Salt + Light Fort Worth

All right.

Well, we have arrived at the
last chapter of the Book of Ruth.

So we're just, um, we're gonna
be in it this week and next week.

And so we have followed along with this
story, um, through the Book of Ruth.

It's a short book.

We first zoomed in, uh, chapter
one on the backstory of these women

of Ruth and Naomi and, um, and the
suffering that this family had endured.

We sat with Naomi in the suffering
and her grief and her wrestling with

her faith and wrestling with the Lord.

And did she believe that the
Lord was still good and that he

still had, has said love for her?

Uh, we watched Ruth choose to stay
with Naomi, her mother-in-law, to

choose to show loyalty to her, uh,
and to put her faith in Yahweh.

And, um, to not only do that, but
to also then boldly pursue help.

For her mother-in-law and for herself.

And we met, we've met Boaz, the third
main character, this man of integrity

who shows care and compassion towards
Ruth and Naomi, that he protects

Ruth, and he provides for Ruth.

And he lets her spin the harvest
season gleaning from his field.

Uh, so the, so we've unpacked all of
that over the last couple of weeks.

And then last week, Ben unpacked chapter
three for us, which, uh, is weird when

you read it on fir, you know, just like
taking it at the like, uh, surface level.

And so, you know, Ben
unpacked a lot of that for us.

Us.

And you know, he says, you know,
at Naomi's encouragement, Ruth goes

and meets Boas in the middle of
the night in the threshing floor.

And in doing this, what is happening here
is that Ruth is taking a massive risk.

And, um, but in that she's
doing it because she trusts

both Naomi and she trusts Boas.

And God honors that trust.

And, and there's this late
night private conversation that

happens between Ruth and Boaz.

And in that conversation, you
know, Naomi or Ruth asks Boaz

to be their kinsman redeemer.

Um, and we talked a little bit
about what that meant to be a

kinsman redeemer and Roaz Ru Roaz.

Ruth asks Boaz, uh,
that's their couple name.

Uh, Ruth asks Boas to, uh, to marry her,
basically, you know, and to redeem her

and her mother-in-law and their land.

So this conversation takes, um,
this conversation that they have in

the middle of the night that's kind
of shrouded in secrecy, you know,

and, um, they, they take this, that
conversation takes the relationship

between Boaz and Ruth to a new level.

And what's happening is Ruth is
seeking redemption and she's seeking

protection and she's seeking provision.

And she's wondering, is Boaz
going to be the means to

provide what she is asking for?

And then chapter three ends.

We ended it last week with Naomi, the
mother-in-law, telling her daughter

Ruth, to wait until you find out what
happens for this man is not gonna

rest until this matter is settled.

So just wait is what we're told.

Wait and see.

And that's where we pick up the
story in chapter four today.

And that's what makes this story such
a compelling piece of literature,

especially if you've never read it before.

Because if you're reading it
for the first time, you don't

know how the story's gonna go.

It's not a super predictable story.

Um, so we still don't know
what's gonna happen, and the

story keeps us on our toes.

What is gonna happen?

You know, Ruth went and asked Boaz.

He said that there was someone else.

Let's go figure this out.

So what is going to happen?

He says he is gonna redeem Ruth,
but is he going to be able to.

And so this chapter zooms in on
this happy ending that we are

hoping and we're waiting for.

But before we get into that, there's a
couple things I wanna remind us about, uh,

this story, uh, that we've kind of brought
up multiple times throughout this series.

And the first thing is that this,
the Book of Ruth, it's a short story

that holds the whole story of the
Bible in just these four chapters.

It is like a, a summed up
version of the gospel story.

It could be called the Gospel of Ruth.

And because it gives us this gospel story,
the hero of the story, and this is very

important that we keep this in mind.

The hero of the story is
not Ruth or Naomi or Boaz.

The hero of this story is God.

And it is so important that we
don't lose sight or we change

the narrative of the story by
changing who we think the hero is.

The hero of this story is God.

So with that, I want us to
move into this chapter today.

So we were with Ruth and Naomi, and now
the story's going to shift to Boas and

we're focused in on what Boas is gonna
do if he is actually going to redeem

this land, and if he's gonna actually
be able to redeem Ruth and thus Naomi.

And it turns out that he first has to
go to the courthouse because there's

another closer relative in line who
gets the first rights to redeem.

So there's this offer that happens.

Boaz makes his way to the city gate,
and the city gate would be considered

like a modern day courthouse.

Uh, it's this part of the city
that people regularly pass through.

It's kind of considered like the heart
of the city, the heart of the town.

So Boaz goes there, he sits there, and
he waits to be able to encounter this

other redeemer, this other relative.

Uh, so, and now as a reminder, what
we've already talked about when it

comes to what a kinsman redeemer is.

A kinsman redeemer was
part of the mosaic law.

It was set into the law, and what it
did is it was supposed to provide for,

uh, it, it provided redeemers for people
who, uh, needed protection, who, um,

it was to provide protection for the
poor or the weak, or the vulnerable,

the helpless and defense lift.

Defense lifts family members.

The law made these redeemers responsible
to make every effort to retain or

restore a family's land inheritance.

And it was designed to be a law of love.

It is not designed to be a,
a, a law of financial gain.

It, the spirit of this law was of love.

So, uh, so Bo is, is sitting at the
town gate and he is waiting for this

relative to show up and he shows up
and scripture doesn't give us his name.

He's, he calls him a friend.

Uh, there's a, you know, other like
scholars will talk about how the

best way to translate is, is like Mr.

So-and-so, like, there's no
significant name given to this man.

Uh, so reading in verse two, it says,
Boaz took 10 of the elders of the town

and said, sit here, and they did so, and
then he said to the guardian, Redeemer.

Uh, this other relative, Naomi,
who has come back from Moab,

remember, they had to flee.

Uh, they had to flee
because of the, um, famine.

So now she's come back, she's selling
the piece of land that belonged

to our relative elem, uh, emic.

I thought I should bring the matter
to your attention and suggests

that you buy it in the presence
of these seated here and in the

presence of the elders of my people.

If you'll redeem it, do so, but if you
will not tell me so I will know for no

one has the right to do it except you.

And I'm next in line.

So he explains the situation.

He extends the offer to redeem the land.

The focus is on the land here.

Uh, and so it's interesting that
it's not on the marriage, it's on

the real estate, and that's that,
that was like a strategy here.

Um, because this is what, what
this is doing is this is presenting

a great opportunity for him.

And the man sees it and he says yes.

At this point, he just
gets to increase his land.

Uh, because Naomi is too old to marry or
to have a child, and we already know, know

that she made that clear in chapter one
when she was telling her daughters-in-law,

like, why are you gonna stay with me?

I'm too old to marry.

I can't provide another son.

Um, so she, uh, she doesn't have
anything to offer, you know, and so

that's when, uh, so this relative
sees this as a great opportunity.

Yeah, I'll redeem the land.

I'll take this.

And that's when BOA says, okay.

But there's another thing.

You also get Ruth the Moabite.

So that the family name
stays with this property.

So what's happening here is what once
looked like a great opportunity in real

estate now comes with a duty for marriage.

So there's sacrifice involved
now, and that's significant hint.

So the relative says, you know what?

I would, but the cost is too great for me.

So here we have this redeemer, but the rub
is that it is going to cost him too much.

This is a problem to him.

And so he passes it up,
he passes on this offer.

The man was only focused on his own
personal gain, not God's purpose,

not this law of love to protect
the poor and restore a family line.

That was not what he was interested in.

And so like Opa, the other daughter-in-law
from chapter one, he opts out.

And because of that, he misses out on
God's goodness and God's blessing here

he pri prioritizes himself over others.

The reason that he chose to bow
out was because he didn't want

to endanger his own estate.

And the irony here is that he wanted
to protect his own name, and yet his

name isn't even mentioned in the story.

He was willing to participate as long
as it involved no risk and no sacrifice.

But the reality is that kind of
heart posture does not reflect

the ethics of the kingdom of God.

For better or for worse, what
we value shapes how we live

for better and for worse.

What we value will shape how we live.

And what we value impacts how we
get to participate in kingdom work.

That's why I love like that.

Getting to hear from Jean who told, who
stood up here and said, I struggled with

this because I was thinking about how
I really wanted to be spending my time.

But the Kingdom of God, the ethics
of God's kingdom says, what does it

look like to value what God values?

As followers of Jesus, we are not
required to participate in kingdom work

in order to receive our salvation, nor
is God's love dependent upon our efforts.

But we are invited and there is an
expectation that we do participate.

God wants us to participate, but
it will often require sacrifice.

And so when we find ourselves faced with
this dilemma, this simple dilemma as

something like the forgettable man faced,
we have to ask ourselves, are we willing

to sacrifice for the good of the kingdom?

Are we willing to prioritize what
God values over what we value?

If God's love has changed your life,
are you willing to ask him to help you

lavish his loving kindness on others?

Truly following Jesus will require
that sacrificial, selfless obedience.

Where is God calling you to act that out?

Where are you tempted to respond?

Like the forgettable man
who says, you go ahead.

I don't want to.

So Boaz moves forward now after this offer
has been refused by the first redeemer.

Boaz moves forward with what he
promised Ruth on the threshing floor.

Verse nine says, then Boaz announced
to the elders and all the people.

Today you are witnesses that I
have bought from Naomi, all the

property of Ek, Killian and Malin.

I have also acquired Ruth the Moabite
Milan's widow as my wife, in order

to maintain the name of the dead
with his property, so that his

name will not disappear from among
his family or from his hometown.

Today you are witnesses.

Boaz chose to redeem Ruth a
Moabite, a foreigner, a widow.

He did not turn her away and he
did not have a duty to redeem her.

The duty belonged to the first guy.

Who chose to abdicate his role.

And remember, they were living in a time
where, uh, the time of the judges where

everyone did what they wanted to do.

But in choosing to step up and take
over the family land and marry Ruth

Boaz gave Ruth a new identity, a
new inheritance, and a new purpose.

And this move also ends up redeeming
Naomi who gets to see her family name

saved from being wiped out of Israel.

Ruth and Naomi needed boas to
do, to legally do what they

could not do on their own.

But here's the thing, the re, the
reality is Ruth was not motivated

to seek redemption for herself.

She had committed herself to Naomi, and
she needs boas to rescue the family name.

And, okay, so here as an aside, this.

Is one of the strongest examples of the
beauty of men and women serving together

for the flourishing of the kingdom.

Ruth's story shows us that women
also have a vital role to play

alongside our brothers, and that
the kingdom thrives when we mutually

honor and respect one another.

And at Salt and Light, if you, hopefully
you've seen and experienced this,

we hold tightly to this conviction.

Every few months I end
up in a conversation.

I get asked by someone outside of
our church community what it is like

to be a woman at Salt and Light.

Then did you know that that is a topic of
conversation that women have to address?

But here's the thing.

And here's why I'm taking us
on this quick tangent here.

I want to recognize the community in
this room because it is a profound

blessing to be a woman in this community.

Amen.

It is a profound blessing to walk
alongside and serve alongside

the men in this community.

This room is filled with men
who honor and exhort women.

I have never felt anything
less than that, and that is not

something that can easily be said.

And this room is filled with
women who honor and exhort men.

Do you know how much we have prayed
for this to be true of our community?

When we started Salt and Light, one
of our first values that we committed

to as a team was being a community
where men and women led together.

Not because we wanted to do something
radical, but because we believe that

is what God intended, that he means for
men and women to work alongside each

other because we're better and we're
more effective when we do that Spiritual

brothers and sisters in this room.

That we need each other's perspectives.

We need the distinctions.

We need our different voices in mission
and in ministry and in kingdom work.

So I don't want to bypass
this part of the story.

I don't want us to miss this picture that
is just quietly on display in this book,

because what it is is an example of two
image bearers, a man and a woman working

together for the good of the kingdom.

And that's a really powerful thing that I
don't want us to miss, and I want to honor

and celebrate that in this community.

So Ruth could have exited
this situation, right?

She could have done what Orba did in
the beginning and she could have left

and returned to her land, but instead,
she accepted responsibility to help

save this family, and she needed,
she needs a redeemer to do that.

So we see this really beautiful
concept of redemption in this book.

Boaz is the redeemer who is willing to
sacrifice for the good of this family.

And his actions point us to our
true and perfect redeemer in Jesus.

Because as I, as I remind us in the
beginning, the Book of Ruth is a

symbol of the gospel story for us.

This is not a story about a woman
needing to be rescued by a man, but

rather it's a story about people
needing to be rescued by God.

And God does this by
giving us our own redeemer.

And this is an invitation
to every single human.

And there are many people in this
room that have said, yes, I have

a redeemer, and his name is Jesus.

And there are people here that maybe
have not said that, and I'm so grateful

for you and I'm so glad you're here.

And there are so many safe people
in this room who would be honored

to sit with you in the wrestling and
sit in with you in those questions,

or would love to pray with you.

But I want to address something.

I wanna address those of us who do
believe that we have been redeemed,

who do say Yes, I walk with Jesus.

Have you guys ever heard a word so many
times that it begins to sound funny?

You know, when you like have those
weird moments where you're like, you

know, like pocket, pocket, pocket, you
know, uh, or all of a sudden you're

like spelling a certain word and you're
like, am I spelling it correctly?

You know, like all of a sudden
things start to feel weird.

Um, I think that followers of Jesus
are tempted to forget what it actually

means that you have been redeemed.

13 years ago today.

Uh, my second child, my
daughter Bell was born.

Uh, I know I say it's weird that
she's 13 'cause I'm only 25.

Like it doesn't make sense.

Um, um, uh, so, but a, uh, so 13 years
ago, a few weeks before she was, before

leading up to my due date, I really
started to get overwhelmed with fear.

Uh, my heart felt anxious and it felt like
each day it got more and more anxious.

My mind kept wandering to
all the worst case scenarios.

Uh, if you have been pregnant in
this room, you understand your mind

has played those games with you.

Um, I started to panic
about having a second child.

How was I possibly gonna
be able to do that?

And all the while, my due date
is just quickly approaching.

And one day Matt came home from
work and, uh, we were about to

actually host our small group that
evening, but I said, I have to go.

I need to go.

I need to go have a, a long walk with God.

I don't know when I'm gonna be back, but
we, I have to, I have to wrestle this out.

And because I felt absolutely suffocated
by fear, I mean crippled by fear.

And so I walked to the streets of
my neighborhood praying and crying

for over an hour, at least over
an hour, just walking all around.

And at some point I sensed God telling
me, Nicole, you are not a child of

fear, but a child of mine, trust me.

And then you brought this verse to
mind, which I've had stored in my

heart since I was a little girl.

And it's actually because of a camp song,
uh, that we learned a long time ago,

which is also to say, if you disciple
children and youth, do not underestimate

the seeds you were sowing right now.

But this verse came to mind.

It's Isaiah 43, and I'll read it to us.

It says, but now this is what the
Lord says He who created you, Jacob.

He who formed you Israel, do not
fear for I have redeemed you.

I have summoned you by name.

You are mine.

When you pass through the
waters, I will be with you.

And when you pass through the
rivers, they will not sweep over you.

When you walk through the
fire, you will not be burned.

The flames will not set you a blaze
for I'm the Lord your God, the

holy one of Israel your savior.

Fear not for I have redeemed you.

He was reminding me, uh, that that
evening, that wrestling, he was

reminding me that my redemption in
Christ set me free from the things

that were keeping my spirit in bondage.

I made my way back home to a house
that was full of people and my

spirit was finally feeling settled.

I went to sleep that night and I
woke up the next morning and I told

Matt, okay, I'm ready to have a baby.

And by five 15 that
afternoon, Belle was born.

And when people ask me if I've ever
been induced with any of my babies,

I always say, oh, there was one
time I was spiritually induced.

And I bring up this story because
often when we talk about our

redemption, we attach it to our sin.

We say things like I was a sinner who
has been redeemed, and that is true.

That is absolutely true.

We see that aspect of redemption in the
Old Testament where there is an animal

sacrifice that was required for our sin.

Right.

And then we have the story We, we have the
life of Jesus, and in Ephesians two, Paul

tells us about being dead in our sins.

But because of his great love for us,
God who is rich in mercy, made us alive

with Christ even when we were dead.

In transcriptions, it is by
grace that we have been saved.

We know that we have been redeemed because
Jesus is our sacrifice for our sin.

We all need forgiveness
and redemption for our sin.

But at the core of our redemption and
what we see in this story and what I

experienced is that there is another
facet of the gospel too, that through

Jesus, we are given a new life, a new
way of living, and we forget that piece

of our redemption, and we so often
find ourselves living in our own ways.

I had forgotten that I was
a redeemed child of God.

And that that means that my hope
and my peace and my comfort rest

on him, not myself or this world.

I do not belong to fear
or anxiety or anger.

I belong to God.

You do not belong to your broken past.

We are not defined by our suffering.

God doesn't just redeem part of you or
part of your story or some of your sin.

He redeems every part of you and he
looks upon you and he says, fear not.

I have redeemed you.

You are mine.

And what's interesting about this story of
about Ruth and Naomi's story here is that

the focus of their redemption is not on
their sin, but rather on their emptiness.

Their inability to help themselves.

They had nothing.

They were broken and they needed rescue.

They were powerless and
unable to save themselves.

And it's in that posture of poverty
that we find ourselves to, that we too

come to our redeemer in a position of
need, unable to write our situation.

And I wanna look one more time.

I wanna read this one more time
to you, verse 10 again, because

there's something really important
here that I don't want us to miss.

Boaz says, I have also acquired Ruth
the Moabite as my wife in order to

maintain the name of the dead with
his property, so that his name will

not disappear from among his family.

We can so quickly read that verse and
miss something really important here.

This is more than just about redemption.

This is a statement about resurrection.

He is raising up the name of
the dead, restoring what has

been lost for this family.

But because this is the gospel
story, this is not just a statement

about God redoing, renewing this one
family, but that he is actually in the

business of redu renewing all things.

He redeems and rescues people
through resurrection by

resurrecting this family's name.

They experience a redeemed life, and
that's what the people are witness to.

So here's what should never get old to us.

We too have been redeemed and we get to
bear witness to each other's redemption.

We get to bear witness to things in
our lives that have been resurrected.

We need each other to remind
us of who we are in Jesus.

We get to say to one another, Hey,
you are a beloved child of God.

We know who we were.

We were lost in our ways.

Helpless, empty, unsatisfied, crippled
by fear, but it is the heart of God.

The ethics of his kingdom, who takes
responsibility for us, who claim us as

his own, and he sends Jesus our redeemer
to clear our debts, to rescue us from our

bondage, to claim us and to set us free.

Jesus redeems us with his very blood,
his life, and we have been set free.

We have a new name.

You have a new name,
and it is Child of God.

Jesus was both qualified
and willing to redeem us for

himself and for our great joy.

You are valued and you are
wanted by your creator.

So what difference does it actually
make in your life today then that

you are a redeemed child of God?

Maybe you're sitting here and there's
a part of your past that you're

struggling to move on from, that you
are weighed down by guilt or shame.

Jesus has freed you from that.

Or, you know, maybe you are,
um, performing to earn God's

love, but Jesus has freed you
and His love is not something to

earn, but something to receive.

And some of you need to hear this.

Your past, your failures, your
mistakes, they do not diminish

your worth because Jesus is the
one who has established your worth.

Or maybe you're just sitting here
today thinking, I know, I know I

belong to God, but there's a lot of
my story or a lot in my life that I

really wish God would redeem already.

Could he resurrect this part for me?

There's loss or there's pain,
abandonment, grief, shame, regret.

And honestly, I don't know
how your story will turn out.

We don't know how anyone's story is
gonna turn out, but I do believe that

what the Gospel of Ruth shows us is that
God is always, always using redemption.

That with God there is
always redemption at work.

God is always moving on our
behalf, even when we don't get

it or understand it or see it.

God is fighting to restore
what is good and right.

He is fighting to redeem what the
enemy or chaos or sin has broken.

You are a redeemed child of God,

and so I want to invite each of
us to take a moment and simply

reflect on where you find yourself
today as you consider redemption.

Are you searching for redemption
for a new identity in Christ?

Or do you believe your life has been
redeemed but you have forgotten how

it's supposed to taste and you keep
going back to an old way of living?

Or are you longing for God to redeem
some painful part of your life right now

wherever you find yourself right now?

I love that we get to come
to the table together.