[Homeward]
Ruth 1:1-22
'Homeward' means salvation figuratively, but there are also many who came back home literally. I will share the testimony of Ruth, which is my confession, for one soul to come back home. I pray that your prayers for the one soul to come back would come fulfilled. On the way home:
First, the first famine comes. Everyone could face a famine in many ways. All those famines work together and make us return to the Fathers Home. A leader plays an important role during the famine. If God does not always sit on the throne in our life, all of us will not be able to escape the evil generationl we have to remember this. Judah means praised, and Bethelehm means house of bread. Later, Jesus was born in this Bethlehem of Judah. And Moab had been cursed that they could not be a part of the Lords assembly. The family which had to stay in the house of bread and praise just moved to Moab, where God had nothing to do with the people, for money and success without asking any questions. They had put family in the seat of God. They could not interpret the famine which came as a means of punishment because of a leader who did not have Biblical values. They rather left for Moab, a better environment. Elimelek means God is his king, and Naomi, the name of his wife, means good and pleasant. A famine came to this pious family, and the true nature of their faith was discovered.
Second, God allows the second famine.
Jesus had to come through this family, so God had to discipline them. After making a wrong choice, the husband died. Freud used the phrase the loss of the object. It means that a mother becomes addicted to the death of her husband then earns depression, hyperthyreosis, and cancer. Then the sons who are tired of this mother become addicted to games and skip schools, et etc. And in the end, everything is lost. We can solve the famine by interpreting. There are many who ruin others because they only focus on the fact that they have become widows. But, even in a loss, we have to think about what is left. We have to remember that we still have two sons to continue the spiritual line. I became widowed in my thirties and came across many famines, but I had seen what was left in my husbands death. But Naomi did not see what was left. She tried to recover in Moab without turning back to the house of praise and bread. She even married her sons off to Moabite women, the non-believers. This step was only natural because they had to live like the Moabites. People also leave church when they get divorce, fail business, and have affairs, saying that they would come back when they are recovered. But the church is not some social club.
Third, the third famine came through Gods love. If they had been neglected by God, He would have just left them as they were. But the two sons died too. Even in the most painful suffering, we have to see what is left. If we have faith in Jesus, there is still something left. Naomi did not have the strength to stand up to leave Moab. Now that there came the third famine, the Lord is mentioned for the first time in six verses. The omnipresent God visited Naomi through His grace. If there is this one person who did not have any strength to stand up in this place, I believe that God will visit you. Some say how dare she return to the house of bread and praise, but if one listens to the Word, he can return to the House of the Father. Understanding the Word means, taking a complete u-turn from Moab, the worldly values, and all obsessions and addictions upon repentance. When we understand the Word, we think of the community and stand up with the two daughters-in-law. There are limits for people. Naomi finally began to see what was left for her and understand the Word in the third famine. I thought I was flawless, but I began to see my sin when I was put to the lowest place. I began to interpret and understand everything as I had repented, and as I had interpreted the suffering, I could solve the problem. I also saw what was left to me and turned back from the worldly value of Moab. Since then, God has made me walk the same path constantly, and even though I lived alone for thirty-four years, He has let me carry out the mission.
Fourth, the famine became a star from a scar. Two women came to Bethlehm. But instead of welcoming her, everyone mocked Naomi that her husband and sons had died after leaving during the famine. Naomi means good and glad, and Mara means bitter. She told people to call her bitter. She faced herself and admitted her sin this is a testimony. It seemed that two miserable women came back, but it was a turning point in the redemption history. Ruth became the direct ancestor of Jesus. Ruth had made a determination of faith that she would make her mothers people hers and her mothers God hers. And God had given Ruth to Naomi. The other daughter-in-law, Orpha, had bid farewell in grace and went away gracefully, but she was not saved. The choice lasted for a moment, and the result lasted forever. Ruth could make the decision for God first and then for the trust she and Naomi had. Naomi came back to the Lord, and God had allowed the most joyous encounter even though there was nothing in the third famine. There is no one-sided relationship between spiritual partners. Because men are not God. After Naomi had shared her story, the harvest started. The passage began with famine in verse 1, but it ended with a prolific harvest. God does not give us suffering because He hates us. Since I began sharing my testimony, my famine also became a rich harvest. You have to choose the way home. I believe that we all will be in the center of the redemption history, turning the famine into a good harvest.
