The Village Church
The Trail That Lags Behind: Loyalty and Devotion - Audio
What does it mean to surrender all to Jesus? First it means to receive Him in saving faith. What does that mean, Alex? It's more than just knowing things about Jesus. It's more than just knowing the stories about Jesus. It's more than just knowing the Christmas story. The resurrection story is you, senior need for a Savior. Seeing your sin and asking that Savior to come inside your heart as your Lord and Savior. If the Spirit is moving to you this morning, if you have never done that, then please come and see me after the service and I'll tell you more about that. What it means to have saving faith in Jesus Christ. Amen, amen. If you have your Bible, please open it to the book of Ruth chapter 1. [Music] Troubles, bad decisions, and grief. All these things held down spots on the trail of Naomi's life. She did not have it easy. She knew what it was like to not have food because she'd been to a famine. She knew it was like not to have food. She knew it was like to leave the familiar, to go to the unfamiliar. Because she left her homeland and go live in the country of Moab. So she know what it's like to struggle with uncertainty. She knew what it was like to experience consequences of bad decisions. She knew what it's like to be a widow, to be childless. She knew what it's like to feel empty, to have grief. She went through some things in her life, people. But though she went through all these things, you have to understand that the things she went through, they did not have an exclusive hold on her life. Other things were at play as well. Yes, there are bad and good decisions in our life, joy and sorrow, ups and downs, success and failures, faithfulness, unfaithfulness, good and bad consequences. But our life experiences are not the only thing at play. Life experiences are not the only pieces on the chance of all your life. Jesus is as well, do you believe that? Do you believe that? That my life experiences are not the only thing at play here. The Lord is as well. And we saw last week, we saw the Lord intervene into Naomi's life. We saw him intervene into her grief. What did the verse say, Naomi rose with her daughter-in-law to return from the country Moab. For she heard and it fills a Moab that Yahweh had visited his people and given them food. That's the Lord at work. He is gracious to visit. This food he provided was a gracious gift. He was on the move and Naomi saw this as good news and this good news motivated her to rise up in the midst of her grief in order to return to the land of Judah. She was going back home to the land of her people to the place where Yahweh was worshipped. But not alone because her two darting laws were going with her. They were right alongside of her. You see, these two daughters were loyal and devoted to Naomi. And the Lord used that to move to work in Naomi's life. Their loyalty, their devotion, held down spots on the trail of her life. Very important spots. So look at with me at verse chapter one beginning at verse three. No, sorry, not verse three. Verse eight. But Naomi said to her two daughter-in-laws, "Go, return each of you to a mother's house. May the Lord deal kindly with you as you have dealt with the dead and with me." The Lord granted you may find rest each of you in the house of her husband. Then she kissed them and they lifted up their voices and wept. And they said to her, "No, we will return with you to your people." But Naomi said, "Turn back my daughters. Why will you go with me? Have I yet sons in my womb that may become your husbands? Turn back my daughters, go your way, find them too old to have a husband. If I should say I have hope, even if I should have a husband this night and bear sons, will you therefore wait till they were grown? Will you therefore refrain from marrying?" No, my daughters, for it is exceedingly bitter for me for your sake, that the hand of the Lord has gone out against me. And they lifted up their voices and wept again. And all four kissed her mother-in-law, but Ruth clung to her. She said, "See your sister-in-law has gone back to her people, to her gods. We'll turn out your sister-in-law." But Ruth said, "Do not urge me to leave you or to return from following you. But where you will go, I will go. Where you lodge, I will lodge. Your people should be my people and your God, my God. Where you die, I will die. There will be, there will be buried. May the Lord do to me more also if anything, but death, parts me from you. Amen. Let's pray. Lord, as I always pray every Sunday, this time is not about Alex. It's about Jesus. It's not about the preacher. It's about the Savior. And so my prayer that the Spirit will move my pride and everything that's wrapped up into me out of the way and that He will take over. That He will use these words to penetrate my heart in the hearts of everyone here. The Spirit works with the Word and through the Word Father. He has to do it. He has to take that Word. And so I pray that wherever we're dealing with today, that what it said today, would minister to everyone that's here and Christ in my prayer. Amen. So Naomi and her Darden laws were making this long journey back to the land of Judah, the three of them until Naomi stopped, broke the silence. She spoke for the first time and when she broke the silence, she made a plea to her Darden laws. And the police seemed to be like a selfless plea because she was concerned for them. She tells them to return to the mother's house. That's what she pleaded with them to do. She did not want them to return with her to the land of Judah, but to remain in their homeland with their people. And I'm sure this caught them off guard because they've been with Naomi for years now. She's been with her since she lost her husband and her two sons. Even though they lost their husbands, they did not abandon Naomi. They did not leave her side. Instead, they voluntarily stayed with her, walked alongside of her. They dealt kindly with Naomi. The kindness that they showed her was seen in their reliability, their compassion and loyalty to her in the midst of grief and pain. They shared in her burdens. They cared for the mother law. So much so, they were even going to go with her to Judah. Leave their homeland to return with her to hers. And Naomi knew they cared about her. Now, I'm sure she was grateful and thankful for them and their kindness. And she couldn't even repay them. She couldn't even pay them for all they done for her. Even if she wanted to, she didn't have the means, knowing she in the condition to do so. But what she offered them was a motherly blessing, a motherly blessing, and a prayer. She says, "May the Lord be accounted with you as you have dealt with the dead and with me." That's her praying over them, a farewell prayer that she sent them off. She was trusting that Yahweh will show them kindness, that he will be gracious to them for all that they have done for her. And what's the kindness that she wanted for them? Verse 9 tells us, "The Lord granted you may find rest, each of you in the house of her husband." She Naomi was concerned about them, particularly their future. She didn't want them to remain widows for the rest of their lives. That's why she prayed that God would give them new husbands. Why? Why is that? There were certain benefits that came, particularly in this culture, for a woman when she got married. Without just having a husband, certain things came with that. Privileges, benefits, protection, stability, security, provision. That's what she wanted for them. That's what she wanted Yahweh to do for them. And when they had those things, they had rest. That was rest. That's the rest she wanted for her two daughters. Protection, stability, security, provision. And for Naomi's point of view, the best option for them, for getting those things was to stay in Moab and not to return with her. And at this point of the story, the journey, emotions, or tense. The thoughts of the parting was hard. The women cried, wept together. Let's look their voices together. And here's the thing. This was just not Naomi saying goodbye, I see you next week. But as one Christian said, she formally freed the one women from any further responsibility towards her. Free them. These, these were her bringing an end to the relationship. Because she was not going to see them again. This was a permanent farewell. This was her attempt not to birthing them any further, but her junk. No more. You don't have to put up any more of my troubles and my grief and my despair. She was telling them, you have done enough. My daughters, you have done enough. It's time for you to move on with your life. Go return each of you to your mother's house. And the Lord did a colony with you as you have dealt with the dead and mean. The Lord granted you may find rest each of you in the house of her husband. And what do you think about that? Is that the Christian thing to me? Is it really a selfless plea on her part? I think she, she underestimates the importance of relationship. You see her relationship with these two women were the closest relationship she had left. Did she have family back in June and yes, but she ain't lived there in years. So outside these two women, she didn't have any close relationships. And she was getting ready to cut it off. Don't overlook the reality that Naomi is still in grief and hurting. And when you are in a lot of grief and pain, you're not always in your right frame of mind. And you're definitely not in a position to make important decisions, like cutting off important relationships when you need them. So to me, this is, this is not just her being concerned about her daughters. I think it's also her pushing them away that she feel like she's too much of a burden for them now. That she's holding them back for moving on with her like their life. It was reported last month that a farmer all prolonged back and committed suicide. And many of you are probably familiar with that story. And one of his teammates came on the Sports Talk radio show that I listened to often. And he said, he never knew he was going through all this stuff. This teammate said he wished he would have let his friends inside. Wish he would have reached out to them about the demons that he was dealing with. Because when he's with his friends, everything was good. But when he went home, the demons came. Eventually, he took his life. He took his life. And all of his friends and family don't know what happened. I didn't, I kept hearing him. People say I never knew he was dealing with things like this. He never let us in. He never said anything about it. I believe we have churches filled with the same type of people. People who don't let others share in their burdens. People who say I got this, I can own this. I don't need any help from anyone. I can help other people, but you know what? I don't need any help. I got this. If you're in a midst of grief, hardships, the last thing you need is to do is to avoid your relationship with people in your life. The last thing you need to do is to push those that care about you away from you. Stop it. Don't do that. And I hear this a lot too. "Well, Pastor, I just don't want to be a burden to anybody." I hear that constantly from church folks. Christ calls us to be a burden, to share in one of those burdens. He calls us to do that. You need the loyalty and devotion of families and friends. You need to know that when you need it most, the people you care about are going to be there. Buy your side. Do you know that? Do you? To walk alongside of you? Yeah, you walk alongside of other people, but do you have folks in your life that are going to walk alongside of you? When you need it. Because if you're down here thinking you ain't going to need it, then you're in a road of trouble because one day you're going to need it, but do you have it. Don't let your pride and individualistic mindset prevent you from that. There's no weakness in asking for help when you need it. It's just prideful to not ask for help when you need it. Don't get it confused. And here's another thing that I'm also learning is don't sell short what you're going through. Don't overlook your burdens in Greece by denying them because you think you got to deny what you're going through to show love for other people. I tell you, deal with your grief and issues as well and also show concern for other people. Don't abandon what you need when you need it most. Loyalty devotion that comes from a genuine relationship, we all need that. And this is what Naomi was about getting ready to abandon. Write that, that loyalty, that devotion. Because the Lord ministered to Naomi through these two women. Now that the authors are going to all of that, but they were with her. They didn't leave her, they could have left her, but they didn't. She was getting ready to cut ties with them, but they weren't going away easily. They said, no, no, no, no, no, we're going to go with you, to your people. And then Naomi responded with a question, a revealing question. In verse 11, she says, "Turn back my daughters, why will you go with me?" What do you think about that question? What do you think when someone says, ask questions like that? Why will you go with me? Why are you dating them? Really, why are you with me? Why? What's underneath those questions? So does underneath those questions. You know what's underneath those questions? A sense of ruthlessness, helplessness, despair, hopelessness. That's what's underneath questions like that. Because Naomi was empty, needy. She thought she no longer had anything at all for her daughters. She was like, look at my life. I'm a widow, I'm childless, broken, filled with grief. My life is a mess, so how do you want to go with me? I'm just going to be a burden on you, so why come? I free you from any further responsibility to me. Go live your life, go. Notice that she didn't even give him a chance to answer the question. So she started assuming things, she told them, I don't have any more sons to give you, basically. Even if I should get married and have sons, are you going to awake to their groan? Are you going to refrain from marrying? Coming with me, my daughters, will prevent you from finding the rest that you need. Coming with me will prevent you from finding the security and the stability and the provision that comes from marriage. Coming with me will prevent you from moving on with your life. She tells them, it's more better for me than for you, because that Lord's hand has turned against me. Bingo. That's the heart of it. It's more better for me than for you. The Lord's hand has turned against me in my life. She assumed her grief and her business and her hardships was different than theirs, worse than theirs, because Yahweh is against her now. She sounds like her life is cursed. And to be around her, we're just going to bring more misery into their life. She was giving up hope that one day giving up hope that she could once again get the rest she wanted for her daughters. I hope you see that in that verse in the verses. Well, she wanted for them she no longer had anything she was ever going to get it again. Protection, stability, security, provision. Do you see the love of her despair? Carelessness, hopelessness. A Christian counselor says, the number one characteristic of a person disparaged this. You're better off without me. You're better off without me. And when you unmask Naomi's plea to her daughters, this is what you see. On daughters, you are better off without me being in your life, because I'm too messed up. Have you ever said that to your spouse, to a loved one? You're just better off without me. I'm holding you back. Just move on. Just leave me behind. Just go on with your life. I'm holding you back. Leave. Have you known someone have said that? My encouragement to you is that that's a sign that you're not doing well. That's a sign that you're not doing well. Don't abandon what you need most, what you need when you need it most. You need the loyalty and devotion that comes from a good spouse, a good parent, a good friend. You need that. And if you're trying to abandon that, that's a sign that you're not doing well. Don't push away what you need. Naomi was trying to push away her two daughters at this moment. The relationships you had with them. You see, they were not coming with Naomi because they wanted something from her. Do you know why they were coming with her? Do you know why they stayed with her all these years? Because they love Naomi. That's why. They were coming with Naomi for Naomi, not for what she could and could not give them. Yes, she was needy, but you know what? They shared in it because they love her. That's loyalty. That's devotion. That's relationship. Do you have it? Or are you afraid of it? The Lord often ministers through His people, through people, particularly His people. Because Jesus is not going to come down here and rub your back. For your brother and sister will. He's not going to come down here and crown you with you on your shoulder. For a brother and sister will. And when they're doing that, that's Jesus using them to minister to you. Let them minister. Let them minister. That's how He does it. This is what was taking place in Naomi's life. His hand was not against her. It may have felt like it, but by them being there shows you that his hand was actually working in her back through relationship. Naomi probably couldn't see that moment. I'm sure she didn't, and she still pleaded with them to go. Eventually, you know, Oprah left, but Naomi did not leave. I mean, Ruth did not leave Naomi's side. It says in verse 14, "Then they lived up their voices and wept again, and Oprah kissed her mother-in-law, but Ruth clung to her." Ruth denied her mother-in-law's plea. It said that she clung to her, which is the expression of a deep, firm devotion on Ruth's part. She was not going to leave her side. She committed herself to being with Naomi on a permanent basis. And as one Christian says, "The author gives us Naomi's words, her classic and beautiful affirmation of faithfulness." She's going to be faithful to her. Naomi wills to share Naomi's future. Her travels, her home, her faith. It's a promise of committed faithfulness and life for life. She was not going anywhere. And I think we need to know that about those that are in our life. That they are not going anywhere. For me and Raquel went through our marriage counseling. You know, one of the things that were huge for my marriage counseling was her being there. Because I had abandonment issues. I always thought people I care about was going to be into abandonment. And that was huge for me to know that she was going to be there where I needed her mother. She has and we continue to be there. We need to know that in our relationship. That the people we care about are going to be there when we need them. They're not going to abandon us. The Lord is at work in your life. If you're in the midst of grief, he's at work. Always at work. His past Wednesday had a conversation at some of the village with a young man who pretty much shared his whole life story with me. You know, in about an hour. And he told me about his troubled past and his own personal demons. So he had a hard life, aged 20, hard life, been through a lot. And I think he's learning from some of his bad decisions. You know, he told me he's learning from the mistakes and he's trying to make better decisions. You know, doing this, our conversation, he she'll a lot about his troubled relationship with his dad. And how he was never dead for him when he needed them. And that has had an effect on his life. He said on one occasion, occasion, he approaches that about being more active in his life. He wanted a good relationship with his father. He wanted him to be a father to him. And this is what his dad told him. I'm not much on being a father, but I'll be your buddy. Let's be buddies. I ain't much on being a father, so let's just be buddies. When was the name of that? Imagine what those words did to this young man, it cut him. He told us that I got a lot of buddies, but I don't have a father. I don't have that father I can come to to get wisdom and advice and counsel. I have plenty of buddies, but I don't have a father. He longed for it and wanted and needed the loyalty and devotion of his dad and didn't have it. We were created to be in relationships with God and with other people. And I'm not talking about sports buddies, we talk about Auburn, Alabama football. I'm not talking about drinking buddies. I'm not talking about shopping buddies, ladies. But I'm talking about relationships that get below the surface of life. That's what I'm talking about, people who know you, people who know your junk, your pain. But then you know when you tell them they're not going to abandon you. They're going to still be there for you and you miss that. That's what I'm talking about. A friend that sits closer than a brother is what we all need. Don't abandon that. Long for that and pray for that. Let's pray. Father, we're always tempted to abandon the things that we need when we need them most. We're all struggling with that. I know what I do. I know everyone here does. And we need relationships. We need a loyalty and devotion of close friends. Because eventually, Lord, we're going to be the one who's needy. You're not going to ever live this life and I will be needy. Now, if we're going to live this life and not ever need someone to walk alongside of you, give us the humility, Father, to let others inside our circle of pain and grief and hurt. Lord, because this is what the church is for. This is not, this is not a country club. This is not us coming together and dealing with the surface of things of life. And this is all we talk about is sports and what's on sale at the mall. This is what we come and deal with pain, what's going on in our life. We're not playing church. We're here to be real. And we can't fake that. It takes the spirit to move our hearts in that direction. And we can't make it happen. It's something that we grow into. And Lord, grow us into that. Now, we ain't got to come here and arrow all our dirty laundry. But Lord, we got to have relationships within his body or with other people that know us and we know them. That I can call them and let them know what's going on. When I need them most. So spirit, help us to let others in. Give us the humility to say I need help. When I need help in crafting my plan.