Notes and Questions for discussion from Wendy Haslam's sermon on Boaz

Hand out

Ruth Chapter 4:verses 1-8

The Marriage of Boaz and Ruth

4 No sooner had Boaz gone up to the gate and sat down there than the next-of-kin, of whom Boaz had spoken, came passing by.

So Boaz said, “Come over, friend; sit down here.”

And he went over and sat down.

² Then Boaz took ten men of the elders of the city, and said,

“Sit down here”; so they sat down.

³ He then said to the next-of-kin, “Naomi, who has come back from the country of Moab, is selling the parcel of land that belonged to our kinsman Elimelech.

⁴ So I thought I would tell you of it, and say: Buy it in the presence of those sitting here, and in the presence of the elders of my people.

If you will redeem it, redeem it; but if you will not, tell me, so that I may know; for there is no one prior to you to redeem it, and I come after you.

” So he said, “I will redeem it.”

⁵ Then Boaz said,

“The day you acquire the field from the hand of Naomi, you are also acquiring Ruth the Moabite, the widow of the dead man, to maintain the dead man’s name on his inheritance.”

⁶ At this, the next-of-kin said, “I cannot redeem it for myself without damaging my own inheritance.

Take my right of redemption yourself, for I cannot redeem it.”

⁷ Now this was the custom in former times in Israel concerning redeeming and exchanging: to confirm a transaction, the one took off a sandal and gave it to the other; this was the manner of attesting in Israel.

⁸ So when the next-of-kin said to Boaz,

*“Acquire it for yourself,” he took off his sandal.

*("In order to make every matter legal, a man would take off his sandal and give it to the other man. This was the way a contract was publicly approved in Israel.")

Summary of Sermon

Boaz’s redeeming of Ruth is a picture of Christ redeeming us.

For us all, even in sorrow and calamity, God can bring great blessings.

Ø      The events recorded in Ruth were part of God’s preparation for the births of David and then Jesus.

Ø      Because of Ruth’s faithful obedience, her life and legacy were significant even though she could not see all the result.

Ø      It is a lesson for us in living in faithfulness to God, knowing that the significance of our lives will extend beyond our life time.

Ø      To appreciate how Boaz foreshadowed Christ, we must first understand the significance of an ancient Israelite law concerning the kinsman-redeemer  It stated, “If one of your countrymen becomes poor and sells some of his property, his nearest relative is to come and redeem what his countryman has sold”

Ø      We know the term – The sins of the fathers.

Ø      Over the years I have uncounted people weighed down by such issues. The same steps apply to past generations as they do to us. Take them to the The Lord, he will forgive and heal.

Ø      Boaz’s redeeming of Ruth is a picture of Christ redeeming us.

Christ does indeed redeem us.

1, Question: - God put into the place the line to David and then Jesus.

Is this a new concept for us?

2. Question: - How does the marriage arrangement between Ruth and Boaz look from our Western culture?

Consider how other faiths and cultures may view marriage now.

3. Question: "What is the meaning of Christian redemption?"

Are you comfortable with the concept of redemption?

You may like to discuss the below answer.

Answer: Everyone is in need of redemption. Our natural condition was characterized by guilt: “all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” (Romans 3:23). Christ’s redemption has freed us from guilt, being “justified freely by His grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus” (Romans 3:24).

The benefits of redemption include eternal life (Revelation 5:9-10), forgiveness of sins (Ephesians 1:7), righteousness (Romans 5:17), freedom from the law’s curse (Galatians 3:13), adoption into God’s family (Galatians 4:5), deliverance from sin’s bondage (Titus 2:14; 1 Peter 1:14-18), peace with God (Colossians 1:18-20), and the indwelling of the Holy Spirit (1 Corinthians 6:19-20). To be redeemed, then, is to be forgiven, holy, justified, free, adopted, and reconciled. See also Psalm 130:7-8; Luke 2:38; and Acts 20:28.

4. Question: - do you see yourself as part of a family line?

Is this a good or difficult feeling?

Do you know of any awkward things that have taken place in your family history?

Do they still have an effect upon the family? (The sins of the father’s concept.)

If there is a problem, would you consider talking to a trusted person and then asking them to pray for you?