking price was $53,000. If you would have asked our children how this home came to us, they will tell you that it was because of Jewish Missions.
I remember the first offering taken for Jewish missions in the church. Many of them knew about that the Lord had provided but were not sure how. I challenged them to give to Jewish missions through our Christmas Present for Jesus. We set a reasonable goal of $100. We were going to give the money to International Board of Jewish Missions for Bibles for Russian Jews. On the last Sunday of December we had only $85 come in so far. That morning one of our widow ladies came to me and asked me how much did we have toward our goal. I told her $85. She told me that she would bring a check that night for $15. Boy, I was happy and we had not even counted for the day what was in the box. Just as she left me, one of our men, who was a college student, shared with me that he had been saving his change for the year and it added up to $75. He wanted to send $25 to one of our missionaries and put the other $50 in the box. Then he handed me a check from his dad for $25 to be used wherever. Of course it went in the box. Then that night when we tallied up the contents with this money and it came up to about $185. We kept the box out until December 31st- our Watch night service. In the Watch Night service we took an offering hoping to double our goal. When the offering was counted and added to the box we had $237.32 for Bibles for Russian Jews.
In July we received videotape from International Board of Jewish Missions where they had used our money with other people's offerings to buy Bibles for a trip to Russia. During the trip to Russia, they gave away 20,000 Bibles, 45,000 gospel tracts and 125,000 gospel flyers to Russians and Russian Jews. During that trip, they had over 4,000 professions of faith and 1,000 were Jews. When I showed the video to the church, I saw strong men who are almost always in control of their emotions weep for joy over the souls that were saved and how God had used our money to reach those Jews for Christ with the glorious gospel.
I am a firm believer that Jewish missions is one of the reason why our doors are still open even after several years of very poor attendance. All of our bills are paid and there is no indebtedness on the property itself.
God will bless according to His word and He blessed Ruth for her kindness toward her mother-in-law, the Jewess.
C. Her Appeal Vs. 13
“Then she said, Let me find favour in thy sight, my lord; for that thou hast comforted me, and for that thou hast spoken friendly unto thine handmaid, though I be not like unto one of thine handmaidens.”
She is still looking for grace and doesn't even realize that she has walked right into the middle of a field full of grace. She just wants to "please him." He has been good to her and she wants to do that which pleases him.
This needs to be the goal of every child of God. Stop trying to live pleasing to every body in the world and just live to please the Lord.
Prover
“When a man’s ways please the LORD, he maketh even his enemies to be at peace with him.”
When a man pleases God, it does not matter who he pleases. But I have learned that when a man pleases God, there will be others. But if not, you may have to stand-alone. I was sent this quote from Brother Hughes and it fits here. “Associate yourself with people of good character if you esteem your own reputation, for ‘tis better to be alone than be in bad company.” –George Washington
1st Corinthians 15:33
“Be not deceived: evil communications corrupt good manners.”
Let me throw in five matters in pleasing God.
Romans 12:1,2
“I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service. And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.”
Proverbs 3:5
Psalm 37:4
“Delight thyself also in the LORD; and he shall give thee the desires of thine heart.”
Why delight in the Lord? It is because He is your greatest friend. Hebrews 13:5
“Let your conversation be without covetousness; and be content with such things as ye have: for he hath said, I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee.”
It is because He is your greatest foundation.
1st Corinthians 3:11
“For other foundation can no man lay than that is laid, which is Jesus Christ.”
It is because He is your greatest filling. Ephesians 6:18
“And be not drunk with wine, wherein is excess; but be filled with the Spirit”
It is because He is your greatest feeder.
Revela
“Behold, I stand at the door, and knock: if any man hear my voice, and open the door, I will come in to him, and will sup with him, and he with me.”
Proverbs 3:6
“In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths.”
Luke 14:23
“And the lord said unto the servant, Go out into the highways and hedges, and compel them to come in, that my house may be filled.”
This will make your life real simple, real fast. He is already pleased positionally. We are as righteous as we are ever going to be.
1st Corinthians 6:9-11
“Know ye not that the unrighteous shall not inherit the kingdom of God? Be not deceived: neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor abusers of themselves with mankind, Nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners, shall inherit the kingdom of God. And such were some of you: but ye are washed, but ye are sanctified, but ye are justified in the name of the Lord Jesus, and by the Spirit of our God.”
However, day-by-day, we need to live our lives in such a way that we please the Lord. How further can we please the Lord? We do it by loving Him, worshiping Him, by putting Him ahead of everything else in this world.
D. His Acceptance Vs. 14
“And Boaz said unto her, At mealtime come thou hither, and eat of the bread, and dip thy morsel in the vinegar. And she sat beside the reapers: and he reached her parched corn, and she did eat, and was sufficed, and left.”
There are a few things that Boaz did in this verse that prove beyond all doubts that Ruth found favor in his eyes.
1. He Sat With Her. He invited her to join him at the meal table and sat close enough to her to pass the corn. He didn't care about her past. She had captured his heart.
Your past has no barrier between you and the Lord when it has been dealt with in salvation. You are brought into a position of nearness to Him. He sits with us today.
2. He Supped With Her. He allowed her to dip her bread in his vinegar. This was an intimate meal. This speaks of close fellowship.
“Behold, I stand at the door, and knock: if any man hear my voice, and open the door, I will come in to him, and will sup with him, and he with me.”
3. He Sufficed Her. When Ruth left that table she was satisfied.
There is no need for a child of God to be unfulfilled as a believer. The Lord has provided all the resources we need to be filled above measure with His goodness and glory. Our duty is to receive what He gives us and to enjoy it to the full. We have already been blessed to the full.
Ephesians 1:3
“Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who hath blessed us with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ”
There
is no excuse for defeat and dissatisfaction in the Christian
life. The only dissatisfaction is not with how He satisfies
but our own growth. If we are dissatisfied and defeated,
it is our own fault and not His.
Conclusion: Next time we will look at his concealing work. Boaz is going to do some behind the scenes stuff that will be a blessing to Ruth and Naomi.
Before finishing, I want remind you that is the field of grace that Ruth is working. We live in a field. We should be doing our best to harvest the crop before it is too late.
“Say not ye, There are yet four months, and then cometh harvest? behold, I say unto you, Lift up your eyes, and look on the fields; for they are white already to harvest. And he that reapeth receiveth wages, and gathereth fruit unto life eternal: that both he that soweth and he that reapeth may rejoice together.”
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