This podcast episode delves into the profound themes of love, redemption, and trust as illustrated in the book of Ruth. Pastor Josh Massaro emphasizes the vital lesson of patience and faith in the face of uncertainty, highlighting Ruth's reliance on Boaz as her kinsman redeemer. The discussion unfolds around the significance of trusting in God's promises, even when circumstances seem challenging. Pastor Josh draws parallels between Ruth's experience and our own relationship with Christ, reminding listeners that true peace comes from knowing and relying on God’s sufficiency. As the episode progresses, it encourages the congregation to embrace stillness and faith, even amidst life's trials, and to recognize the ultimate hope found in Christ as our redeemer.
The podcast delves into the profound story of Ruth, highlighting the themes of love, redemption, and the role of the kinsman redeemer. Pastor Josh Massaro articulates how the narrative is not just a tale from the past but a vivid depiction of God's promise and provision for His people. He explains that a kinsman redeemer is someone who steps in to restore what has been lost, drawing an analogy to the ultimate kinsman redeemer, Jesus Christ. The discussion emphasizes Ruth's act of faith as she approaches Boaz, showcasing her courage and trust in God's plan amidst her dire circumstances. Pastor Massaro encourages listeners to reflect on their own lives, considering how they might lean into their faith during times of fear and anxiety. He reassures them that just as Boaz offered Ruth security and provision, God extends His promises to His children, urging them to trust in His sufficiency even when situations seem bleak. The message resonates powerfully with the audience, reinforcing the importance of waiting on the Lord and recognizing His work in their lives, even when the outcome is uncertain.
Takeaways:
Links referenced in this episode:
00:00 - None
00:00 - Welcome to Middletown Baptist Church Podcast
00:23 - Introduction to the Book of Ruth
00:44 - The Kinsman Redeemer Explained
01:21 - Ruth's Proposal to Boaz
02:05 - Boaz's Response and Assurance
04:16 - The Problem of the Nearer Kinsman
06:39 - Trust and Patience in Difficult Times
11:11 - God's Provision and Sufficiency
44:20 - Conclusion and Next Steps
44:46 - Outro and Blessings
Pastor Josh
Hello and welcome to the Middletown Baptist Church podcast, where we are proclaiming the truth to the world.
Pastor Josh
My name is Pastor Josh and I want to thank you for listening to this podcast.
Pastor Josh
I hope that this podcast can be a blessing to you and strengthen you in the word of God.
Pastor Josh
Now come along.
Pastor Josh
Let's look into the Bible and see what God has for us here today.
Pastor Josh
All right, we're going to continue our study in the book of Ruth.
Pastor Josh
If you have your bibles, turn there with me.
Pastor Josh
Ruth, chapter three.
Pastor Josh
We're going to pick up where we left off last week.
Pastor Josh
If you weren't here last week, I'll try to catch you up with where we are in this story.
Pastor Josh
The story of Ruth is a story of love.
Pastor Josh
It's a story of redemption.
Pastor Josh
And we're seeing the picture of the kinsman Redeemer.
Pastor Josh
Now, if you don't know what the kinsman redeemer is, it's an individual that redeems another individual in their loss.
Pastor Josh
And so we see Ruthenhenne, who has lost their husband.
Pastor Josh
And in this culture, losing your husband means losing your security, losing your income, losing the future promise that you had with that relationship.
Pastor Josh
And so what would happen, and God instilled this, was that the closest family member to your deceased husband would then take you in, take care of you, give you security, give you income, give you provisions and all that.
Pastor Josh
And what we're going to see here in the story is that Ruth goes to Boaz and basically petitions him in faith to be her kinsman Redeemer.
Pastor Josh
She hears from Naomi that Boaz is her relative, a close relative.
Pastor Josh
So she says, this is great.
Pastor Josh
This is an opportunity.
Pastor Josh
And so we looked at last week Ruth's proposition, her proposal to Boaz, to marry her, to give her security, to give her salvation, if you will.
Pastor Josh
And the picture of that is the picture of what Jesus does for us and the fact that he is our kinsman Redeemer.
Pastor Josh
We come to him in faith for salvation.
Pastor Josh
We come to him in faith for security.
Pastor Josh
We come to him in faith for provision.
Pastor Josh
We come in him with faith so that he can do all the things that he promises us.
Pastor Josh
And so what does Boaz do?
Pastor Josh
Boaz comes back to Ruth and he says, yes, Ruth, I will do that.
Pastor Josh
I will keep that role in my life as the top focus that I have.
Pastor Josh
I will take care of you.
Pastor Josh
If you go back, you'll see it there in verse number eleven.
Pastor Josh
He says, and now, my daughter, fear not.
Pastor Josh
And so the remedy to her anxiety, the remedy to her fear, was that relationship with Boaz.
Pastor Josh
And we know the remedy to our fear, the remedy to our anxiety, our concerns, would be to come to a relationship with Christ.
Pastor Josh
And the Lord tells us, don't fear.
Pastor Josh
Fear not.
Pastor Josh
And we know that in two Timothy, chapter one, verse seven, God has not given us the spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind.
Pastor Josh
And so a lot of times in her life, our circumstances are realistic.
Pastor Josh
They're real.
Pastor Josh
They're real difficult circumstances.
Pastor Josh
Ruth was in a real spot.
Pastor Josh
She was in a real difficult position.
Pastor Josh
But because of her relationship, or at least in this case, her future relationship with Boaz, Boaz reminds her, don't fear.
Pastor Josh
And that's sometimes what happens to us in our own christian life.
Pastor Josh
We've got circumstances and difficulties and loss and pain and what have you, anxieties and all of that.
Pastor Josh
But what God says is that a relationship with me will bring you peace, it will bring you confidence, it will bring you hope.
Pastor Josh
And so therefore, there's no reason to fear.
Pastor Josh
And so Boaz says, fear not, I will do to thee all that thou requirest.
Pastor Josh
All that thou needest, essentially, is what he's saying.
Pastor Josh
Everything that you need, I will be there for you.
Pastor Josh
And that's what God says to us.
Pastor Josh
And it's important to remember the sufficiency of Christ in your life.
Pastor Josh
Sometimes as an individual, we think about this understanding.
Pastor Josh
At least I'll speak for myself that you know what?
Pastor Josh
I know that God is good.
Pastor Josh
I know that he loves me.
Pastor Josh
I know that he's all powerful.
Pastor Josh
But in my situation, I'm not sure if he's going to handle it.
Pastor Josh
I'm not sure that he's going to work it out the way that I think he should work it out.
Pastor Josh
And really what we're doing is we're not putting our sufficiency in Christ.
Pastor Josh
We're putting our sufficiency in worldly wisdom, in what makes sense to us on paper or what makes sense to us in a circumstantial event.
Pastor Josh
And so what the Bible tells us is that what Jesus Christ does for us is sufficient in every way.
Pastor Josh
And that's what Boaz is telling Ruth here.
Pastor Josh
But in this promise comes an issue, the issue of a problem, verse number twelve.
Pastor Josh
And now, it is true that I am thy near kinsman, but this is what we left off with last week.
Pastor Josh
Howbeit there is a kinsman nearer than I.
Pastor Josh
And so we leave off last week with a lot of optimism, a lot of promise, a lot of hope.
Pastor Josh
But now we see that there is a problem that is presented to Ruth and to Boaz, and that is that there is a nearer kinsman, a closer family member.
Pastor Josh
Now, what does that mean?
Pastor Josh
That means that Boaz does not necessarily have the right to claim this kinsman redeemer position unless the closer relative gives up that right.
Pastor Josh
And so we're going to see that exchange happening here in the next few verses.
Pastor Josh
But until then, what happens?
Pastor Josh
Well, Ruth has a chance to trust in her kinsman Redeemer or to fear.
Pastor Josh
She has a chance here to trust and to wait and to be patient or to be anxious and running and trying to manipulate situations.
Pastor Josh
There's a lot of things that she could do here in this case.
Pastor Josh
But let's see what happens here after Boaz tells her, hey, there's a closer relative.
Pastor Josh
And so there's another kinsman Redeemer.
Pastor Josh
That's possibly the one that could take this relationship.
Pastor Josh
But the problem is for Ruth and for Boaz is they've already expressed their love for each other.
Pastor Josh
There's already been this unveiling of their heart to each other.
Pastor Josh
And that's what we looked at last week in that proposal.
Pastor Josh
If you would like to read through that, you can.
Pastor Josh
There might be some confusion if you don't know the context.
Pastor Josh
Essentially, Boaz wakes up in the middle of the night and there's a lady laying at his feet, and he's like, what are you doing?
Pastor Josh
And it's dark.
Pastor Josh
He's like, who are you?
Pastor Josh
And she goes through this whole spiel about basically how she wants him to marry her, to redeem her.
Pastor Josh
And so this is what he says at the end of verse number 13.
Pastor Josh
He says, tarry this night, meaning wait, wait tonight, and it shall be in the morning, that if he will perform unto thee the part of a kinsman, well, let him do the kinsman's part.
Pastor Josh
Meaning this is out of our control.
Pastor Josh
This is out of our hands.
Pastor Josh
We have to kind of let this play out.
Pastor Josh
So be patient.
Pastor Josh
But then he says something very interesting here.
Pastor Josh
He says, but if he will not do the part of a kinsman to thee, then will I do the part of a kinsman to thee.
Pastor Josh
As the Lord Liveth, lie down until the morning.
Pastor Josh
So he's essentially telling her, we have to trust God if this is going to come to pass, if God opens this door, if God allows this to happen, then we're going to run right through.
Pastor Josh
And so this is going to be a picture of patience.
Pastor Josh
This is going to be a picture of trusting.
Pastor Josh
And that's a word that I want you to think about here this evening, trusting God in his promises, in the midst of difficulty, in the midst of a problem, in the midst of a difficulty that could possibly lead to us not receiving what we expect we should receive.
Pastor Josh
And so, you know, God tells us that he loves us.
Pastor Josh
God tells us that he's never going to leave us.
Pastor Josh
God tells us that he's never going to forsake us.
Pastor Josh
But sometimes there's situations in our life where we're tempted to doubt that.
Pastor Josh
And what does God tell us?
Pastor Josh
God tells us to wait, to be patient.
Pastor Josh
There's another passage of scripture that we could cross reference with this, and that's in psalm 46.
Pastor Josh
Most of you know this verse, but if you don't know this verse, it's a wonderful verse to deal with when we're going through a time of crisis in our life, a time of uncertainty, a time of waiting, possibly.
Pastor Josh
Psalm 46, verse number ten, says, be still and know that I am God.
Pastor Josh
I will be exalted among the heathen.
Pastor Josh
I will be exalted in the earth.
Pastor Josh
So God's command for us in the midst of a crisis is to be still, to be patient, to trust in him, to trust in his word, to trust in his ways.
Pastor Josh
Now, if you know the context of psalm 46, it's all about chaos.
Pastor Josh
It's actually not a peaceful situation that the psalmist is in right there.
Pastor Josh
A lot of times people will read psalm 46 and they'll get to verse number ten and they'll think, well, be still and know that I am God.
Pastor Josh
That is all about when God gives you a peaceful moment in your life, then you can just thank him for that.
Pastor Josh
That's not what he's talking about here.
Pastor Josh
A few weeks ago, Brother Chris Phillips, our special speaker for our marriage conference, was talking about this very thing.
Pastor Josh
And he says, when God tells us to be still, it's not saying, hey, be still in this peace.
Pastor Josh
It's saying, be still in the midst of the storm.
Pastor Josh
Very similar to when Jesus is on the water, right with his disciples and the storm's coming.
Pastor Josh
What does he say?
Pastor Josh
Peace.
Pastor Josh
Be still.
Pastor Josh
So it's peace in the midst of chaos.
Pastor Josh
And I think a lot of times in our life we're waiting for peaceful circumstances to have peace.
Pastor Josh
But the Bible doesn't say that's what happens.
Pastor Josh
The Bible actually says that we can have peace in the midst of a difficulty.
Pastor Josh
So we go back to Ruth, and Ruth is now in a crisis moment.
Pastor Josh
She's in a moment of saying, now I've shown my love for Boaz.
Pastor Josh
Now I have my heart set on this kinsman redeemer.
Pastor Josh
This other guy, I don't know.
Pastor Josh
This other guy I don't want.
Pastor Josh
But now, possibly God might change the path.
Pastor Josh
God might change what's going on.
Pastor Josh
And so she's got to trust.
Pastor Josh
And I want you to think about that here this evening.
Pastor Josh
This understanding of trust.
Pastor Josh
The Bible says in Hebrews, chapter eleven, verse six that it's impossible to please God without faith.
Pastor Josh
You cannot please God without faith.
Pastor Josh
And so what is faith?
Pastor Josh
Well, a lot of times we'll say faith is believing in something that we don't see, which is true.
Pastor Josh
But faith is also tied together with trusting, right?
Pastor Josh
I can say all day what I believe, but until I truly trust in what I believe, I'm not really having faith.
Pastor Josh
You've heard the classic analogy of the chair, right?
Pastor Josh
The chair is there.
Pastor Josh
I believe that that's a chair.
Pastor Josh
I believe that chair can hold me up.
Pastor Josh
But until I sit in that chair, that's actually the action of trust.
Pastor Josh
I'm trusting and displaying my faith that that chair will hold me up.
Pastor Josh
And so we say that we trust God, or at least we say we believe that God is who he says he is.
Pastor Josh
Well, it's that trust that proves that faith.
Pastor Josh
And so here Ruth has a chance to express confusion, express doubt, or express trust and faith.
Pastor Josh
And so what happens?
Pastor Josh
Verse number 14.
Pastor Josh
And she lay at his feet until the morning.
Pastor Josh
And so Boaz and Ruth are not doing anything inappropriate, but they're just here waiting till the morning.
Pastor Josh
And she rose up before one could know another.
Pastor Josh
So she gets out of there.
Pastor Josh
And he said, let it not be known that a woman came into the floor.
Pastor Josh
Now, Boaz and Ruth were not trying to hide anything, but it was just that Boaz didn't want this near kinsman to learn what Ruth had done.
Pastor Josh
Basically like, hey, let's let God figure this out.
Pastor Josh
Let's not try to manipulate this.
Pastor Josh
Let's not try to get in the mind of this other guy.
Pastor Josh
And so verse 15.
Pastor Josh
And he said, bring the veil that thou hast upon thee and hold it.
Pastor Josh
And when she had held it, he measured six measures of barley and laid it on her, and she went into the city.
Pastor Josh
So he gives her something as she goes.
Pastor Josh
And I think that this is a picture of how God expects us to trust him.
Pastor Josh
In most cases, when God gives us a promise, he's going to give us a provision in the midst of that promise, right?
Pastor Josh
So what?
Pastor Josh
Boaz makes a promise to her.
Pastor Josh
He says, let's trust.
Pastor Josh
Let's let this play out.
Pastor Josh
I will take care of this.
Pastor Josh
I'm going to go to the other kinsman.
Pastor Josh
I'm going to take care of this for you.
Pastor Josh
You don't have to worry about this.
Pastor Josh
He says, here, take these provisions and go.
Pastor Josh
And that's what God does to us.
Pastor Josh
When he's asking us to trust him, he's saying, look, I've given you all these provisions in your life.
Pastor Josh
Now trust me in the midst of this doubt.
Pastor Josh
Trust me in the midst of this darkness.
Pastor Josh
And so he says, I will perform it.
Pastor Josh
I will do this.
Pastor Josh
I will take care of this.
Pastor Josh
And so, just as Boaz is doing all the work for Ruth, so does Jesus do all the work for us in the midst of our salvation, in the midst of our doubts, in the midst of our loss, in the midst of our hope that we have.
Pastor Josh
And so, verse 16.
Pastor Josh
And when she came to her mother in law, she said, who art thou, my daughter?
Pastor Josh
And she told her all that the man hath done to her.
Pastor Josh
So she explains all the stuff that happened between her and Boaz.
Pastor Josh
And she said, these six measures of barley gave he me.
Pastor Josh
For he said to me, go not empty unto thy mother in law.
Pastor Josh
And this is the truth.
Pastor Josh
I mean, sometimes we feel like we're empty.
Pastor Josh
Sometimes we feel like we are without.
Pastor Josh
But God always gives us everything that we need.
Pastor Josh
Philippians, chapter four.
Pastor Josh
Paul says, God, my God, shall supply all your need.
Pastor Josh
And so when God is making us go through something, or at least allowing us to go through something, he's always going to give us the provisions that we need to get through that struggle, even though it might not feel that way sometimes.
Pastor Josh
But he's given us enough in his word.
Pastor Josh
He's given us enough in his presence for us to understand that we can trust in something.
Pastor Josh
It's not like God just leaves us out on a ledge and doesn't give us truths in his word so that we can trust in that.
Pastor Josh
The word of God is a rich depth of faith that we can have in the concept of, hey, this is what we go back to.
Pastor Josh
God tells me all these things, and so I can go back to that.
Pastor Josh
And I think that that's important to realize when we're coming to this understanding of trust and faith.
Pastor Josh
Right?
Pastor Josh
Faith cometh by hearing.
Pastor Josh
This is Romans chapter ten, verse 17.
Pastor Josh
Faith cometh by hearing and hearing by the word of God.
Pastor Josh
And so if you want to grow in your faith, you have to grow in the understanding of what God's word says.
Pastor Josh
It's always linked together.
Pastor Josh
You can't just grow in faith by saying, well, I'm just gonna try harder.
Pastor Josh
I'm just gonna, like, really pull myself up on my bootstraps and keep trying.
Pastor Josh
The truth is that when we don't have that proper object of faith, we're never gonna have solid faith.
Pastor Josh
We're never gonna have a solid footing.
Pastor Josh
Like, I put my faith in a lot of things sometimes, and probably not the greatest things to put my faith in.
Pastor Josh
You know, there's been times I don't know about you, I don't like heights, but sometimes I've climbed up on some ladders that probably weren't very trustworthy.
Pastor Josh
Okay?
Pastor Josh
I probably shouldn't have trusted them, and I probably shouldn't have gone as high as I did on that ladder.
Pastor Josh
The truth is, is that sometimes we put our faith and trust in something that is really not reliable.
Pastor Josh
But the truth is that when God calls us to do something, and when he asks us to do something, it's the most reliable thing.
Pastor Josh
And the reason we can have that proof is through his word.
Pastor Josh
And so she says, I have what I need here.
Pastor Josh
He didn't leave me empty.
Pastor Josh
Verse 18.
Pastor Josh
Then she said, this is Naomi's advice to Ruthenhenne, which at this point in time, Naomi is giving good advice.
Pastor Josh
She wasn't giving good advice back in chapter one, okay?
Pastor Josh
If you remember back then, she was telling Ruth to stay in Moab.
Pastor Josh
Keep worshipping your idols.
Pastor Josh
Even further on, Naomi said, hey, I'm bitter.
Pastor Josh
God's taken everything away from me now.
Pastor Josh
Naomi's perception has changed, and now she's a lady that's giving wonderful advice.
Pastor Josh
She says, sit still, my daughter.
Pastor Josh
That's reminiscent of that psalm 46 passage.
Pastor Josh
Be still and know that I am God.
Pastor Josh
She said, there is a time in the midst of a struggle that you have to sit still and trust in your kinsman redeemer.
Pastor Josh
And that is one of the hardest things to do.
Pastor Josh
One of the hardest things to do is just sit and be patient and wait for God to do his work.
Pastor Josh
A lot of times, we want it right now.
Pastor Josh
We live in that society.
Pastor Josh
We live in a smartphone society where everything, we can just pull it up, and that's access.
Pastor Josh
Right now.
Pastor Josh
Right now, I guarantee you.
Pastor Josh
But let me say it this way.
Pastor Josh
Yesterday my phone stopped working.
Pastor Josh
Okay?
Pastor Josh
It stopped working.
Pastor Josh
About 430.
Pastor Josh
I don't know what it was.
Pastor Josh
It popped up all these error codes, and I didn't have reception.
Pastor Josh
You know what?
Pastor Josh
I think it was like 430 by 438.
Pastor Josh
I was at the Verizon store, okay?
Pastor Josh
I'm like, I gotta have my phone.
Pastor Josh
Okay?
Pastor Josh
This is my access point.
Pastor Josh
This is where I do everything this is where I do my work.
Pastor Josh
This is where people communicate to me.
Pastor Josh
So I drove over there and they fixed it for me, and I got out, and I was like, peace, right?
Pastor Josh
But for those eight minutes, I was stressed because I'm like, someone could be reaching out to me, right?
Pastor Josh
And I started realizing, what, you know, where have I gotten to in my life where I'm so reliant on this now?
Pastor Josh
There are reasons for that.
Pastor Josh
My wife was out with the kids somewhere else, and I didn't have a way to contact her, and I was concerned that she might need me.
Pastor Josh
So there are things.
Pastor Josh
It's not like I was just playing games on my phone and I couldn't take eight minutes without it.
Pastor Josh
I just wanted to make sure that my wife wasn't traveling and needed something.
Pastor Josh
But anyway, the concept of this immediate gratification has caused us as believers to struggle with this understanding of being patient and waiting on God to do his work.
Pastor Josh
Sometimes God is going to do it in his timing, and most of the time, our timing is not God's timing.
Pastor Josh
Like, come on, lord, when are you going to do this?
Pastor Josh
When are you going to work this out?
Pastor Josh
And so, for her, this was just one evening, but it probably seemed like an eternity.
Pastor Josh
But Naomi says, sit still, my daughter, until thou know how the matter will fall.
Pastor Josh
She essentially tells her this advice, don't stress about it till it actually comes to pass.
Pastor Josh
There's nothing you can do right now except for trusting in God, praying, giving it over to him.
Pastor Josh
And I want you to see another passage of scripture that ties so well into this, and that's Philippians chapter four.
Pastor Josh
We've already mentioned in Philippians chapter four the principle of God providing needs.
Pastor Josh
But in Philippians chapter four, we also see this idea of prayer and giving it over to God in the midst of anxiety.
Pastor Josh
I know for me a lot of different things bring me anxieties and concerns and tempt me to not trust in God.
Pastor Josh
But whatever it is for you, Philippians chapter four, verse six, says something very interesting.
Pastor Josh
It says, be careful or I be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving.
Pastor Josh
So we're asking in faith, let your request be made known unto God.
Pastor Josh
So the Bible tells us what to do when we're being still, and that is to bring our requests, our struggles, our anxieties, our cares over to God with thanksgiving.
Pastor Josh
Meaning, Lord, you're gonna do what you're gonna do, and I know it's good.
Pastor Josh
And do all that.
Pastor Josh
And what does it say in verse number seven?
Pastor Josh
And the peace of God which passeth all understanding.
Pastor Josh
Meaning no one can understand this outside of those who are in Christ.
Pastor Josh
And the peace of God which passeth all understanding shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.
Pastor Josh
And so in the midst of conflict or the midst of crisis, or in the midst of anxieties, what do we do?
Pastor Josh
We turn it over to the Lord.
Pastor Josh
Be careful.
Pastor Josh
Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, let your request be made known unto God with thanksgiving.
Pastor Josh
And therefore, the product of that patience is what peace?
Pastor Josh
The peace of God.
Pastor Josh
And so that's an amazing product of that patience.
Pastor Josh
And we even see that in Galatians, we see the fruit of the spirit.
Pastor Josh
One of the elements of the fruit of the spirit would be in the King James.
Pastor Josh
It says long suffering, which is a good way to describe patience, suffering long.
Pastor Josh
But the Bible says that there is this understanding that when we're in the spirit, we're more able to be long suffering and be patient and wait upon the peace of God.
Pastor Josh
And so we go back to Ruth and we see Naomi giving Ruth this same advice.
Pastor Josh
Basically this sit still, wait, allow God to work out this matter, for the man will not be in rest.
Pastor Josh
So she contrasts Ruth's role in this problem and Boaz's role.
Pastor Josh
What's Ruth's role?
Pastor Josh
Sit still, be patient.
Pastor Josh
Trust.
Pastor Josh
What's Boaz's role as the kinsman Redeemer?
Pastor Josh
Well, this man will not be in rest until he have finished the thing this day.
Pastor Josh
Meaning Boaz is the one doing the work.
Pastor Josh
Boaz is the kinsman redeemer.
Pastor Josh
Let him do the thing that he does.
Pastor Josh
And that's what it means for us as christians to say, let God do his work.
Pastor Josh
Trust in him, trust in his goodness, trust in his holiness, trust in his power, trust in his provision.
Pastor Josh
And say, you know what?
Pastor Josh
I can't stress about this.
Pastor Josh
This isn't my issue.
Pastor Josh
There are certain things that we should have concern over things that we're doing in our life, about the actions that we do and the reactions that we have.
Pastor Josh
But really, sometimes there's going to be things that are outside of our control that we can't stress about because that literally will bring us to a place of selfishness, pride and anxiety.
Pastor Josh
And then that will lead to a very negative place because we're thinking it's all about us.
Pastor Josh
We're thinking it's all on us.
Pastor Josh
And really the truth is that the Bible tells us that our salvation, our redemption, is not on us.
Pastor Josh
It's ultimately on the Lord.
Pastor Josh
And so we see a transition from verse 18 to verse one.
Pastor Josh
And you know that the chapter divisions are there for organization.
Pastor Josh
So the story continues on, and we got to see what happens in verse one, because now we shift focus from Ruth and her challenge of patience and prayer and peace to now the kinsman Redeemer, what he's doing, and that's Boaz.
Pastor Josh
And so verse one says, then Boaz then went Boaz up to the gate and sat him down there.
Pastor Josh
Now, a lot of people might ask the question, maybe you don't.
Pastor Josh
Maybe you didn't catch it, but, like, why is he going to the gate?
Pastor Josh
There is great significance to the gate.
Pastor Josh
The gate was the place where everyone that was any importance would go to.
Pastor Josh
It wasn't just the gate of the city.
Pastor Josh
It was the place where a lot of matters would be judged.
Pastor Josh
It would be the place where all the powerful men would sit, all the wise men.
Pastor Josh
And people would come with needs, they would come with concerns, they would come with conflict.
Pastor Josh
It would be a place of trade.
Pastor Josh
It would be a place where people would sell their wares.
Pastor Josh
And when I was in Israel, if we could actually throw up, I have a picture up there.
Pastor Josh
Hopefully you guys can find it.
Pastor Josh
It's on the slides there.
Pastor Josh
When I was in Israel, we actually got to go to one of these gates, and the words weren't there.
Pastor Josh
If you could take those words down, you can see the gate there.
Pastor Josh
Yeah, we'll get it up there in a second.
Pastor Josh
It's going to be hard for you.
Pastor Josh
I'm the one in the very middle, the dark blue there.
Pastor Josh
Not that it matters, but if you can tell there's a wall there, and then there was like a bench that the people would sit.
Pastor Josh
So they said, when we're in Israel, they're like, all right, all the pastors, all the wise men.
Pastor Josh
Okay, we want you to go sit.
Pastor Josh
So that was all the pastors on our tour, and we all sat down there.
Pastor Josh
But it's interesting how it would go, because basically it would be like an l shape.
Pastor Josh
They would go in.
Pastor Josh
There would be like a bench, and then they would come around.
Pastor Josh
And so there would be security there as well.
Pastor Josh
And so that picture is just kind of showing you what it would have been like.
Pastor Josh
Boaz is going, and he's sitting at the gate waiting for this other man who would have been probably wealthy, well, to do powerful.
Pastor Josh
He would have gone through that gate as well.
Pastor Josh
And so he knew that this was a place where this person would be.
Pastor Josh
So he's in the place that he should be.
Pastor Josh
So you guys can go ahead and take that down if you want to know more.
Pastor Josh
If you want pictures about stuff I was doing in Israel, I'll try to throw them up when I can, when they're applicable.
Pastor Josh
That was, I believe, at the same time of Dan.
Pastor Josh
That's in northern Israel.
Pastor Josh
But anyway, so that's the gate.
Pastor Josh
That's the gate that he went to.
Pastor Josh
Not that specific gate, but a gate like that.
Pastor Josh
And he sat down there and behold, the kinsman of whom Boaz spake came by.
Pastor Josh
So now here's his moment.
Pastor Josh
Boaz is going to petition for Ruth, but he can't just say, I want Ruth and you don't want her, because the rightful thing for Boaz to do, the honorable thing is to offer it to him.
Pastor Josh
That's what he has to do if he's an honorable man, which we see, Boaz is an honorable man.
Pastor Josh
And so Boaz comes in and then what does he say here?
Pastor Josh
This is a really interesting thing.
Pastor Josh
He says, ho such a one.
Pastor Josh
Now that's an interesting thing to say.
Pastor Josh
If you were to put it in our terms today, it basically means mister so and so.
Pastor Josh
He doesn't say the name.
Pastor Josh
And a lot of commentators would say, why doesn't he say a name?
Pastor Josh
He obviously knew this person.
Pastor Josh
A lot of commentators would say that this person doesn't get the honor of having his name in scripture because of his, his act that he does here.
Pastor Josh
Basically, he denies his responsibility.
Pastor Josh
And we're going to see this come to pass here.
Pastor Josh
So he misses the opportunity to be the kinsman redeemer.
Pastor Josh
And so therefore he doesn't get any honor here.
Pastor Josh
So we have a guy named Boaz who is going to get the honor because of his responsibility and his faith and his trust and his action.
Pastor Josh
And then we see this other guy who had the opportunity and selfishly turns it down so he gets no recognition here.
Pastor Josh
Ho such a one.
Pastor Josh
Turn aside.
Pastor Josh
Sit down here.
Pastor Josh
And he turned aside and sat down.
Pastor Josh
So he's going to get his attention here.
Pastor Josh
He's going to come to this place where he's going to petition.
Pastor Josh
And, you know, I think that this was probably at least if I was Boaz, I would be nervous, right?
Pastor Josh
Because now Boaz is like, great, I have a wife, but now I got to get this guy to not take her as a wife, right?
Pastor Josh
So this is, this is, there's a lot at stake for Boaz here because remember, Boaz is nothing.
Pastor Josh
A perfect kinsman redeemer, like our savior is a perfect kinsman redeemer.
Pastor Josh
So Boaz still has flaws.
Pastor Josh
He's still a human being.
Pastor Josh
And so Boaz is going to basically explain it.
Pastor Josh
But before he does that, we see him again.
Pastor Josh
Being an honorable man, he brings witnesses.
Pastor Josh
Now, why does he bring witnesses?
Pastor Josh
Well, very similar to why we would bring witnesses.
Pastor Josh
So there would be people that were watching, so that there would be people who could vouch for what is said here.
Pastor Josh
And so he took ten men of the elders of the city.
Pastor Josh
Again, picture in your mind that gate, okay?
Pastor Josh
That gate with everyone sitting there.
Pastor Josh
He says, hey, ten of you, come here.
Pastor Josh
Listen to this.
Pastor Josh
And he says, sit ye down here.
Pastor Josh
And they sat down.
Pastor Josh
And he said unto the kinsman Naomi, that is, come again.
Pastor Josh
Out of the country of Moab selleth a parcel of land which was our brother Elimelech's.
Pastor Josh
And I thought to advertise thee, saying, buy it before the inhabitants and before the elders of my people.
Pastor Josh
If thou wilt redeem it, redeem it.
Pastor Josh
But if thou will not redeem it, then tell me that I may know, for there is none to redeem it beside thee, and I am after thee.
Pastor Josh
And he said, I will redeem it.
Pastor Josh
Now, you might say, what's going on here?
Pastor Josh
He didn't mention anything about Ruth.
Pastor Josh
Well, there's actually a few elements to the Kinsman Redeemer.
Pastor Josh
It's not just about a spouse being reunited with the family, but it's also about the land to be reunited to the family.
Pastor Josh
So the kinsman redeemed are played different roles.
Pastor Josh
He was also the person who would redeem the land.
Pastor Josh
He would buy back the land.
Pastor Josh
And so, for whatever reason, Boaz presents the land first.
Pastor Josh
He says, hey, there's some land that you can acquire because you're the kinsman redeemer.
Pastor Josh
Would you be willing to redeem this?
Pastor Josh
Because Naomi's well past her age of childbearing, and so he doesn't mention Ruth here.
Pastor Josh
He only mentions Naomi.
Pastor Josh
And he says, naomi has some land.
Pastor Josh
Would you redeem it back?
Pastor Josh
And what guy wouldn't want in some land, right?
Pastor Josh
He was like, great, I will do it.
Pastor Josh
I will redeem it.
Pastor Josh
And probably in Boaz's heart, you know, at least sometimes we don't want to speculate, but in my heart, if I was Boaz, I'd be like, oh, no, my heart would have sunk.
Pastor Josh
When he says, I'll redeem it, I'll do it, because it's a package deal.
Pastor Josh
With the land comes Ruth.
Pastor Josh
With the land comes being a husband.
Pastor Josh
And so we're going to see here that he's going to add more to it.
Pastor Josh
Then said, boaz, what day thou buyest the field of the hand of Naomi, thou must buy it also of Ruth, the Moabitess, the wife of the dead, to raise up the name of the dead upon his inheritance.
Pastor Josh
So he says, well, there's more to the story.
Pastor Josh
You're going to get some land, but you're also going to have a wife, a Moabitess wife, for that matter.
Pastor Josh
And we see this man, we don't know his name again.
Pastor Josh
And so, selfishly, I believe he says, great, I'll take the land, of course.
Pastor Josh
But when the wife is thrown in, we see him backpedal.
Pastor Josh
We see him go, whoa, that's not for me.
Pastor Josh
So selfishly, he didn't want to do that work.
Pastor Josh
He didn't want to go that far.
Pastor Josh
He wanted the benefit of the land, but he didn't want to do the work truly as a complete kinsman redeemer.
Pastor Josh
And the kinsman said, I cannot redeem it for myself.
Pastor Josh
And we see more to his heart in his explanation here.
Pastor Josh
He says, lest I mar mine own inheritance.
Pastor Josh
So he says, hey, I was willing to gain something from this, but I'm not willing to sacrifice anything.
Pastor Josh
I'm not willing to give up any of my inheritance, because probably he had children that he needed to delegate the money to and give that money to eventually.
Pastor Josh
And he's like, no, I don't want to lose anything that I have already.
Pastor Josh
I'm not willing to sacrifice.
Pastor Josh
This is a perfect picture of every other thing in the world that people put their faith in, right?
Pastor Josh
There is nobody or nothing that's willing to sacrifice for you or at least give up their life.
Pastor Josh
Jesus is the only kinsman Redeemer who said, look, I'm willing to put my life on the line for you.
Pastor Josh
I'm willing to die for you.
Pastor Josh
And so this is a picture of a willing kinsman redeemer, willing to sacrifice.
Pastor Josh
Boaz is the one willing to sacrifice.
Pastor Josh
This other fellow is not willing to sacrifice.
Pastor Josh
He says, that's going to marden my own inheritance.
Pastor Josh
Redeem thou my right to thyself, for I cannot redeem it.
Pastor Josh
So Boaz's heart goes down, and then it goes back up, because this man says, look, I want to redeem it, but if it means losing my inheritance, not going to happen.
Pastor Josh
You can take it.
Pastor Josh
You can have this.
Pastor Josh
And I think that's a beautiful picture of the relationship that we have to Christ.
Pastor Josh
He is the only one who offered that sacrifice for us.
Pastor Josh
And then so many times we turn to these things in the world that we think are going to give us hope and peace and salvation.
Pastor Josh
But let me tell you, none of those things ever, ever gave you the sacrifice of life.
Pastor Josh
I used to tell the teenagers this all the time, but I could say this to adults.
Pastor Josh
Those people that are putting out content on the Internet and Hollywood and whatever, they don't care about your well being.
Pastor Josh
They want your dollars, they want your attention.
Pastor Josh
But so many people are so given over to these things that are pulling them away.
Pastor Josh
And the truth is, is that they don't love you.
Pastor Josh
The one who loves you proved his love for you, and that's Jesus Christ.
Pastor Josh
And therefore your kinsman redeemer is willing to sacrifice.
Pastor Josh
So now we get into a really interesting thing here, and this is where we're going to kind of wrap up this evening.
Pastor Josh
And so, verse seven.
Pastor Josh
Now, this was the manner and former time in Israel concerning redeeming and concerning changing, for to confirm all things.
Pastor Josh
And we're not going to understand this, okay, you're going to say, what are we talking about here?
Pastor Josh
Remember, this is thousands of years ago, different culture, different ways.
Pastor Josh
This would have been the norm for them back then.
Pastor Josh
Okay?
Pastor Josh
So to confirm all things, a man plucked off his shoe and gave it to his neighbor.
Pastor Josh
And this was a testimony of Israel.
Pastor Josh
Therefore, the kinsman said unto Boaz, buy it for thee.
Pastor Josh
So he drew off his shoe.
Pastor Josh
And so you would say, what's going on here?
Pastor Josh
This was just something that they would do.
Pastor Josh
This was a ritual that they would accomplish in completing this task of the kinsman Redeemer.
Pastor Josh
And so this would have been the custom of sandal transactions, verse nine.
Pastor Josh
And Boaz said unto the elders and unto all the people, ye are witnesses this day that I have bought all that was elimelechs and all that was Chileans and Mahlons and the hand of Naomi.
Pastor Josh
And so this was very, very interesting here.
Pastor Josh
He says, basically, you are the witnesses.
Pastor Josh
The world is the witness of what Jesus Christ did for us.
Pastor Josh
And so all these people were the witnesses what Boaz did for Naomi and Ruth.
Pastor Josh
And so, moreover, Ruth, the Moabitess, the wife of Mahlon, have I purchased to be my wife, to raise up the name of the dead upon his inheritance, that the name of the dead be not cut off from among his brethren and from the gate of this place.
Pastor Josh
Ye are witnesses this day.
Pastor Josh
And so everyone could be the witness of what Boaz was doing, and everyone could be a witness of what Jesus Christ has done for us and our lives.
Pastor Josh
And so we're going to stop there, here this evening, because we're going to conclude it next week because there's more to the story.
Pastor Josh
The story doesn't end with Boaz and Ruth's marriage.
Pastor Josh
It actually continues on with a legacy.
Pastor Josh
And we're going to talk about that legacy more, actually, not next week.
Pastor Josh
We have a guest next week, but we will conclude that in two weeks.
Pastor Josh
But I want to go with some takeaway thoughts here tonight because we're talking about this idea of kinsman Redeemer.
Pastor Josh
But.
Pastor Josh
But I think that in this story, one of the greatest lessons is that challenge for Ruth to be patient and to sit still and to trust in her kinsman redeemer to do the work and figure out that problem in her life.
Pastor Josh
You know, I know that some people, by nature, are more prone to worry than others, but probably all of us at some point in our lives have a chance to wait and be patient or not be patient in the midst of a difficulty, in the midst of a quote unquote problem.
Pastor Josh
And, you know, I used to think growing up that if I could just run away from all my problems, everything would be okay.
Pastor Josh
I remember one time, I don't know how old I was.
Pastor Josh
I couldn't have been much older than Micah, so I was probably like ten or eleven years old, and I was having a rebellious stage in my life, and I was getting upset with my dad, and my dad had all these rules, and I said, fine, I'm going to run away from home.
Pastor Josh
I don't know if any of you have ever went through that process in your mind.
Pastor Josh
And I thought I really was going to.
Pastor Josh
I went to my room and I started packing my bags, and I was like, I'm going.
Pastor Josh
And my dad's like, oh, you're going to go?
Pastor Josh
Okay.
Pastor Josh
You better take some food with you.
Pastor Josh
Better take.
Pastor Josh
You know, my dad knew I wasn't going anywhere, but I was so set that I was going to go somewhere, and I was like, I'm going to go somewhere that doesn't have rules, and I'm going to make my own rules.
Pastor Josh
And by the time I probably left and my parents probably could tell the story better than me, maybe they don't even remember it.
Pastor Josh
I don't know.
Pastor Josh
We'll see.
Pastor Josh
But I'll have to ask them later if they're watching.
Pastor Josh
But before I left, I realized, you know what?
Pastor Josh
There's nowhere that I can go that I have it this good.
Pastor Josh
There's no one that's going to love me like my dad and mom.
Pastor Josh
There's no one that's going to protect me like my dad and mom, no one's going to feed me like them, right?
Pastor Josh
There's all these things in my mind that are running through my mind, as rational as a ten or eleven year old could be.
Pastor Josh
I started realizing that all of these things are never going to bring back to me what I have in that relationship with my parents.
Pastor Josh
Now some of you might say, well, you know what?
Pastor Josh
You didn't know my parents, okay?
Pastor Josh
I should have run away from them because I think I could have found, no, I know what you're saying, but we got to think about it from the perspective of we have a perfect father, we have a perfect heavenly father who sometimes we feel like we can go somewhere else and figure it out on our own.
Pastor Josh
But he has us coming back every single time saying, look, I forgive you.
Pastor Josh
It's the classic picture of the prodigal son, right?
Pastor Josh
He meets us, he wraps his arms around us and he says, I alone can give you what you need.
Pastor Josh
I alone can be sufficient in your life and provide for you and protect for you.
Pastor Josh
So Ruth had the opportunity to stress and to worry and to fret about it.
Pastor Josh
But then we have that picture of peace.
Pastor Josh
Be still.
Pastor Josh
And so I want you to think about that understanding of peace here this evening.
Pastor Josh
Have you ever desired peace and quiet in your life?
Pastor Josh
By way of testimony, I have a house with a nine year old, a six year old and a eight month old.
Pastor Josh
I desire peace sometimes, okay.
Pastor Josh
Sometimes I'm like, I just want it to be peace and quiet, okay?
Pastor Josh
But that's very far and few between in times of our house.
Pastor Josh
But the truth is, is that there's a greater peace.
Pastor Josh
I think sometimes that people are seeking after in this world.
Pastor Josh
And we all know that some people try to seek that peace in all the wrong places and you could fill in the gap.
Pastor Josh
Okay?
Pastor Josh
I tried to do this to bring peace, but it didn't satisfy or temporarily.
Pastor Josh
It satisfied for maybe a week or a month, maybe even a year or so.
Pastor Josh
But ultimately those things of the world that are packaged so nicely to say, here's peace, here's pleasure, here's comfort, all of those things are eventually going to fall apart.
Pastor Josh
All those things are going to rust away, that's eventually going to tear us down.
Pastor Josh
But what the Bible says is that there is this peace that passeth all understanding.
Pastor Josh
And if you have tasted of that peace, it's the most amazing thing, it's the most comforting thing to know that no matter what happens to you physically, emotionally and spiritually, that nobody can take away the love that God has for you.
Pastor Josh
Romans chapter eight.
Pastor Josh
If you are ever struggling with the concern of God caring about you or loving you or taking care of you in the midst of a difficulty, read Romans chapter eight.
Pastor Josh
And if you believe the word of God as the word of God, Romans chapter eight will bring you right back to the place where you need to be.
Pastor Josh
Because by the time you get to the end, it starts with in verse one, there's no more condemnation to those that are in Christ Jesus.
Pastor Josh
And it ends with the fact that nothing in this world can separate us from the love of God.
Pastor Josh
And he lists all of these things and he says, no, we're more than conquerors.
Pastor Josh
Because no matter what comes in my life, I can still have that peace that passeth all understanding.
Pastor Josh
And so there's going to be times that aren't peaceful in our life.
Pastor Josh
There's going to be times where we don't believe that.
Pastor Josh
There's going to be times where we go through struggles.
Pastor Josh
But I'm going to tell you that that center point of God's peace is found in knowing him and knowing his word and resting in his presence in our life and just being still and knowing that he is God.
Pastor Josh
And one of the greatest things that I was able to accomplish in my life when it comes to my spiritual walk was not, hey, I gotta just try harder.
Pastor Josh
It was, I wanna just know God and know him in a deeper level.
Pastor Josh
And the more I got to know him, the more I realized that he's not going to fail me.
Pastor Josh
And there's gonna be days where, there's days where I'm talking to someone and I catch myself going, you know, I know this, but, and then I, anytime we say that, that's where we're in the problem, right?
Pastor Josh
Because I know that God is good, but, and then we say something else, whatever it is.
Pastor Josh
But my situation is really tough.
Pastor Josh
Well, right.
Pastor Josh
And I think that's one of the many reasons why God gave us his word.
Pastor Josh
For us to see all the other people that went through struggles and how when they trusted in God, there was always reward.
Pastor Josh
Because there's a second part of that verse in Hebrews chapter eleven.
Pastor Josh
I want you to see that with me because this is so important, because sometimes we only heard of, hey, it's impossible to please God without faith.
Pastor Josh
And you're like, well, now what?
Pastor Josh
Is it impossible for me to ever please God?
Pastor Josh
Because I don't have the type of faith that I need to have.
Pastor Josh
Well, Hebrews eleven six says, hey, it's impossible to please God without faith.
Pastor Josh
But then there's a positive side to this.
Pastor Josh
Anytime God says something in the negative, he always is going to bring the positive side of it.
Pastor Josh
Like, don't do this, but do this.
Pastor Josh
So in Hebrews, chapter eleven, verse six, he says, but without faith it is impossible to please him.
Pastor Josh
But then he says, why?
Pastor Josh
He gives the background, he gives the deeper understanding.
Pastor Josh
He says, for he that cometh to God must believe there's that trust that he is, meaning that he exists, that he is who he says he is.
Pastor Josh
And there's an and there that's joining two things together.
Pastor Josh
So believe that he is who he is and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him.
Pastor Josh
Meaning I have to believe that God is going to reward my faith, not in the way that I think sometimes, because there's going to be some people that say if you have enough faith, all of your problems are going to go away.
Pastor Josh
Well, I can tell you there's a whole chapter called Hebrews chapter eleven, okay?
Pastor Josh
It's called the hall of Faith.
Pastor Josh
And it says, all these people that had faith, but it didn't say that all their problems necessarily went away, their circumstances went away, their bigger problem of sin went away.
Pastor Josh
And so what I'm gonna tell you here this evening is there is a false teaching out there, and I gotta tell you the truth about this, okay?
Pastor Josh
There's some people that will teach you that if you have enough faith, all of your sicknesses will just go away.
Pastor Josh
And if you're not, the problem with your condition is that you don't have enough faith.
Pastor Josh
That's misleading, right?
Pastor Josh
That is so misleading because the Bible doesn't say, the Bible doesn't promise that all of my problems and sicknesses will be taken away here on this earthen just because I have faith in God.
Pastor Josh
Now, can he do that?
Pastor Josh
Yes.
Pastor Josh
God is a miracle worker.
Pastor Josh
God can do what he wants to do.
Pastor Josh
And we should plead with him for healing.
Pastor Josh
We should plead with him for our circumstances to go away.
Pastor Josh
But what we do know is that sometimes God doesn't heal us in the way that we expect God's going to heal us in a greater way, in a different way.
Pastor Josh
And the Bible speaks all to that.
Pastor Josh
But I will tell you that the Bible does say that there is one great healing one day, that all of our sickness will go away, all of our sadness will go away, all of our pain will go away, all of our struggles with sin.
Pastor Josh
And that is one day, the Bible says, and the theological term for this is glorification.
Pastor Josh
But it's that day when we are reunited with him.
Pastor Josh
One day, and that might happen sooner than later.
Pastor Josh
You know, you never know when that's going to happen.
Pastor Josh
But the truth is that we should long for that day.
Pastor Josh
As christians, I long for the day when my sinful flesh is not fighting against the spirit.
Pastor Josh
I long for the day where there's no more waking up in the morning and things are aching and pain and all of that.
Pastor Josh
I long for the day where there's no more chaos in this world.
Pastor Josh
The Bible says that day is coming, but until then, trust in him that it's coming.
Pastor Josh
God is going to make all things right.
Pastor Josh
David the psalmist says, God, it seems like you're letting all the bad people get away with this and all the good people are going through difficulties.
Pastor Josh
And David's speaking for us.
Pastor Josh
Sometimes.
Pastor Josh
Sometimes it looks like people are getting away with stuff that's evil.
Pastor Josh
Like, when's God going to judge them?
Pastor Josh
Let me just tell you.
Pastor Josh
And we don't, like, rejoice in this necessarily in the fact that they're going to be judged, but we should rejoice in the fact that God is going to make all things right.
Pastor Josh
He is the great judge.
Pastor Josh
He's the one that's sitting on the bench of the city, but ultimately his bench is higher than everybody else.
Pastor Josh
There's the Bema seat, but there's also going to be one day, the bema seat is the judgment that God is going to say, okay, this is what you did for me as a christian rewards, right?
Pastor Josh
That's the judgment seat of Christ.
Pastor Josh
But there's also what's called the great white throne judgment.
Pastor Josh
And so what that means is that God is going to judge all of those that have rejected him.
Pastor Josh
And so all these people that have rejected God and turned their way to evil, God's not going to let it go unnoticed.
Pastor Josh
God is a righteous judge now.
Pastor Josh
He's patient and he has grace.
Pastor Josh
He's long suffering.
Pastor Josh
But the Bible says that he will right all wrongs in this world.
Pastor Josh
And we have to have faith in that.
Pastor Josh
We have to have faith in that as christians.
Pastor Josh
And that's what we are looking at when it comes to the peace of God in our lives.
Pastor Josh
But until then, what do we do?
Pastor Josh
We preach the gospel, okay?
Pastor Josh
For a lot of us, we want to be the judge.
Pastor Josh
We want to be the judge and the jury and take out our wrath upon people.
Pastor Josh
God did not call us to do that.
Pastor Josh
God called us to project and to proclaim and to display the gospel message in that time that we have in this age of grace.
Pastor Josh
And so what do we do we preach the truth?
Pastor Josh
We say what is true, we call out what is wrong, but we have grace to preach the message and love to preach the message, to give people the opportunity to come to Christ.
Pastor Josh
You know, I know some people that will say, including myself, that person could never come to Christ.
Pastor Josh
That's not our judgment.
Pastor Josh
That's not our job.
Pastor Josh
Our job is to proclaim the truth of the gospel.
Pastor Josh
There have been people that have changed because of the Holy Spirit, not because of logic, not because of wisdom, but because of the power of the Holy Spirit changing their heart from a heart of stone into a heart of flesh.
Pastor Josh
And so that's where our peace comes from, the bigger picture, the peace of God, which passeth all understanding.
Pastor Josh
Now, I'm going to move forward a little bit here, and I am going to tell you that as a christian today, we have a lot of reason to be anxious.
Pastor Josh
We have a lot of reason to question.
Pastor Josh
We have a lot of reason to even sometimes doubt the goodness of God because we look at circumstances.
Pastor Josh
What I would tell you is you can watch the news, okay?
Pastor Josh
There's nothing unbiblical about watching the news.
Pastor Josh
But what you deal with when you watch the news is either biblical or not biblical, okay?
Pastor Josh
You can do everything in your life biblically or you can do everything in your life unbiblically.
Pastor Josh
So it doesn't necessarily mean this.
Pastor Josh
Like, for example, this is what I try to do sometimes.
Pastor Josh
I just try to not watch the news, okay?
Pastor Josh
I'm like, okay, if I just don't watch the news, I won't have any problems.
Pastor Josh
The truth is, is that people will tell me what's going on in the world.
Pastor Josh
Then I immediately start stressing.
Pastor Josh
So it doesn't really matter.
Pastor Josh
I can't avoid the temptation always.
Pastor Josh
That's what happened when all these people tried to be monks.
Pastor Josh
And there's still people that try to do this.
Pastor Josh
They try to go live out on a monastery thousands of miles away.
Pastor Josh
They try to remove everything.
Pastor Josh
And they say, okay, I'm never going to sin again because I don't have any outside distractions.
Pastor Josh
And then they realize they have something called the flesh, okay?
Pastor Josh
And the flesh is going to still want those bad things.
Pastor Josh
And so it's not about just avoiding the bad.
Pastor Josh
It's about really living and relying on the goodness and the grace of God in the midst of all this.
Pastor Josh
And so that's how you can have the peace of God.
Pastor Josh
And so I'm not here today to say, hey, don't watch the news or don't deal with your neighbor don't go to work, okay?
Pastor Josh
Because you might say, well, my problem's at work.
Pastor Josh
If I just didn't go to work, everything would be okay.
Pastor Josh
I can't tell you.
Pastor Josh
Well, just quit your job, okay?
Pastor Josh
You gotta deal with it.
Pastor Josh
You gotta deal with the problems of this world, okay?
Pastor Josh
But there's a way to deal with it biblically, and that is to look to Christ in the midst of your decisions, in the midst of your reactions.
Pastor Josh
So we'll be back in two weeks to conclude the book of Ruth.
Pastor Josh
I hope that it's been a good study for you.
Pastor Josh
It has been for me.
Pastor Josh
I've heard the book of Ruth so many times, but this time through, I really wanted to see it through the lens of the kinsman redeemer only.
Pastor Josh
Not that we can't take other elements of it, but I think that kinsman Redeemer is that main theme through.
Pastor Josh
And I think that was a blessing.
Pastor Josh
Now, if you want to know what we're going to be studying next, I'll tell you in two weeks.
Pastor Josh
But I'm still praying about a few different studies.
Pastor Josh
So we're going to be getting through this in two weeks and then we'll move on.
Pastor Josh
Thank you again for listening to the Middletown Baptist Church podcast.
Pastor Josh
I hope that this sermon has been a blessing for you.
Pastor Josh
If you would like to find out more information about our church or this sermon, you can find us@middletownbaptistchurch.org or find us on Facebook or YouTube.
Pastor Josh
You can also email me directly@joshmissaroiddletownbaptastchurch.com.
Pastor Josh
if you've enjoyed this podcast, please subscribe and follow along for future podcasts and updates.
Pastor Josh
Thank you so much.
Pastor Josh
God bless.
Pastor Josh
Have a wonderful day.
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