God's Hand Leads Us

Troubles! Life seems to be filled with them. Have you ever had one of those years where it seemed that every time you turned around, another piece of your life came crashing down around you? I think we all have had those times in life. And it seem the older we get, none of that slows down. Dr. appointments, hospital visits, nursing homes and care facilities. Life always seems to be out of our control and things happen when we least expect.

Life in Ancient Israel was much the same, just without modern technology and social media to complain to when things go wrong. Even though life in that era was much simpler, without all the gizmos and gadgets that we have today that we have to spend so much time maintaining and managing. But life still got sideways for everyone from time to time.

Our text this morning is from the book of Ruth. This text is all about life’s tragedies and God’s hand of provision even in the midst of things that people just cannot understand. The story is about an Israelite family, from Bethlehem. The husband was Elimelech and his wife Naomi and their two sons, Mahlon and Chilion. There was a famine in Israel, so Elimelech and Naomi took their two sons and crossed the Jordan river and sojourned in Moab.

Interesting thing about this is that repeatedly throughout the historical books of the Old Testament, Israel was always at odds with Moab. Moab was the territory that the Lord had blessed Abraham’s brother, Lot, with. This was Israel’s great-uncle’s land. By the time Israel was in the wilderness and seeking passage through Moab, its reign was now under Amorite control. King Sihon, who had conquered the Moabites and gained control of their land, denied Israel passage through his territory.

However in this text from Ruth, it appears that Israel and Moab might have been in a period of relative peace. However, in the book of Judges, we see that because of Israel’s apostasy, because of their turning away from the Lord their God, serving other gods and always living as was right in their own eyes, Israel served Moab for a period of eighteen years (). During that eighteenth year, Benjaminite judge Ehud assassinated the Moabite King Eglon and gained peace between the two peoples. It may have been during this time when Elimelech and his family sojourned in Moab due to the scarcity of food in Israel.

Regardless, as if leaving your home, your home town, and every person you have ever befriended and other family members isn’t hard enough, tragedy strikes again. Elimelech dies, leaving Naomi and their two boys. As the text says, the two boys married Moabite women, Orpah and Ruth. Life is looking up for Naomi and her sons, then tragedy strikes a third time, both Mahlon and Chilion die, leaving Naomi, Orpah and Ruth lonely and destitute.

Then one day, Naomi hears while gleaning in the fields of Moab that God had visited His people and provided new growth in crops and fields. So, Naomi decides to move back to Bethlehem, alone, to live out the last years of her life. Naomi encourages the two young widows to return to their homes, to their families, to their culture and their religion. Orpah does, but Ruth does not. Ruth has a deep sense of love and admiration for Naomi and also for her God. “But Ruth said, “Do not urge me to leave you or to return from following you. For where you go I will go, and where you lodge I will lodge. Your people shall be my people, and your God my God. Where you die I will die, and there will I be buried. May the Lord do so to me and more also if anything but death parts me from you.”” (, ESV)

This tragedy of life turned out for good, not only for Naomi and Ruth, but Ruth is named in Jesus’ genealogy. God’s hand was heavy upon Naomi’s family and life, but it was God’s hand that led Ruth to to have such deep love and commitment for Naomi and her people and the Lord Himself.

So how has tragedy changed your life? Each of us go through tragedy and traumas, whether it be childhood traumas such as losing a parent or sibling, or other tragedy within your family as an adult. I know several women here who are widowed, much like Naomi, Ruth and Orpah. You have suffered through the loss of the love of your life, and many are still grieving. There has been a loss of income, and the loss of financial stability. Suffering loss is one thing that we are all guaranteed in life. Such is life under the cross. However, even life under the cross, with all its traumas and tragedies, God’s hand guides us.

For Naomi and Ruth, the Lord’s hand led them to Judah, Naomi’s country, her people and her God. When you read through this short little book in the Old Testament you will see all that the Lord led these to women to in order to not only to provide for these women, as there was no Social Security, unemployment, or welfare benefits at all during those days.

Women in the ancient world were totally dependent upon the males in their family for support for the rest of their lives. If a woman was a widow, such as the case with Naomi and Ruth, it was the duty of the dead husband’s brother to redeem her, especially if she has no sons. He would take her as a wife and father children with her, so an heir may come. The redeemer would also redeem any land that belonged to his brother so that it may be passed on to his brother’s heir. However, If one didn’t have a kinsman redeemer, she was left to begging, gleaning the fields, and the like. Life for the widow and orphan was bleak at best.

However, If one didn’t have a kinsman redeemer, she was left to begging, gleaning the fields, and the like.

At just the right time, the Lord led Naomi and Ruth to return to Judah where in they were saved from hunger, loneliness, and death. He gave Ruth a heart receptive to the Gospel. She left her gods to follow the One True God, her kinsman redeemer, Boaz, through whom Ruth would be married to and produce children, and he also redeemed her late husband’s property which would be passed down from generation to generation.

Naomi and Ruth found their redeemer in God’s servant Boaz. However, through God’s hand that led them back to Judah, Ruth, a Moabite, would become through their son Obed, king David, and eventually, THE KINSMAN REDEEMER, Jesus the Messiah.

Through Jesus, God’s hand redeemed the entire world. Jesus was born to give His life as a fragrant offering to the Lord. When Jesus did ministry, He had a way of leading the lonely. The widow at Nain, whose only son just died and she was looking at the rest of her life alone and utterly destitute, Jesus raised her dead son back to life. Jairus, a ruler of a synagogue in Galilee, came to Jesus heartbroken because his little daughter was sick to the point of death, and while another woman who had been very lonely for over twelve years because of a non-stop menstrual flow of blood was healed by simply touching the hem of Jesus’ garment. She was restored to her community, especially the synagogue, because she was no longer considered ‘unclean’, she had been healed and restored to wholeness of life. But while Jesus took a few moments with the woman, Jairus’ daughter died. Going in Jairus’ home, Jesus took the little girl by the hand and with a word, “Talitha cumi”, the little girl got up and was reunited with her parents.

Jesus was crucified for us that we can have life. Abundant life now in this life, and because of Jesus’ death and resurrection we have the promise of a totally whole life for all eternity. All of our diseases will finally be healed, all of our loneliness replaced with the joys of eternal life with those we love who have departed in the faith. We will be with Jesus as our God for all eternity.

There was a time when we were just like Ruth. She was at odds with God because she and her family were pagans, their culture was full of idolatry and they worshiped man made gods. But the Lord led Ruth to a knowledge of the truth when she married Naomi’s son. Ruth was introduced to God through Naomi and her son. And when the Lord got a hold of Ruth, her life would never be the same. She became devoted to Naomi, her people and her God. She repented and turned to the Lord. And the Lord did not disappoint. He redeemed her spiritually, and He redeemed her physically, leading her to Boaz, who would give her an heir, Obed. Her family’s inheritance, as an Israelite wife, was restored and preserved, and her eternal inheritance was given also, eternal life with the Lord.

God has led us too. He led us to the baptismal font where He cleansed us from all sin and named us as His own redeemed children. He is now always with us through the Holy Spirit, the Comforter, who helps us in our loneliness and the grief of loss. Try to imagine what loss would be like if there was no hope of redemption, no hope of comfort. How would one of you ladies, or gentlemen out there who have lost a spouse or child ever have made it through that loss had it not been for Jesus?

“For all who believe and are baptized shall be saved” Jesus declares to us through the Gospel of Mark. The promise of the Gospel changes our lives of emptiness and hopelessness to a life filled with strength and joy. Sure, during this life, loss is inevitable and it is surely still extremely painful. But you are never alone. Jesus tells His disciples and He tells us today, “I am with you always, even to the end of the age” ().

God’s hand leads us as we go through this life. He has done all things for us and for our salvation. And He leads us through those dark times of loneliness and despair. He never leaves us alone. What great news Jesus is. He is our kinsman redeemer who leads us out of the kingdom of darkness into the kingdom of His light. Just as the Lord led Ruth out of Moab, a kingdom of idolatry and rebellion towards God, into Judah, where she met her redeemer and through her would come the Redeemer of the world, a kingdom of light and peace. God leads us too through the darkness of the world in which we live in, filled with idolatry and sin, and He introduces us to our Redeemer, Jesus Christ, who lavishly washes us from all sin and error and makes us His people. He redeemed us because He loves us, and He wants us to be in His kingdom.

Ruth is just one example of how God has guided His saints in the past. Even though God often sends His people through dark and despairing events in life, we need never fear not getting through those times of darkness and danger, we pray that God would increase our faith to follow His leading with good courage, not knowing where we will go, but with all thankfulness, following Him who is leading us and ever lovingly supporting us. Ruth shows us that God carries out His promise to take care of His people, and we can always trust in that promise.

In the name of Jesus and for His eternal glory. Amen.