Untitled Sermon

– Let’s bow our heads and pray.

~

– After years of saving, and spending less, and sacrificing many wants,

– the time finally came for Mr. Sharma to buy a car.

– And like any typical Indian, he wanted maximum value for each penny he was going to spend.

– He was investing his hard earned money, after all,

~

– As soon as he entered the showroom.. the salesman unveiled before him, the latest model in town.

– Sleek design, powerful engine,

– 7 Speed automatic CVT transmission, Blind spot Cameras,

– six airbags, ABS, EBD,

– reinforced steel body, 5-star safety rating,

– and a long lasting engine with 10-years of warranty!

– This car, Sir, is a beast! he said.

~

– Our man’s eyes lit up.

– He walked around the car feeling each one of its curves.

– He touched the bonnet almost reverentially.

– Took a test drive, relished the serene experience.

– And he agreed, Boy! This indeed is a beast.

~

– But then, came the point of decision.

– The moment arrived when the most important question had to be asked.

– The one chief question on which hinged the decision, whether this car will be bought or not.

– The one question, the answer to which far outweighed every excellent, outstanding, mind-blowing, fantabulous feature in the car.

~

– And so, in typical Indian fashion, Mr. Verma asked:

“Accha yeh batao, .. mileage kitna deti hai?”

– “How much .. mileage does it give?”

~

– In other words, how much will I get in return?

– I am investing so much, I am putting so much into this,

– This is going to cost me greatly,

– What am I going to get in return?

– How much “value for money” is this deal?

– How much will I get in return?

~

– That’s how we Indians operate, isn’t it?

– We rarely buy something on Instamart without being tempted to check

– “perhaps there is a better deal on Blinkit?”

– And after spending 25 minutes comparing prices, we are thrilled to have saved 12 Rupees.

~

– And maybe it’s not altogether a bad thing.

– It’s our hard earned money, we are responsible for the way we dispense it.

– So to calculate and evaluate and carefully spend it, is probably not altogether bad.

~

– But unfortunately, many times, this mathematical, calculating mindset,

– which is so deeply woven into us,

– creeps into our ministry to God and our service to his Church as well.

– This philosophy of evaluating how much will I get in return?

– invades into our labor for the Lord as well.

~

– We start assessing things by the world’s mathematics.

– What’s in it for me?

– What is the benefit for me?

– Naaku enti laabham?

~

– And we forget that the King we serve and his Kingdom,

– operate on a completely different mathematics, a completely different economics.

– We forget what our Master taught us so often and with so much emphasis,

“He who loses his life for my sake, is the one who will gain it, and he who seeks to save his life is actually the one, who’s going to lose it”.

~

– Well our text today reminds us that those who are willing to sacrifice themselves for the sake of others.

– in order to please God, in accordance with his commandments,

– even when the mathematical equation seems to suggest otherwise,

– such are the ones who are honorable in his sight.

– those who are willing to pay a cost to serve God’s people in God’s kingdom, without anything in return,

– Such are the ones he honors.

~

– Please turn with me to the final chapter of the book of Ruth.

– Ruth chapter 4.

– And, I will request my readers to please stand up.

– We need 4 (5) mics.

– Johnny will be Boaz. Jerald will be .. (well you’ll find out who he will be)

– Ankur and Karan - the people at the gate.

– Hannah and Persis - the women of Bethlehem.

~

– Ruth chapter 4, verse 1:

1Now Boaz went up to the gate and sat down there, and behold, the kinsman redeemer of whom Boaz spoke was passing by, so he said, “Hey Such-and-Such! Come and sit down here.” And he came and sat down. 2 Then he took ten men of the elders of the city and said, “Sit down here.” So they sat down. 3 Then he said to the kinsman redeemer, “Naomi, who has come back from the fields of Moab, has to sell the portion of the field which belonged to our brother Elimelech. 4 So I thought to uncover this matter in your hearing, saying, ‘Acquire it before those who are sitting here and before the elders of my people. If you will redeem it, redeem it; but if no one redeems it, tell me that I may know; for there is no one but you to redeem it, and I am after you.’”

And he said, “I will redeem it.”

~

5 Then Boaz said, “On the day you acquire the field from the hand of Naomi, you must also acquire Ruth the Moabitess, the widow of the one who had died, in order to preserve the name of the one who had died, on behalf of his inheritance.”

6 So the kinsman redeemer said, “I cannot redeem it for myself, lest I ruin my own inheritance. You redeem my right of redemption for yourself, for I cannot redeem it.”

7 Now this was the custom in former times in Israel concerning the right of redemption and the exchange of land to establish any matter: a man removed his sandal and gave it to another; and this was the manner of attestation in Israel.

8 So the kinsman redeemer said to Boaz, “Acquire this for yourself.” And he removed his sandal.

~

9 Then Boaz said to the elders and all the people, “You are witnesses today that I have acquired all that belonged to Elimelech and all that belonged to Chilion and Mahlon from the hand of Naomi. 10 And also, I have acquired Ruth the Moabitess, the widow of Mahlon, to be my wife in order to preserve the name of the one who had died, on behalf of his inheritance, so that the name of the one who had died will not be cut off from his brothers or from the gate of his birth place; you are witnesses today.”

11 And all the people who were in the gate, and the elders, said, “We are witnesses. May Yahweh grant the woman who is coming into your home to be like Rachel and Leah, both of whom built the house of Israel, and may you do honorably in Ephrathah and may your name be renowned in Bethlehem. 12 Moreover, may your house be like the house of Perez whom Tamar bore to Judah, through the seed which Yahweh will grant you by this young woman.”

~

13 So Boaz took Ruth, and she became his wife, and he went in to her. And Yahweh granted her conception, and she gave birth to a son.

14 Then the women said to Naomi, “Blessed is Yahweh who has not left you without a kinsman redeemer today, and may his name be renowned in Israel. 15 May he also be a restorer of soul to you and a sustainer of your old age; for your daughter-in-law, who loves you and is better to you than seven sons, has given birth to him.”

16 Then Naomi took the child and put him on her bosom and became his nurse.

17 The neighbor women gave him a name, saying, “A son has been born to Naomi!” So they named him Obed.

He is the father of Jesse, the father of David.

~

18 Now these are the generations of Perez:

To Perez was born Hezron,

19 and to Hezron was born Ram,

and to Ram was born Amminadab,

20 and to Amminadab was born Nahshon,

and to Nahshon was born Salmah,

21 and to Salmon was born Boaz,

and to Boaz was born Obed,

22 and to Obed was born Jesse,

and to Jesse was born David.

~

– Thank you and please be seated.

– The last time when the curtains fell, at the end of Act 3, we were left in suspense.

– We were told that there is one more guy (change) who is ahead of Boaz in the pecking order of Kinsman Redeemership.

– So Boaz had told Ruth, if he says I will redeem Ruth,

– then that’s it, I can’t do anything, I will be out of the picture.

– But if he refuses to fulfill his duties, surely, I will redeem you.

~

– And we were left wondering, who is this other guy?

– And what’s gonna happen now?

– Will Boaz get Ruth or will this other guy get her?

~

– That’s the tension where the author left us at the end of chapter 3,

– which is now going to be resolved in this chapter.

– And for easier understanding I am going to divide this message into three parts,

– according to the division that the author himself gives.

– And scene 1 is, (change) The Deal at the Gate (2).

~

– Verse 1 opens with `Boaz went down to the gate and sat there`.

– What does the gate of the city signify here?

– In ancient cities, the gate not only provided an entrance to the town

– but it was also the place where the inhabitants of the city gathered to settle legal matters or to formalise agreements.

– So this is something like a courtroom setting.

~

– Now the author tells us that Boaz saw the kinsman redeemer, the other dude, passing by the gate,

– so he called him and made him sit there.

– And Boaz also called few of the elders of the city and made them sit there.

– And the scene is set for an official, legal transaction to be conducted.

~

– But there’s something really really strange about what the author says about how Boaz addressed this other guy.

– I know, most bibles say ‘My friend’ but I think that’s not a good translation.

– If you have a KJV it says, he addressed him as, (change) “Such a one” .. that’s actually very close to the word that the author used.

– (change) The NET bible says, “Come here, what’s-your-name and sit down.”

~

– And that captures the idea fairly well.

– Because it seems like .. the author purposefully left this man unnamed.

– Our author - who is otherwise very careful with names - has for some reason omitted his name.

– The word that is used to address this guy here, means something like “so-and-so” or “Such and Such” or “XYZ”.

– And it seems like .. our author wants us to know that his name is not important.

~

– Now, when we read the rest of the chapter, what we find is that the one big concern of our author in this chapter,

– The one issue that the author brings up again and again and again in this chapter,

– is the issue of preserving the name of a person,

– or a person’s name being remembered or renowned.

~

– Boaz says it again and again, why are we doing all this, verse 5,

– we are doing this in order to (change) “preserve the name of the one who had died”.

– Again in verse 10, to “preserve the name of the one who had died..”

– Again, he says, we are doing this so that “his name will not be cut off from among his brothers and from the gate of the city”.

~

– We are not done yet, also, notice what the elders say to Boaz when they bless him, in verse 11, (change)

“.. may you do honorably in Ephrathah and may. your. ..name be renowned in Bethlehem”

– Still not done, what do the ladies sing to Naomi (change) when Obed is born. Verse 14,

“may his name be renowned in Israel”.

– and then finally, (change) a whole list of names at the end of the book.

– WHOAH!!!

~

– Did you catch what the author is doing?

– By giving so much importance to issue of names and yet omitting this man’s name,

– He’s saying ..

– this man’s name will not be preserved,

– this man’s name will not be remembered,

– this man’s name will not be renowned,

– But why? Well, you already got some clue, but hold that thought, we’re gonna find it out shortly.

~

– For now, we will just call our friend what the author himself calls him .. which is (change) “Paloni Almoni”

– It’s got a nice ring to it, isn’t it?

– Paloni Almoni, Mr. So and So.

– So we are at the gate, Mr. Paloni Almoni has arrived, and the elders are there as well.

– And then in verses 3 and 4, Boaz states the agenda.(change)

~

– Now things get a little technical here, so I request a little extra attention here,

– Boaz says something about the land here, what’s that all about?

– When Israel entered into the promised land, they were allotted portions of land by tribes and clans.

– and it was very, very important for them that the allotted land should stay within the clan or the tribe.

– And that’s what the Redeemer’s job was,

– if a relative becomes so poor that he has to sell their ancestral land,

– the redeemer would buy it and prevent it from being sold outside the clan.

~

– So Boaz says, “Hey Paloni Almoni! Naomi needs to sell her ancestral property to raise money to live on..

– As the kinsman redeemer, you could buy that field and keep it from being sold outside the family..

– Do you want to do that? If not, I am the next in line, and I surely will”.

~

– Now, notice, at this point Ruth has not been mentioned, only Naomi and the land issue has been mentioned,

– the issue of marrying Ruth and raising up an heir for Elimilech has not been mentioned.

– Maybe it’s assumed that Paloni Almoni should be knowing that.

– But it turns out, he doesn’t.

– He either doesn’t know about Ruth or he doesn’t know the law properly.

~

– So what he’s hearing right now is, “There is poor Naomi who has to sell her piece of ancestral land, you can buy it and keep it within the clan. Just take care of the old lady for a few years and then when she’s dead, the property will be your inheritance”

– Sounds like a good deal, so he immediately says, “Of course, I will redeem it.”

~

– “Alright .. ”, says Boaz.

– And he double checks with him (change),

“You know right, the moment you agree to buy Elimilech’s land you are also agreeing to marry Ruth, his son’s widow, to raise up an heir for him, so that, this heir will later inherit this piece of land..”

– Basically that means, Paloni Almoni won’t get anything out of this deal,

~

– He needs to pay for the land,

– He needs to pay for the bride,

– He needs to take care of the two widows.

– He needs to raise an heir for his dead brother Elimilech

– He needs to invest in his upbringing

– and then once the heir grows up, he will need to hand him over Elimelech’s land that he had bought.

~

– This will be an act of pure kindness, a selfless service to the needy widows and to his dead brother Elimilech,

– whose name is about to be blotted out from the Earth, unless their be an heir.

– But that’s what redeemers do, they chip in and save their brother’s name from being blotted out.

~

– But Paloni Almoni .. had different plans.

– Having understood all the terms and conditions,

– Paloni Almoni now realises,

– what sounded like a great real estate deal a few minutes back

– now sounds like a loss-loss deal.

~

– So he who a few moments ago said “Of course, I will redeem it”,

– Now says, “.. Actually … (change) I don’t think I can do it Boaz, you can do it”.

~

– And notice the reason that he gives, he says, “I don’t want to redeem (slow) lest. I. ruin. ..my own .. inheritance”.

– It’s not exactly clear, how performing the duty of raising up an heir for Elimelech will ruin his inheritance.

~

– I'm not 100% sure about this, but it seems like .. he did some calculation in his mind which goes something like this,

– “If in case, I marry Ruth and she bears only one male child,

– Elimelech will get an heir for his inheritance

– but what about my inheritance, I will end up without an heir!”

~

– Whatever it was, Mr. Paloni Almoni understood, boy,

– in trying to provide an heir for Elimelech, I might end up putting my own inheritance in danger. (change)

– I can’t do this.

~

– Now, we need to grasp, how big a deal it was for Yahweh,

– to refuse to marry your brother's childless widow.

– the law, based on which all of this is happening, is elaborated .. in Deuteronomy chapter 25.

– And there it is described what should be done to a person ..

– who refuses to marry the widow of his dead brother.

– It says, in verse 9,

then his brother’s wife shall come to him in the sight of the elders and pull his sandal off his foot and spit in his face; and she shall say, ‘Thus it is done to the man who does not build up his brother’s house.’ 10 And in Israel his name shall be called, ‘The house of him whose sandal was pulled.’

~

– Now, I am not suggesting that this was done to Paloni Almoni, but the point I am trying to make is,

– It was a dishonorable thing in the sight of Yahweh to refuse to raise up an heir for one’s brother.

– Such a person was to be disgraced in the entire community as “the one whose Sandal is removed”

– Everyone in Israel would know this is the guy who refused to fulfill his duty to marry his brother’s widow.

– So if you meet him in the marketplace, you go “You .. You are the one who refused to marry the widow right”

– And he goes .. “Not really … that’s my twin brother”

~

– Paloni Almoni (change) has not done a very honorable thing.

– So he gave up his right to Boaz and walked off the scene.

– But that’s the opportunity that Boaz was looking for, to rise up and seize the moment. (change)

~

– Boaz is clear in his mind.

– No doubts, no contemplations, no calculations, he knows what he wants to do.

– I am gonna perform the duty of the Redeemer to Naomi and Ruth.

– And he is also clear on why he is doing this.

~

– We noted this earlier, but three times he says, “I am doing this ..

“in order to preserve the name of my dead brother” (2)

“I am doing this so that his name will not be cut off from Israel”

– And our author has carefully and faithfully and almost redundantly reported it three times,

– So that we will understand what an honorable motive for service this man had,

– service with the sole purpose to serve, without anything in return.

~

– Paloni Almoni said, “I am interested in doing some Widow charity, as long as I get some real estate in return”

– But as soon as he heard that there is nothing in return, and he might in fact have to suffer loss,

– He said, “I am outta here”

– Not so with Boaz.

~

– Then we see (change) the elders and the other witnesses concur with Boaz’s phenomenal decision.

– and send him with their blessings.

– They say may this woman be like Rachel and Leah who gave Israel the twelve tribes.

– Pretty strange thing to say to a woman who was barren for 10 years in her previous marriage.

– In fact, if you look at the last part of the blessing, they seem to have already made up their mind,

– Yahweh .. (emphasize) will grant you a seed through this woman.

– So it’s not just a blessing, it’s almost like a prophecy.

– Yahweh will grant you a seed through this woman, who will make your name renowned in Bethlehem.

~

– And sure enough, this prophecy was fulfilled.

– Immediately in the next verse we read, (change)

“(quickly) So Boaz took Ruth, and she became his wife, and he went in to her. And .. (slow) Yahweh granted her conception, and she gave birth to a son”.

– Just as it was prophesied at the gate.

– Which brings us to our next scene, from “The Deal at the Gate” (change)

to “The Delight at the Home” (2), in vv. 14-17

~

– And we see some women show up here.

– And we have met them before.

~

– (change) When Naomi and Ruth came back from Moab, these women looked at Naomi and said “Is that Naomi?”

– And Noami said, “Don’t even dare to call me Naomi,

– Naomi means pleasant, I am no longer pleasant,

– call me Mara,

– because Yahweh has made me bitter ..

– Yahweh has made me empty ..

– Yahweh has brought calamity against me ..

~

– At that time, these women didn’t reply anything.

– (change) But now they come into the house, celebrating and singing.

– “HAllo .. HeLLLLLooo ..”

– “Hello Mrs Mara .. OOPS! .. Naomi”

– (eyes lit up) And who’s that little fella in your lap?

– Looks like Yahweh has filled your lap.

– You are no longer empty.

~

– Now of course, this child can never recompense for her lost husband and her two sons who died.

– This child can never replace what she has lost.

– But the women are saying (change) may this little child cheer you up and revive your discouraged soul.

– May he take care of you in your old age.

~

– Now, earlier we read about the blessing that the elders bestowed upon Boaz,

– May your name be renowned in Bethlehem!

– Now we hear about Ruth, who is renowned in Bethlehem.

– Look at what the ladies of Bethlehem have to say about Ruth,

– (change) Listen to this all you daughters in law,

“.. your daughter-in-law, who (emphasis)loves you and is better to you than (emphasis) seven sons .. has given birth to him”

– Boy! That gives me chills every time I read it.

~

– Have you heard of a daughter-in-law who loves her mother-in-law.

– Of course, not, and that’s the point of the author.

– It is not normal for daughters-in-law to love their mothers-in-law.

– Ruth is an exceptional, extraordinary, excellent, exemplary daughter in law.

~

– Throughout this book we have been hearing, that the people of Bethlehem have great regard for Ruth. (change)

– In chapter 2, Boaz tells us that he had heard of her fame from his fellow Bethlehemites.

– In chapter 3, again (change) he said, “all my fellow townspeople know you are an excellent woman”.

– And now, in chapter 4, they gave her an excellent name by which she will be remembered, (change)

– “Ruth - the daughter-in-law who’s better than seven sons”.

~

– If you had seven sons in ancient Israel, you’d be having a perfect family.

– But they are saying, having Ruth (emphasis) alone, is better than that.

– What a way to be remembered!

~

– But did you notice that throughout the book everybody has been praising Ruth,

– the Bethlehemites, Boaz, the elders at the gate, the women.

– Everyone commends Ruth — except one person, whose commendation is conspicuous by its absence: Naomi.

– For all the service, that she has rendered to her,

– never does Naomi say a word in commendation of Ruth.

~

– At least now .. At least now say something Naomi..

— about your daughter in law who is better to you than seven sons.

– No …

– Naomi’s silence in response to the women’s praise for Ruth is… deafening!

– But.. what a marvelous picture it is of Ruth’s ministry.

– She loved and served her mother-in-law devotedly and committedly, without receiving anything in return.

~

– Please also note the name is given to the child:

– Obed, which means .. “Serving”.

– What a fitting name for the product of Boaz and Ruth’s union.

– “Serving” .. for that’s what they have been doing since the beginning of this book.

– Serving Naomi, Serving Elimelech, Serving Mahlon and Chilion, Serving Yahweh.

– For nothing in return.

~

– Paloni Almoni said, unless you give me a piece of land in return, I can not do service.

– Boaz and Ruth say, service, service, service, nothing in return.

– So, then, were Boaz and Ruth fools?

– Why sacrifice yourself like this if there is no ultimate gain?

~

– “He is no fool,

– who gives what he cannot keep,

– to gain what he cannot lose”.

~

– That brings us to our last section in this book, “The Destiny at the End” (2)

– Which is seen in the list of names at the end. (change)

– Paloni Almoni said, “I can’t do this otherwise my inheritance will be ruined”.

– So Yahweh said, “You want to save your inheritance? Go save it.

– But let me show what an astounding inheritance I have in store for my servant Boaz,

– I will give to him an inheritance that you would never even have imagined in your dreams”.

~

– The author tells us, (change)

– The little fella, Obed, the son of Boaz,

– was none other than the grandpa of the greatest king of Israel, King David.

– The elders had blessed Boaz at the gate (change), “may your name be renowned in Bethlehem”.

– And through David that blessing would be fulfilled.

~

– Because with the possible exceptions of Moses and Abraham,

– David is arguably the most renowned name in the history of Israel,

– Indeed through the seed that Yahweh gave Boaz through Ruth, he became renowned.

~

– (change) Now this genealogy at the end of this story suggests that this story is not just about

– Naomi and her emptiness or

– Elimelech and his need for an heir,

– But also about the greater purposes of God,

– In the dark days of the Judges God was preparing the way for the Greatest King in Israel’s history.

– And it was this humble Servant-couple that God chose to preserve the royal line, in those evil days.

~

– But this is not the only genealogy that Boaz made it through to.

– In the Genealogy of genealogies,

– In The Chosen line of the Messiah,(change)

– In The Ultimate Hall of Fame,

– appears not just Boaz but also along with him, Ruth,

– We see this wonderful servant-couple there along with their son - Obed.

~

– Boaz and Ruth’s name became renowned not just in Bethlehem and Israel but throughout the world.

– as they made their way into this hall of fame.

– Paloni Almoni – where ARE you?

~

– Now, the point to note is that Boaz and Ruth did not live to see this happen,

– They didn’t know that the long promised Messiah would be one of their descendants,

– They didn’t even know that the greatest king in Israel’s history, would be one of their descendants.

– As far as they knew, as far as they could see it..

– it was only serving, serving, serving, nothing in return.

– And they did it faithfully.

~

– And indeed the reward for God’s faithful servants is never going to be awarded in this life,

– Never on this earth, only after we have passed on from this world onto the next one,

– will we really receive the honor for our service.

– Till then it is only serving, serving, serving, expecting nothing in return.

~

– After forty years of faithful service to the Lord as missionaries to Africa,

– Henry Clay Morrison and his wife were returning to America.

– As the ship neared the dock, Henry noticed the huge crowd waiting there

– and he said to his wife, “Look at that crowd. After all, they haven't forgotten us”.

~

– However, unknown to Henry, on the ship was also present President Roosevelt,

– who was returning from a grand hunting trip in Africa.

– As the ship arrived at the dock, Roosevelt got down,

– And the crowd thronged him.

– People were cheering, flags were waving, and reporters were reaching out to him for his comments,

– Meanwhile, Henry and his wife slowly walked away unnoticed, unsung, uncelebrated.

– They took a taxi and went to their one bedroom apartment.

~

– Over the next few weeks, Henry tried, but failed to put this incident behind him.

– He was sinking deeper and deeper into depression.

– And then one evening, he finally decided to settle this matter before the Lord.

– He went into his bedroom and got down on his knees,

~

“Lord, this is so wrong!

This man comes back from a hunting trip and receives this tremendous homecoming.

We give our lives in faithful service for all these years, but no one seems to care.”

– As he finished, he felt comforted in his heart as though the Lord was saying to him, “But Henry, you are not home yet, you will receive your homecoming when you reach home!”

~

– This morning if you are wondering what am I even gaining by pouring out my life in service to God’s church,

– What is the benefit for me in this sacrifice?

– If you are discouraged that it doesn’t seem like you have been recompensed appropriately for the labor you have put, for your service to God and his people,

– Let me encourage you to remember that it is not on this Earth that we are going to receive our reward, but only after we have passed on from here.

– Until then, let us be serving, serving, serving, without expecting anything in return.