Read Ruth 2:4-10
4. “And, behold, Boaz came from Bethlehem, and said unto the reapers, The Lord be with you. And they answered him, The Lord bless thee.
5. And said Boaz unto his servant that was set over the reapers, Whose damsel is this?
6. And the servant that was set over the reapers answered and said, It is Moabitish damsel that came back with Naomi out of the country of Moab:
7. And she said, I pray you, let me glean and gather after the reapers among the sheaves: so she came, and hath continued even from the morning h til now, that she tarried a little in the house.
8. Then said Boaz unto Ruth, Hearest this not, my daughter? Go not to glean in another field, neither go from hence, but abide here fast by my maidens:
9. let thine eyes be on the field that they do reap, and go thou after them: have I not charged the young men that they shall not touch thee? and when thou art athirst, go into the vessels, and drink of that which the young men have drawn.
10. Then she fell on her face, and bowed herself to the ground, and said unto him, Why have I found grace in one eyes, that though shouldest take knowledge of me, seeing I am a stranger?”
verse 8 - “abide here fast” meaning to stay closeReference to Luke 1:28 — “And the angel came in unto her, and said, Hail, thou art highly favored, the Lord is with thee: blessed art thou among women.” This is talking about Mary and how she is highly favored. Mary was a young and poor woman in the Bible (like Ruth. Ruth was a widow, young, and poor). Back then a woman who was a widow, poor, and young was considered “unusable” for major tasks. But God didn’t see Ruth (or Mary) that way. He seen them as important.
My Bible foot note states “You may feel that your ability, experience, or education makes you unlikely or under qualified for God’s service. Don’t limit God’s choices. He has something in mind for you to do. He can use you if you trust Him.”
everything Ruth done was done faithfully.Verse 7 tells us how faithful and hard working Ruth was. She worked from morning until night and rested very little. This caught Boaz attention and he was very impressed with how hard Ruth worked.
Ruth may not have know why she picked the field that she picked to work in, but the Lord knew. He had a plan and knew that Ruth’s path would cross Boaz.
My Bible footnote says “Had she considered herself too proud or embarrassed to work in the fields, accepting the charity of someone else, she would have missed the opportunity to meet Boaz, which would change her life and give her the honor of becoming the ancestor of a king and the Messiah.”
The study book states “This encounter with Boaz is likely the first ray of hope in this foreign land for Ruth.” Think about crossing paths with a complete stranger who has had a bad day, but we do not realize this person has had a bad day.. and your actions could possible be what gives that person a little hop that the day will get better or that everything will be ok? This is what Boaz done. He did not know that his favor to Ruth would give her hope.
The study book states “Jesus calls us to eat at His table and drink the water of life freely. Jesus brings beauty from our brokenness, Jesus gives us dignity. Jesus is our protector.”
Jesus gives us a new identity. In what thing are we tempted to find our new identity?I think we are tempted to find our new identity by making friends who are also followers of Christ and wanting to love for Him. If we do not surround ourselves with the Christian people then we possibly will have temptation of sin dangling before us or a possibility of making wrong decisions. Our social life is a big importance in our walk with Jesus.
Because of how God has shown his love and grace to you, how can you show love and grace to others?By forgiving and showing love. I also think of the fruits of the spirit when we talk about grace and love. (Fruits of the spirit are: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self control). I always pray to love like Jesus. His love is so deep for us that he died on that cross and gave His life. I want to show that kind of love.
Jesus is more than enough for us. List something’s that Jesus is better than.I’ll list 3 that really pop into my mind immediately after reading the statement.
1. Sin
2. Fear
3. Doubt
Dear Lord,
Help me to be a light and that this Bible study will help others draw closer to you. I desire to know more about your Word. Help me to love like Jesus and shine my light bright. Help me to teach my kids right and wrong and to know they can always put their trust in your Lord.
-Amen