Mercy, Blessings, and Character (Part 2 of 2)

The Old Testament tells the story of a widow, a foreign land. Her desperate circumstances led her to seek permission from anyone who would show her favor was it mere coincidence that brought her to the fields of Boaz today on Truth for Life.

Alister Ben continues our study in the book of Ruth were in chapter 2 God's providential care in the story of Ruth is elsewhere is expressed through the outworking of our free human choices are decisions and our responsibilities, and especially when life appears as it must've done doing Naomi to be just a jumble of unconnected threats is a way you made enough of that way you can go on all right time and we got that point you said fine I hope you do because a very very important is I find as I move around and even in my own congregation of people are buffeted from one side of the other anything that a view of the sovereign purpose of God is somehow finally that a divine puppeteer is moving people around with nothing to do it anywhere you sit around and wait for them to move and pull the levers is not so others are running around as if the whole future depended upon that. If I don't do this and I don't do that I'll never get is insulated Boston.

I got trying to take care of everything. There is crazy of the other group just in a different site. What you need to read your Bible and read your Bible you be tremendously helpful.

So she goes out and she works in the field belonging to Boaz and in the bar shows up verse four. What happens when the boss comes the boss is like we all were for bosses. Evidently I met a number of boxes in my time you be surprised at all the jobs I have. I don't have enough time to tell you of all of them resemble I was I was once she's got her in. In a small supermarket in Yorkshire spent all day Saturday coming up big blocks of cheese.

It was a wonderful job demanded tremendous intelligence as you would understand and we had to do was slice it up and then you put it in a in a in the cling wrap and then you put a label on it. I viewed what waited I did this with a friend of mine and then you put it in the putting it on the hot pad they just take their label with the weight and the price on it and then that seal the back of the thing and when you fill the traffic you to get downstairs into the store and you put it in the put in anything and then you came back up and you did it again and again. Monday morning I came in Monday afternoon agency. After I finish school I came in and the boss was waiting for me. He said Khmer and have a look at this, so that was that. There's a really speaking Yorkshire and so I went over and he took me to the place where I put all the cheese from the Saturday through Monday afternoon when I finish school and he began to turn them over and as he turned them over the cheese that already input in places started become toasted cheese by that court applies half-price for now Monday afternoon. It just struck me as very funny and and so I just had this.

Love the midseason lack and that was that was it. Goodbye and thank you Tommy Gilliard get you called "lads and get off the street. I said okay so I left there 90 on dead meat because of Aragorn.

I got fired and that's not good. So when the Woolworths and I are going Woolworths I got another job and stacking Easter eggs angry about a lot of other bosses pipe Boaz was a nice boss because he shows up and he says good morning everybody. The Lord be with you.

May God's presence in his favor satisfy your souls is not a bad is not a bad month and they replied, look at the group and may the Lord bless you and is a great day as needed to wonderful day in the neighborhood used by Mr. Rogers, the Khmer year at any time when Antarctica and he said the Lord be with you in the Lord bless you and you bless the Lord in the as is the wonderful time notice that it not taken the name of the Lord in vain and not profaning his name. Recognizing that God is in everything I need to move quickly here. But you can tell a lot about a person by their hellos and their goodbyes and tell a lot about yourself, about the way you say hello and goodbye. You want to be different be different in your hellos and be different in your goodbye and I missing the point.

Or is the average American boy hopeless at hellos and goodbye leave the girls aside for a moment for the average kid. CM and all where in the street.

Hey Joe how are you good sorry son.

We burping or was that a word what he's saying. It finds hereunder. You know Joe is a teenager.

Are you good. Joe is now working how are you good. Joe is a complete ignoramus. Somebody says to you, good morning. Sorry to be so basic or they say how are you. You say I'm fine thank you and how are you if you care, of course, if you completely wrapped up in yourself to say good and keep walking. But if you have any interest or tall in the fact that there is another specimen of humanity within your airspace about whom you may just have the slightest consideration then perhaps you may do them the courtesy of acknowledging their existence and inclining your mind to the circumstance. And when you say goodbye to people. Remember this, there will be a lifetime for every goodbye. There will be a last time that you reverse out of the parking space there will be a last time you greet your roommate. There will be a last time you say goodbye to your mom and you may never know when that lifetime is, therefore, you should treat every law.

I'm not gone about walking around the French horn or something.

You know like bird order in order to help you know I mean that I just mean a basic hello and goodbye.

God be with you because if he is in your on your own. The average American abdomen the other day the airport and I'm sorry this is an American feature. This is the place where it is easy to make friends and lose them immediately.

This is the land of acquaintance. This is a land of ships passing in the night.

This is a land of transients. This is the land of hello, I must be going and standing at the airport like a doofus waving to nobody as the guy who is drop me off has already chewed in his radio station kissed me goodbye a long time ago, metaphorically, and is now moved on to his next thing there to say the experiment, and hug me and kiss me in all play musical instruments. We just spent two days together so were you getting all this from idling on is making up mainly, but is it just struck me. It just struck me that in the greetings in the greetings. There is an expression of who we are and what we in this approach on Boaz as part idling is formal and ostentatious. I think it's casual and sincere.

I don't think you wrote in his daytime review, nor in his PalmPilot seminarian greet the harvesters with the usual, the Lord bless you know I just said hey guys great day is an amazing that we have a harvest that God is our provider that we have the privilege of employment that we have the opportunity to work together in this way. May the Lord be with you and they replied and may he be with you to and then it is in that environment that this lovely encounter takes place out. If we make any attempt to call a getting be on chapter 2.

I need to just fast-forward right through the chapter. I just want to go to one concluding thought because what happens here in relationship to Boaz and Ruth is really fantastic. He takes her and he introduces her to the group. He takes her and shows her where the water cooler is in verse nine he shows her around and get a drink from the water jars over here. He says he he he he she is so overwhelmed by it. She says why have I found such favor in your eyes that you notice me a foreigner is not as she sitting at having a drink of water and save yourself, you know. Hey I nailed this way like it back and tell Naomi how smart I am. You know I chose the right field. I'm good and you know and I could tell the way he looked at me and he he he is canna jazzed he likes me and that is no surprise.

Look at me you know I'm I'm cuter and and man I am I am good you know I am good know you're not. No, I'm not. Whatever you really good at your good at it. By the grace of God.

Therefore, every benefit every blessing, every encouragement, every point along the journey that points to it must elicit the same response. Naomi, I think I'll go out and see if I can glean in someone's field, in whose eyes I may find favor and she finds favor and her response is the right one. Verse 10. Why have I found such faith. See the unfolding of God's goodness to us must not produce in us self-aggrandizement and self perceptiveness but must produce and at this sense of wonder how why did I get such a wonderful privilege is whatever that privilege may be. However, apparently trivial it may appear to be so you've got really the somebody I let me go and find favor. Verse two verse 10. Why have I found favor. Verse 13. May I continue to find favor affiliate. I'm going to begin today and I will ask God for favor when I discovered is favor and what to say. Why should I have discovered your favorite and then having discovered your favor. I want to discover more of your favorite may I continue and of course what a wonderful provision.

She gets Boaz gives instruction verse 15 to his men, even if she cannot messes up and gathers among the sheaves. Don't embarrass her pull out some stocks brought for her from the bundled leave them for her to pick up and don't rebuke her.

So Ruth goes gangbusters that aging cleans in the field until evening she thrashes the barley together that she's got a huge big sack huge big thing and Eva which are the part of my Bible says it probably 3/5 of a bushel, which of course no help to me because I don't know what a bushel is but I but I'm glad, because younger clue either strongest military is about 22 L and since you don't know what liters are your completely at sea is a big bundle of stop all right. She went off in the morning with water and she comes back with a huge big thing she's coming down the street.

Naomi had watched her go.

Now she's watching for a come back in here she comes just a walking down the street saying and you know to add it needed a dominating to.

I glean good I clean good I clean it up for. She's coming down the raw Naomi's watching for and she comes back and she puts the bundled on verse 19's without stop she puts the bundled down and Ruth told her mother-in-law about the one in whose place she had been working ready to glean today where did you work blessed be the man who took notice of you and she told him OS and Naomi says May the Lord bless him the blessings come around black shows up at his work. He says to his workers. The Lord bless you. They said the Lord bless you to Boaz is now going on with his evening and somewhere in the house far removed from him. That is an unknown widow praying down the blessing of God upon the same man he hasn't stopped showing his kindness.

This man is our close relative in verse 21, and Ruth, the more the test said even said to me stay with my workers until they finished harvesting all migraine. In other words, he is providing for her the place of protection and of provision. You remember there's a Jewish lady here.

You know Jewish moms. I grew up 1/3 of my class and Glasgow world Jewish so I spent all my time with Jewish boys and girls tell you about. On another time, but I met a lot of Jewish moms and Jewish moms are heavy-duty wonderful ladies but they know what's going on and they make it very clear that they are in control of what's going on and you see this coming in here Dona is is is basically the end of the day. In it he said she said she said he said what did you say and then what did you see and where did you go and he took me to the water cooler out of that feeling what he said.

He said this and she said that is just as animated conversation, you know, between these two ladies and she says he actually said to me you can stay with my workers and the only said the root it will be good for you my daughter to go with his girls and is to go with his girls because in someone else's field, you might be harmed. See the protection of Naomi casinos. All those harvesters are all out there going hey, who's the current one who's a girl. Where did she come from who's the new one even shows up and he said who's this in the present. Is this the more attacks it is what she like she's good. She works hard.

She didn't ask for anything.

She's a good good work places. That's interesting. He's not attracted to this girl in the first instance because of her shape because her shape what it means when one would have been obscured by her clothes going to snare somebody by your shade. Glad you want to marry her shape. I got news for you. Marry her shape. The shape once they actually end you Mr. fancy plans you understand. You ain't saying that she needed that you already know about shape is one thing for a girl to make herself attractive. It is another thing for a girl to make herself seductive. You girls know the difference. And so do we men the attraction here is not an attraction of physicality. It is an attraction of character is an attraction of endeavor is an attraction that is built out of the things that are lasting values on the journey of light. Take my advice is an old man the kind of jewelry you want to find your girl wearing is the jewelry from first Peter of a gentle and quiet spirit, and the kind of attractive qualities that you're looking for in a guy is first of all a guy wouldn't take himself too seriously was able to laugh at himself. Who knows, frankly that is a large pain in the neck because his mother told him that and his sisters confirmed it so I suggest a sidebar in closing on how to find a wife or husband, but as soon as you know is they are, then you can continue the conversation.

If he is in there, then let them stew in the oven for a while in the hope that he may get there by the pay no attention to them at all because you don't want to have any time with them. Nonmetal, so Naomi time is gone were done Naomi. She says it be good for you to stay with his girls ancient Scottish commentator gets the last word. Here it is. What number of young persons take rash steps in the journey of life which cannot be retraced because they rather choose to follow the impulse of their own passions than to ask and follow the advice of those who brought them into the world interested in why did you guess was Mark. It's only a matter of a few years since you would go up and down the stairs asking your mother shooting the shoes go over these trousers to think of this goes with this what to do with this, you like my hair like this. What about that to like this. Should I get that. What course should I take into. Could you help me with this and so on, and that all of a sudden you come walking in the door with the sky use this. This is no Bartholomew who the devils.

Bartholomew he's the love of my life is my ticket to Nirvana is my future earning. I hope not. Why, because I never met this sucker before you and your dad. You mean that SANS I hope so. I love you with a passion. I've watched you every inch of your growth.

I think I know you as well as anybody in the face of God's. I'm glad you brought them home, but honey only a friendship anything more than a friendship when it begins and most of the follow-ups in interpersonal relationships in your arena have to do with the physicality that is driven by a culture in which we live in one of the ways that you can stand true. Obviously, definitively different in this community is to learn not to go with the rash impulses of your passion to check them against the advice and counsel of those who love you most and care for you most so that together you may be able to go forward and like Ruth say I'm going to go and find favor wife iPhone. I hope in the rest of the day. I will live under God smile.

Question for each one of us is, are we people who seek God's favor and then praise him for his provincial that's almost her biggest challenge to us on Truth for Life will return shortly to close today's program. Let me remind you if you are enjoying your current encore 2022 series of messages from Alastair we have a USB that contains 123 of Alister's most popular messages from the past. It's a collection we call 10 years of favorites. You can purchase the USB for just five dollars at our online store Truth for Life.org/store. It is our practice of Truth for Life to offer as many free or at cost resources as possible. We want to provide clear, relevant Bible teaching to anyone who desires to learn more were able to do this because of truth partners truth partners or generous listeners like you who pray for the ministry of Truth for Life and to give consistently to help cover the cost of producing this daily program.

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A simple guide to getting the most from the Bible. This is a very practical handbook that will be a welcome addition to every Christian's library. Not all of the books in the Bible were written to be read the same way. For example, you wouldn't read the book of Ecclesiastes, the way you'd read Ephesians you would read the Psalms, the way you read the Gospels, read this first gives you helpful tips for reading the various books in the Bible in a way that will help you understand and get the most benefit from your reading request your copy of read this first when you sign up to become a monthly truth, partner or with a one time donation@truthforlife.org/donate now, here's Alister with prayer father, thank you again for the Bible.

Thank you for the story of Ruth. Thank you for the privilege of being in this place at this time. Today anything that is just drivel. We pray that you will banish it from our minds. Anything that is untrue, that it may be corrected in our own reading and further study and only that which is of yourself, and makes for the building up of men and women may be retained and made stir within our hearts, a passionate longing to live for the praise of your glory.

We thank you for the prospect of this day the privilege of this time for all that remains to us to enjoy seminars and studies in praise and interaction with our friends.

We commit our loved ones into your care and we thank you for your abiding love in Jesus name on and about looking hope you enjoy the weekend and are able to worship with your local church and then join us again Monday as we find out how we can trust God when suffering in our lives seems like it will never end. The Bible teaching of Alister Bragg is furnished by Truth for Life Learning is for Living