Love Opens Doors - Part 2

Today on Fellowship in the Word pastor Bill Gebhardt challenges you to become a fully functioning follower of Jesus Christ on her face and falling to the ground. She said while I found favor in your sight.

You should take notice of me since I am a foreigner and I can tell you why. What is doing a loving thing. Love is consumed with the needs of others and she finds this completely and totally unexpected. See that's the way it works sometimes you give and receive love in the most unexpected ways for joining us today on this additional Fellowship in the Word pastor Bill Gebhardt Fellowship in the Words the radio ministry of Fellowship Bible church located in Metairie, Louisiana that's going to have to go get her now again he shows us how God's word are Laurel do not urge me to leave or turn back from following for where you go I will go and what you lodge, I will watch your people shall be my people and your God my God, where you die I will die, and there I will be buried and thus may the Lord do to me. And worse, if anything but death part you and me. She saw that she was determined to go with her.

She said no more.

While what is she doing.

She's doing some it's unreasonable see she's doing something that God and ask her to do and it seems unreasonable. She puts all of her eggs in the love basket. All of it. I mean think about that of what you say she's not saying I hail of a back to the land with you in anger.

Back home to make sure you get there safe.

She said I love you I'm in a be with you the rest your life. I'll take care of you in your old age. And when you die I will stay there until I die so I can be buried where you are.

I think the only following how would you feel when you're so in love you that much. And by the way, something I haven't said yet but put it through your own great. This is a daughter-in-law talking to her mother-in-law, and he's not talking to her mom. She's under her mother-in-law. You see love fine stores that personal protection never could find. We live in a culture that's very similar. In this way. Our culture says look you need to be reasonable.

You need to be prudent. You need to be secure about yourself. You need to be safe and normally that's sound advice. But you know what every once in a while when there's a door in front of you have to bet it all on love, so she chooses she chooses love. Love opens doors at this stage. Ruth has no idea what's going to happen. She she has no idea, but I want to tell you something when ever love opens a door. It's an amazing how God steps in and controls the situation love fine stores of personal protection never could. In love is consumed with the needs of others. Love is consumed with the needs of others. Notice that in chapter 2, verse one. Now, now Naomi had a kinsman of her husband, a man of great wealth, he says of the same family as a limb alike whose name was Boaz Ruth the Moabitess, and Naomi said please let me go to the field and glean among the ears of grain after one and whose side I may find favor and she said her go. My daughter are still starving, she said. But Boaz is a relative and he owns a lot of land.

Can I go and and was fields and glean what she's departed.

She went glean in the field after the reapers, and she happened to come to a portion of the field belonging to Boaz who was of the family of a limb alike.

This is an interesting scene, but she said I need to find favor in Israel at the time or in Judah.

Whenever there was a crop to be harvested, they were required by the law should not harvest the corners of the property. In other words, you leave the corners go so that the poor and Judah could go see and do the corners and that was the way a sense of social welfare for them, they could actually go and glean enough food to keep themselves alive. The other thing they did even in the field as they follow the reapers the reapers were professionals who worked in a sense for the landowner. They would follow them and what they didn't get they would pick up and save now for her to be able to do it. She said I need to find favor with someone. I need to have a sponsor.

I need someone big Y on the Moabitess Moabites of the archenemy of Judah. You see, they're not gonna let me in the field, but if someone five.

Find favor and guess what happens there's another door opening.

Here the door, finding favor and guess what is a mini Boaz and Boaz is consumed by the needs of others.

He chooses love to see chooses love, because love is consumed by the needs of others, and that's what happens now watching verse four. Now, behold, Boaz came from Bethlehem and said to the reapers.

May the Lord be with you and they said to him, may the Lord bless you and then Boaz said to his servants, who is in charge of the reapers, whose young woman is this what he do he noticed her and he liked what he saw is who is this the servant in charge of the reapers that she is the young Moabite woman who returned with Naomi from the land of Moab and she said please let me glean and gather after the reapers among the sheaves. Thus she came and has remained from morning until now and she's sitting in the house for little while, it's not really a house it's a lean to is a lean to that they put in the fields for shade itself is the middle of a sunny day or something like that. You could go and you could rest probably sit on a stone or small wooden bench or something like that, but that's where she's at.

She still there. Then Boaz said to Ruth. Listen carefully. My daughter do not go to glean in another field. Furthermore, do not go one from this one. You stay here with my maids. Let your eyes be on the field which they reap and go after them. Indeed, I have commanded the servants not to touch you and when you are thirsty, go to the water jars and drink what the servants drink, or what they draw. That's important because drawing waters hard work and he said no I don't want you have to leave the field and go find a well you to stay right here and you drink what they drink someone else control the water and she fell on her face and bowing to the ground.

She said why I found favor in your sight. You should take notice of me since I am a foreigner and I can tell you why love. Love is doing a loving thing. Love is consumed with the needs of others and she finds this completely and totally unexpected. You see, that's the way it works sometimes you give and receive love in the most unexpected ways this past week I read a story about a woman middle-aged woman was driving her car and the say of a more difficult or threatening part of town and then all of a sudden she gets a flat tire and she has to pull off to the side.

She's a Christian woman expose off of the side of the road and she thinks all boy I'm in real trouble here.

She said on the what to do. So she starts praying she says, Lord, please, please send somebody here can change my tire and so is she standing there. She hears and there's a motorcycle that comes up to her big burly man on it.

Tattoos all over skullcap and he gets off and he says can I help you, and she said all she said yes. I have a flat tire and I need to have my tire change and so he then went to the trunk of her car was going to get out or spare tire by East. It was an open.

He said it could I have the key, and then she realized she had locked her keys in the car so her keys are now locked in the car, and she's on the locked the keys in the car and he said no problem at all.

So he goes and he finds a way very quickly opens up the door and gets out the keys.

He gets out the keys and change the time the car and she just hugs and she said I am so glad I put I am so glad that you came along. She said you are such a good man and he said I am not a good man. I just got out of prison this morning. He said I was in for two years for Grand Theft Auto. You are the woman did she look to heaven and prayed alive to God and said thank you Lord for sending me a professional.

Acts of love completely unexpected. Sometimes you receive them. But the important thing is do we do them. Love finds doors of personal protection, never good and love is consumed with the needs of others. Thirdly, it's this love for others can lead to the most unexpected rewards see something happens now. Chapter 3. This is the Naomi her mother-in-law send her my daughter. Shall I not seek security for you, that it may be well with you, now is not Boaz.

Our kinsman, with whose maids you were, behold, he windows barley at the threshing floor tonight. Always a big cash crop. Their best cash crop and he is going to be there in his own field is good have a winnowing fork and he's gonna be winnowing barley tonight. This is a time of great celebration for them at the harvest. She said here's what I want you to do and notice this again you listen when ladies get involved in fixing people what it's not new Naomi's doing this thousands of years ago. She's fixing up. She's figured this out. It says wash yourself therefore and anoint herself badly with oil and put on it says best close. It's not really best close them. Poverty that were dirty for close means a mantle. It means a large garment you put over top yourself normally to try to keep you warm. Harvest time is normally when the nights are very cool and she said I want to put all that one and then she said, and go down to the threshing floor but do not make yourself known to the man until he is finished eating and drinking. It shall be that when he lies down that you shall notice the place where he lies and you shall go in and cover his feet and lie down. He will tell you what you should do just that although you say I will do this like what you mean what it means is he has an outer garment on as well to keep himself warm and after he's eaten and they've had a great time they're celebrating is laying there. I want you to take his garment poured when you mean it's going to give him the chills is very cold. You see will houses work, watch so she went down the threshing floor and did according what her mother a lot commanded her, and when Boaz at Eaton and drunk, and his heart was Mary. He went to lie down at the end of the heap of grain, and she came secretly and uncovered his feet lay down writers feet and it happened in the middle of the night that the men were startled and bent forward. He woke up and down cold.

Wait a minute, there's someone laying on my feet.

Please understand, no nightlights are.

I mean, this could be extremely dark and it says in the and, behold, a woman was lying at his feet and he said who are you and she said I am Ruth made so spread your covering over your made for you are a close relative. You know what you just did. She proposed she just proposed interesting. I imagine feet. Wow, it says and then he said, may you be blessed of the Lord. My daughter, you have shown your last kindness to be better than the first.

He said, I'm astounded. He's an older, probably middle-aged man is affluent. Notice what he says next.

He says there it was better than the first.

By not going after young men for the poor rich union way for young man you propose to me because under kinsman is now my daughter do not fear I will do whatever you ask for all my people in the city know that you are a woman of excellence is another thing.

Love those love proceed. You acts of love. She is a woman of tremendous character in it like she so attracted to Boaz is a man of character. They both see character in each other.

Mrs. now it is true that I am a close relative our there is a relative closer than I am remained this night and says when morning comes and if he will redeem you good, let him redeem you, but if he does not wish to redeem you that I will redeem you as the Lord lives you dislike until morning and there was another, and Boaz does go to her the other what it says. Would you want to redeem her Negroes know I'm really not a position to do that.

So Boaz cover the law insist that I'll do it and he redeems her no love for others can lead to unexpected results and I watch what happens in chapter 4 verse 13 it says this so Boaz took Ruth and she became his wife and he went into her in the Lord enable her to conceive.

She gave birth to a son. Just imagine what's change with her. She's now married to a wealthy man. She now is no longer with child. She has a son she the question is how did she get all this when stimulated all this love opens doors her selfless love for Naomi opens all this up. Notice he also said the Lord enable her to conceive.

This is the Lord's hand over Mrs. and then the women said the Naomi. Blessed is the Lord who has not left you without a Redeemer today and may his name become famous in Israel and maybe also he says Peter you are a restore of life and the sustainer of your old age for your daughter-in-law who loves you and is better to you than seven sons has given birth. Wow, what an analogy in that culture.

These women member all they pray for was a son because you had to have an air and these women say to her, you know what you'd your daughter-in-law is better than seven sons why there's a rack of love see her act of love was so astounding that even people in Judah scratch their head. Why would she stay in Moab. What he should do the same thing.

Why would she become as a Moabite to Judah. I would she be so devoted to your mother-in-law why love and then Naomi took the child and laid him in her lap became his nurse and the neighbor women gave him a name saying I son has been born in Naomi and so they named him Obed. Wow, what a happy story but wait there's more you see there's something more here is names Obed and he has his own little boy and his little boys name is Jesse, and Obed has a grandson because Jesse has a little boy in Jesse's little boys name is David, the greatest king wait, there's more you go to Matthew chapter 1 and you read the genealogy of Jesus Christ. Someone's name is going to show up right there a woman Ruth a Moabite. David's grandmother is a Moabite and in the lineage to Jesus Christ himself as a Moabite astounding when you think about it. Who would've ever thought that think about how this whole thing started terrible circumstances. Famine in the land be a refugee.

Your husband dies you have two sons. They married to Moabite ladies. 10 years later, they both die. You have nothing one does the rational thing goes back among the Moabite and the other one sticks with you, but you still have nothing but love chooses and love opens doors and it's unreasonable and risky low-flying stores that personal protection never could love is consumed with the needs of others and love for others can lead to unexpected rewards any time in your life that you use love to step through an open door that you're motivated by love to step through an open door. Your little story. Your little story becomes part of his story.

The big story. Others are blessed because of your active love.

Not only are others blessed God is pleased God is pleased. You know there's probably nothing we can do on earth it's more like God is one of his children than we love others unconditionally and were willing to sacrifice for their welfare. Only that's not too good in the Facebook generation, but it certainly good in this book, it certainly the way God sees it.

Others are blessed God is pleased enters one important thing for you to remember if you walk through doors with love, you will never suffer from foam all you'll never have a fear of missing out.

The spray father, I fear that almost all of us in almost all the time when there is a door put in front of us. We always want to do the safe thing.

The thing that most protects us. The thing that most looks out for our own welfare. The thing it makes the most common sense and seems the most reasonable to us. Sometimes father those doors are put in front of us to see if we would do exactly what Jesus Christ said is the greatest thing we can possibly do love you with all our heart, mind, soul and strength and love others as we love ourselves father our acts of love can have an enormous influence on the people's lives around us. Ruth love Naomi so much that the people of Judah heard about it in her reputation preceded her. She was known as a woman of excellence, and even though she wasn't Jewish. A man of the caliber of Boaz redeems her embraces her loves her, marries her and gives her a great life. Father I pray that in this next week, month, whenever we see is an opportunity for for each of us to use an act of love to go through an open door to show how devoted we are to show how we are not looking just for our benefit. But as Paul said to the Philippians, we consider everybody else is more important than ourselves that if we do that we can bless others. You will be pleased. We will have taken a what Jesus Christ because life father uses. Thank you for loving us, Christ pastoral number on the radio ministry of fellowship Lord, if you ever missed one of our broadcast or maybe you dislike of the sum of the method one more time.

Remember, you can Google a great website called one place.com that's one place.com and you can listen the fellowship and the word online that website you will find on with today's broadcast but also many of our previous audio program at Fellowship in the Word. We are thankful for those who financially support our ministry and make this broadcast possible. We ask all of our listeners to prayerfully consider how you might help his radio ministry continuous broadcast on this radio station by supporting monthly with just a one-time gift support for ministry can be sent to Fellowship in the Word. 4600 Clearview Pkwy., Metairie, LA 7006 if you would be interested in hearing today's message in its original format that is is a sermon that Pastor Bill delivered during a Sunday morning service at fellowship monitored visit our website FVC Nola.org that FVC and oh LA.O RG at our website you will find hundreds. Pastor Bill sermon. You can browse your sermon archives to find sermon series you're looking for or you can search by title. Once you find the method you're looking for an online work you prefer, you can download the sermon and listen at your own. And remember, you can do all this absolutely free of charge. Once again our website FVC Nola.org forecaster Bill Gebhardt and Jason Gebhardt. Thank you for listening to fellowship in order