Ruth conclusion

I can't express. Even to hear a child crying in this room is truly a blessing. It really is. I hope that that, even though that's hard to hear, I hope that just brings joy to your ears. To have kids in a church, that is truly a blessing and a good thing.

So today is a blessed Lord's Day to be here for a multitude of reasons. This is going to be our last message here in the Book of Ruth. So I would encourage you to start turning your way there. Start opening up your Bibles to the Book of Ruth.

This is going to be the last message. Not in the history of this pulpit, I hope not. But this is going to be the last message for today as we come to an end here in the Book of Ruth. Chapter 4, verses 18 through 22.

So please start opening that way with your respected translations, respected Bibles, respected devices. And let us go ahead and open up with a word of prayer. Lord God, I just want to pray again for those little children today, Lord God.

I pray that we would do these things deliberately and intentionally for Your glory and raising them up to know You and walk in the paths of righteousness, Lord. God, I pray that today in everything we do, whether it be the giving and the tithing, whether it be the singing and the worship, whether it be the reading and the teaching, or whether it be the fellowship and participating in this shared meal, Lord God, I pray that we do all these things for Your glory and that we would do these things focusing on magnifying Your supremacy, Lord.

God, I just pray for guidance, Lord, for the entirety of this church as well as myself, Lord, as we seek to do these things, as I said, intentional and deliberate towards worship to You, Lord. God, let us have love towards one another and let us be sanctified by Your Word today.

And Lord God, I just, I would pray that today we would be focused upon You and what You have to say here in Ruth chapter 4, verses 18 through 22, Lord. God, I just, again, I just lift up these things that Your will would be done in them, and that's, we say these things in Your name, Jesus the Christ, amen.

The Genealogy of Perez to David

So, let me read Ruth chapter 4, verses 18 through 22. And as I often say, I'm not a guru or excellent in English by any means. And so, when we read some of these names here, I might read them very quickly to cover them.

Just know I'm doing that because the faster I say them, it sounds the more correct. If I stop on them, I'm going to stutter and it's not going to be good. But Ruth chapter 4, verses 18 through 22 for today.

And I hope you see this and you notice how small this text is. And why are we having a message on this?

It's very important.

We're going to talk through these things.

But let us go ahead and read this.

It says, Now these are the generations of Perez. To Perez was born Hezron. And to Hezron was born Ram. And to Ram, Abinadab. And to Abinadab was born Nashron. And Nashron, Solomon. And from Solomon to Boaz.

And to Boaz, Obed.

And to Obed was born Jess. And to Jess, David. I really like those last three names. They are a lot easier to pronounce and pronunciate than the other ones. So let us now pray over this text. This is the text we're going to be looking at today.

And it's a very important text. Let us go ahead and pray.

Lord God, as we look at this. These are the generations, Lord God. Let us be confident in your word here, Lord. You have spoken these things. This is inspired text, Lord. And therefore, it is worthy for us to look at this.

Because in this, it reveals you. Even in these short four texts here. These four short verses, Lord. God, let us think about what it means to have the Christ be a part of this generation that was just read.

And Lord, let us exalt you today, Lord. As king of kings and lords of lords. Not because you need our recognition. But because you are worthy of such, Lord. As you are the only sovereign. And you are supreme over all things, Lord.

God, thank you for this week's Bible study. And this upcoming week's Bible study. As we continue to look at the betterness of Christ. The supremacy therein. And we just say this in your name. Jesus the Christ.

Amen.

Now, as we always do. And as we always ought to do. When we open up any text in the Bible. We should not just highlight and look into one single verse. And make doctrine out of those things. We need to look at the context.

We need to look at who it was spoken by. Who it was being spoken to. And all these kind of things in order to make a doctrine out of anything. And so, when we look at this. We need to be reminded of what the context that has taken place beforehand.

And this text of Ruth. Is what essentially is the bookend of the book of Ruth.

It is what it is.

And so, we're going to see here in a moment. The wonderfulness that takes place in the beginning of Ruth. Being the book beginning. And then we're going to look at what the end has to say. Because there's something that is very important for us to recognize in there.

For why the book of Ruth starts off in a certain way. And why it ends in a certain way. Not only this. But the context. The immediate context of this. As we talked about last week. Is that Boaz has now taken Ruth as a wife.

And we've seen that in chapter four. Ruth is recorded of saying nothing. And the last thing that she was recorded of saying. Is telling Naomi about all that Boaz had done for her. Which is beautiful when we think about us as Christians.

We ought to be speaking highly of our king. Highly of the Christ. To all people.

To all people.

We should only be lifting him up. And never ever forsaking him.

By one.

Not telling people about him.

Or two.

Telling people improperly about him. These are some dangers for the Christian to avoid. Now the immediate context here again. Just to continue on with these things. Is that Boaz takes Ruth as a wife. They have sexual relationships in the bounds of marriage.

Which is very important for us to take note of. And it says that she gives birth to a son. Which the Lord enabled for her to conceive. So this is a divine thing that's taking place in here. And the important part of this.

Is that we need to remember where Ruth has come from. That she has lost her husband. She has lost her land. She has lost her people. She has come to though. She has come to God of Israel. She has made the people of Israel her people.

She has made the land therein her land. She has attached herself to Naomi. And so therefore she is a believer in the same God that you and I are believers of. Which is a blessing. We can look at Ruth and say she's a sister in Christ.

Not only this but we see that Boaz goes about this in a very open way. As he went to the other family kinsmen. As Rick reminded us of a couple weeks ago. And we see in here that the lineage of both Boaz and Ruth.

Is carrying something very very important forward. This isn't recorded for us out of just habit. Or it's not recorded for us in just a lackadaisical means. This is important text in here. These four verses and the implication of what it has to do for our salvation.

It really does. So let us look here in these four verses. As this is speaking of the generation, the lineage of Obed or Boaz and Ruth. This covenantal plan that has come about through the redemption of the family.

And what it means for our redemption.

So let us look at this.

And we're going to only make short mention of these verses in here. We won't go into depth of what each one of these historical figures in this narrative has done. What's recorded for us. We're just going to look at what the generations, the lineage means for us today.

So just be prepared for that.

So it says now these are the generations of Perez. And I want to pause there and just make mention of this. This is true text.

This is historical text.

This is a very physical text in here. We should not look at this and assume anything other than what it says here. This is the generations. This is the lineage that through this marriage, through Boaz and Ruth.

This is what's come about. That the fathers of this family is Perez was born Hezron. And to Hezron was born Ram. And to Ram was born Aminadab. And to Aminadab was born Nashon. And to Nashon, Salmon. And to Salmon was born Boaz.

And so now we see the figure Boaz. This is the one that's been introduced to us in this book. This is the one that is the one of the nearest kinsmen to Naomi and Ruth. But this is the one that implicitly redeems that family.

That he's done this in an honorable way. And so then we see in here, it says in Boaz and to Boaz. So that the child of Boaz is Obed, which we talked about last week. How does Obed get his name? The neighbor woman gives him that name, right?

And just speaking of names, that name is a servant of God. Just as Ruth means something, Naomi means something, Mara means something. That's what this name means here, is a servant. And to Obed was born Jesse.

And to Jesse was born whom?

David. David.

I hope we all know who David is in the Bible. That's one of the most prominent figures that we have in the entirety of the Old Testament. Now, why is that the very final word here in Ruth?

David.

That's the way this book ends.

David. David.

How does this book begin? There's a reason that the book of Ruth is found at the end of the book of Judges. I would encourage you to open up... So if you don't have markers in your Bible, go to the beginning of Ruth and go one page before Ruth here in the book of Judges.

The final verse here in the book of Judges, which is Judges chapter 21 verse... We'll read verse 24 to 25.

How about that?

Verse 24 and 25. There's a reason that Ruth is put here in this context and in this way.

It says,.

And the sons of Israel departed from there at that time, every man to his tribe and family, and each one of them went out from there to his inheritance.

In those days...

This is so important.

In those days, there was no king of Israel. Everyone did what was right in his own eyes. Next page over, depending on how your Bible is formatted, you now see in Ruth 1 .1 the context of what we see here now and it's recorded for us.

Now it came about in the days when the judges governed that there was a famine in the land and a certain man of Bethlehem in Judah went to sojourn in the land of Moab with his family and his two sons.

The book of Ruth starts when what is not ruling and governing the city, a king is not there. This nation is kingless. It is abstinent and going against God's word. There is no one ruling over it other than the judges that are governing in that day.

And we see from the book of Judges, what does this cause? Everyone is doing what is right in their own eyes. And this is why, this is often why in the Old Testament that God inflicts famines upon the nation of Israel is because they are being disobedient to the commandments, disobedient to the promises, disobedient to the covenants.

They are disregarding what God has said and so therefore we now see some of the contextual reasons why the whole book of Ruth is recorded for us. Verse 1 starts off with what?

No king.

How does the book end?

David.

We now see what Ruth is meant for. It's a bridging of the gap showing the lineage of the king. That there is going to be this future king that is a shepherd that God is going to call and make him king over the nation of Israel.

That story sounds very, very reminiscent to another king that we will talk about today. I want to go, because this idea of the history, the language of the generations here actually starts off for us what we have in our New Testament.

Did you guys know this? Let's go to Matthew chapter 1. Matthew chapter 1. Matthew chapter 1. We're not going to spend a lot of time dissecting this text here in Ruth but we're going to talk about the implications of what this means.

A kingless nation actually has a king now.

David.

David the king comes about through what? Through the death of Ruth's husband and her attaching herself to Naomi and her going and being married to Boaz. This sad story brings about not only a great story, a great lesson but it points us to Jesus Christ, it reveals God's glory to us and it brings about what to the nation of Israel?

A king. A king.

Matthew chapter 1. And we're not going to read the entirety of this because once again it'd be embarrassing for me to try to pronounce all these names in here right now and I don't think we have the time to go through all the names in here today but I want you to pay close attention to a few verses in here.

Matthew chapter 1 verse 1. Matthew chapter 1 verse 6. And Matthew chapter 1 verse 16 as this is all dealing with the lineage that we see here in the book of Ruth. So this is the book, so the book of Matthew starts off the book of genealogy of Jesus Christ, the son of David.

So it picks up right there from where Ruth just leaves off, the son of David, the son of Abraham. So this very first verse encapulates the whole point of who the Christ is, who the Messiah will come through the lineage of both Abraham and David being the seed of Abraham, being the root of David, the branch of David as we see Christ called in the New Testament.

Verse 6.

This is important to see in here. And to Jesse was born David, what does it call him?

The king.

So Jesse was born David the king. Now verse 16. And to Jacob was born Joseph, the husband of Mary by whom was born Jesus who is called the Christ. Now looking at this text, there is some language that has some some phraseology about Babylon and whatnot in these verses here.

But the only two names in this text that have a title after it is two names David the king and Jesus the Christ. Very first verse, the son of Abraham and the son of David. I hope you're starting to see the importance and the sovereignty of God's plan here in the book of Ruth as we've looked through this entirety of the story.

And we've seen beautiful language. We've seen beautiful application to our own lives. I know I've been blessed as we've gone through the book of Ruth here. But the majority, I think the main focus of that book is they are kingless no longer.

They have a king that has come about through an excellent woman, an honorable man that God has not turned his back against them here. That yes, he sends famine. Yes, he does these things, but he gives them a king.

And not only this, is David the king of kings? Is he the one that is perfect and righteous in every regard? No, David was a fallen man. Romans 3 10. Again, we quote this one quite often. No one is righteous.

No, not one.

It says in the book of Acts that David is still in the grave today. We still have his grave today is what Peter says in Acts chapter 2. But the Christ has risen again. He was a type. He himself, David the king, was pointing and screaming and shouting in every typological and prophetic way about whom?

The Christ, the other one that has a title here in chapter 1 of Matthew. Now, I want to think today what we're going to be focusing on is how God's sovereign plan in the book of Ruth has serious implication for us today.

Has serious implication for us today. We're going to make a mention of probably the most Bible verses that I've ever said in a message behind this pulpit, and we won't read them all. I'll quote many of them to you, and I would encourage you to write them down.

Go home and study them. We don't have enough time today to read each one of these Bible verses about the implication of being the seed, the son of Abraham, the seed, the son of David. We don't have enough time to talk about these things today, but we're going to make mention of them.

We're going to make mention of them. I want to look here as what it means for as the book of Ruth ends with a family redeemed, a pagan Gentile woman being saved by Yahweh, and having a huge role in the history of Israel, as well as having an equal seat therein, and ultimately the book ends with there being a king that is born.

The book of Matthew starts us off in this same way. Here in Matthew, just a little bit later on in the same chapter one, it says, and she will bear a son. This is talking about Mary in verse 21, and you shall call his name Jesus for he, it is he who will save his people from their sins, and in verse 23, it says that this child, behold, the virgin shall be with child and shall bear a son, and they shall call his name Emmanuel, which translated means God with us.

God with us.

There's a saying that we see that is used throughout history, and I think it's very applicable to every nation that we've seen for the last many, many years. As the king goes, so goes the kingdom. As the king goes, so goes the kingdom.

As the king goes, so goes the kingdom. If a king or a leader or a ruler or some sort of magistrate of a nation fails to do what he's meant to do, what happens to that nation, kingdom, authority? What happens to those things?

They suffer. They fall away because usually there's bad leadership therein. When we think about Christ being our redeemer and our king, what has he done? He has defeated all things. He is putting all things under subject underneath his feet.

We're going to mention this here in a little bit. As your king church goes, so goes you, the kingdom. Christ has victory and he stands today as the land that was slain in victory at the right hand of father, for his grave is empty.

He has done what you and I can't do. He has purchased you in your salvation. He is the king of kings and the Lord of lords. That comes from Revelation chapter 19 verse 16. I'm just going to quote some Bible verses here for us right now and make some implications about these type of things.

Genesis chapter 17, actually Genesis chapter 12, 15 and 17 all talk about, guess what? Abraham and his seed. Talks about Abraham and his seed. That God is going to bless the nations through his seed. Galatians chapter three tells us who this seed is.

Galatians chapter three, verse 16. Actually we'll do verse 16 to 17 here. It says, now the promises were spoken to Abraham and to his seed. He does not say and to seeds is referring to many, but rather to one.

And to your seed that is Christ. What I'm saying is this, the law which came 430 years later does not invalidate a covenant previously made, ratified by God so as to nullify the promise. Later on in this chapter, it says in verse 28 to 29, we'll actually read, let's go ahead and read verse 26 through 29.

It says, for you are all sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus. For all of you who were baptized into Christ have clothed yourself with Christ. There is neither Jew nor Greek. There is neither slave nor free man.

There is neither male nor female. For you are all one in Christ Jesus. And if you belong to Christ, then you are Abraham's offspring, heirs according to the promise. We would see that all throughout the book of Hebrews, especially Hebrews, what is that one word that we've taken notice of that is constant in the whole book of Hebrews that we've even just talked about in one chapter so far?

That Jesus Christ is better. That Jesus Christ is superior. That Christ is supreme in this way. That all those things that were in the old pointed us to the new. So likewise, the line of the Messiah had to come about through the sons of Abraham, the son of David.

And so when we go to Luke chapter 1, we're just going to look at this real fast too. Luke chapter 1, it says this about Luke chapter 1, about Jesus's birth being foretold. We'll just read just a couple of verses here in verse 31.

And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you shall name him Jesus. He will be great, and he will be called the Son of the Most High. And the Lord God will give the throne of his father David, and he will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and his kingdom will have no end.

And Mary said to the angel, how can this be since I am a virgin? And the angel answered and said to her, the Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. And for this reason, the holy offspring, the holy seed, shall be called the Son of God.

We see again, now we see multiple titles here that are all attributed to Jesus Christ. The seed of Abraham does not say seeds, but the seed pointed us to Jesus. We see the Son of David points us to Jesus, and we have another title now that's here in Luke, the Son of God.

All these things are giving Christ all authority, and rule, and right, and supremacy, and betterness. It's all pointing us to Jesus in this text, in the book of Ruth. I want to read here for us 1 Corinthians chapter 15.

This is some of the most clearest language about Jesus Christ being king. 1 Corinthians, as we have looked at in the past in verses one through four, gives us in a very short summation the gospel. And this in its context is talking about Paul refuting the idea that there is no resurrection.

And in verses 20 through 28, Paul talks about Christ and his kingship. Verse 20 to 28 says this, but now Christ has been raised from the dead, the first fruits of those who are asleep. So again, Paul is refuting the idea that there is no resurrection.

That Christ has been raised again, he has been resurrected, he's the first fruits of those. For since by a man came death, by a man also came the resurrection of the dead. For as in Adam all died, so also in Christ shall all be made alive.

But each in his own word, Christ the first fruits, after that those who are in Christ at his coming. Then comes the end when he delivers up the kingdom to God and Father. And when he has abolished all rule and all authority and power, for he must reign until he has put all his enemies under his feet.

The last enemy that will be abolished is death. For he has put all things in subjection under his feet. But when he says all things are put in subjection, it is evident that he is expected who put all things in subjection to him.

And when all things are subjected to him, then the son himself will also be subjected to the one who subjected all things to him, that God may be all in all. This is speaking about Christ reigning until all enemies are put underneath his feet.

Christ is reigning today. This language that is used in here is indicative of that of a king that has conquered a nation and he's putting his feet on the backs of those that have been conquered. Jesus Christ in this text is spoken of what?

His kingship, his right to rule, his right to have authority thereof. Brothers and sisters, when we look at the book of Ruth, and we see a nation that was kingless, they did not acknowledge any single person as king in that day.

Do not ever listen to anyone that says that you are kingless today, brothers and sisters. You have a king. Today, he's on his throne. Today, he's making all things under his feet. Today, he must reign until all those things are underneath his feet.

So the implication that I take away from the book of Ruth is what? They're kingless no longer. And yes, it is true that you in your unbelief, church, before you were converted, before you had faith in Christ, Christ is still king.

You don't make him king in that way. But that being said, you have a king. You are kingless no longer. You recognize the only sovereign. You recognize the one that is ruling, the one that is reigning right now, today, and forevermore.

You recognize that king. Again, he is the only one that has that title, the son of Abraham, the son of David, the son of God, the son of man. I have a multitude of texts here.

That we can go to,.

Even in the book of Hebrews that we've been looking at here, that Christ himself, the king of the kingdom, is ruling and reigning today. And it has serious implications for how you behave as the Christian.

You are not kingless. You do not live in a nation in a way without a king therein. You are a part of his kingdom. And I want to remind you of this. As the king goes, so goes the kingdom. Who has already won and had victory in the cross?

Jesus Christ himself. Where is your victory at? In the cross itself. And we look forward into his return, where we get to worship him as such in glorified bodies. And that is a joy. There is much that we need to cover in here,.

But again,.

Jesus is our king, and he reigns today, as 1 Corinthians 15 says. He reigns. You are not kingless, church. You have a king and lord who rules over an everlasting kingdom in which you have gained entrance by being born again.

John chapter 3 says, you cannot even see the kingdom of God unless you are born again. In order to enter into the kingdom, you must be born again.

What does Jesus say.

When he enters into Galilee? That's recorded in both Matthew chapter 4 verse 17 and Matthew chapter 1 verse 14 through 15. It says when he enters into the city of Galilee, he's preaching the gospel of God, saying that the kingdom of God is at hand.

Book of Matthew says, the kingdom of heaven is at hand. Repent and believe in the gospel. You have gained entrance by being born again. You have been covered by the very blood of your king that he spilled for you on the cross of Calvary.

He has all right and authority of being our king.

Why?

Because he's born of what is said in Ruth, this is the generations. It's his right. It's his inheritance to be the king of kings and the Lord of lords. He has done this and set this up for us in a solemnly declared way.

And because you have been covered by this great and this awesome God that we have, this holy shepherd that has laid his life down for the sheep, you are members of that.

Kingdom made.

That has come about by our better mediator. Again, that's what the book of Hebrews keeps on saying,.

Better, better, better.

He's the better king. He is our only righteousness. Jesus, the Christ, brothers and sisters, you are not kingless. Your king lives today.

Let us go ahead and pray.

Lord God, I thank you.

For this book of Ruth, Lord.

God, I would pray as a church.

As we look and attempt to find another book.

To go through, Lord.

God, I just pray.

That you would be with us,.

That you would help us.

Know where to go from here. Lord, and I thank you for the reminder.

Of the book of Ruth, Lord.

We ought not to act like a people.

That are doing.

What is right in their own eyes and letting judges rule. Lord, we have a king and you reign. Lord, and it's to you alone.

That we offer prayer.

It's to you alone.

That we offer worship.

It's to you alone.

That we give glory. It's to you alone that is worthy of such, Lord.

God, we have fallen in Adam,.