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you good morning welcome to the house of the lord there really aren't any announcements per se other than our pastors away if you didn't know if you're visiting for the day you didn't know pastor butler is in on family vacation he's in dryden ontario so we've certainly been praying for him that's a potential church plant that we that we are kind of uh beginning to look at in a more serious way so he's kind of killing two birds with one stone he has family there uh which he's visiting and uh and visiting and preaching today uh he cannot get a visit he cannot get a break from preaching wherever he goes he's preaching today we'll certainly remember him in prayer as well as uh he'll be meeting with some some of the potential leadership in the coming week there in dryden so we can certainly remember to pray for pastor butler and the situation in dryden so i believe that's all there is for announcement so we have i should say we uh welcome to pastor mike kirkpatrick you may be wondering who is preaching today uh it's pastor mike kirkpatrick from the surrey church uh they have someone in there in in his pulpit so he's very kindly come to free grace today to to preach for us so we appreciate that and uh next sunday lord william the uh the butler still are still in holiday uh ryan uh mel jars will be preaching for uh for us he's in vernon uh today preaching in case you're wondering where the maljars are that's where that's where ryan is well please turn with me in your bibles please to psalm 128 psalm 128. psalm 128 beginning at verse 1 a song of a sense blessed is everyone who fears the lord who walks in his ways when you eat the labor of your hands you shall be happy and it shall be well with you your wife shall be like a fruitful vine in the very heart of your house your children like all of plants all around the table all around your table behold thus shall the man be blessed who fears the lord the lord bless you out of zion and may you see the good of jerusalem all the days of your life yes may you see your children's children peace be upon israel amen well please turn with me in your hymn books to the first hymn hymn 72 a as in adam 72a and we'll just uh sing the first four verses the first four verses i'll ask you to please stand is is so using jesus [Music] foreign is is [Music] uh oh oh amen you may be seated let's go to god in prayer and ask his blessing to be upon our worship here this morning our gracious and our loving heavenly father we come into your holy presence this morning through your son the lord jesus christ we're grateful father for the fact that we have been invited into your presence through the lord jesus we pray lord your blessing to be upon our time here this day we thank you we praise you for that great high priest who is who is before the the throne this day even making our prayers and our petitions known in your presence thank you father that we can come to you through your son the lord jesus thank you for the gift of your holy spirit that he has imparted to us when he when he left this earth he gave to us that that spirit of the living god to abide in our hearts so we might have that that fellowship that union with you the lord we rejoice in that this day that we have union through your son the lord jesus christ we are fellow citizens uh heirs along with the lord jesus christ of all that of all that that he inherited we inherit as well and truly lord that is a marvel that's a that is a miracle we thank you for the gift of salvation we thank you for the gift of uh the atonement thank you that the lord jesus christ gift of of his death upon a cross was enough to satisfy the anger of god the the the that which was needed in order to atone for our sins truly lord we are grateful to you we pray that we would live in in in adoration live in worship live in in in exhortation of of the true and living god who would send uh such a savior for sinners such as us we came into this world father dead in christ at enmity with you not desiring you you you removed those stony hearts and gave to us fleshly hearts and for that we truly praise you we pray lord as we gather here this day as the people of god here in chile the lord you would be pleased to present yourself here amongst us cause us to to to know that the help and aid of your holy spirit to take in the word of god to to worship you in in word and and in truth we thank you lord for your word we pray that you have blessed your word this day may it be for the salvation of any who are in this place who know not christ we pray would also be for the encouragement of those who are perhaps downtrodden for those who are discouraged may they be encouraged by the word of god and father we pray that for those who do know you who walk with you that we would be uh that we would be that we would grow in our in our understanding of you that we would grow in our sanctification and our love for the things of christ so lord do bless us this day and cause us to to with one voice worship you and and adore the the true and living god thank you father it's not that you are the god who as we remind in the last hour you were the omnipotent one you're the god who spoke and and leprosy left the leper you're the god who spoke and you calmed the seas you were the god who spoke and and uh and and and uh the the the devilish the devils were cast out of out of those who were demon possessed true lord your word is a powerful word and we pray that we might hear from it this day bless uh bless pastor mike as he brings the word this day we thank you for his faithfulness there in the surrey church we thank you for your faithless to him and to the church as well we do pray lord that he would know your help and your aid in this pulpit to to bring to bring the word of god and and to that he would preach it with power and with unction from on high bless uh bless whoever is back in his pulpit back in surrey we pray lord they might know your help and your aid this day as well bless them in that worship experience lord to to adore you to to lay hold of you and and to be blessed by the things of god there in that place lord we do pray also for the church in vernon this day we pray for uh we pray for uh ryan mel jars and esther and the kids as they have traveled up there we thank for the safety you've given to them we pray you'd bless bless ryan as he brings the word this day in that place we pray that they would that they would know uh the the the worship of god almighty uh there in that place we thank you for having preserved uh that that barn that they meet in uh through the fires of this past week lord you are good you are kind and for that we truly give you our grateful thanks and pray lord you would bless them in that place and we do pray that you would continue to bless bless ryan as he studies as he as he as he reads as he writes all the things that are required to uh to to uh to to move forward we pray lord your blessing might be upon that and you would con that you would confirm to him confirm to us the congregation that he is called of you and that that we would be able to send him with with full endorsement and cur and and feel encouraged about sending him as well to that to that place we thank you lord for pastor butler we thank you that he was able to travel safely across across the many provinces to be in dryden this day we pray that as he preaches that congregation this day the lord he too would know the help and the aid of your holy spirit bless him as he as he enjoys this time of rest but also as he meets with some of the leaders in this coming week we pray lord you'd bless that bless those meetings and we pray that we might be able to determine uh if there is the the makings of a local church there in that in that place in dryden so lord do give wisdom and we pray you give unity as well and we thank you for the group that have been gathered there together uh for some months now and uh lord you are kind and you are good to to them and we pray that you would just bless them into the future as well lord we we we are reminded and we're reminded the last hour of the persecuted church those who those who who who do not experience the the the tranquility the peace that we get to enjoy here in this place this day to worship you we pray lord that you would just be pleased to be with those who are in prison bless those who are who are experiencing persecution who perhaps have had their buildings uh damaged who are having their their meeting times disturbed father we know some of those things and we certainly can feel with them the the pain of those things we pray lord that you would just bless them and cause them to to seek you first and and we pray that you would just add to give to them the wisdom that is required to handle themselves rightly from day to day and week to week and month to month we pray for some of their persecutors father they would not continue uh in their in their wickedness we pray that they would know that the the forgiveness of their sins they would bend their knee lest they meet the lord jesus christ in judgment uh upon the upon their final day so lord be merciful to to the persecuted church all over this earth to to those who who rule and and think that uh think it no small thing to to put churches down and and to to kill christians through the lord they will stand before you and give an account one day so we pray you'd be merciful to them and be merciful to your churches everywhere we thank you lord for the for the enjoyment of peace that we enjoy here in this place we pray you continue to give us peace give us unity uh here amongst uh amongst the saints and we do pray lord that you would be pleased to cause us to with one voice worship you the true and living god we do we are reminded also father some of our shut-ins those who are not able to be with us we think of uh the the situation of of uh bev and and her difficulty with with her foot and and we pray that she would soon be be back at home we pray for mrs bolt mrs van sheik others perhaps who are not able to be with us this day lord do minister to each of them cause them to rejoice in their savior cause them to rejoice that irregardless of their circumstances of their health of where they are they are uh their names are written in the land's book of life and true that is a marvel that's a that is a mercy and we thank you for that we pray lord your rich blessing to be experienced by each of them this day so lord we do ask your blessing upon all these things strengthen us through your word and bless us in worship now we pray these things in jesus precious name amen let us turn our hymn books to the second hymn which is 154 154 and i'll ask you to please stand one five four [Music] is [Music] oh [Music] is oh [Music] oh [Music] foreign [Music] you may be seated and please turn with me in your bibles to ephesians as we continue to read through the new testament ephesians chapter 2. ephesians chapter 2 let's begin at verse 1. and you he made alive who were dead in trespasses and sins in which you once walked according to the course of this world according to the prince of the power of the air the spirit who now works in the sons of disobedience among whom also we all once conducted ourselves in the lusts of our flesh fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the mind and were by nature children of wrath just as the others but god who was rich in mercy because of his great love with which he loved us even when we were dead in our trespasses made us alive together with christ by grace you have been saved and raised and raised us up together and made us sit together in the heavenly places in christ jesus that in the ages to come he might show the exceeding riches of his grace in his kindness toward us in christ jesus for by grace you have been saved through faith and that not of yourselves it is the gift of god not of works lest anyone should boast for we are his workmanship created in christ jesus for good works which god prepared beforehand that we should walk in them therefore remember that you once gentiles in the flesh who are called uncircumcision by what is called the circumcision made in the flesh by hands that at that time you were without christ being aliens from the commonwealth of israel and strangers from the covenants of praise have sorry covenants a promise having no hope and without god in the world but now in christ jesus you who once were far off have been brought near by the blood of christ for he himself is our peace who has bo who has made both one and has broken down the middle wall of separation having abolished in his flesh the enmity that is the law of commandments contained in ordinances so as to create in himself one new man from the two thus making peace and that he might reconcile them both to god in one body through the cross thereby putting to death the enmity and he came and preached peace to you who were afar off and to those who were near for through him we both have access to one spirit to by one spirit to the father now therefore you are no longer strangers and foreigners but fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of god having been built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets jesus christ himself being the chief cornerstone in whom the whole building being fitted together grows into a holy temple in the lord in whom you also are being built together for a dwelling place of god in the spirit amen well certainly we see here in this in this chapter grace grace is is throughout the whole chapter especially in the first in the first um uh ten verses or so we see we see the riches of god's grace towards men uh in in their in our deplorable state uh we came into this world uh certainly sinners and and we only need to read a little bit of scripture a little bit of this chapter and we see the the enmity that was between us and god and uh you know it's a bit like a bit like a dead corpse we've all seen or perhaps the adults have here seen a dead corpse it's without the spirit it lies there without the spirit and and that's what we were i think that's if you get if we get an image of that in our heads that's what we were before christ came and and saved us that we were without a spirit we were as dead as dead men uh who have no life in them i think that's what paul is trying to communicate here that we are like that corpse that is without that is without spirit that is without life and it's only when christ comes in by his grace and breathes into us that that spirit of living god that forgiveness of sins that we get to enjoy uh the the the wonder of forgiven sins we see here in verse 11 to 11 to 13 uh that uh the ephesians are are called to reflect on their favorite state uh in from heathenism they were once heathens now they are part of that covenant part of that part of the part of christ's own people and that we that ought to fill us with with worship and praise on a lord's day when we come to church on sunday it's not just to come out of habit to to read read some scriptures to uh to hear to sing some hymns but that ought to enthuse our hearts so yeah we were once uh in in hedonism we were once without god we were we were atheists that's where the where the word atheism actually comes from is those verses and uh and that's that was us at one time but we are no longer atheist we're we we have experienced that that grace of god and along with that grace comes privileges and that's kind of what paul is getting at in the last in the last section 14 to the end 14-22 are the privileges and the blessings of the of this gospel of peace if it's a gospel of peace what are the privileges what are the blessings and and he he notes several of them if i could just refer you to your bibles the first one is that we have peace with him that's verse 14. he himself is our peace so once once we were enmity now we're at peace uh with him that's one privilege and one blessing of the gospel uh secondly in verse 15 he's abolished the law of commandments we were never we were never saved by the law but certainly he was obedient to every single one of the laws and so therefore when he died he died as a perfect sacrifice something we could never do he died as a perfect sacrifice he abolished uh the uh that that law that we would have had to have lived under and we would we would obviously come up short what other privileges do we enjoy verse 16 uh to the uh reconciliation uh that was a theme that came up in romans when uh when we were reading through the book of romans that sense of reconciliation we're once enmity with god and now we've been reconciled with god that's another privilege that we get to enjoy fourthly in verse 18 we have access to god through the spirit what a wonderful privilege that is we don't just pray through the ceiling we don't just pray to one another we pray we pray to the father how do we pray through to the father through the spirit because we've gained access through the spirit to that father verse 19 what have we been made we've made fellow citizens with saints and members of the household of god verse verse 19 yes that was um what a wonderful privilege that is that we are not just wandering this earth we're citizens of a heavenly kingdom and with citizenship comes comes comes privileges um these days comes responsibilities as well uh in terms of in terms of travel but nevertheless we'll leave that aside we'll just deal with the the blessings that we that we get to enjoy here that we're citizens of along with saints that's saints in this life here currently living today saints such as the the paul uh the apostle paul saint says in peter go back to the old testament uh we have elijah isaiah back further to moses back further to abraham those are our fellow citizens as we're marching as we're marching to heaven and that ought to give us a thrill as we consider that that's who we're that that's one of the privileges and blessings that comes along with christ and lastly is the very last verse verse 22. being built together for a dwelling place of god in the spirit we're not just a bunch of loose stones we're being built together and when we experience the privilege of unity in a local church that's a blessing that comes from god unity comes from the comes from the spirit of the living god uh how good it is when brethren dwell together in unity when there's not friction with one another but we're being we're being built together as a dwelling place where god's spirit can can can can enjoy uh his we can enjoy his presence he doesn't just as in a family we don't enjoy uh if there's friction uh in a family we uh we can't enjoy it in a local church where there's friction so therefore just the privilege the wonder that that uh that the the gospel brings us is just that peace with one another that that privilege of of of unity as a local body well with those thoughts let's uh let's close in prayer and and we'll sing our last him and go to go to the preaching hour let's pray our gracious and our loving heavenly father we do we we do truly thank you for the privileges the many privileges that are ours in christ jesus when we consider our state before you we were born in that adamic sinful nature and father it was not our call upon you but rather was your call upon us you sought us out you you invaded our hearts you gave to us the gift of salvation you gave to us the gift of of of believing on the lord jesus christ you opened our opened our eyes you removed those stony hearts and gave to us fleshly hearts along with those fleshy hearts we have that blessed peace uh with with the living god true lord we thank you for passages such as this in ephesians two that just reminds us of all the blessings all the privileges that are ours in christ jesus lord cause us as your people this day to rejoice in those things to not to not think of them as as small things as little things but we pray that they would help us to awake each day and get out of bed each day knowing that that we have peace with you what a wonder of all wonders that is and we pray that we would truly enjoy that privilege that that we enjoy as your children so lord bless us now in the next hour as we listen to the word of god we pray that we will be attentive we pray lord that you bless the preacher give to him your spirit and your aid and we do pray lord that we would leave this place rejoicing in the great god that that we have come to uh that we've come to worship this day bless us we do pray and forgive us of all of our sins and cleanse the fresh in that precious blood of your son the lord jesus christ and in his name we pray amen well please turn with me in your hymn books to the last hymn which will be 457 4 5 7. i'll ask you to stand please so yes you yes yes yes yes oh foreign [Music] yes mike well good morning everyone it's good to see you all you can turn with me your bibles to the book of ruth chapter four ruth chapter 4 we're going to look at the entire chapter this morning so begin reading out verse 1 of the book of ruth chapter 4. four will begin reading at verse one now boaz went up to the gate and sat down there and behold the close relative of whom boaz had spoken came by so boaz said come aside friend sit down here so he came aside and sat down and he took 10 men of the elders of the city and said sit down here so they sat down then he said to the close relative naomi who has come back from the country of moab sold the piece of land which belonged to our brother elimelech and i thought to inform you saying buy it back in the presence of the inhabitants and the elders of my people if you will redeem it redeem it but if you will not redeem it then tell me that i may know for there is no one but you to redeem it and i am next after you and he said i will redeem it then boaz said on the day you buy the field from that field from the hand of naomi you must also buy it from ruth the moabitess the wife of the dead to perpetuate the name of the dead through his inheritance and the close relatives said i cannot redeem it for myself lest i ruin my own inheritance you redeem my right of redemption for yourself for i cannot redeem it now this was the custom in former times in israel concerning redeeming and exchanging to confirm anything one man took off his sandal and gave it to the other and this was a confirmation in israel therefore the close relative said to boaz buy it for yourself so he took off his sandal and boaz said to the elders and all the people you are witnesses this day that i have bought all that was elimelechs and all that was kilions and maclones from the hand of naomi moreover root the mole by test the widow of mac loan i have acquired as my wife to perpetuate the name of the dead throughout his inheritance that the name of the dead may not be cut off from the among his brethren and from his position at the gate you are witnesses this day and all the people who were at the gate and the elders said we are witnesses the lord make the woman who is coming to your house like rachel and leah the two who built the house of israel and may you prosper in ephrathah and be famous in bethlehem may your house be like the house of perez whom tame our board to judah because of the offspring which the lord will give you from this young woman so boaz took ruth and she became his wife and he went into her and the lord gave her conception and she bore a son then the woman said to naomi blessed be the lord who has not left you this day without a close relative and may his name be famous in israel and may he be to you a restore of life and inertia of your old age for your daughter-in-law who loves you who is better to you than seven sons has borne him then naomi took the child and laid him on her bosom and became a nurse to him also the neighbor woman gave him a name saying there is a son born to naomi and they called his name obed he is the father of jesse the father of david now this is the genealogy of peres perez begot hezron hezron begot ram and ram begot aminadab and minidab begot naison nation begot solomon solomon begot boaz and boaz begot obed obed begot jesse and jesse begot david amen well let us pray our good and gracious god thank you that you are the lord of hosts and we're thankful for your sovereign rule over this world thank you that you are a king in whom we worship our king who has sent forth his son who is king to die for a people like us and we pray oh god that you'd remind us this day as we come to your word and come to your scriptures of the hope that we have in our savior and in our christ thank you god for the love that we see in the cross it's not that we loved you but that you love us and we're thankful oh god that when this world is ever changing your love never fades and your love never changes thank you god you remind us of this often for we are such a forgetful people and we pray o god that you give us hope in christ our lord and christ our king and find our only happiness in him and we're thankful for the forgiveness we're thankful for the mercy that we have and so we ask of god that you'd remind your saints this day about your love for us that we might be encouraged we might be strengthened and we might be reminded of where our hope lies and we pray oh god if there any any here today who do not know you we pray oh god you do a mighty act and that you would save their souls that they would consider what love this is and look on christ and believe on him and be saved and we're thankful oh god that you do this for your people whom you love your elect whom you have chosen and we're thankful oh god that christ came down to save his church to save his bride and to save his people and we pray oh god even now as your word goes forth that you would speak to your people that you would comfort your people that you'd remind us again of who you are and we pray oh god in all things you would be glorified we pray these things the name of christ amen well i think a lot of people like a good love story even men but perhaps especially women but the problem with a lot of modern love stories is they focus in on the ideal most of them are not reality then you turn to the scriptures and you see various ways in which couples meet and they get a little shady shall we say they get a little odd think about judah and tamar for instance if someone were to ask perez how did your parents meet well perez would say that dad thought mom was a prostitute so that's not a very good start to their relationship or perhaps even think of leah and jacob and rachel and jacob and that whole debacle that happens there with uh uh with uh with her father and how he is the one who who takes the laban he's the one who who dupes jacob things don't go so well so there's this unloved woman in the house of jacob or think of lot and his daughter or think of mohab and how moab came to being if some were to ask moab the same question he'd say well mom got grandpa drunk you see the bible gives unsavory sort of stories and makes us queasy as we read them but it's important for us to see how god redeems his people but one very positive dare we say love story in the scriptures that we sometimes forget is the story of ruth and boaz it's actually quite a significant book it's very well written a lot of twists and turns it's about redemption about forgiveness and about the line of the king but one thing very important is ruth and boaz get married not for the sake of themselves but they get married for the sake of other people and what makes this story so significant is it comes through a gentile woman comes through this one who is a moabite this one you would never think would have such faith in that surrey for the month of august we've been going through gentile foreshadowing looking at unsavory sinners saved by grace in the old testament we looked at tamar we looked at jethro rehab the harlot and the most recent one we looked at was ruth the moabite and really the book of ruth is instructed for god's people it's all about the need for a king in such a hopeless time things are not going well in israel at the time of ruth and as well we see the hopelessness through the lands of this one who is naomi and thankfully we come to the end of the book where we see hope restored we see god's redemption in boaz and ruth but at the same time there is a lot of hopelessness at the start of the book and that's really the problem that we see in this book the hopelessness for god's people sometimes things seem super bleak don't they things aren't going to get any better things seem to be going downhill it's bleak for god's people personally it's bleak for the church at large it's bleak for perhaps loved ones that we see are so far gone bleak for our country unfortunately if you're like me god's people can lose hope that's why davis as he entitles his sermon series on this he calls it a no hopeless future for god's people that's why we need to be reminded of god's grace and god's mercy and the hope that we have in our king and the hope that we have in the redemption found in our lord jesus christ because that's what we see in ruth four we see redemption for naomi we see redemption for a hopeless person and this redemption comes through this one who is a moabite so the key theme is redemption this morning and we'll look at this theme of redemption under two headings first of all redemption for the dead in verses 1 through 12 then secondly we'll see redemption through a son in verses 13 through 22. so redemption for the dead in verses 1 and 12 and then we'll see redemption through his son in verses 13 through 22. so let's first look at redemption for the dead in verses 1 through 12. and it's important in this book to be reminded of what's come before especially as there's a lot of moving parts ruth one is very hopeless isn't it things fall apart very quickly in verses one through five davis says ruth one and job one not to scare god's people because things fall apart very quickly and so we see that there is even um even in the overarch arching setting this is the time of the judges things aren't very good at this time morally there is no king in israel everyone did what was right in his own eyes it was not the best for the people of god and even two we see things fall apart very quickly for this one elimelech there is a famine in the land so he leaves he goes to moab with his wife naomi and their two sons maclone and kilion and then elimelech dies then maclon dies and as well kilion dies but before killian and maclon die they receive two wives so they're found wives of moab for them so there is this one of the judahite lineage this one elimelech god is my king but he passes on very quickly things fall apart very fast we see death and bitterness and even the names maclone and kilion maclone means sick kilion means end so it's not a very positive start to this book but there is one bright spot in the start here and that bright spot is this moabite girl this moabite lady this one ruth even as even as they return as no i know naomi wants to return back to israel back to bethlehem as god has given his people food we still see she tells them stay here i have nothing i am old i have no sons stay here and have you know find husbands for yourself orpah takes the suggestion and stays but ruth doesn't ruth puts her faith in god we see that in verses 16 and 17 your people shall be my people and your god my god wherever you die i will die and there i will be buried the lord do so to me and more also if anything but death parts you and me she puts her faith in yahweh of israel she puts her faith in the covenant king in a very destitute situation again there is nothing for her yet she puts her faith in the god of heaven and earth so she is this bright spot they return naomi doesn't want to be called pleasant anymore which is what her name means she wants to be called mara which means bitterness so they return things don't look very good but then ruth two there seems to be some hope perhaps there is this one who can redeem them this kinsmen redeemer we see this idea of kinsmen redeemer or levite marriage in deuteronomy 25 where if the brother passes away then the second of the the brother of the one who passed must marry i guess his sister-in-law to perpetuate a line perpetuate inheritance we see how not to do that in genesis 38 with judah and tamar things do not go so well tamara is the one who actually preserves the seed wants to keep the lion in judah judah does not she is more righteous than i and perhaps by the time we come to ruth things are relaxed a little bit more boaz is not actually the brother but he is the one he is a good man he is one of great wealth who perhaps could redeem them and so she goes down ruth goes down and gleans poor people you know where the rich who owned fields were to give some at the edge of the field so the poor could glean so she goes to glean so there perhaps is some hope maybe this one could be such a man and he does provide good things and gives good good gifts grace through barley as davis says so things perhaps are looking a little bit better and she is praised by boaz as one who is virtuous as one who you know honored her loved her mother in law so things seem to look better then we come to ruth three maybe boaz can be the kinsman redeemer the one who can redeem naomi and ruth and so in order for that to happen ruth has to marry this one so we see the proposal happen in group three we see this romantic rendezvous so to speak as they go down to the threshing floor she dresses all nice she gets all cleaned up and she goes down and puts herself out there for this one who is boaz he needs to be told he needs to be reminded he needs to be asked and so she goes down to the threshing floor i know some commentators like to say there's something a little shady going on there i understand there's no chaperone but in any case she moves away from the private area she moves away to the feet i don't think anything shady happens in this section and so he gets startled in verse eight oh there's this woman at his feet and so she says i am ruth your maidservant take your maidservant under your wing for you are a close relative you are a redeemer so he asks her right away this is a proposal sometimes men don't always pay attention sometimes men just need to be told what it what women actually mean and here she comes boom you need to marry me we need do we need you to be the kinsmen redeemer and even that language there of the of the wings the maidservant under your wings perhaps the language there carries the idea of being under one under a garment under protection the word wings is actually used in ezekiel 68 to describe god's love for israel and describe god's protection for israel god's covenant care for his people and so ruth and naomi need this one boaz to be the kinsman redeemer and he calls her virtuous in 311 and they're a match made in heaven because in chapter 2 1 of great wealth is the same word as virtuous so they're both virtuous they have a lot of good things in common and what's interesting is none are neither of them are obligated to marry each other none of them but nonetheless ruth proposes boaz says well thank you you know there's younger men out there but you chose me instead he says but there is this one who is closer than i and so suspense builds he's going to see to it in verse 18 which is where we come in chapter four beginning at chapter four and notice we see his plan in action in verses one through six he needs to redeem the land and he needs to redeem ruth and so he goes to the gate he sits down there the gate is where commerce happened where civic exchange enterprise was engaged place of judgment and decisions it needs to be legal and so he goes down to the gate he sits there and behold god's providence in action well there is this mr one this mr so-and-so who walks on by he says the close relative what's interesting here is i usually love the translation of the new king james i think they get this wrong the word is redeemer i know he has a close relative but the word means the one who shall redeem so whenever you see close relative it means the redeemer so the redeemer of whom boaz had spoken this one who is closer than he he walks on by this is where that suspense builds there's an obstacle in their love story it could be this guy instead of boaz we're rooting for boaz and ruth but in this case this one might be the one who takes the place and so he says come aside friend or mr so-and-so he's not given a name here he's just called mr so-and-so or polonie alimony in the greek or in the hebrew he has no name which will be ironic later on so he says here come aside come and sit down in verse two he grabs the men of the city the elders of the city again has to be legal sit down here so they sat down and he spoke to this one who is the redeemer he says naomi verse 3 who has come back from the country of moab sold the piece of land which belonged to our brother elimelech now there is some debate about what's going on here perhaps it was that she's selling the use of the land it still belonged to her even though they went to moab perhaps she's selling the use of it or to make some money with that that could be the case or perhaps she they sold it before they went to moab and now it needs to be repurchased needs to be bought back in any case it had to be want done through this one who is the redeemer so he says to him he tells him about this scenario buy it back in the presence of the inhabitants and elders of my people if you will redeem it redeem it but if you will not redeem it then tell me that i may know for there is no one but you to redeem it and i am next after you seems like a pretty good situation here's some land mr palone el money do you want this and what does he say i will redeem it our hearts are crushed right boaz and ruth won't get together now it seems like a good situation for him it's a win-win scenario this mr polonia alimony can keep his land and he can also gain something else as well but boaz is smart isn't he this is part of boaz's plan he wants to be the one to redeem ruth not mr poloni alimony so he brings up what else has to be acquired in this transaction in verse six and he said verse five on the day you buy the field from the hand of naomi you must also buy it from ruth the mo by tess the wife of the dead to perpetuate the name of the dead through his inheritance it's not just redeeming the land but redeeming the line as well the line of elimelech that is passed on you see the one who is going to redeem the land and redeem the redeemed naomi and redeem the line of elimelech this one will have to do it at great cost it requires great sacrifice and mr poloni al-money understands that he says that in verse and the close relatives said i cannot redeem it for myself lest i ruin my own inheritance you redeem my right of redemption for yourself for i cannot redeem it he has his own line he cares about and he is nameless in this situation which is actually kind of ironic he wants to have a line that is kept does he do good says he says the irony is that by seeking to protect his future legacy in this way mr so-and-so ended up leaving himself nameless missing out on having a share in the biggest legacy of all a place in god's plan of salvation so he's only concerned with himself he's only concerned with his line which is really a foil to boaz who really wants to be the one to redeem ruth and to redeem the lion and boaz wastes no time verses seven and eight so we see the custom the transaction the signature so to speak to confirm the deal now this was the custom in former times in israel concerning concerning redeeming and exchanging to confirm anything one man took off his sandal and gave it to the other and this was a confirmation in israel so they exchanged shoes it's an interesting way of doing things and notice verse 8 boaz does not hesitate therefore the close relative said to boaz buy it for yourself so he took off his sandal this was boaz's plan all along wasn't hey here's a land you could take it oh but also you need to take this lady ruth as well your line is going to be perhaps you're still going to get another inheritance of your own but you're going also to have to give this line up to somebody else boaz is ready to do that he's ready to sign it he's ready to sign his life away so to speak for the sake of somebody else and again god is affirming it through this transaction buy it for yourself and so boaz says in verse nine he said to the elders and all the people you are witnesses this day that i have bought all that was a limoulex and that was kilions and mcloans from the hand of naomi naomi rover root the moabite test the woman of maclon i have acquired as my wife to perpetuate the name of the dead through his inheritance the name of the day may not be cut off from among his brethren and from his position at the gate you are witnesses this day and all that reference there should draw our attention back to ruth one all the bad things that happened to naomi to elimelech all the things that fell apart in their lives god in his mercy here is redeeming in this instance and it comes through costly love as davis says doesn't love cost it requires sacrifice doesn't it even in marriage this is so different from our modern context that unfortunately creeps into the church as well we think marriages are about people making us happy well nobody's happy then if we're only concerned with ourselves it ought to be for the sake and care for other people boaz and ruth get married not for themselves but to perpetuate a line and to perpetuate and care for other people and to love others they're not obligated to do that what they do in this relationship costs both of them it costs boaz and ruth but god is pleased to redeem through such a thing god is pleased to move in mysterious ways and to bring about salvation for his people salvation for naomi but salvation for the people of israel as well through something that costs and so it costs them much he's going to redeem the land he's going to redeem the line and we see the witnesses at the gate in verse 11 and 12 all the people who were at the gate and the elders said we are witnesses can't go back on it someone else can't come and say hey mr poloniel moani can't all of a sudden go oh i want it now no it is done we are the witnesses this day and notice what they pray or what they the blessing they hope happens for boaz and ruth the lord make the woman who is coming to your house like rachel and leah the two who built the house of israel may your womb be fruitful perhaps we can draw our attention again to that interesting situation especially when we consider the marriages between you know jacob and leah and jacob and rachel and things even as the house of israel is built all the way back in genesis 30 some shady things go down there rachel sells jacob for some mandrakes what we call that prostitution right see things aren't always happy after people get married that's what jane austen forgot because she never got married i guess we never see the latter part of marriages because marriages are hard and difficult and we see that with leah and rachel and jacob and rachel but nonetheless may your womb be like these two may your womb be fruitful may god build the house that's why we read you know psalm 128 god is the one who builds his house it's important for us to be reminded of that it's not the people but god himself who moves in mysterious ways to build his places it's a reminder for israel especially with all that they're going through with there was no one everyone did what was right in his own eyes there was no king in israel but god is building a line of a king who will rule his people i think that's a reminder for us as well isn't it god builds his house and the gates of haiti shall not prevail against it and god is pleased to move in mysterious ways in times you wouldn't think humanly speaking churches would grow god does marvelous works there is kind of a i guess a general trend in history when there's peace without that is peace from oppression theology goes down the drain right because we have to fight with ourselves when there's oppression usually that's when people unite that's when the church grows there seems to be this you know confessing the church growing together in the truth god you know does it in times of so-called despair god grows his church god is mighty and good and they're praying that god would be mighty and good to boaz and leah as well so he pray they pray that they'll be fruitful but as well also they pray that they might have be famous and may you prosper in ephrathah and be famous or may you have a name in bethlehem mr pallone almoni who cared about his name again has no name in the line of israel in the afrita in bethlehem again it's that judahite lineage the house of david and even to that language of prosperity is the same word for valiant or virtuous the same word described in route 3 above ruth and of boaz in ruth ii really a virtuous woman who can find and a virtuous man who can find and virtuous children who can find may they have virtuous faithful children and famous children as well and spoiler alert they do and then verse 12 we see a reference again this is again a prayer may your house be like the house of perez whom tamar bore to judah because the offspring which the lord will give you from this young woman that's interesting isn't it suspense builds again we don't know that it's going to happen but it refers back to another squirmish situation we would like to just gloss over genesis 38 right when we see what goes on there and how a father-in-law engages in adultery with his daughter-in-law but it leads to the line of perez to come notice how it is actually painted in a positive light here i'm not condoning incest by the way don't do that but nonetheless we see something very clear about god's redemption in through unsavory sinners may your house be like the house of perez whom tame our bore to judah because of the offspring which the lord will give you from this young woman there's going to be salvation through a canaanite like tamar right there's gonna be salvation through a harlot and a canaanite like rahab right there's gonna be salvation through a hittite like bathsheba right and there's gonna be salvation through a moabite like ruth right and what's interesting is in the book of ruth guess how many times the moabite or the moabite test or something of moab has mentioned six six times he's trying to tell us something she is the moabite right and where did the moabites come from i gave it away at the beginning genesis 19. another passage we'd like to gloss over in our bibles with that unsavory disgusting act that happens between lot and his daughters moab is born in that situation but god again in his mercy and kindness through this moabite test will bring about the line of the king brethren this should give us great hope in the world shouldn't it when we feel hopeless if we've got unbelieving friends and family i believe god has saved his elect he calls forth those who are his we believe in the doctrine of predestination but we don't know that do we god is the one who calls him forth god is the one who saves them god is the one who changes and while there's still breath there is still hope if god can save a wretch like tamar and bring about salvation through the moabite and save a wretch like you and i there is great hope for this world found in jesus christ redemption through this king and that gives us great hope doesn't it hope for the people hope for the christians hope for the church hope for us individually even in that time again israel did what was right in their own eyes but there is hope in a coming king there is hope in the christ to come there's hope for us individually mercy and forgiveness in jesus there's hope for the church corporately mercy and forgiveness and jesus because christ is the one who builds his church brethren we can lose hope sometimes in our situations and we ought not to we got to remember as davis says there is a no hopeless future for the people of god and that no hopeless future comes through a king and so that was redemption for the dead let's then look secondly that redemption through a son in verses 13 through 22. notice we see a son is born and a king is given the son is born in verses 13 through 16. and davis points out there's a lot of prayer in ruth and a lot of prayers answered in the book of ruth as well we see that here in verse 13. so boaz took ruth and she became his wife and when he went into her the lord gave her conception she bore a son a couple things to note naomi prays in 1 8 that her daughter-in-laws would find husbands husbands in moab but god provides for ruth with this one boaz or even boaz he says in chapter 212 he uses the language of wings he said the lord repay your work and full reward be given you by the lord god of israel under whose wings you come for refuge she's put herself under yahweh but yahweh is very practical and they still need someone under whose wings they are under literally and practically and god provides verse 11 of chapter 3 take your maidservant under your wing for you are a close relative god answers prayers and ruth conceiving a son is not a surefire thing back in moab they were there for 10 years right so there was she hadn't born children yet and what's interesting too in the book of ruth god is sort of in the background god works providentially there's only two times it mentions god god's direct acts here in chapter 4 but also back in chapter 1 6 where they hear how the lord had visited his people by giving them bread and the same thing and so we see that here in 4 13 the lord is the one who gave her conception god is sovereign over all things dear brethren even if we don't always feel like it and we're calvinists we forget that so often that's why it's been so important perhaps maybe during these times you've hopefully been reminded and perhaps appreciate more god's sovereignty in all things we are not in control even though we believe that sometimes the things that we like to use i'm not against gadgets so to speak but they teach us we're in control but in reality god is in control of all things and we need to be reminded of that so often because we are so forgetful of those things the lord gave her conception and she bore a son and then verse 14 then the woman said to naomi blessed be the lord who has not left you this day without a close relative or a redeemer and may his name be famous in israel the lord never left her when she was called mara and the lord never left her when she is called naomi and what's interesting too is even when naomi wanted to be called mara she also recognized god's sovereignty even the bad things didn't she may the lord grant you favor naomi and orpah are ruth and orpah may god give you husbands or how the lord has gone out against me the lord has afflicted me sometimes we love it god's sovereignty when good things happen but we always don't like it when bad things happen isn't it funny too when we like to say when a good thing happens that was god's providence right and it was god's providence what about when bad things happen to your brethren isn't that god's providence too for reasons we don't understand for reasons we don't fathom in the moment and we might never understand or never know or never fully realize god remains king and even the good times and the bad times the sufferings and the prosperity are all from god and naomi understood that and the people praised god for it blessed be the lord who has not left you this day and may his name be famous in israel it's recalling all that god had done for naomi recalling his mercies brethren that's good for us to do too to recall god's salvation to recall christ always but to recall all the good things god has done in our own lives as well and not be grumblers whiners and complainers if you're like me we also i struggle very much with that we need to be reminded of who god is in all his providences and all his mercies may he be to you a restorer of life and a nourisher of your old age even that language she was once called herself dead and now she is a one who has life a lot of reversals in ruth then we see her cup these ladies commend ruth in verse 15 for your daughter-in-law who loves you is better to uh to you than seven sons has borne uh who uh sorry uh for your daughter-in-law who loves you who is better to you than seven sons has borne this one a virtuous woman who can find and what's interesting is that word is also used in proverbs 31 10. and in the hebrew bible do you know what precedes ruth proverbs if i were to ask you who the proverbs 31 woman is you might say something abstract she's faithful she's you know her she you know she's a delight to her husband i'm meaning a specific person ruth is the proverbs 31 woman the way it unfolds in the bible and the way in which the word is used she is faithful isn't she she is a delight she works hard she is faithful to yahweh she is a virtuous woman by faith again both her and boaz do everything for the sake of other people not for the sake of themselves and it shows forth again god's grace and such times to give her such faith in israel who can find such faith and it comes from this moabite lady john yo says but this could not have happened that is ruth or naomi receiving the son without her daughter-in-law who displayed her undying love to naomi even in the most desperate of circumstances by god's sovereign grace ruth helped to redeem naomi from destitution and certain death in this way ruth indeed is was indeed worth more than seven sons a virtuous faithful woman who can find a virtuous faithful man who can find but there is no one quite like ruth and then verse 16 naomi took the child and laid him on her bosom and she became a nurse restoration and we see the restoration continue verse 17 also the neighbor woman gave him a name saying there is a son born to naomi they called his name obed provider she was once empty now she is full and again that only comes from yahweh god almighty who is good and they called his name obed and we see his famous line he is the father of jesse the father of david and then we see the lineage or the genealogy in verses 18 through 22 genealogies are about what comes next and we like to think about what became what came last but it's about what comes next who is coming next you see that especially in genesis they're all about what comes next and i think we see that here we see perez to hezron to ram to aminadab to a minute to nashon to salman you could say salmon but i think salman's probably better who marries rahab they got boaz and boaz obed obed jesse and jesse david we're looking ahead to david aren't we and again we think about the placement of the book of ruth in various traditions one tradition is the english bibles which we do have right after judges right before samuel right ruth is really a foil for the book of judges they need a king they need one that they can look to they need one that they can find hope in everyone did what was right in his own eyes even the name elimelech god is my king the writer to ruth is bookending ruth with the idea of kingship and he went away elimelech away from israel but now we have this one who is raised up in israel who is going to be a king they need a king brethren we need a king and again for israel they're looking ahead they wanted saul but instead uh they are so they want they wanted uh to be like every other nation so god raised up for them saul then god is good he raised up david and really when you get to the the davidic covenant ii samuel 7 there's a consummation of sorts there not fully but it says when he had rest from all his enemies and the judges they were under oppression oppression oppression oppression they need a king to liberate and to redeem them which they do find and david not perfect solomon's got the greatest reign but things go south from there that's why we're still they still long for a true king and in ruth it's in the hebrew bible ruth is placed in their writings right before we get to the end of the hebrew bible ends with chronicles do you know the difference between chronicles and kings kings looks back how we got to exile chronicles looking ahead for the king to come what next for the people of god after they return they're still waiting for that king and we see that fulfilled in christ don't we matthew finishes the hebrew bible we see the record of the genealogy of jesus christ the son of david israel longed for this king israel was looking for this king and this king who is mighty and powerful has come this king who is mighty and powerful has defeated death and this king who is mighty and powerful has been raised and is seated at the right hand of god right now brethren that is where our hope lies our source of hope is in christ our king and in christ alone even that's something we need to remember you think that's an easy question who is the head of the church christ is the head of the church one problem we all forgot that or maybe not we i'm just saying the church in general forgot that this past year didn't we who is the king dear brethren who tells us how to worship who comforts us in times of suffering it is christ alone isn't it think about i remember dr godfrey speaking about uh the battle of la rochelle again the the the roman catholics against the french calvinists and the catholics were sieging la rochelle and what happened was they sent a message surrender to your king you know what the calvinist said we have a king we have a king dear brethren and that is christ and he is what gives us hope and strength i must confess these past few days i've been a little bit down with the way the world is going with the way things are operating that's what the book of revelation is meant to do for us to comfort us in such times it has been a bomb to my soul in the past few days he talks about the one who who was and is and is to come he talks about the first and the last the one who tries all of history the one who's seated on the throne how many times is throne mentioned in the book of revelation to give us comfort to remind us who's in charge to remind us who the king is and to remind us of the king in times of suffering and to remind us that the king walks amongst his lampstands in times of suffering brethren we have hope and we have hope in this king we have hope in a king who will guide us and keep us and walk with us in suffering they never said that we christ never said we weren't going to suffer he walks with us in times of suffering and he knows our frame and this gives us great hope he is like us in every way yet without sin and thankfully too as we see the redemptions found in the moabite there is hope for the world there is hope for sinners in christ because let's be honest dear brethren when we consider the fact that we are called the bride of christ why would anybody love us when we consider our sinfulness our wretchedness our wicked thoughts our wicked words our wicked deeds why would anybody love us but in the gospel of jesus christ we see the great costs don't we the costly love of our lord he did not consider him equality with god something to be grasped but made himself of no reputation that he would take on the form of a bond sermon becoming obedient to the point of death even the death of the cross and be given the name that is above every other name as the hymn writer says from heaven he came and sought her to be his holy bride and for of of with his blood he bought her and for her life he died our christ our bridegroom gave himself for his people this is where we see what love is he gave himself for people like tamars and ruths and rahabs and you and i davis again indeed there is something very tamarish and ruthish about the fact of your own position most of you are not israelites after the flesh that god died for us the son gave himself for us this is how we know what love is and if you're an unbeliever here today consider what true love actually is that we see it in christ who sacrificed to die for his people in the gospel of free and sovereign grace how jesus came down he lived he died and he rose again for an unlovely people and the blessedness is if you believe on him confess your sins repent and believe on the lord jesus christ you shall be saved you shall find mercy you shall find grace and i pray that god would save you that you might know what love we see in the cross of christ let us pray our good and gracious god thank you again for your love we confess oh god that sometimes we think we are well worth it but in reality we know that we are such an unlovely people yet you are pleased to love us to send forth your son for us to keep us and protect us even now thank you that we find hope in this great king this one who identified with us yet without sin this one who rules and reigns declared to be who he is this one who is the first and the last the beginning and the end thank you that he reigns at your right hand even now and we ask o god for your people that even in times of hopelessness we would find our hope in jesus christ should we lose everything may we be reminded of our savior and all the good things found in him thank you o god for a love that we do not truly understand but thank you that is as your word says eternal and immutable thank you god that is infinite and we pray oh god that we would to see it in christ and all that he has done thank you for your love may we be reminded of this this day may it encourage our hearts this day may it give us hope this day if there are any here today do not know you o god we pray that they would look to christ and find life and hope in him and thank you o god for the redemption that is found in him the forgiveness of sins and thank you so much for your blessed eternal love we do not deserve it but we praise you and honor you as the god of love who would die for sinners like us so we ask of god you keep us and protect us preserve us we pray help us to stand firm and to be strong in you and find our hope in you and thank you o god that you are pleased to walk with us in times when we are weak and we pray that you be glorified in all things in the name of christ amen well we'll close this morning's service by singing him 568. so you can turn with me in the trendy psalter emerald in 568. will stand and sing together so [Music] uh is to him who loved us and washed us from our sins and his own blood has made us kings and priests to his god and father to be glory and dominion forever and ever amen we'll close at the brief time meditation the piano's finished you are dismissed you