It was Christmas 1974. My first year of college was half over and the Christmas break had arrived. I had never been away from home or my parents for that length of time. It was a whole four months. Sleeping on a cot in a room with three other guys was not like home. At home I had my own little room with my own little window a/c unit. To this day I can still remember the way the bed felt as I would fall into it after a long day hanging out with my friends. As I was riding home with Jimmy and Hal we were scanning the radio, manually. Cars in those days did not have buttons to begin a scan. There was a knob which was manually turned. John Denver was a popular singer in the 70’s and one of us came across a new song, at least to us. “Back Home Again.” Almost five decades later I still remember the tune.
“There’s a storm across the valley, clouds are rolling in,
The afternoon is heavy on your shoulders,
There’s a truck our on the four land, a mile or more away,
The whining of his wheels just makes it colder.
“Hey, it’s good to be back home again
Sometimes this old farm feels like a long-lost friend
Yes, and hey, it’s good to be back home again.”
The book of Ruth is named for a young girl that was not even Jewish, she was a Moabite. She became a beloved character in the Old Testament. God blessed her because of her heart. She committed herself to her mother-in-law, Naomi, and to her people, especially to her God. Naomi had lived with her husband Elimelech. This couple had two boys, Mahlon was the oldest and Chilion was the younger. Disobedience was the rule of the day during the times of the Judges (Ruth’s time) in Israel. “Every man did that which was right in his own eyes.” Not a wise way to live. Wisdom screams “Follow the Word of God not feelings!” But that is hard when the babies are hungry, and you are also. There was a famine in the land and Bethlehem was feeling the brunt as much as other places. Instead of trusting God, Elimelech packed up his family and headed off to Moab. Moab is a type of the world and things are never better in the world than in the will of God, especially for the child of God. A few years passed, Elimelech died leaving Naomi a widow with two sons who were young men of marrying age. So, Mahlon and Chilion found two Moabite girls and both the boys married. One married Orpah and one married our heroine, Ruth. Naomi is a widow herself, but she still has family until she did not. The boys died also. Heartbroken, Naomi decides to leave Moab and go back to her people in Bethlehem. Preparing to leave for home she tells her daughters-in-law to stay, find new husbands, and have good lives. Orpah hugged, cried, and then returned to her people. Ruth on the other hand, wept with Orpah and then told Naomi, “I am going with you.” Ruth 1:14 tells us that Ruth “clave” to Naomi. In my opinion Naomi is a picture of a Christian living in sin and the world. She is much like the Prodigal Son in Luke 15. The prodigal came to himself, and Naomi does also (1:6-7). What about you and me? Are we like Naomi? I do not think this widowed lady was living in open immorality. I do not think she was worshipping at the pagan altars of the Moabites. She just was not living in a right relationship with her God. She was in the world living the carnal life. It was a life of hardness, heartache, and carnality. What did she do that we should?
- Took Inventory and Decided to “Come Home.” Perhaps she never wanted to leave Bethlehem years before, but she was a good wife. She simply followed her husband. Her circumstances became a huge mess. Little decisions can have massive consequences. Wrong choices always lead to wrong places. Naomi took inventory of her life. Hearing that God had “visited” his people and there was bread in Israel, she decided to return. This fall we will begin working on our Sunday School again. We will start from where we are and build again. We will again become a church with a “teaching ministry.” We have teaching that is happening now from the pulpit and a few classes, but everybody needs to be taught the Word of God. So, we will rebuild our Bible teaching one block at a time.
- She Counted the Cost. Naomi tried to get Ruth to return to the Moabite people with Orpah. Naomi knew that a young foreign girl would be easy prey for the wicked men of Israel. Who would protect her? She was a foreigner with no rights. Ruth also had counted the cost. She knew being with Naomi and her God was better than being in the land of the pagans and all their blasphemies. “For a day in thy courts is better than a thousand. I had rather be a doorkeeper in the house of my God, than to dwell in the tents of wickedness” (Psalm 84:10). Have you wondered why it seems as though some people just never seem to get ahead? It is as if their purses and wallets have holes in them. Naomi was tired and bitter. She even calls herself Mara because the Lord had dealt bitterly with her (1:20). But not so bitter that she did not know how to fix the problem. She counted the cost and headed home.
- She went to the Place of Blessing. Bethlehem was being blessed. It would be blessed in the near future with David, the future king, and then one thousand years after David with the King of kings and Lord of lords, Jesus the Messiah. Naomi knew God from her childhood and young adult years. But with the leadership of her husband, she had drifted. She longed for the blessing of God. Perhaps she would never have the joy she once did, but maybe God would let her have some. Hearing of bread in her little hometown, she went back home. Not expecting much except to be with her people and perhaps a little kindness from them, she arrives home. In a short time, all her prospects begin to change. Ruth is spotted by Boaz. He is wealthy and handsome. He provides for Ruth and by extension Naomi. Boaz redeems the rights of Naomi and marries Ruth. In a short time after the marriage a little boy is born named Obed. All the bitterness is replaced with joy. Why? Naomi is back home where she is supposed to be. Are you where you are supposed to be? Are you making sure that the Lord has first place in your heart and life? Do you make decisions based on the Word of God? If your life is like Naomi’s in Moab you know there is not much joy mulling around in Moab. But, if you take an inventory and count the cost then you will know that it is time to come home.
“Hey, it’s good to be back home again
Sometimes this old farm feels like a long-lost friend
Yes, and hey, it’s good to be back home again.”
The Lord is waiting for you just like the prodigal’s father. He has open arms wanting you to return. Not only does He have open arms, but the church doors are open also.