FBC Morning Worship Service

Good morning, good to see you on this Lord's Day beautiful day that we have today the Lord's given us

We had a beautiful day in the morning yesterday. The Sun was out. The sky was blue. It was warm if you went out walking

Today, it's a different kind of beauty. I suppose if you like snow It's talking to someone earlier and said can't wait for summer.

It's a little too early to start longing for summer. Isn't it? Well Probably not

Anyway some announcements just a highlight from your bulletin Please those men who are on the

Finance Committee, please note that we need to meet after the service this morning so we'll get right at that meeting we'll meet in the third classroom on the end of the hallway and go over things we need to cover in that meeting and Note this date change we were planning the annual meeting for next

Sunday we're gonna push that back a week to the 31st and the way we'll handle that day is have a morning service and then followed by a soup luncheon and We'll we'll handle that very kovat friendly

So, you know have a couple of different soup options and so forth But but really whether you're a member or not and gonna be in the annual meeting or not

Encourage you to stay plan on staying for that soup luncheon together And we'll have a time of socially distanced fellowship

Just enjoy that opportunity. Once again, haven't done something like that in almost a year so It's time so do that and then note the tentative reopenings if you would

The first Sunday of February we're planning to resume Sunday school classes and as well as open have the nursery opened once again with staffed

Personnel for the nursery and Normally this time of year we we would do the morning service a lunch and an afternoon service so really the opportunity would be to be here for several hours together and not

Quite ready to do that yet. So Looking to resume that in March with the afternoon service

At lunch, so please note that we do want to have a baptismal service the end of February That would be at the end of the morning service some who have expressed some interest in being baptized and so we're gonna put that on the calendar if you have trusted

Christ as your Savior, but Haven't yet followed him in baptism and need to be baptized

Then and want to do so on the 28th and let me encourage it to let me know that and we'll get the

Process going for for you to be baptized on that particular Lord's Day Well on this

Lord's Day, we want to worship him the God who actually gives us hope and when times seem

So hopeless and we want to praise him for that Psalm 147 verse 1 begins

For it is good to sing praises to our God for it is pleasant and a song of praise is

Fitting and let's open with a psalm of praise Jim and that is on page number 14 14 and your hymnals worthy of praise

Sing both verses. Let's stand together, please Boys do the key

He brought me out of the pit of despair and my heart to see

Were the Praise You were worthy of My bow

And I worship you alone Lord you are worthy

Of praise My lips

Sing his praise My heart feels his love His word is the lamp to my way

His mercy and grace forever endure

His arms draw me closer each day

You are worthy of all my praise

I bow At your throne and I worship you alone

Lord you are worthy Please remain standing for prayer brother

Ed bro, Julius, please father we just Thank you that you are a great

God We can know this in these uncertain times And I've been thinking about how

Jesus said that all power is given unto me in heaven and earth and we know that that since you have all power

Lord that the forces of evil can have zero power unless you would allow it and We trust that you are you're steering the story the events of the world for your for your glory

Lord and We today we pray that you would unite our hearts to worship you and and Worship you for your glory

And dear God, we pray that you may be blessed forever and For thine is the is the the greatness the majesty the victory and the power and we just Know that you are worthy and none else

Praise things in Jesus name. Amen Please be seated

Psalm reading today. We want to turn to Psalm 46 that you can turn on the back of your bulletin to read that together

Psalm 46 There's Psalm 42 verses 1 to 6 Psalms 42 and 3 actually a companion

Psalms Some seem to think that at one time the two Psalms were put together because of a repeated phrase or a repeated verse

Shows up in this reading in verse 5 Psalm 42 follows

I read verses 1 through 6 as The heart or the deer panteth after the water brooks.

So panteth my soul after thee O God My soul thirsteth for God for the living

God When shall I come and appear before God? My tears have been my meat day and night while they continually say unto me.

Where is thy God? When I remember these things I pour out my soul in me for I had gone with the multitude

I went with them to the house of God with the voice of joy and praise with a multitude that kept holy day

Why art thou cast down on my soul and why art thou disquieted in me? Hope thou in God for I shall yet praise him for the help of his countenance.

Oh My god, my soul is cast down within me Therefore will

I remember thee from the land of Jordan and of the Hermonites from the hill Mizar May the

Lord add his blessing to the reading of his word today Next song we'll be singing is your handout sheet.

That is your Insert come ye disconsolate. Does everybody have one of those anybody not have one just raise your hand

We'll get one to you. Okay, seems like everybody has one great And come ye disconsolate we'll sing all three verses together

Earth has no sorrow that heaven can not heal

Joy of disconsolate light of the stray

Hope of the benighted Fated and pure Here speaks the

Comforter Tenderly saying

Earth has no sorrow that heaven can not heal

Here see the bread of life Sea waters flowing

For from the throne of God Pure from above Come to the feast of love come ever know we

Has no song But heaven can remove

Well as we pray together today, I want to remember Scott will acquit our missionary of the week

Scott serves with pep ministries pastoral enrichment program ministry, it's a ministry that ministers to pastors

Teaches and trains pastors in third world countries as the primary focus of his ministry

And what he does is a couple times a year. He'll go for At least two weeks at a time to teach and to train

Needless to say because of the pandemic hasn't been able to do that in the last year

So his focus has been on other projects very important projects And and yet there there are some hopes and plans to go later in this year to Resume those training times for pastors

So pray pray for Scott and his leadership with that program as well as he also leads

Baptism in missions has what they call the school of church planters And those are more local or you know,

United States church planters And so there's training involved in that so pray pray regarding that earlier this week actually last

When was that last Sunday asked you to pray for Priscilla nap? Priscilla had gone in the hospital the day before and was in very serious condition in the intensive care unit and was there for better part of this week in fact last

Sunday weren't even sure if she was going to survive Well, she has she's doing a lot better and should be going home either today or hopefully tomorrow

So continue to pray for Priscilla and for her recovery Also pray for Bob.

He had did have chemo last Monday and pray for him to Continue to regain strength and for God's will to be accomplished with his with his cancer and then of course

All of us are certainly distressed and terribly disturbed to see images of our nation's capital and the

National Guard in place there and all of the the barricades and everything like that this is this is horrible situation in our country and it it is a it is an image of our time and we want to pray for our nation in this time of a terrible unrest and yet,

I think we also need to acknowledge we as believers in Christ who understand the righteousness of God and the holiness of God and his and and his

Standards for for life his principles for life and how we as a nation have really snubbed our nose at God's righteousness and his holiness

And there are consequences for that It we long for mercy we long for grace and we pray for it, but at the same time when

God when God Finally says okay. This is what you want.

You're gonna reap the you're gonna reap what you sow Those are certainly seems to be some of the things that are going on in our country right now we're reaping what we're sowing and the cover of your bulletin is the

The image of the the child and the baby and reminder that today national or a sanctity of human life

Sunday the baby bottles available there for fundraising for the

Hope Life Center And that is a stark reminder of What our nation has done and has come to stand for Among so many we have a new administration

Supposed to take office later this week and that administration has made it very clear president -elect and his

Supporters have made it very very clear that all of the gains in Restricting abortion in our nation in the last few years are

Are going to be reversed and Probably abortion expanded if they have their way

So Let's pray. Shall we let's look to the Lord in prayer our

Father and our God when we look at our time in which we're Living the circumstances in which we live we look at the conflict the unrest the uncertainty we look at the the health

Crisis real or created to whatever extent so much of that. We we do not know

There's so much that's going on in the dark in the darkness behind the scenes we hear so many conflicting things and What is said in public?

often masks what's his reality under the surface and all of this can lead us to a great sense of despair and a sense of anxiety and fear and perhaps even hopelessness

But our father we thank you that you are our father and even as as Ed prayed earlier

We we praise you and thank you that you to you belong all belongs all authority in heaven and on earth

So there is nothing that's happening in this on this planet and even in our own nation that is outside the scope of your power and authority your control and That causes us to wonder what is going on in our nation our world today we cannot help but We cannot help but come to some conclusions that the unrest the conflict the the national angst is certainly due to the

Moral and spiritual corruption of our day We are guilty in this nation as a nation of this scourge of abortion.

We're literally millions of Children have been their lives have been snuffed out for whatever reason and done so with a full a

Full Authority and approval of our government father these things ought not so to be this is a travesty and Father we as a nation deserve to reap what we have sown

Certainly father we pray for mercy We pray for grace.

We pray that in your grace you would overturn and overrule the

Intentions of those Leaders and authority whether on a national or a state or local level that would that would want to even expand those abortion so -called rights and Father we pray that rather than allowing such things to happen that in your grace and in your mercy

You would bring further restriction upon it. I pray that more importantly you would bring a change of heart

To our nation where this behavior this action of the the murdering of innocent children

Would be seen as abhorrent as it actually is father do a work a spiritual work of Awakening and revival in our land

Father we pray for Scott will acquit today and we thank you for his faithfulness and his ministry his diligence in the work

And I pray that you would use him with pastoral enrichment program as well as the school of church planting

Bless his leadership give him insight and wisdom in the preparation of materials and in the presentation of them as well

We pray for Priscilla that you'd continue to heal her body And raise her back up I do pray that she would be able to be home soon and be in the comfort of her home with her family

Just bless her we pray Continue to bless Bob and and give him strength especially from the effects of the chemotherapy

Bless Jerry and her care for him. We pray for Kathy and asks for encouragement and strengthening of her as well father we pray for our shut -ins and those who

Are isolated and feeling lonely. It was unable to get out Lord encourage each one we pray

May they sense your presence even as they in their seclusion open your word and spend time communing with you

Even on this Lord's Day bless them we pray Our father we pray that through the remainder of this service as we even consider the potential for hopelessness

We would come to the conclusion that as God's people there is hope there's hope to be found in you

This we pray in Jesus name. Amen Jim Thank You pastor.

It's on page number 336 336 in your hymnals My hope is in the

Lord verses 1 2 & 4. Let's all stand together. Please 1 2 & 4 of 336

Who gave himself for me and paid the price of all my sin

For me For me

Lasting life Me No His anger to suppress

My only hope is found in Jesus just there for me

For me He lives an everlasting life and life you free

Verse 4 his grace has planted on his mind but to believe and Recognize his work of love and Christ receive for me

He died for me Please be seated.

I encourage you to turn in your Bibles to Ruth chapter 1 Your scripture reading this morning

Ruth chapter 1. I'm gonna read beginning in verse 11 through the end of the chapter

Ruth 1 verses 11 through 22 Follow along in your copy of scriptures read beginning in verse 11.

This picks up the story. You remember earlier in the chapter where? Naomi along with her husband and her sons have left her homeland of Bethlehem they've gone to sojourn in Moab and after that sojourning while sojourning in Moab Naomi's husband a limeleck dies and sons marry but then the sons die and Finally and Naomi says it's time to go home.

She wants to go back to Bethlehem So in verse 11 Naomi speaking to her daughters -in -law

Says turn again my daughters. Why will you go with me? Are there yet any more sons in my womb that they may be your husbands turn again?

My daughters go your way for I am too old to have a husband if I should say I have hope

If I should have a husband also tonight and should also bear sons, would you tarry for them till they were grown?

Would you stay for them from having husbands? Nay, my daughters for it grieveth me much for your sake that the hand of the

Lord has gone out against me and they lifted up their voice and they wept again and Orpah kissed her mother -in -law but Ruth clave under her and She Naomi said behold thy sister -in -law has gone back unto her people and unto her gods return now after thy sister -in -law and Ruth said and treat me not to leave thee or to return from following after thee for whither thou goest

I will go and where thou lodgest. I will lodge Thy people shall be my people and by God my

God Where thou diest I will die and there will I be buried The Lord do so to me and more also if ought but death part thee and me

When she saw that she was steadfastly minded to go with her then she left speaking unto her so they too went until they came to Bethlehem and it came to pass when they were come to Bethlehem that all the city was

Moved about them and they said is this Naomi and she said unto them call me not

Naomi Call me Mara for the Almighty hath dealt very bitterly with me And I went out full and the

Lord hath brought me home again empty Why then call ye me Naomi seeing the Lord hath testified against me and the

Almighty hath afflicted me So Naomi returned and Ruth the

Moabitess her daughter -in -law with her which returned out of the country of Moab and they came to Bethlehem in the beginning of the barley harvest

Brief prayer So our father I pray from this dark chapter in Naomi's life and the hopelessness that she experiences

We may learn how hope dies And me wait, we may learn to look where hope may be found as we pray in Jesus name.

Amen In your bulletin on the Little points to ponder at list one of the points was hope

The sweetest and pleasantest companion that ever traveled with sojourners upon earth but what if Those in the lives of those sojourners that hope dies

And we look only at our circumstances without the eyes of faith That can easily lead to the death of hope

We say that again when we look only at our circumstances without the eyes of faith that can very easily lead to the death of hope

Now that is sadly very clearly the case even in our own contemporary situation

According to a government report from the nation of Japan More people have died in the last year from suicide

Than from kovat and most of those who died by suicide have been women according to our own nation's

CDC Centers for Disease Control I know Anyway, according to the

CDC during late June late June of last year 40 % of US adults reported struggling with mental health or substance abuse

That is 40 % of those who admitted it reported struggling with mental health or substance abuse in that number 31 % experienced anxiety and depression 13 % started or increased substance abuse 26 % showed symptoms of trauma or stress some stress -related disorder and 11 %

Seriously considered suicide and as you well know you've heard the reports a

Large number a greater number of people in this last year have committed suicide in our nation than in previous years family counselors those who meet with Individuals and families and families together have acknowledged that they are seeing more suicides in nearly every age group

One of those counselors said our elderly population has a huge number of in the suicide rate

So again looking only at your circumstances without the eyes of faith

Can very easily lead to the death of hope? now when it comes to this book of Ruth and particularly in this first chapter and Zeroing in on the person of Naomi Naomi for for Naomi and her family

Hope would be found in three areas and would actually encompass these three areas together

Hope is hope is found in place in permanence or Posterity I for example children or per and purpose

So for for Naomi to have hope as a Jewish woman

She needs to feel a strong sense of place she needs to have some sense of permanence through her children through posterity and She has to have a sense of purpose and all three of these are vital

So even look at verse 12 what we just read Naomi is heading back to The place that God had given to the

Jewish people the Israelite Hebrew people the land of Canaan Bethlehem her home she's heading back to her place where she belongs

But she still admits in verse 12 that she doesn't have any hope She says if I should say

I have hope What she's saying there is I don't I don't have hope

So all three of these things are vital and she has no hope even though she's returning back to her to her place

Now you can trust where Naomi is in verse 12 with where she was at the beginning of this chapter

She was in Bethlehem Judah she was married to Elimelech and she had a couple of sons and with that Dynamic she therefore had purpose and her purpose was to To give birth to these sons and to see to it that these sons of hers

Got wives themselves so that they could have children. They could have sons and that the family could be perpetuated

She had the hope of place of permanence and of purpose, but now after a decade in Moab All of this has been stripped away

Well, I would suggest to you that what was true for Naomi is also true for us that we have hope and our hope is connected to the anticipation of place permanence and purpose

Now think about it Think of the epidemic of hopelessness that exists in our own society in our culture

There is an epidemic of hopelessness these days because of a lack of those three things place

Permanence purpose in other words the rootlessness of our society and people in it the

Loneliness that people experience even with even having people all around them there's still a sense a great sense of loneliness on the part of so many people and all of this leads to a

Feeling of futility like we know what's it all for? What's what's what's it all for? What's it all about? I want to go through this chapter and see the

See the death of hope And see how it happens and notice in these first few verses of the chapter

We've kind of focused more on these last last time last Lord's Day But notice in these first few verses of the chapter how hope decays

Hope decays in our desperate attempt to just hang on in difficult circumstances

The time is certainly difficult in As this chapter as this book begins telling us it came to pass in the days when the judges ruled

This was a time that was particularly difficult. I pointed out last Lord's Day if you heard that message that Ruth is the third in the

Bethlehem trilogy of you know, Bethlehem stories The first one is back in the first of those stories is back in judges chapters 17 and 18 and that that's all about the spiritual despair of the times a

Levite one who was supposed to be a spiritual leader is selling himself To the highest bidder if you will to lead just a tribe a clan in spiritual things

The next the last three chapters of the book of Judges, which is the second

Bethlehem story is about a Levite who took as a concubine a woman from Bethlehem and So in the first story there was a

Levite from Bethlehem and in the second there is a Levite who takes a concubine from Bethlehem and those three chapters are just I mean they

They disturb your mind when you read them and you ask yourself what in the world how in the world can this kind of stuff?

Go on Especially among those who are supposed to know better like the Levites what in what in the world is happening here the moral the moral despair of Israel is on full display in Judges 19 through 21

Well, then the third Bethlehem story that of the story of Naomi in chapter 1 of the book of Ruth speaks of personal despair

So that you take those three stories together. This is a time of spiritual moral and personal despair

Now again, let's not restrict ourselves to something that happened thousands of years ago

Let's realize that even that even the times in which we live There are many people

Maybe someone here maybe several here Who are experiencing all three of those things?

you because of the Spiritual decay in our nation and the moral decay of our culture are also experiencing personal despair

You are in despair because of it all so the time is difficult and so are the circumstances verse 1 tells us that there was a famine in the land a famine in the land of Bethlehem in the region of Bethlehem Judah It's very possible that that famine is the result of the spiritual and moral decay in other words, it could be a form of punishment because of Because of the sins of the people in fact look back in Deuteronomy 28, would you turn back there with me?

Deuteronomy chapter 28 and Look at verse 15 and then and then a couple other verses a little later on In Deuteronomy 28 verse 15

The Lord is warning the people of Israel before they ever go into the land of promise

So they're on the eastern side of the Jordan River they're about to cross the Jordan River take possession of the land of Canaan and Then the land that has been promised will be theirs and the

Lord warns the people and he says in verse 15 It shall come to pass if thou will not hearken unto the voice of the

Lord thy God to Observe to do all his commandments in his statutes, which I command thee this day

That all these curses shall come upon thee and overtake thee will like what what kind look at verse 23 one of the

Consequences for the sin of disobedience and rejecting God's commandments He says is that the heaven that is over your head shall be brass and the earth that is under you shall be

Iron the Lord shall make the rain of thy land powder and dust

From heaven shall it come down upon thee until they'll be destroyed. In other words what the

Lord is warning about and You know, you know pronouncing a curse upon the people for is if you disobey if you reject and ignore my commands and go

Your own way then one of the consequences will be drought, which is what's behind famine

And what's going on in Ruth 1 verse 1 famine

That's bad enough But think of this Where does eliminate where do eliminate and Naomi and there's two sons live?

they live in Bethlehem and I as I'm again as I mentioned last week the name the town the name

Bethlehem means house of bread and And and then think it think about how

How just that very fact that here I'm living in the house of bread and there is no bread

Think about how the name of the town in which they live a community and that they living in Would only magnify the sense of despair

There's no bread in the house of bread. It's kind of like The the images we saw last summer

After all the rioting and the pillaging and the looting and the destruction that took place in downtown

Chicago Along the magnificent mile you remember those pictures of those videos that you saw of Someone, you know going down the street

On Michigan Avenue in in in Chicago Along the magnificent mile and they pan back and forth from one side of the street to the other and all of these stores these

Exclusive, you know high -end stores Have windows broken out or they're boarded up Along the along the what along the magnificent mile?

The the irony there only magnifies the intensity of the destruction so the time is difficult the

Circumstances are difficult and the decisions that have to be made under these circumstances are also difficult and they come out those decisions come out in verses 1 & 2 and Then in verse 4 in verses 1 & 2 there's the decision to leave our place

We live in the house of bread there is no bread. So what are we gonna do? Well, let's leave

Let's leave And I'm sure if you were to ask you limit lek, why are you leading your family away from your home?

He'd throw his hands up and say well, what choice do I have? What am I supposed to do? There's no bread

You need to go somewhere to eat What a difficult decision this would be this is where this was his home

This is where his family was Yet he left he made the decision to leave but then there's also in verse 4 this further difficult decision

About ensuring remember the three the three necessities for hope for a

Jewish woman There she needed to have a sense of place permanence and purpose so Here she is out of place in Moab.

She has two sons but one of her Purposes is to ensure that her sons have wives

So that they can Perpetuate the family they can continue the family If those two sons die with no children the family dies

So here we are our the boys are getting old they need to they're getting they need wives

What do we do? We're here in the land of Moab well Let's get him a couple of wives

No, should we go back to Bethlehem and get them a couple of wives? No, that'd be too inconvenient Let's just get him a couple of Moabite women

That's what they do They make this difficult decision to ensure to try to guarantee their permanence their posterity and They get these two

Moabite women again If you asked a limeleck and Naomi, why did you do this?

Why are you getting these Moabite women? They should be marrying Hebrew women well, what choice do we have?

There aren't any Hebrew women to be found Well, how about Repentance, how about returning to the place where you belong?

How about faith in Yahweh the Lord God of? Israel well, the decisions are certainly difficult and Then what's also difficult in these circumstances is the outcome of it all in verse 3

Says a limeleck Naomi's husband died and she was left she and her two sons

The outcome is difficult because now Naomi is a widow And and this is is it not is it's not a literal illustration of Proverbs 14 12

Proverbs 14 12 says there's a way that seems right to a man as a limeleck thinks through what do

I need to do? What should I do? I know what I need to do I need to take my family and and and relocate to Moab, but we need to go sojourn in Moab And they got went there and they stayed there

But the way that seems right to a man its end is the way to death

Here is this seemed like the way to go He goes he gets there and he dies and that Lee that leads to greater

Isolation and certainly Despair on the part of Naomi.

It definitely means Insecurity for this

Hebrew widow now the times are difficult and Hope decays in our deaths desperate attempts to hang on just to just to hang on in those difficult times

It decays But as you continue in the story notice how that hope that decaying hope dissipates as time marches on so as time marches on time passes

Day after day goes by month turns month after month turns into year after year and that sense of place grows more and more distant it's fading fading into the background of the memory so in verse 1

They intended to go to Moab and sojourn there that means to stay for a little while just till the

Just till the difficulty gets passed and then we'll go home. They went to sojourn verse 2 tells us that they

Continued there at the end of the verse they remained there and verse 4 Verse 4 at the end of the verse says they dwelled there

They lived there now. There's a there is an intention behind those three words that the author of this the writer of this story is

Intending for us to get and that is this this sense of place in the land of promise where Elimelech and Naomi and Mahlon and Kylian belonged is is being further and further removed from their minds and their heart

Sojourning staying Settling dwelling dwelling there

Time passes and the place grows more and more distant and as time passes

We come to verse 4 Time passes and the second component of hope becomes less likely

Posterity Permanence because why because in verse 4 it says the these two sons took wives of the women of Moab Moab the name of the one was

Orpah the name of the other was Ruth but in verse 5 They died these sons die

So as time passes and that posterity is less and less likely ten years go by and What seemed to be so necessary?

marriage for Mahlon and Kylian proves to be fruitless They married these women but yet They bore no sons

They had no children Now It is not a universal truth

But going back to the book of Deuteronomy chapter 28 when the Lord when the

Lord pronounced the curses for disobedience and for rejecting him turning your back on him in verse 15 one of the things he said in verse 18 is

He says cursed be shall be the fruit of your body and the fruit of your land the increase of your kind your cows and the flocks of your sheep one of the consequences

That the Lord said was going to come would be fruitlessness You long for Hope in your posterity

The Lord says I'm going to take that away That fruitfulness now again, please don't misunderstand that is not a universalism that just because Just because somebody can't have children that therefore they're under a curse of God No That that's not a universal truth

But it is something that the Lord pronounced and warned Israel about that. This will be a consequence for you

Israel So time passes time passes and place grows more and more distant and time passes and the and the likelihood of Posterity or permanence is is is reduced it's less likely and time passes and you come to verse 5 and grief and loneliness only increased as Mahlon and Hylian die

It says at the end of verse 5 when they died that the woman Naomi Was left of her two sons and her husband left of Literally, she's left without them

She is alone remaining without husband and sons

In his commentary on book of Ruth Leon Morris said a childless widow

Was in a precarious position she lacked security and stability and She would for the rest of her life

Need the community help in order to survive By the way in the

New Testament, this is still true in the culture of that day Which is why James wrote what he did in one in chapter 1 verse 27 when he said pure religion and undefiled before God and The father is this to visit the the fatherless and the widows in their affliction because of the the reality of the culture of the time that those who were without husbands and fathers were in a very precarious situation very insecure situation

So they needed the help of the community. Now. The point here is this the point is this for Naomi?

All human basis for hope is gone. There are no more men in her family and Without any men in her family there is no possibility of posterity of permanence and for this

Hebrew woman Who is away from her place and no hope of posterity or permanence?

She has also lost her sense of purpose in life her purpose in life as a

Hebrew wife was to Was to bring forth offspring that could perpetuate the family without the men

This family would be gone No posterity

So hope I say dissipates as time marches on But then hope all but disappears when we just give up When you just give up hope all but disappears and that's what happens in verses 6 through 18

Naomi is in a state of hopelessness and that hopelessness is reflected in her decisions in verses 6 and 7

She arises with her daughters -in -law. She's good. She's heard in the country of Moab that that the

Lord has given bread and so she's going to Leave the daughters -in -law behind and she's going to go back

To Moab go back to Bethlehem go back to her former home, but get the sense of this

She's leaving everything Whatever little she might have in Moab.

She's leaving all of that Including the graves of her husband and her sons for what

For what? What is she going back to? but isn't that also a symptom of hopelessness

Because she would just shrug her shoulders and say well, what have I got to lose? I don't have anything here

I may not have anything there. So I might as well go back there Why not a?

sense of hopelessness Her sense of hopelessness is also Expressed in the council that she offers in verses 8 and 9 look at this council

Naomi says to her daughters Her daughters -in -law go return each of you to your mother's house

May the Lord deal kindly with you as you've dealt with the dead with me May the Lord grant you that you may find rest each of you in the house of her husband

She kissed them and they lifted up their voice and they wept She's saying to them

Leave me alone Leave me to go off alone. I can't provide for you

You need to find your hope and security somewhere else And I hope that the

Lord the God of Israel will give you that hope and security But you're not gonna find it with me. You're not gonna find it where I'm going.

But what about encouraging them to find hope by expressing faith in the father of the fatherless

Let me show you what I mean by that back in Deuteronomy chapter 10 Now remember that these are three widows, okay, these three women are widows and in Deuteronomy chapter 10

Verse 18 The Lord says in verse 17 says for the

Lord your God is God of gods now keep that in mind later When when

Naomi says something else to to Ruth the Lord your God is God of gods He's Lord of Lords a great

God a mighty and a terrible or an awesome God Who regards not persons nor takes reward he doth verse 18?

Execute the judgment of the fatherless and the widow and he loves the stranger in Giving him food and raiment

It's easy what God is saying to those who are the fatherless and the widows.

I Will provide for you. I will take care of you. This is the promise of God and the

Deuteronomy 26 Verse 12 there's a very specific way in which

God promises to do so He says when you have made an end and Deuteronomy Deuteronomy 26 12

He says when you've made an end of tithing all the tithes of your increase the third year Which is the year of tithing and has given it unto the

Levite You've given that tithe you the people have given that tithe to the Levite the stranger the fatherless and the widow

That they may eat within thy gates and be filled in other words listen what God is saying here is

I? Will provide for the fatherless and widow by providing through the people of God in the place

That I have give that I give to you So Naomi should instead of Going back to Moab with this sense of hopelessness and despair

She should be returning to the place that God gave to her With a sense of great hope and encouraging the daughters -in -law come along with me because as my daughters -in -law married to my

Hebrew sons the Lord of Israel will provide for you through the people of God and Instead of Encouraging them to find some form of hope and security somewhere else she could have encouraged them to Put their faith and trust in the one true

God the God of gods but then Naomi's hopelessness is also expressed and reflected in her attitudes that come out in verses 10 through 14 verses 11 to 14 in other words

Naomi's response and the attitudes that come out here are actually her way of responding to verse 10 verse 10 said verse 10 says that they

Orpah and Ruth They said to to Naomi Surely we will return with you unto your people

We're gonna do that now. How does Naomi respond to that what attitudes come across?

verses 11 through 14 we read earlier But she says in essence. She says listen your decision to go with me is a foolish decision verse 11

She says why will you go with me? Turn again go back go back my daughters.

Why will you go with me? This is a foolish thing to do to come with me She says in verses the last part of verse 11 and verse 12

My hope is totally gone. I have no hope If I should say

I have hope and I don't furthermore She says to them and the attitude that she communicates to them is that your hope through me is also gone

You you you have nothing to hope for in me So she says at the end of verse 12

If I should say if I should have a husband tonight and should bear sons Would you tarry for them till they're grown?

Would you stay would you withhold from for them from having husbands? No, you're not gonna do that Your hope of getting any husband from me is gone.

And if you can't get a husband from me, then you have no hope This is what she's communicating to them

And the last attitude that she expresses in this section in verse the last part of verse 13 is

That I am bitter I am bitter because of what

God has done to me That's what she says She says no my daughters for it grieveth me much the

King James says agree with me much. That's literally I Have much bitterness in my heart

Because the Lord the hand of the Lord is gone out against me

I'm bitter against God because of what God's brought into my life. Hey, by the way

Have you ever been there? Maybe you wouldn't have maybe you wouldn't be so bold as Naomi as to say it and admit it outwardly but in your heart you

Felt that way Every time we say God, why are you doing this to me?

Even if we don't verbalize it we're saying it in her mind. You're saying in her heart God. Why are you doing this to me? Why are you doing this to me?

We're expressing the same attitude that Naomi is expressing So this is not something restricted to a couple thousand a few thousand years ago

So her despair is reflected in her attitudes and then her despair is finally expressed in verses 18 and 19 verses 14 through 18 in her resignation her resignation and in this

She comes to a place of just like All right. Okay. This is coming out gonna come out in verse 18.

She she quit speaking to Ruth about it She just gave up But in this in this resignation this hopeless resignation

Do you see how she? Minimizes the depth of love and commitment on the part of Ruth So after she responds as she does to the two women in verse 14

It says that they lifted up their voice and they wept again and Orpah kissed her mother -in -law to say goodbye

But Ruth Claimed to her Ruth glued herself to her that word

Clave is in the King James is the same word that is used in Genesis 2 24 for Adam and Eve's marriage and The husband is to leave the to leave father and mother and cleave to his wife be glued to his wife

Ruth was glued to Naomi Interesting one of the commentators regarding verse 14.

He said this and I thought it was very insightful He said the same cause induced

Orpah to go and Ruth to stay and That is there's no husband or son

The the fact that there's no husband or son that fact caused Orpah to go and Ruth to stay

The one Orpah wished to become a wife again So she left the other

Ruth Wished to remain a daughter So she stayed

Now here's what I want you to see This commitment on the part of Ruth to remain a daughter is in reality a

Glimmer there is a glimmer of hope in that for Ruth because Going back to the place where she belongs

There could be a Redeemer There could be a Redeemer that would redeem this situation and would become a husband for Ruth and could then perpetuate the family in her behalf and There is in Ruth's cleaving to her if Naomi could only see it.

There is a glimmer of hope But it's all obscured by her grief and her affliction and So she she resigns herself

Naomi does to what she sees as inevitable and inevitable destiny a destiny of impoverishment and Insecurity and instability not only for her

But now for her daughter -in -law as well So hope all but disappears when we all but give up and Then finally in verses 19 to 22

Hope utterly dies. It just dies When you come to some pretty horrible conclusions and one of the conclusions that is is brought it here the conclusion that's brought out here is that God is is behind all of this and and that that that hopeless conclusion that Naomi draws

Actually Dampens the enthusiasm of others So they come back to Bethlehem in verse 19 and when they came to Bethlehem the whole city was stirred up Look, is this

Naomi? Could it be possible? Look look look. I Recognize her.

Yeah, it's been a it's been a long long time, but that's Naomi That's pleasant.

It's her name, right? It's her name means remember that Is that that's Naomi and word spreads quickly

Naomi's back Naomi's come back from from sojourning Mayo Naomi's here and and the excitement builds the enthusiasm builds but in verse 20

Naomi says to them Don't call me Naomi Call me bitter You see here's the thing when you have lost all hope and you are in the pit of despair

No one can be joyful or excited or enthusiastic around you

Their enthusiasm only makes you more miserable and you want to do everything you can

To dampen their enthusiasm to dampen their joy to damper their excitement you because you're hopeless

You have drawn some pretty horrible conclusions and that leaves you hopeless and you don't want anybody happy around you

This is a sad place to be when hope dies and that hopelessness is

Drawn by these horrible conclusions is a hopelessness that Disparages the

Lord you see this in verses 20 and 21 When she says at the end of verse 20 the

Almighty has dealt very bitterly against me I went out full and the

Lord has brought me home empty Why do you call me pleasant seeing the Lord has testified against me and the

Almighty has afflicted me see the repetition Of the Lord, right? This is what the Lord's done.

Look at the Lord's done. I was fine, but then the Lord did this and in this disparaging of the

Lord she's magnifying and we can do this to Magnifying and distorting the

Lord's actions as if it's the Lord that has made me bitter It's the

Lord that has taken away everything from me it's the Lord that's been unfair to me

He's testified against me. He hasn't been fair. It's the Lord that has afflicted me and in that disparaging of the

Lord what we so often do as Naomi did is we minimize any personal responsibility whatsoever

She doesn't say, you know, we made some pretty foolish choices. We shouldn't have left

We should have come back sooner. Our sons shouldn't have married Moabite women They should you know, there's no there's no taking or accepting of any personal responsibility

But what else is true here is in disparaging the Lord? She's she's oblivious to the blessings

What about Ruth What about Ruth Ruth has become a believer

Ruth has committed herself to following Naomi's God to becoming a follower a loyal follower and subject of Yahweh the

God of Israel Naomi doesn't see that Naomi doesn't appreciate that That stands by the way in stark contrast

If you turn over a page in your Bible to Boaz's assessment of Ruth in verses 11 and 12

Boaz speaks to Naomi to Ruth and he says It has fully been shown me all that you have done under your mother -in -law since the death of your husband and how you have left

Your father and your mother and the land of your nativity and art become and come unto a people which thou knowest not the

Lord Recompense thy work and a full reward be given thee of the Lord God of Israel under whose wings thou art come to trust

Boaz recognizes what a blessing Ruth is. Oh But man when we when we sink into such despair and such hopelessness we miss the blessings and that really

Causes us to miss altogether like Naomi altogether Any glimmer of hope whatsoever

So do you notice how this chapter ends in verse 22 Says they came to Bethlehem in the beginning of the barley harvest

How did this chapter begin in a time of famine? How does it end?

they came in the time of barley harvest This is it this is a

Expression a glimmer of hope the Lord has blessed the

Lord has provided and And one of the ways he's he's provided even for Naomi and Ruth a blessing

Hope that she doesn't seem to see is that God made specific instructions

He gave specific direction that when you harvest your fields Don't go back and go over the harvest again

Don't glean to the edges of the harvest leave some leave that which falls leave that which is left behind for the widows for the orphans for the poor among you for the

Naomi's and the Ruth's She comes in the time of the barley harvest

It's a glimmer of hope to be had But she simply doesn't see it. Well, how about us?

How about you? Are you on the cusp of hopelessness right on the edge of it?

Because you're looking Only at your circumstances. We sang earlier.

My hope is in the Lord Who gave himself for me? There is hope in the

Lord the Lord Jesus Christ has promised.

Listen, what are our three needs? For hope he has promised the hope of place

Jesus said I am going to prepare a place for you

Jesus has promised the hope of permanence He said

I give to them my followers my disciples. I give to them eternal life my sheep

I give to them to you I give to them eternal life and they will never perish permanence and the

Lord Jesus Gives the hope of purpose As my father has sent me even so I am sending you

Let your light so shine Before others so that they may see your good works and give glory to your father who is in heaven the

Lord who has given you the hope of place and the hope of permanence also gives you the hope of Purpose our

Father and our God I pray this morning that if there is one here who is in a state of hopelessness

Because They have not come to trust Jesus as their

Savior so they don't have that hope of place and a permanence and purpose because They're not they're not followers of Jesus.

They haven't been converted. They haven't come to him in faith. Oh Lord Open those eyes today to see him as their

Savior and to see their need of him as such And all may they repent and turn from their sin

Turn their eyes upon Jesus and look upon him and see and find in him not only

Hope but certainty of place of permanence and of purpose

This we pray in Jesus name and for his sake. Amen Would you take your hymnals and turn to number 639 as we close this morning number 639

Sing the first and third stanzas of the song turn your eyes upon Jesus Away from your circumstances that breed hopelessness

Turn your eyes upon Jesus you who are weary in trouble. Let's stand together as we sing.

Shall we? 639 The first and the third Oh Soul, are you weary and troubled?

Right in the darkness you see There's light for a look at the

Savior and life more abundant and free

Turn your eyes upon Jesus Look full in his wonderful face

And the things of earth will grow strangely

Dim in the light of his glory and grace

His word shall not fail you he promised

Believe him and all will be well eyes upon Jesus Look full in his wonderful face

And the things of earth will grow strangely

Dim in the light of his glory and grace

Well now may the God of hope fill you his people with all joy and peace in believing

So that by the power of the Holy Spirit you may abound in hope This we pray in the name of Jesus our