11th Jan 26 pm ~ The difference between life and death

And Ruth wants to teach us about the dangers of living that kind of life. And so it continues, in the days when the judges ruled there was a famine in the land, and the men of Bethlehem and Judah went to sojourn in the country of Moab, he and his wife and his two sons. Everybody did what was right in their own eyes, and that included this man from Bethlehem, who we learn is called Elimeleh. Bethlehem means house of bread. It was a small kind of village, but it was a very fertile land. In fact, Bethlehem was at the heart of Israel's grain production. [00:22:33] (35 seconds)  #KeepGodAsKing

``Israel wasn't just meant to be a home, It was a gift from God to his people that tied them to God. And then walking away from that land, they were walking away from God. And when the going gets tough, gets going. When the blessing stops, Elimelech leaves. He decides that his family would be better off outside of God's land, and shows a lack of trust in God to protect him during this famine. [00:23:36] (29 seconds)  #TrustGodsProvision

For the way these verses are written, I think we could say that he didn't really intend to be away for too long, but that isn't the case. The reality is that his actions today have dire consequences for his family tomorrow. Sometimes we have no idea the consequences of what we do. But like Elimelech, in our lives, we can find this one silly decision can have huge ramifications for others and for ourselves. [00:24:05] (30 seconds)  #ChoicesHaveConsequences

Orpah represents the stubbornness of the family who refused to return to God but remain in Moab. And even with the greater tragedy of Elimelech's passing, they only dig their stubbornness in, and their heels go in deeper, and they set up home in Moab. And Ruth, we're gonna discover, there's a reason why the book's called Ruth. Because in Ruth, represents a friendship that's going to change Naomi's whole life. It's an unlikely friendship between an Israelite and a Moabite woman, but it's gonna be the catalyst through which her whole life is restored again. And the word oh, it's awesome. [00:30:33] (40 seconds)  #RuthsFriendshipHeals

What's clear here is that Ruth wants us to realize that no matter the situation, even in times when we feel deserted by God like a famine, it's never ever worth walking away from God. Don't believe the lie. Learn from Elimele that since God is the very hope of eternal life, that we can trust him with our lives. That if we wake away walk away from him, it only makes everything worse by us taking away his presence and walking into spiritual death. [00:34:25] (40 seconds)  #FaithNotFleeing

Don't let just anyone tell you how to live your life. Don't live for other people's approval who don't have your best interests at their heart. But look at God who loves you with an immeasurable love, who sent his only son in the world to die on the cross for you. Folks, he has proven his commitment to you. And so when he says live, he's meaning this is life. This is living. [00:40:33] (40 seconds)  #LiveForHisLove

In God, we find our meaning and our purpose and our joy and completeness. It's this the wonderful word of of completeness and peace. It's often translated as shalom. Many of you will know it. Folk love to preach about it. They love to preach about it because it's such a deep word. It's a heavy word. It's this idea of being complete, whole, nothing missing, fulfilled. Look at those kind of words. That's the peace. It's like a satisfaction peace, and we find it in God alone. [00:41:18] (47 seconds)  #ShalomInGod

Trust him because he's proven himself to us. As we'll see that kingsman redeemer, we we see the reality of Jesus and what he has done on the cross, the assurance that he has proven. There is nothing more we can ask of him, and yet still he will give us more. Such is the wonder of his love for us. [00:44:29] (22 seconds)  #TrustTheRedeemer