“Blessed be the LORD, who has not left you this day without a redeemer, and may His name be renowned in Israel. He shall be to you a restorer of life…” – Ruth 4:14, 15
One of the consistent themes in this story of ours is that there is always hope. No matter the circumstances…no matter how bad things got in our story God offered hope. When the world ignored God and lived in reckless abandon, God called Noah to build an ark. When bondage seemed the norm for God’s people, he sent Moses to set them free. Later when the people were merely giving “lip service” to God, He spoke these words through Isaiah:
“Come now, let us reason together, says the LORD; though your sins be like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they are red like crimson, they shall be like wool.” – Isaiah 1:18
In every story, there is hope. There is always a chance given for redemption. God never walks away without calling our name. Even when judgement comes and the consequences of evil are experienced…it never comes without an opportunity to repent…usually many opportunities. You see, the story of the Bible is a love story. It is a story about a loving Father wooing His creation to come home and fall in love with Him all over again.
This is the power of the Bible. It is the story of real people with real struggles. It tells of the victories but also the failures. The Bible doesn’t sugar coat things like some fairy tale. It’s about life…the good, the bad, and the ugly. It’s about a God who gets down in the weeds with us and feels our pain and sees our tears. This is the message in a nutshell of the small Book of Ruth which is hidden in the middle of the Old Testament. It is about one family in crisis. A woman named Naomi loses all she has. Her husband dies and leaves her in a foreign country as a widow. She loses two sons and is left with two daughter-in-laws as widows. She returns to her homeland with one of them where she becomes dependent on the kindness of others. In other words…she is poor.
It is a story that gets our attention and seems hopeless. Where is God? How could He allow so much tragedy to come into one person’s life?
But God…
Unknown to Naomi and her daughter-in-law Ruth, God is active and has a plan that will bring redemption. HOPE. As dark as things may seem…HOPE. The story of Ruth doesn’t try to answer all our questions about evil in this world or “Why does bad stuff happen to good people?” These things, although important, can distract us from the most important message…HOPE.
The message is that God is with us and He knows our pain. He hears our cries. He senses your struggle…and He is with you and longs to comfort you and take care of you and redeem you…and your situation. That is the real meaning behind a favorite promise in the Bible:
“And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to His purpose.” – Romans 8:28
This verse doesn’t mean that everything goes well and good for those who are Christian. It means that God is with them in all situations and can redeem even the worst tragedies that may invade our lives. It is a promise of hope! That no matter what the circumstances around us we can trust…believe…have faith in our God who created us, loves us and wants to take care of us. This is the message of the Bible all the way to the cross and to your life today. Because of the cross…
…this can be your story.