YOU DESERVE TO BE LOVED

Pastor Bill Marks, Christian Fellowship, Potchefstroom, (018) 293 1608 or 079 311 6515 Let us continue with this wonderful love story of Boaz and Ruth. Ruth may have thought to herself that the best days of her life was over. In actual fact, the best days were only just beginning! Ruth 3:1: "One day Naomi, her mother-in-law, said to her, ‘My daughter, should I not try to find a home for you, where you will be well provided for?’" Naomi had Ruth’s well- being at heart, for she said, "Shall I not seek security for you." The Hebrew word for ‘seek’ is ‘baqash’, meaning: "To seek diligently until you have found the person or object." Verse 3: "Wash and ANOINT yourself, and put on your best clothes. Then go down to the threshing-floor, but don’t let him know you are there until he has finished eating and drinking." 1. Naomi instructs Ruth to wash herself. It is vitally important for us to apply God’s Word daily in our lives. Ephesians 5:25-26: "Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave Himself up for her to make her holy, cleansing her by the washing with water through the Word." 2. Anoint yourself. Matthew 6:17: "But when you fast, put oil on your head and wash your face." 3. Put on your best clothes. Our best garment is found in Isaiah 61:3: "The garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness." Ruth 3:8: "In the middle of the night something startled the man, and he turned and discovered a woman lying at his feet." Verse 9: "‘Who are you?’ he asked. ‘I am your servant Ruth,’ she said. ‘Spread the corner of your garment over me, since you are a kinsman-redeemer.’ Ruth says to Boaz, "Take your servant under your wing." Meaning: Spread your garment of protection over me. It was the culture of the Ancient Middle Eastern World that the practice of casting a garment over a person implied that you would like to engage in marriage. This is self-giving love, which fulfils God’s law. One day a woman related to me how her father had died at a young age. (When there is no father in the home, a daughter is affected in many ways. As she grows up and watches her father, she draws conclusions as to what men are really like). She was also suffering much pain and wounds in her life, because the man she was to marry called off the wedding at the last moment. This caused her to be afraid of engaging in any future relationships. I felt such compassion for this woman that I took off my jacket and placed it over her shoulders. The healing balm of Jesus restored her self-image and she was then able to forgive the man who so utterly disappointed her. Ezekiel 16:8,9: "‘Later I passed by, and when I looked at you and saw that you were old enough for love, I spread the corner of my garment over you and covered your nakedness. I gave you my solemn oath and entered into a covenant with you,’ declares the Sovereign Lord, ‘and you became Mine. I bathed you with water and washed the blood from you and put ointments on you.’" Here we see the symbolic expression of God’s love for Israel and for each one of us. Ruth 3:11: "And now, my daughter, don’t be afraid. I will do for you all you ask. All my fellow-townsmen know that you are a woman of noble character." Boaz’s fellow-townsmen acknowledged Ruth as a virtuous woman. Virtuous women are not doormats, but people who help their companions and are worth far more than rubies, for they receive favour from the Lord (Prov. 31:10-31). Sponsored by TG TRADERS