Well, I want to invite everyone to open up their Bibles to Ruth chapter two. That's gonna be our scripture reading this morning. It'll also be our sermon as well. And so hear now the words of the living God, Ruth chapter two. Now Naomi had a relative of her husband's, a worthy man of the clan of Elimelech, whose name was Boaz. And Ruth the Moabite said to Naomi, let me go to the field and glean among the ears of grain after him in whose sight I shall find favor. And she said to her, go, go, my daughter. So she set out and went and gleaned in the field after the reapers. And she happened to come to the part of the field belonging to Boaz, who was of the clan of Elimelech. And behold, Boaz came from Bethlehem. And he said to the reapers, the Lord be with you. And they answered, the Lord bless you. Then Boaz said to his young man who was in charge of the reapers, whose young woman is this? And the servant who was in charge of the reapers answered, she is the young Moabite woman who came back with Naomi from the country of Moab. She said, please let me glean and gather among the sheaves after the reapers. So she came and she continued from early morning until now, except for a short rest. Then Boaz said to Ruth, now listen, my daughter, Do not go to glean in other fields or leave this one, but keep close to my young woman. Let your eyes be on the field that they are reaping and go after them. Have I not charged the young men not to touch you? And when you are thirsty, go to the vessels and drink what the young men have drawn.' Then she fell on her face, bowing to the ground and said to him, why have I found favor in your eyes? that you should take notice of me, since I am a foreigner. But Boaz answered her, all that you have done for your mother-in-law since the death of your husband has been fully told to me, and how you left your father and mother and your native land and came to a people that you did not know before. The Lord repay you for what you have done, and a full reward be given you by the Lord. the God of Israel, under whose wings you have come to take refuge. Then she said, I have found favor in your eyes, my Lord, for you have comforted me and spoken kindly to your servant, though I am not one of your servants. And at mealtime, Boaz said to her, come here and eat bread and dip your morsel in the wine. So she sat beside the reaper and he passed to her roasted grain. And she ate until she was satisfied and she had some left over. When she rose to glean, Boaz instructed his young men saying, let her glean among the sheafs and do not reproach her. and also pull out some of the bundles for her and leave it for her to glean and do not rebuke her. So she gleaned in the fields until evening. Then she beat out what she had gleaned and it was an effa of barley. And she took it up and went into the city. Her mother-in-law saw what she had gleaned. She also brought out and gave her what she, sorry, she also brought out and gave her food she had left over after being satisfied. And her mother-in-law said to her, where did you glean today? And where have you worked? Blessed be the man who took notice of you. So she told her mother-in-law with whom she had worked and said, that man's name with whom I worked today is Boaz. And Naomi said to her daughter-in-law, may he be blessed by the Lord, whose kindness has not forsaken the living or the dead. Naomi also said to her, the man is a close relative of ours, one of our redeemers. And Ruth the Moabite said, besides, he said to me, you shall keep close to my young men until they have finished all my harvest. And Naomi said to Ruth, her daughter-in-law, it is good, my daughter, that you go out with his young men, lest in another field you be assaulted. So she kept close to the young woman of Boaz, gleaning until the end of the barley and wheat harvest. And she lived with her mother-in-law. This is the word of the Lord. You may be seated. All right. Well, if you recall, the first chapter of Ruth tells a story of mourning. Naomi. Her husband Elimelech and their two sons leave their hometown of Bethlehem to the foreign land of Moab because of a famine in the land of Israel. However, instead of finding greener pastures in Moab, Naomi's husband and two sons would die, leaving her a widow and childless. The only people Who are left besides Naomi are her two Moabite daughters-in-law, Orpah and Ruth. And so Naomi, being filled with sorrow and also filled with uncertainty, resolves to return back to Bethlehem. And though Orpah and Ruth initially set out with her on the long journey back to Israel, only Ruth chooses to remain by her side. And Ruth's decision then leads them on this long journey back to Israel, specifically in Bethlehem, right at the barley harvest. And it is when they arrive, Naomi declares herself to be called Marah, which means bitter. And what this means for us, dear saints, is that Naomi is feeling a sense that God has forgotten her, that God is against her, and that the circumstances that she is in is evidence of this. And so we see at the end of Ruth 1, we see Naomi and Ruth return to Bethlehem at the time of the barley harvest, and they are destitute. They are widows, they are vulnerable, and they arrive with nothing. They're absolutely penniless, and they only arrive with the shirts on their backs. And so that is how Ruth 1 ends, but it's also the way that Ruth chapter 2 picks back up. In Ruth 1, the author wants us to see Naomi, truly believes that God has forsaken her. But in Ruth chapter 2, the author wants us to see something completely different, and it is this. that God's faithful, sovereign kindness is at work in her despite her mourning and despite her emotions, despite her circumstances. Our sermon will highlight how God takes two vulnerable women in despair, their plan to feed themselves in a field outside of Bethlehem for God to unlavish a tremendous or avalanche of grace upon them. What we learn from Ruth 2 is that in seasons of loss and especially deep uncertainty, our lives are governed and guided by the loving, purposeful providence of God. And so as we will survey Ruth chapter 2, we will go through it, survey through it under three Ps. God's providence. God's provision and God's pursuits. Those are the headings for those who take notes. God's providence, God's provision and God's pursuit. And so beginning with our first heading, God's providence, read with me verse one. It reads, now Naomi had a relative of her husband's, a worthy man of the clan of Elimelech, whose name was Boaz. Now, Ruth chapter two opens with introducing a new and important character to the book of Ruth. His name is Boaz, which means standing in strength, which we will find out he most certainly does. And we learn two things about Boaz in verse one. The first thing we learn is that Boaz is a relative of Naomi's husband, Elimelech. Now, considering Naomi and Ruth's circumstances, this piece of information that Boaz was a relative of Elimelech, this would have stood out to the Israelite eyes and ears like a sore thumb. And the reason is that according to the Mosaic Law, the law that governed Israel, the land of Israel and the Israelites, a male relative of or a male relative in Israelite society was responsible for providing for and protecting clan members who were in distress or who had fallen in difficult circumstances. And therefore God's law made a provision for relatives to buy your relative out of slavery. This relative could have redeemed also your property that you sold because you fell on financial hardship. This relative could have also married a deceased relative widow to produce children who could inherit the land. And the author adds this detail because really what this is for us as readers, it should be a flash of hope for Naomi and Ruth. The author adds this detail to alert us that someone in Bethlehem can redeem them from their distress in dire circumstance. And in essence, the author wants you and me to say, because of this information, Boaz just might be the redeemer that Naomi and Ruth need. Second, we learn that Boaz is a worthy man. If we look at verse one, this is what the author calls Boaz, how he describes him as. In Hebrew, the word is gebor chayil, and it is a descriptor of someone who is manly, powerful, brave, invaliant. This is no average Joe, you might wanna put it that way. One Jewish Christian, Arnold Fruchtenbaum, writes that gebor chayil, quote, conveys the concept of one who is capable, efficient, worthy in battle, and exceptionally important and powerful in a specific field. Gideon is actually called Gabor Ha'il in the book of Judges. Gabor Ha'il can also describe someone who is wealthy and influential in their community. And once again, the author of Ruth adds this information to paint a picture for us of Boaz's character, who he is, his identity, and once again, that he might possibly and potentially be redeemer of Naomi and Ruth. He might be the answer to their prayers. And so if the word relative answers the question, is there anyone that can redeem Naomi and Ruth? Boaz being a worthy man answers the question, is he able to redeem Naomi and Ruth? So the only question that really remains is, is Boaz willing to to redeem Naomi and Ruth. And obviously, as we will see, Ruth chapter 2 is unfolding that sort of anticipation that should be in our minds coming out of verse 1. And we see that there's a transition here. After Boaz's brief but hopeful introduction, verse two transitions us to a conversation between Naomi and Ruth in the early mornings in Bethlehem. Now remember, Naomi and Ruth, they are vulnerable women with a lot of uncertainty. One can only imagine the amount of stress the amount of anxiety, the amount of fear that they carry day to day. Remember, they are without their husbands. They're without provision. They are without protection. They are extremely vulnerable. They have no land to inherit. So in a sense, they are homeless. They have no husband or son to provide and protect them. They're widows and they are without a penny to their name as well. They are poor. It is without question that they're waking up this morning thinking, what are we gonna eat? And potentially we are very, very hungry as well. And so verse two brings us to this conversation, this plan between Naomi and Ruth in the early morning in Bethlehem. And Ruth comes up with an idea, possibly something to get food. She tells Naomi, if you look at the text with us, verse two, that she's going outside into the fields of Bethlehem to glean among the ears of grain after him in whose sight I shall find favor. Now, in other words, what she's really saying is here, let me go find grain in a field that someone will allow me to pick from. Now, why would she do that? Where is she getting this plan from? What makes her think that someone could go to a field and pick grain? Well, that answer is found in Deuteronomy chapter 24. It is found in God's law. In Deuteronomy chapter 24, God establishes these compassionate laws of charity. these, when God establishes this compassionate law of charity in Deuteronomy chapter 24 verse 19 there is a provision for those who are poor to go into the fields at the right time when Naomi and Ruth arrived to Bethlehem at the barley harvest. So this provision allows them to go into the field at harvest and gather whatever the reapers left behind. You can take a note or just hear with me, Deuteronomy chapter 24, verse 19. And it reads, when you reap your harvest in your field and forget the sheaves in the field, you shall not go back and get it. It shall be for sojourners, the fatherless, the widow, that the Lord your God may bless you in all the work of your hands. And so this is where Ruth is getting this idea. She understands God's law. this is a way for, this is actually the perfect time for Naomi and her to go get food. And so with Naomi's blessing, Ruth goes and tries to find this field of favor. And what Ruth would have done was really go up to this field, go up to the reapers, explain her situation, right, show evidence that you were fatherless, that you were a widow, tell them your story. And by God's law, if someone was faithful to it, would allow you to walk behind them and whatever grain fell off, as they were picking up the sheaves and taking it back, if they forgot one, that was for you. That was for the fatherless. That was for the homeless. That was for the widow. Any grain that fell and was left behind she could legally take. That is Ruth could legally take for Naomi and herself. And verse 3 reveals to us that she did find favor. Read with me verse 3. So she, Ruth, set out and went and gleaned in the field after the reapers. And she happened to come to the part of the field belonging to Boaz, Boaz appears, who was of the clan of Elimelech, right? And so we read this and we should say, well, what do you know? It's Boaz. This is the opportunity. What's going to happen? There's a sense of suspense here. Ruth is in Boaz's field. But notice how the author writes, she happened to come to the part of the field belonging to Boaz. In Hebrew, the phrase is something like, she chance-chanced upon the field of Boaz. If we were to put it in English, or in sort of an Engler, in English parlance, if you will, the author is saying, as luck would have it, she came to Boaz's field. The phrase emphasizes a couple of things about Ruth. One, that she really had no intentions to meet Boaz. She didn't know who she was. She did not even know the workers in the field. She also didn't have a vision or a message from an angel to tell her what field to go to. And as for her mother-in-law, Naomi, she wasn't sending her to a field to matchmake as well. So no, that wasn't the circumstance. Ruth just happened to come to Boaz's field. Now, dear saints, when the author of Ruth tells us that she happened to arrive at Boaz's field, that single word is drenched with the most wonderful ironic hyperbole. It is essentially a joyful literary wink. It's as though the author is coming into our ears and saying, luck isn't driving this train. Like the author of Ruth, I want to gently remind everyone here, believers and unbelievers, that there is no such thing as mere happenstance, that there is no such thing as mere luck, that there is no such thing as mere chance. Every step that Ruth took from Moab to Bethlehem was guided by the Lord's hand to that field that morning. And dear saints, what an incredible comfort it is to know this truth, that the Lord of heaven and earth, of all things visible and invisible, from the smallest atom to the highest angel, is faithfully preserving and governing all his creatures and their actions. Praise be to God for the providence of God. What a relief it is to know that when we are blind to what is best for us, when we are struggling to discern the right path, when we question even our past decisions, when we fear what the future might hold for us, even our children, or maybe we're simply weary of making endless plans. Despite all this, we need to know that the Lord is ultimately and lovingly in His goodness, governing all things for His glory, His purpose, and for the good of His own people. The providence of God is far more than a comforting thought. It is a sanctuary for the weary soul. It is actually the pillow upon which the Christian could always rest their head in every season of life. It is a reminder also that there is a master plan, a decree, and God is guiding this decree. He is the creator himself. We need to remember about this too. And what might this master plan be? What is the promise that God made to Adam and Eve in Genesis chapter three, verse 15? That through Eve would come one who would crush the head of the serpent, that would destroy sin and death and the devil. And we need to remember that ever since the Lord spoke that promise, he has been governing all things towards that ultimate end, despite sin and the brokenness of this fallen world. And it finds its fulfillment ultimately in the advent, in the coming of Jesus Christ our Lord. Ruth coming to Boaz's field is just one of many building blocks that accomplish this end. The fact that God accomplishes this through His only begotten Son on the cross of Calvary ought to remind us that the Lord truly does declare the end from the beginning and all the things from ancient times and also things that are not yet done. That true truly His counsel shall stand, nothing will thwart it, and He will accomplish all of His purposes. Praise be to God for that. And may we rest in this truth this Lord's Day. There is no such thing as happenstance, dear Christian. And may we find comfort in that, and may it be the pillow upon which we truly rest our head. And so moving from our first heading, we now move to our second heading, God's provision. We looked at God's providence, now we're gonna look at God's provision. And so after a couple of hours, Ruth gathering grain behind the reapers, we see that Boaz finally arrives. It says in our text, Boaz arrived at his field outside of Bethlehem. And as any business owner should do, he greets his workers saying, the Lord be with you. And that is kind of an uncommon greeting, especially in ancient Israelite society, as well as today in modern Israel. The more common greeting is Shalom, which means peace, or peace be with you. Boaz is saying, Lord, be with you. May Yahweh be with you. And this greeting, once again, the author is trying to paint a picture of Boaz's character. And what we find here by this, what's intended, is that we're supposed to see Boaz as a godly man. He's a man where even Yahweh is in his business. He's in all of his life, in all aspects of his life. He's a godly man. And after he greets his workers, he surveys the field and notices an unfamiliar face, an unfamiliar woman. And this woman, as we know, is Ruth. She's gleaning in her field. And he at once approaches this young man who manages his field, sort of a manager, a foreman, if you will, and asks the question in verse five, whose young woman is this? Whose young woman is this? Now, I want us to notice what he isn't asking. I want us to notice what he is not asking. He's not asking, why is this woman in my field? He's not asking, when did this woman arrive? Neither is he asking, and this is important here, he's not asking, who is this woman? He's asking, whose young woman is this? In other words, it's a question about belonging. Who does she belong to? Does she have a father? What are her circumstances of gleaning? And what we need to see here is that Boaz's ultimate concern immediately is about the safety and protection of this unknown Moabite woman in his field. And yet again we see that this is revealing more of Boaz's character. What we learn is that Boaz is not only a godly man, but he is a compassionate man as well. In verse six we read the manager's response. So he's answering to Boaz and he tells Boaz where she is from and why she is in the land and she repeats what Boaz said. You see the foreman say that she is a young Moabite woman who came back with Naomi from the country of Moab. So he knows that she's a Moabite. He tells Boaz what she said to him whenever she arrived at the harvest. She said, please let me glean and gather the sheaves of the reapers. So there's even a sense in the language in the text that this is a plea from Ruth. And lastly, he tells Boaz the amount of time that Ruth had been in the field. She has, in the foreman says, she has continued from early morning unto now except for a short rest. I was talking this morning with my family and sort of patching out the book of Ruth and we were talking about how Ruth is a very hard worker, right? She's very loyal, she's very committed, she's very, she has a lot of perseverance. I think that speaks to how we should be in our Christian faith and life today. But what I want you and I to notice is Boaz's response to this report. Instead of using her identity as a Moabite to throw her out of the field, it's important to note that the Moabites, especially in the days of judges where this book takes place, they were really the rivals of Israel, right? They were the sworn enemies of Israel at this time. And instead of escorting Ruth out because she had been there since the morning, instead of removing her from his business because she had gathered enough grain, what we notice is a completely different approach from Boaz. He approaches Ruth with compassion and kindness and says, I want y'all to look with me at verses eight and nine. Now listen, my daughter. Do not go to glean in another field or leave this one, but keep close to my young women. Let your eyes be on the field that they are reaping and go after them. Have I not charged the young men not to touch you? And when you are thirsty, go to the vessels and drink what the young men have drawn. Although Ruth is a Moabite, who is the sworn enemy of Israel in that day, Boaz calls and treats her like his own daughter. And although Ruth could go to another field, he opens his field for her to glean without limit in safety. And although water was a scarcity, especially in that day, Boaz allows for her to drink what would be his own vessels and more specifically from the vessels that were filled by his male servants. This sort of grace shown to Ruth was very common and especially with his own vessels and them being filled by male workers. Suffices to say, Boaz shows her favor, shows Ruth favor in a way that she could have never imagined. In Dear Saints, Boaz's favor towards Ruth teaches us a couple of things, teaches us at least three things. First, God's concern should be our concern. Boaz's generous favor towards Ruth reminds you and me that God's compassionate concern for the vulnerable, the sick, the poor, the widow, the fatherless, and the foreigner, must be our compassionate concern as well. God's commands to leave the edges of the field for the poor and for the foreigner, and to not go back to pick the leftovers in the fields, they're not just simply agricultural regulations, they are expressions of God's heart and compassion and concern towards the vulnerable. What we learn about Boaz is that his concern is God's concern. He demonstrates this through his obedience to God's commandment. And in fact, if you just think about it, Boaz did not just fulfill the letter of the law. He goes far beyond the minimum requirement as well. And simply put, Boaz did not act out of legalism, right? He's acting out of love. And this is the heart of Christian obedience. It's not merely rule following. It is about fulfilling the love, gracious intention behind every one of God's commands, which is to love God and love our neighbor. When you and I look at the vulnerable in our society today, right, there would be the widows, the fatherless, the unborn, children. If we look at these vulnerable, these people that we would consider vulnerable within our land, we need to ask ourselves, where can I move to lavish the love, kindness, and grace of God towards those in need? And dear saints, what I will say is that this compassion and love towards the vulnerable has always been within the Christian DNA. In the Roman Empire and in that culture in that day, When children were seen as a nuance and newborn children were often left in the forest and left to the dogs to be eaten, it was the Christians that ran and charged into the forest and saved those children and went even far beyond it and raised them as their own. It was the Christians who, it's the reason why we have orphanages. And it came because we have been adopted by God ourself. And when it came to the hospitals that the Christians would eventually build, right, it was part of the theology that it is Christ and his atoning sacrifice who bore our sicknesses, who bore our disease and makes us well. These are these acts of charity, and they've always been in the Christian DNA. And it's not because we're better than God, but rather it is because we know what goodness is, and grace, and mercy, because God has demonstrated it towards us. We are not kinder than God. Our act of love and kindness is because God is love. And that's just something to remember for us this morning. And we see it in Boaz. Second, we learn that God's law is an invitation, not a burden. What we learn from Boaz is that God's law are simply opportunities to lavish the love, kindness, and grace of your God. In other words, God's commands are invitations to participate in God's own character, grace, compassion, and his generosity. When we look at Boaz's demonstration of grace towards Ruth, we ought to think to ourself, how much more God towards us? When we look at Ruth and her loyalty to Naomi. We ought to think how much more God's grace and his steadfast love and loyalty and commitment towards us as well. Boaz did not see obedience as a burden. He didn't see it as restricting his profit margin. Rather, he viewed it as an instrument whereby he could demonstrate the heart of his God to those in need and who do not know him. When we express this, so also are we expressing this as well to the vulnerable and even to our brothers and sisters within this church. For Ruth Boaz is a living picture of God's loving character. a reflection that God redeems those in need of a savior and is willing to bless those beyond their expectation. And while we might not have the resources to provide like Boaz did, nevertheless, the Christian duty, our duty, is compassion for the vulnerable in our society. We can always show compassionate concern, if not through finances, but through our time, through our support, and even through our prayers as well. And third and lastly, when it comes to Boaz, and this point should not be missed, Boaz is really a picture of Christ. Just as Ruth needed a relative, a kinsman, who was willing to redeem and able to pay the price for her redemption, so also did you and I need a kinsman redeemer. And who is our relative? Who might that be? And really, how is this person our relative? Well, this person would be Christ. And when we ask the question, how did Christ become our, how did Christ become our relative? The really answer is found in the reason why we celebrate Christmas. which is the incarnation. And the incarnation is the act of the eternal son of God, the second person of the Trinity, becoming flesh, that God became man. And dear saints, this is why he is qualified to save us. If he did not become man, we do not have a savior. This was an important aspect of the redemption of man. And even Hebrews chapter two, verse 14 says this. And it reads, since therefore the children share in flesh and blood, Christ himself likewise partook of the same thing, that through death he might destroy the one who has the power over death, that is the devil, and deliver all those who through fear and death were subject to lifelong slavery. The incarnation is vitally important, but not also was Christ qualified to save us, but he was also willing. The Son of God was also willing to redeem, and Christ freely declared it. He says in John chapter 10, verse 18, no one takes my life from me, but I lay it down in my own accord. And when we think about what was Christ able to redeem, indeed he did. Ephesians chapter 1, 7 says, in him we have redemption through his blood. The forgiveness of our trespasses according to the riches of his grace. And dear saints, this is a reminder for us. Christmas isn't so much the celebration of the birth of a baby. It is a celebration that God took on flesh and was able and willing to live the life that we could not and die the death that we deserved in our place so that we might have redemption in him. John Blanchard said, I think he puts it as what I just said, he has a very pithy quote and I've always loved it for Christmas. He says, the son of God became the son of man so that the sons of men might become the sons of God. That is the heart of Christmas and Boaz paints that picture for us quite well, dear saints. Boaz's favor towards Ruth should drive you and me to worship the infinitely greater favor of Christ, who redeems us at the highest possible cost, which is his own life. And so now we've gone over the providence of God, we've gone over the provision of God, and now let us end by looking at the pursuit of God, God's pursuit. And the first thing we read of is Ruth's response to Boaz's kindness towards her. Verse 10 tells us that she fell to the ground and bowed before Boaz and said, why have I found favor in your eyes that you should take notice of me since I am a foreigner? Boaz answers Ruth's question, telling her that the reason for his protection, the reason for his kindness towards her is because of her faithfulness to her mother-in-law, Naomi. Boaz says, if you look with me, verse 12, the Lord repay you for what you have done, and a full reward might be given to you by the Lord, the God of Israel, under whose wings you have come to take refuge. When Ruth thinks it can't get any better, it does. Boaz invites her, as we saw in the text, he invites her even to his own table to come eat with him and also his workers. Boaz invites Ruth and says, eat some bread and dip your morsel in wine. Verse 14 tells us that Ruth ate until she was satisfied as well. Right, Boaz's table is without limit. their meal Ruth once again finds that it even gets even better. Boaz allows Ruth to continue, Ruth to continue to glean until evening and tells his men to supply her with grain from the bundles that they reaped. verse 17 if you look at it tells us that at the end of the day she came away with an ephaph of barley, which is roughly about 5.8 gallons. This would have been maybe anywhere between 40 to 50 pounds of grain. Now if you want to get an estimate of what that is, that would maybe be like a big bag of dog food. I think the best thing I could have thought of were if you go to our water dispenser in the back, That water gallon that's in there, that's how much it would have weighed this amount of barley that she would have taken. And even if you think, you know, 40 to 50 pounds of grain, that's a lot of grain. That is a massive amount of grain that she would have taken with her. would have been carrying something, yeah about the size of a large bag of dog food, that water. But now Naomi most, if you think about Naomi being back in Bethlehem, it's almost with certainty that Naomi really has spent the entire day very anxious. She might have been worried about Ruth's whereabouts. Remember she's been gone since the morning, it's already evening. She was probably hungry, stressed, mourning, sulking in her circumstances, which is one of the worst things one can do, is to be alone, and she's been alone. Now you can only imagine the look on Naomi's face when Ruth arrives. Ruth probably walks in, huge bag, 50 pounds of grain, and if you didn't see at verse 18, I thought this was quite interesting, Ruth even brought some leftovers for Naomi. left from Boaz's table. And Ruth probably was very exhausted but she had a smile on her face. And you can see in verse 19 it tells us that Yahweh said, most likely in shock and awe, where did you glean today? And where have you worked? Blessed be the man who took notice of you. And Ruth answers, and she gives Naomi, she fills her in with the story, and she says, verse 19, the man's name with whom I work today is Boaz. Verse 20, the man is a close relative of ours, our potential redeemer, right, our redeemer. And that he even told her that she could reap alongside his young men until they have finished all of his harvest. So there was many more days of work in this harvest. that she can glean from. Lord, we see that here even just through Boaz's actions that God's grace satisfies, that he always will provide more to us than we could possibly imagine. Boaz is a picture of that of Christ. Dear saints, amid her own grief and shadow of despair, Naomi utters a powerful and comforting truth that we all need to remember. After hearing Boaz's remarkable generosity, she exclaims, impossibly in joy, may he be blessed by the Lord, whose kindness has not forsaken the living or the dead. That phrase, whose kindness has not forsaken the living and the dead, is actually speaking not about Boaz, but about Yahweh himself. The word translated here, kindness, is the word chesed. Many of us know what chesed means. And it is a word that expresses more than mere kindness and mercy. It's a special word that the Old Testament will use to describe God's covenant-keeping, loyal, and unwavering, steadfast love towards his people. It is his special love that binds himself eternally to his people. And once again, dear saints, what a comfort it is to know that even when our own lives are marked by despair, when we're feeling forsaken, when we are dealing with bitterness, when we are having doubt, and even when we are backsliding and maybe entering into a season of spiritual depression, that God has said His covenant love towards those who believe in His Son isn't conditional upon our performance or emotional estate. Perhaps the circumstances of your life have been crushing. They've been filled with disappointment and you could have fallen into a season of doubt with the Lord. Maybe you think like Naomi that God has forsaken you. Perhaps you've been in a dark season and genuinely, as of right now, question the goodness of the Lord towards you. Perhaps you've just entered into a really difficult season as well. And if this is you today, remember the simple but also important truth, that the Lord has not forsaken you. In fact, the Lord will not forsaken you. During difficult seasons, sometimes it's hard to believe. Right, this truth. Emotions are very strong. They get the best of us. And it isn't until we emerge out of this dire circumstance that we can look back on the loving kindness of God. And that's because God's providence is really like a rear view mirror. It isn't until after we come past it, we come past the trials, that we can always see that he was always with us and he was always there. That he was never trying to destroy us, but he was always looking to restore us back to him. that through it, he was conforming us more and more to the image of Christ. He was drawing us back to our Bibles. He was drawing us back onto our knees to pray to him. He was ridding of us of our own dependence on other things besides him. And in some cases, we could even look back and say, and this is definitely with me as well, that because of really who I am today in the Lord, I wouldn't have it any other way. The Lord still works through the difficult circumstances in life. It's always a good spiritual discipline to reflect deeply and specifically on the faithfulness and loving kindness of God to you in your own life. When we call to mind the Lord's provision and protection of us, like Naomi, it always has a way of calming our present anxiety. It always quiets the voice of doubt within our head. It always quiets those voices of accusation towards us. It removes the fear and helps us to focus on our Redeemer. And it is in these powerful moments of remembrance that, like the psalmist in Psalm 23, you and I can affirm with absolute confidence that surely his goodness and mercy, his has said, shall follow me all the days of my life, and I shall dwell in the house of the Lord forever. Let us pray. Dear Heavenly Father, we thank you for Ruth chapter two. Lord, for those who are burdened by doubt, grief, whatever that circumstance may be, Lord, help them to know that your providential hand has been guiding them, and it will continue to guide them, Lord, into the grave. And they could ultimately rest in this. I know that it is not easy, but Lord, it most certainly is a comfort. It is that pillow upon which we can all rest our head in the difficulty of life, Lord. But help us to also remember that you are a good and gracious God towards us, Lord. That Boaz is merely a picture of the kindness and grace, Lord, that you have bestowed upon us. That Ruth's loyalty, Lord, it's but a picture of your love towards your own children, Lord, and help us to remember, Lord, that we are never forsaken, Lord, and that surely your goodness and kindness will follow us, Lord, until we pass from this earth and come unto you, Lord. We ask all these things in your heavenly Son's name, amen.