Sermon Tone Analysis
Overall tone of the sermon
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Introduction
When we last saw Naomi she was overwhelmed with grief.
Naomi saw her life almost completely destroyed.
She had lost her husband, sons, and now she has returned to Bethlehem empty handed.
Naomi has expressed her despair by acknowledging that God’s hand was in the midst of the pain that she was experiencing.
Will the suffering never end?
We have all found ourselves in Naomi’s situation.
It is possible that we have not experienced the exact same circumstance but we have had our fair share of difficulties.
God is about to teach Naomi and Ruth two important lessons:
God’s providence
God’s provision
I. God’s providence
I. La providencia de Dios
The doctrine of providence is a very important and fundamental doctrine.
Providence refers to “the protective care of God or of nature as a spiritual power.”
(Google)
The doctrine teaches us that God’s hand is superintending everything that happens.
God is in the midst of everything - even in the midst of the storm.
Providence refers to the fact that God is never absent but is always close to those who call upon him.
We immediately encounter the providence of God in .
We do not know who Boaz is yet.
All we know is that he is a close relative to Naomi’s deceased husband.
Although we do not know what role he will play, we start to see a glimmer of hope for these two widows in the land of Israel.
Naomi asks her mother-in-law to allow her to go the fields an glean so that she may gather some grain.
This is unusual to us because we do not live in an Israeli agricultural society.
God had stipulated in Old Testament law that the Israelites were not to harvest the edges of their fields.
L
The edges and any leftover product was to be given to the poor.
In this way, God was providing for the poor.
The people of God were commanded to consider the poor and less fortunate.
Ruth goes out into the fields hoping to find favor.
Providentially Ruth comes to the fields belonging to Boaz.
Ruth 2:
Some people would call this event a coincidence.
Others would call it good luck.
The people of God do not believe in coincidences or good luck - we believe in God’s providential care.
We believe God watches over his people.
Ruth has come to the fields of one of her deceased father-in-law’s close relatives.
However, Ruth has several strikes against her: she is a woman, she is a moabite, she is a foreigner.
Nevertheless, she is part of God’s people.
She has claimed the Lord God of Israel as her God - will God be faithful to Ruth? Surely, God will provide!
Ruth starts to pick grain that has fallen to the ground as she walks behind the harvesters.
II.
God’s provision
II.
La provisión de Dios
As Ruth is gleaning the field, the owner of the field comes into the picture.
It is Boaz!
Ruth 1:4
The first thing we notice about Boaz is that he is a truly pious man.
He greets his servants with God’s blessing and they answer in the same way.
However, there is a stranger in the field, and not just any stranger but a moabite, a foreigner!
Boaz could have easily driven Ruth out of the field.
Boaz knows he does not know her and starts to inquire as to her identify.
The overseer tells the story of how Ruth had come to him asking to be allowed to gather grain behind the harvesters.
The overseer mentions the fact that Ruth is from Moab, at least twice.
The overseer describes how Ruth has been working from morning till now.
We do not know how many hours have transpired but he is amazed that this woman has been working under the hot dessert son, with just a short rest.
After all, who could blame Ruth?
She was desperate to feed herself and Naomi.
Ruth must have been so tired, so anxious that she could be thrown out of the field at any moment.
She was probably aware of the people looking at her, staring at her knowing that she was not an Israelite.
Boaz calls out to Ruth!
Just imagine what Ruth felt as Boaz called her.
Boaz must have seemed like an extremely prominent man calling out to this poor female foreigner.
But Ruth need not fear.
He actually wants her to stay in his field and continue gleaning alongside his female servants.
Boaz lavishes her with favor:
Ruth 2:9-
He guarantees that she will not be bothered.
He has ordered the men and women to respect her.
Also, should she become thirsty she has no need to go to the well but rather drink from the water jars the men have filled.
Why would Boaz show her this favor?
Ruth simply cannot understand that anyone would lavish this kind of favor upon her.
Ruth knows she does not deserve any of this blessing.
Ruth knows her place.
Boaz is the powerful one.
Boaz is the wealthy one.
She has no place being in his fields.
Boaz knows Ruth’s life story.
R
Boaz knows the sacrifice that Ruth has made to journey to the land of Israel.
Boaz knows that Ruth has left her homeland in faith.
Boaz knows that Abraham the patriarch had done the very same thing.
Abram had been called out of Ur of the Chaldees to a land he did not know.
He journeyed far away from home in obedience to God’s commandment.
Boaz focuses on the fact that Ruth has come to find refuge in the God of Israel.
Boaz recognizes that Ruth has come to find refuge beneath the wings of the Lord.
Ruth experiences abundant blessings:
Verse 14 Ruth is invited to eat at Boaz’s table, eat bread and roasted grain until she was completely full.
Verse 15 Ruth gathers among the sheaves.
Verse 16 Boaz orders that the men drop stalks from the bundles so that Ruth can pick them up for herself.
Verse 17 Ruth has gathered about 22 kilos of barley.
Eventually she makes it home with enough leftover food that she shares it with her mother-in-law.
It is now time for Naomi to witness God’s blessings:
Ruth 2:19
Naomi is overwhelmed with God’s blessing upon Ruth.
She immediately erupts in declaring God’s blessing upon the man that allowed her to glean in his field.
You know it was Boaz, Ruth knows it was Boaz, but Naomi has no idea!
Naomi hears Boaz’s name and her bleak future starts to look immensely bright.
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