Title Ruth, Woman of Faith
Contents
Hymn: 379 (New Hymn 204) 'Hearing the word of the Lord'
Meditation: What should our family learn and follow from Ruth, who was a foreign woman, who gave birth to the Davidic royal family and further formed the genealogy of Christ?
Text: 'Then Boaz took Ruth, and she married her, and she lay with her, and the LORD gave her a child, and she bore a son... "(Ruth 4:13-17)
Swiss education reformer Festarozzi preached that the joy of family is the greatest joy on earth, and that the holiest thing for mankind is the joy that parents get from their children. This also means that the human heart is pure and good and leads to God. Ruth, who appears in today's message, was a foreign woman, but she sincerely followed her mother-in-law, Naomi, and by fully accepting Naomi's teachings of faith, she received God's blessing and established a family of faith.
What kind of God's blessing was given to Ruth? First, God blesses the family of faith to gain fame. The author of the book of Ruth is saying in today's text that he wants this child's name to be made famous. It is famous here as 'kara' in Hebrew, which means 'to call' or 'to shout', meaning that the name remains large enough to be talked about by many people. It also hints at the birth of Christ through Ruth's descendants. God gives the blessing of making a family of faith as an example of a family full of love and happiness and creating a bright family whose reputation is increasing day by day in the church and society.
Second, God gives the blessing of reconciling the family of faith. The text said that he was born of a noble man. Here, 'precious' is 'tob' in Hebrew, meaning 'good', 'good', and 'precious'. It means the most valuable thing that cannot be exchanged with anything in the world, that is, 'the most liked and loved'. Naomi and Ruth, who were at peace with their neighbors by practicing faith and virtue, were praised and blessed by their friends. Finally, God gives the blessing of prospering the family of faith.
The text is the genealogy from Perez through Boaz to David. This shows that the most powerful lineage in Judea, the Davidic dynasty, was formed through Ruth as a medium. God prospers families of faith and gives more precious blessings to descendants.
Prayer: Grant us the wonderful blessings of Ruth's blessings that come to our home today. I pray in Jesus name. Amen.
Lord's Prayer