The unfolding of God’s plan

Reading  Ruth 4:13-22

Intro.

A lot of things happen in life that knock us back,  some can be so devastating that not only do they knock us back but they also knock us down – some people cope better than others, some people are what is termed ‘naturally optimistic’ and they seem to be able to see the positive in just about every circumstances. That positive outlook changes their lives, maybe not their circumstances, but their lives.

Naomi, it would seem was not one of those ‘positive outlook’ people, from what we have read she was knocked back and knocked down, Call me Mara, Bitter.  Circumstances had overwhelmed her and terrible those circumstances were – she lost her husband, she lost her two sons, all at the hand of her God - the LORD has testified against me, and the Almighty has afflicted me. 1:21

I wonder how I would respond to such circumstances – one of the things that has spoken to my heart as we have gone through this story is fact that how we respond to our situation and circumstance is important, important to our lives and important to our witness – Why do I say this?  Because when I let self pity take over, I am actually saying that I don’t trust God, I’m saying that God is wrong in what He has done in my life. I am setting aside the only source of strength that will see me through the hard times.

While we may not understand why God in his providence has ruled that certain things happen to us, we nevertheless accept that not only is he sovereign, but that he is also all wise, holy and love. Whatever God does is according to his perfect wisdom, holiness and love, therefore everything that God does is right. God never ever makes a mistake.

While we may be confused by God's providence, we nevertheless know what God wants us to do; he wants us to trust him and to continue obeying him. We should have no doubt that this is God's will for us. No matter what happens God requires us to trust and obey him.
 

While we may be emotionally hurt and battered we nevertheless know that God works all things for the good of those called according to his purpose. He will not cause his children to suffer needless pain or shed needless tears. Christ our High Priest is able to sympathise with us.

While we may see our private worlds broken and shattered, we must remember that our lives are not essentially about us, but about God's glory. Everything God does he does for his own glory. We were created by God in order for him to use us as he pleases to glorify himself. God is not man-centred, but God-centred. God saved you, not to make you happy but to glorify himself. Pride would have you believe that life is about you and that God is man-centred and committed to your happiness. It is only when we grasp that all of life is about God's glory that we begin to understand life from God's perspective. God's great ambition for you is for you to glorify and enjoy him, by being focussed and centred on him.

A Question

Why Lord? Is the question that comes readily to our thoughts and I suspect it was the question that rang in Naomi’s mind – Why so much suffering?

In the book of Ruth we see an answer given to Naomi’s question,  part of the answer is one word- in fact, a name: Ruth. Ruth's conversion is part of the explanation of Naomi's pain. ... The story of Naomi is about Ruth; or more accurately, it is about God bringing Ruth to himself and positioning her life in the ongoing unfolding of his purposes for the world. This is the one reason why we can never say that there is a simple equation in Naomi's life: "She sinned, therefore she is suffering." God's ultimate purpose has not been to punish her for her family's spiritual failures in abandoning the land and the promises. Rather through the mysterious intermingling of his providential control of history with Naomi's family's failures, the Lord's purpose has been to reach through her life to bring Ruth to himself. (Sinclair Ferguson)

Was Naomi able to grasp this? I don’t think so. Are we able see things from God's perspective? I think we see just the tip of the iceberg, therefore we must trust God for his grace and submit to his will. Like Ruth we must seek shelter under the wings of the Almighty. Naomi needed to be emptied of self and filled with God.

The importance of Ruth is seen in the genealogy with which the book closes – and Boaz begot Obed; Obed begot Jesse, and Jesse begot David. V21-22,  This genealogy is the real climax to the story, it leads us down through generations and those generations lead us to the Messiah, to the Christ, to the Lamb of God promised before the foundation of the world.  David the king begot Solomon ;  Solomon begot Rehoboam, Rehoboam begot Abijah, and Abijah begot Asa.  Asa begot Jehoshaphat, Jehoshaphat begot Joram, and Joram begot Uzziah. Uzziah begot Jotham, Jotham begot Ahaz, and Ahaz begot Hezekiah. Hezekiah begot Manasseh, Manasseh begot Amon, and Amon begot Josiah. Josiah begot Jeconiah , Jeconiah begot Shealtiel, and Shealtiel begot Zerubbabel. Zerubbabel begot Abiud, Abiud begot Eliakim, and Eliakim begot Azor. Azor begot Zadok, Zadok begot Achim, and Achim begot Eliud. Eliud begot Eleazar, Eleazar begot Matthan, and Matthan begot Jacob. And Jacob begot Joseph the husband of Mary, of whom was born Jesus who is called Christ. Matt.1:6-16

These closing verses of the book of Ruth draw us into the unfolding of God's glorious plan for his people. They remind us that history follows God's plan and takes place according to his timetable and accomplishes his purpose. Before creation began God had a plan for the universe he would create; a plan that was totally comprehensive in every minute detail from the beginning to the end. Within this plan is God's plan for your life. God's plan for your life ties you with the lives of the past, present and future generations. Only on the last day will you and I grasp the greatness of God's plan and the role we played in that master plan, only then will have the answer to our question ‘why’.

When God moves upon our lives, it’s not only us that he is moving upon – He has the lives of others in view-even those yet to be born.'  If Elimelech and his family had not moved to Moab then Ruth would not have come to Bethlehem, if Ruth had not come to Bethlehem then the marriage to Boaz would never have taken place and Obed would not have been born, and if Obed was not born then Jesse and King David would never have existed.

Even though they didn’t know it, Naomi and Ruth played a vital role in God's plan to give the nation of Israel a great King. More importantly they also had a vital role to play in God's plan of sending his only begotten Son, the Lord Jesus Christ to save his people from their sins.

I want to encourage you therefore, not to despair when life suddenly falls apart in your hands, for greater hands than yours are holding your life!

I want to encourage you not to see you life as pointless, for God is working out His eternal purposes in you and through you.

Be encouraged, dear Christian! The world may seem black and storm clouds may be overshadowing you but behind it all the glory of the Lord is encompassing you.

This is what we see in Ruth

Ordinary People in their Ordinary lives – Part of God's great and glorious plan

Elimelech, Naomi, Chilion, Orpah, Mahlon, Ruth and Boaz were ordinary people living ordinary lives. To each other they were probably important and wonderful people, but to the nation of Israel and the rest of the world they were nobodies, men and woman of little or no significance. Mary and Joseph the parents of Christ Jesus were essentially ordinary people whom God used in an extraordinary way in the unfolding of his great plan of salvation. It is easy to think of yourself as a-nobody and what you do is quite irrelevant. Knowing the story of Naomi's life we can understand how she could have felt for a while that her life was a waste of time and effort. The Bible tells us that with God there are no irrelevant people, there are none who are not significant and unimportant. No one was created as superfluous to his plan. Almighty God has created each person to play a specific and important role in his great and glorious plan for the universe.

Every man, every woman has a part to play, whether they are a Christian or not – God will glorify Himself in all of His creation – in  men like Judas who betrayed Jesus, or Caiaphas who organised the plot to put Jesus to death, or Pilate who washed his hands of the case but gave Jesus over to be crucified, or the Roman soldiers who nailed Jesus to the cross, to mention a few. Him, being delivered by the determined purpose and foreknowledge of God, you have taken by lawless hands, have crucified, and put to death; (Acts 2:23) 'The expression determined purpose denotes a plan that has been determined and has clearly defined that Jesus' death was part of God's great plan and unbelievers played important roles in fulfilling that plan. That God uses believers to fulfil aspects of his great plan is taken for granted.

1 Cor.1:26 ‘For you see your calling, brethren, that not many wise according to the flesh, not many mighty, not many noble, are called.  God's effectual call that brings sinners to embrace Christ goes predominantly to ordinary people. In our world men and women chase after things which make them great in the eyes of the world, things like status, power, wealth knowledge, and influence, hoping that these things will make them something more than just ordinary people. While the world in some respect despises the whole idea of an ordinary person God has focussed on them and called many to be his chosen and beloved people. Think what this means - ordinary people are more important in the eyes of God than the rich, famous and mighty. Never be ashamed or feel useless because you are an ordinary person as God uses ordinary people to fulfil his great plan. The genealogy in Ruth 4 tells us that ordinary people living ordinary lives play an important part in God's plan. An ordinary person living the ordinary Christian life is greatly valued by the Lord.

Are you encouraged?  You ought to be! But perhaps you say to yourself it does encourage me but I’m not as good or as strong, or as faithful as others, I fail where they succeed. Well if that’s what you are thinking let me encourage you, by showing you from God’s word that you are not alone in your failing,

Ordinary People in their Ordinary lives, with all their weaknesses – Part of God's great and glorious plan

The genealogy of Jesus recorded in Matt.1 and Luke 3 stretches back through all the generations to Adam. We need to remember that this is the family line into which Jesus was born according to the plan and purpose of God. Why would our God who is all wise and glorious elect a family line that is so flawed to be the one into which the Saviour of his people was to be born? Think about some of the men in that family line. Consider those we count as great men of true faith.

Noah was a remarkable man of great courage and conviction. He was willing to stand alone against the community and their wicked culture. He stood alone against sinful and wicked men; it was as if he had the whole world against him. Yet the Scripture records that after the flood he once lay drunk and naked in his tent. Noah was a sinner like you and me.

When we think of Abraham, we think of a man who trusted God and separated himself from his father's house to go to a land God promised him. He was a man of remarkable faith and courage. The Bible does not hide from us the fact that he was prepared to lie his way out of trouble. Sarah was also prone to telling lies, and even tried to hide from God the fact that she had laughed when he said she would have a son. They were sinners like you and me.

Consider Jacob whose name revealed that he was a devious character who would lie, deceive, steal and hide behind his wife and children to protect his life. Jacob was in many ways a scoundrel. Like you and me he was a man who struggled with sin and often yielded to sinful ways.

Consider David the greatest King the people of Israel ever had and described as a ‘man after God's own heart'. The great man who did great things for the Lord, and yet he was a liar, schemer of evil, an adulterer, and an accomplice to the murder of Uriah the Hittite. David was a weak and flawed servant like we are.

Solomon was granted great wisdom by God and was richly blessed, yet in old age we find him caught up in idolatry for the sake of a woman he took to boost his ego and satisfy him sexually. Solomon was a flawed servant who struggled with many weaknesses. He was a sinner like us.

Think of King Manasseh; he was ‘committed to idolatry, Manasseh restored everything Hezekiah had abolished. Manasseh erected altars to Baal; he erected an image of Asherah in the Temple; he worshiped the sun, moon, and stars; he recognized the Ammonite god Molech and sacrificed his son to him (2 Kings. 21:6); he approved divination; and he killed all who protested his evil actions. It is possible that he killed the prophet Isaiah; rabbinical tradition states that Manasseh gave the command that Isaiah be sawn in two.' Manasseh was the most wicked and sinful king Israel ever had and in a way embraced everything that God condemned.

There are only four women listed in Jesus' genealogy; Tamar was a Canaanite who dressed up like a prostitute to deceive her father-in-law Judah. Rahab was a prostitute from Jericho. Bathsheba the mother of Solomon was seduced by David while her husband was on the front line fighting the king's enemies. The other woman mentioned is Ruth the Moabitess who at first was considered as outside the covenant.

We could go on and on listing men from Jesus' line who were greatly flawed and had serious weaknesses, yet God in his perfect wisdom chose them to be the family line into which Jesus was born.

Why would the Lord Jesus Christ, who from all eternity had the power and authority to choose his descendants select a line that is filled with tragic, pathetic, dubious, deceitful, wicked men and woman? When we think of Jesus we think of his holiness and that he was without sin. Jesus was not like us in our sinfulness, but he fully identified with sinners like us. Matt.1:21 you shall call his name Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins.' Jesus' mission was to save sinful people like his ancestors, people like you and me. During his earthly ministry Jesus associated with those who society regarded as the scum of the earth. Listen to what society had to say about Jesus, ‘Look, a glutton and a winebibber, a friend of tax collectors and sinners! In his death he was crucified between thieves who were given the death-penalty for their crimes. Jesus came to save sinners and he fully identified himself with those sinners he came to save. Concerning Jesus' office of High Priest Hebs. 4:15 tells us, ‘For we do not have a High Priest who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses, but%uFEFF %uFEFFwas in all points tempted as we are, yet without sin.' Jesus understands the destructive and compelling power of sin in the unsaved, and that continues to work in those washed by his blood.

Jesus wasn’t ashamed of his family line, nor is he ashamed of sinners washed by his blood. Hebs.2:11 says, ‘For both He who sanctifies and those who are being sanctified are all of one, for which reason He is not ashamed to call them brethren.'  Jesus is not ashamed to call men like Jacob, Moses and David his brothers, nor is he ashamed to call you and me brothers if we have been washed by his blood. If you know and think of yourself as a sinner who is flawed and beset with all kinds of weaknesses, then you need to grasp the truth that Jesus is the friend of sinners.

There is something absolutely amazing about Jesus being the friend of sinners. Hab.1:13 ‘you are of purer eyes than to behold evil, and cannot look on wickedness.'  Anything contaminated by wickedness or evil is an abomination in the eyes of God; it is repugnant and revolting to his glorious holiness. In the incarnation God who is glorious in his holiness made himself the friend of sinners. The Son of God became the Son of man so that the sons of men could become the sons of God. The genealogy of Jesus points to his great condescension and humiliation in becoming a man from descendants who were sinners.

Jesus is the greatest friend a sinner can ever have for he saves him from his sin. Ordinary people flawed with weaknesses are given a very real role in God's great and glorious plan to bring all those given to Christ into fellowship with the Lord. God in his wisdom doesn’t tell us to wait until we are free from all weaknesses before we become a part of his glorious plan to exalt the name of Jesus Christ. Satan would tell us to wait until we have been fully sanctified before we declare God's glorious plan and promote the name of Jesus because he knows it appeals to our sense of logic and laziness. It is no small thing to think that God is and will use you to bring his glorious plan to fruition. We should be filled with a deep sense of privilege that God makes us part of his glorious plan.

Are you encouraged, dear Christian? You ought to be! But what about you who reject Christ as your Saviour? You who, even in your rejection, are being used in God’s plan to exalt Christ, are you encouraged? you ought to be! You ought to be encouraged to seek the salvation that was promised before the world began, prophesied since the world began and brought to be in the coming of the Jesus Christ.

For in this genealogy we learn that  

Ordinary People are only Saved by believing in the Christ of the Genealogy

It is important to take note that Matt.1:1 says, ‘The book of the genealogy Jesus Christ, the Son of David, the Son of Abraham.' Why does Matthew emphasise David and Abraham? It was with Abraham and David that God made the most important covenants concerning the promised Messiah. God promises the childless Abram a son. Through this seed Abraham would be the father of a great nation. God also promised that through this seed all nations would be blessed. In His Covenant  with David God promises that David's dynasty will be eternal. From the line of David the eternal King would be born. Jesus is both the seed of Abraham and the seed of David, he is the one through whom all nations are blessed, and he is the King of Kings. Jesus is also the one with whom God makes the New Covenant which secures full salvation for all his people. The New Covenant was not made with a sinful man who would be a covenant-breaker but with God the Son who would secure every pledge and promise of the covenant forever. Listen to John 1:12-13 concerning the blessing of the covenant, ‘but as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, to those who believe in His name: who were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God.'

Conclusion.

Through Naomi and Ruth God was unfolding his glorious plan to send the Saviour to save his people from their sins and make them the children of God. The greatness of that plan was revealed in the coming of Jesus Christ and his glorious work of atonement. Through you and I God continues to unfold his glorious plan that will culminate in the second coming of King Jesus. When Jesus comes again the Lamb's book of life will reveal all who belong to the family of God. By God's grace believers know with assurance that their names are in the Lamb's Book of Life. Do you have this assurance?