Lesson #8: God Blesses Ruth

Hi Parents:

Its been a little while since the last post.  But this Sunday, the lesson moved from Judges to the Book of Ruth.  Note last week (Week 7) was a review session for the kids, so there was no homework. Below is the teacher devotion, and the student take home sheets and theme posters can be found in the Parents Corner.

As discussed in the devotion below, Boaz can be viewed as a type of Christ, because of his desire to redeem his kinsmen, and the care, compassion, and great love he had for Ruth and Naomi.  Here is a link (http://waterstone.org/a-willing-heart-the-story-of-boaz/) to a wonderful summary of the Book of Ruth, and in particular succinctly delves into the character of Boaz and why he is a model of biblical giving, a precursor to the sacrificial giving of our Lord Jesus Christ.

Enjoy!  Brian

Teacher Devotion

Scriptural Background

Before you begin to prepare for your lesson this week, please prepare your heart and mind by reading the book of Ruth. It is a beautiful story of loving loyalty, integrity, courage, and redemption. During the time of the judges (Ruth 1:1), Naomi and Elimelech, natives of Bethlehem in Judah, with their two sons, Mahlon and Chilion, moved to the country of Moab to avoid a famine. Elimelech died in the land of Moab, and afterward the two sons married Moabite women, Ruth and Orpah. After about ten years, the two sons died, leaving Naomi alone with her daughters-in-law.

In that time and culture, life was very difficult for a widow. Naomi told Ruth and Orpah to return to their own people as Naomi intended to return to hers. She explained that she was too old to have more sons, and even if she did, it would take too long for the sons to grow up to be the husbands of her daughters-in-law. 

Both daughters-in-law protested. Orpah finally did return to her people. Ruth, in contrast, adamantly refused, declaring determined allegiance, not only to Naomi but also to her people and to her God (Ruth 1:16–17). This is to be understood as more than personal loyalty and love to Naomi. Rather, Ruth declared her intent to forsake her family and the false religion of the Moabites and to attach herself to the covenant people of the true God. In that culture, Ruth took a radical and courageous step. Certainly she must have loved Naomi, but this kind of commitment to Israel and to God, regardless of the lack of familial connections in Israel, was a nearly certain path to poverty. Naomi may have been beloved by Ruth, but she was not in a position to do anything for her material needs. Ruth’s courage is much to be admired. 

When Ruth and Naomi returned to make their home in Bethlehem, they were in the position of little more than beggars. This was evidenced in the manner Ruth obtained food for them, following harvesting field workers and picking up (“gleaning”) what little they dropped as they harvested. It was customary (and commanded in Leviticus 23:22) to allow the poor to gather food this way. The owner of the field, Boaz, compassionately instructed his young men to leave more than usual for Ruth, and Boaz recognized and admired the path this young Moabite woman had followed. His blessing to her makes it clear that she had not only been loyal to Naomi but had also entrusted herself to the Lord God of Israel: “A full reward be given you by the Lord God of Israel, under whose wings you have come for refuge” (Ruth 2:12). 

Boaz was a close relative of Naomi’s, one who could be expected to take responsibility for the care of Ruth and Naomi. In chapter 3, after being instructed by Naomi, Ruth came to Boaz by night at the threshing floor in a manner intended to show that she wished to be under his care; and Boaz responded favorably, impressed with Ruth’s virtue and her kindness in not pursuing younger men. Boaz was apparently much older than Ruth (Ruth 3:10–11).

The story culminates in chapter 4 when Boaz confronted another, closer relative of Naomi’s with the opportunity he had to “redeem”—to buy back into the close family—the land that had belonged to Naomi’s husband. The redemption of the land included, by custom in Israel, the responsibility to care for the widow of Elimelech (Naomi). The care also included Ruth since she was part of the family and, because she was a young woman, involved marriage to her for the continuation of the family name (Ruth 4:5). Naomi’s closer relative was unwilling to get involved, since it would affect the inheritance in his own family. Boaz was willing—and apparently a good deal more than willing—to marry Ruth. His redemption and marriage to Ruth led to her occupying a place in David’s, and eventually Jesus’s, ancestry as the great-grandmother of King David.

Historical/Apologetics Background

The redemption of Ruth by Boaz is a touching story of commitment and compassion, but it is much more than that. As Ruth’s close relative (“kinsman-redeemer” in the NIV), Boaz is certainly a type of Christ, our Redeemer. While it was costly for Boaz to redeem Ruth, Jesus Christ paid so much more for His bride. He set aside the privileges of His Godhood for our benefit (Philippians 2:5–11). For our sakes, He who was rich became poor (2 Corinthians 8:9). He who was without sin became sin for us so “that we might become the righteousness of God in Him” (2 Corinthians 5:21). Boaz went beyond the call of duty to show his love and concern for Ruth, and Jesus more so.

It is also significant in this account that Ruth was a Gentile (a non-Israelite). The picture of her being drawn into covenant in the nation of Israel recalls God’s promise to Abraham in Genesis 17:4 that he would be the father of many nations. It also foreshadows God’s promise that His Messiah, Jesus, would be a “light to bring revelation to the Gentiles” (Luke 2:32).

Before The Throne

Merciful Lord, I praise you because you have compassion on sinners and have provided a wayfor me to know you. Thank you for recording these events in the lives of Naomi, Ruth, and Boaz. Ruth’s faithfulness spurs me on to be more faithful to you. Boaz’s compassion encourages me to look to Jesus, remember the compassion he had on me, and share that compassion with others in my life. Help me to share your truths with my students in an accurate, clear, and fun way. My heart yearns for them to know you, love you, and live for you alone. Draw them to you, Lord.

Lesson #6: God Remains Faithful

Dear Parents:

Below is the Teacher Devotion for Lesson #6, which will be taught to your kids this coming Sunday. It provides a nice recap of the Book of Judges.  The Teacher's Devotion includes a summary of the 13 Judges, the biblical reference where each Judge is mentioned and the number of years that they served as Judge for the nation of Israel.  Also this link (Timeline of the History of Israel) is a nice timeline summary of where the Judges fit with respect to Biblical History.  I thought this was a useful chronology that puts the history of Israel in context with the various books and prophets of the Old Testament.  Bottom line...God is and remains faithful to His people despite our unfaithfulness.

Homework and Lesson Themes for this past weekend (Lesson #5) can be found here.

Enjoy and have a blessed week!

Teacher Devotion

Scriptural Background

Before you begin to prepare for this lesson, please prepare your heart and mind by reading Judges 10–16; Hebrews 11:30–34; and 1 Corinthians 10:1–11. It is a substantial amount of reading, but you will find it helpful to see the continued pattern through Israel’s history in the period of the judges. This period of the 13 judges extended over about 300 years. It began around 1350 BC with the first judge, Othniel, and ended with the prophet and judge Samuel. It occurred during a very dark time of backsliding in Israel’s history. Within the book we see the repeated themes of the Israelites’ disobedience to God and God’s faithfulness to forgive, reward, and protect the people when they turned in humble contrition. We also see the recurring theme that God uses people—even the wicked, idolatrous enemy nations of Israel, and the imperfect judges — to bring judgment, to promote reconciliation with His people, and to fulfill His perfect will however He deems necessary.

The recurring cycle of the book of Judges is recapped clearly in Judges 2:16–19: 

"Nevertheless, the Lord raised up judges who delivered them out of the hand of those who plundered them. Yet they would not listen to their judges, but they played the harlot with other gods, and bowed down to them. They turned quickly from the way in which their fathers walked, in obeying the commandments of the Lord; they did not do so. And when the Lord raised up judges for them, the Lord was with the judge and delivered them out of the hand of their enemies all the days of the judge; for the Lord was moved to pity by their groaning because of those who oppressed them and harassed them. And it came to pass, when the judge was dead, that they reverted and behaved more corruptly than their fathers, by following other gods,  to serve them and bow down to them. They did not cease from their own doings nor from their stubborn way."

The moral climate during this time was pitiful.  There was no king, and everyone did what was right in his own eyes (Judges 21:25). Yet as we read the book of Judges, it is hard to miss God’s faithfulness and compassion toward His people. Over and over the Lord heard their cry and sent someone who would deliver them from the consequences of their own sin (Judges 3:9). This book provides an amazing picture of just how faithful God is to His people in spite of their lack of faith in Him (see 2 Timothy 2:13). He is always eager to forgive a truly repentant heart (1 John 1:9). He demands obedience and is gracious to discipline us in our disobedience—as a father chastens a son (Hebrews 12:6).  It is good to remember that God’s faithfulness to us is based on His character, and will never waver.

Judge	Reference	Years Judged
Othniel	Judges 3:9–11	40 years
Ehud	Judges 3:15–30	80 years
Shamgar	Judges 3:31	10 years
Deborah	Judges 4:4–5:31	40 years
Gideon	Judges 6:7–8:35	40 years
Tola	Judges 10:1–2	23 years
Jair	Judges 10:3–5	22 years
Jephthah	Judges 11:1–12:7	6 years
lbzan	Judges 12:8–10	7 years
Elon	Judges 12:11–12	10 years
Abdon	Judges 12:13–15	8 years
Samson	Judges 13:2–16:31	20 years

Historical/Apologetics Background

In order to make sense of the period of the judges, including the account of Samson, consider what God had been doing ever since Moses pleaded for Him not to forsake Israel (Numbers 14:11–19). Moses asked God to spare Israel, despite their faithlessness in siding with the ten spies who discouraged them from entering the Promised Land. The basis for Moses’s intercession was that God should show Himself faithful to Israel, not for their sake, but for His own glory’s sake. Otherwise, if Israel were forsaken, the nations would think God was unable to carry out His promises. In response to Moses’s plea, God relented. And in Judges, God’s glory was once again shown to Israel in His undeserved faithfulness, which was displayed in the constant cycle of Israel’s sin, God’s judgment, Israel’s cries, God’s deliverance, and the Israelites’ abuse of that deliverance by lapsing again into sin. God showed both justice in punishing Israel’s sin and faithful covenant mercy in repeatedly delivering the people from the oppression of idolatrous nations. By doing so, the Lord continually acted as a just judge and showed Himself as the God who is greater than the idols of the nations who oppressed Israel.

These accounts in Judges are written as an example to us (1 Corinthians 10:11). In our lives, God’s honor is at stake, and His faithfulness to us—His flawed, sinful, yet redeemed people—displays His greatness. This is a precious truth that we must handle carefully. Romans 6 warns that we must not abuse the grace of God. If we do, it may show that we are not truly His (1 John 3:4–9). Nonethe-less, God’s faithfulness and forgiveness toward His own are indeed unconditional. Praise Him!

Before the Throne

Merciful Savior, I humbly enter your throne room today. I praise you because you are faithful to sinners like me. You are just as faithful today as you were to the Israelites. Help me to teach my students to see your faithfulness. Bless them, Lord. Help them apply this lesson to their own lives.

Lesson #5: God Uses Gideon

Hi Parents:

Because of the retreat this past weekend, we took a break from the Sunday School schedule, and are reconvening this week with Lesson #5.  For the months of October and November, Thomas will be the teaching.   Below is the teacher devotion for the upcoming lesson.

While reviewing the devotion, Pastor Ethan's message a couple weeks back (Decide:Least Likely) came to mind.  How unlikely a hero of faith Gideon would be, similar to how unlikely Ehud would be called to be a Judge that would deliver Israel out of distress.   I was also struck by the impossibility of the task that Gideon had to face in human terms.  To battle 135,000 Midianite soldiers with an army of 300!  Come on!  Yet he had faith, and he did not let fear and doubt prevent him from choosing to respond in obedience and faith to God's specific calling.  If you have not had a chance to listen to last weekend's sermon from Guest Speaker Pastor Stephen Barr (Life Beyond Imagination: Stuck), it discussed the events of Numbers 13-14, and how fear and doubt operate to undermine our faith. Pastor Stephen made an impassioned plea for followers of Christ to reimagine faith/calling, tear down the walls of the "fortress of the familiar" and go out where God calls us to go by faith. In many ways, the calling that we may have is not all that different from these ordinary men we are reading about in Judges.

Hope you all have a blessed week!

Brian

Teacher Preparation

Scriptural Background

As you begin to prepare for your lesson this week, please prepare your heart and mind by reading Judges 6–8. The recurring cycle of Israel’s history during the time of the Judges continued for the 300-year period. This cycle included the Israelites’ disobedience and idolatry, God’s judgment on them through neighboring nations, their cry to God that He would deliver them, God’s mercy and compassion in raising up judges to deliver them, and f nally Israel’s fall back into disobedience. In Judges 6 we find that because the Israelites were once again doing evil in the sight of the Lord, God allowed them to be oppressed by the Midianites. They were now crying out to Him for help (Judges 6:6). The Lord was to provide an unlikely hero for them through Gideon.

The Angel of the Lord appeared to Gideon—who was threshing wheat in secret so that the raiding Midianites would not take it (not a very valiant act)—and called Gideon a “mighty man of valor.” He told Gideon that he would lead Israel to defeat its current oppressors, the Midianites. Gideon revealed his fear and lack of trust in the Lord as he responded that he was weak and of the weakest clan of Israel (Judges 6:15). But the Lord responded with confidence, explaining that He Himself would be with him. In Judges 6:14, the Lord told Gideon to “Go in this might of yours,” but God also clearly told him the source of that might: “Have I not sent you?” And in verse 34, as Gideon gathered men for battle, it was because “the Spirit of the Lord came upon Gideon.” Scripture is clear that it was the Lord moving in these events, using Gideon; it was not Gideon’s own strength or ability that won the victory.

We see, as the account unfolds, that God wanted His power alone to be demonstrated.In Judges 7, a substantial number of men had rallied to Gideon (though they would still have been out-numbered by the Midianites). In Judges 7:2–8, God gave Gideon orders to reduce the number of men who would participate in the battle. First, any who were fearful were commanded to leave. Next, God directed Gideon to accept only those who drank by lapping the water from their hands. Thus, the fighting force was reduced to a mere three hundred to face the Midianite army of 135,000. God wanted the victory of this battle to point to Him alone as deliverer. He did not want the Israelites to think for a minute that this victory was theirs. “And the Lord said to Gideon, ‘The people who are with you are too many for Me to give the Midianites into their hands, lest Israel claim glory for itself against Me, saying, “My own hand has saved me” (Judges 7:2).

The account of the battle is dramatic and noble. Gideon’s three hundred men stealthily approached the Midianites with covered lamps. Then suddenly, at Gideon’s signal, they broke the jars that covered them and shouted, “The sword of the Lord and of Gideon,” inciting panic among the Midianites (Judges 7:20–21). In the midst of this panic, God ordained that the Midianites

would turn their swords on each other—this was God’s battle, and the victory was accomplished by His power, working through Gideon’s obedience (Judges 7:22).

God used Gideon, a simple man, to accomplish a great victory against a fearful opponent. Gideon was obedient and proved to be strong, due to the Lord’s strength in him. Gideon was the fifth and one of the greatest judges of Israel. Because of his faith in the Lord, he is mentioned with the great and faithful saints listed in Hebrews 11:32.

As stated before, the victory for this battle was the Lord’s. It could only have been the Lord who would allow 300 men to defeat the Midianite army. Gideon realized this. The people were quick to forget as evidenced when they requested that Gideon rule over them (Judges 8:22). Gideon’s loyalty to God shone bright as he turned down this honor and reminded the people of God’s sovereignty in His rule over them (Judges 8:23).

Sadly, Gideon compromised his faith by requesting and accepting offerings of gold, plundered by Israel from their enemies, and he used the gold to make an ephod (a kind of ceremonial breastplate). This ephod, set up in Gideon’s city of Ophrah, became a snare to Gideon and to his family (Judges 8:27).

Historical/Apologetics Background

Gideon acted faithfully and courageously in battle, but God desires to be the object of His people’s worship and gratitude, and He will not share that worship: “My glory I will not give to another” (Isaiah 42:8). God used people all through history and continues to use people today to accomplish His will. But He makes it clear that even when He does so, it is He who always ultimately deserves the credit: “it is God who works in you both to will and to do for His good pleasure”(Philippians 2:13). Both the desire and the ability to obey God are the results of God working in us.

In Judges 8, we find that the men of Ephraim wanted to share the credit that belonged to God for the battle won. We then find that the men of Succoth and Penuel would not credit God (or anyone) without proof of a certain outcome. And finally, we see that Israel, rather than giving credit to God for using Gideon, gave Gideon credit instead of God.

This inclination to overlook and disbelieve that it actually was God who orchestrated the victory was at the root of Israel’s tendency to fall back into sin, even after a deliverance such as this. God uses His people to accomplish His perfect plans. But when the plans are accomplished, we must not forget that we are His workmanship created to do the good works He has prepared for us to do (Ephesians 2:10). To Him be the glory forever (Romans 11:36).

Before the Throne

Awesome God, you encourage me. I delight in your Word and am amazed at how you use simple and foolish people to accomplish your purposes. Even though Gideon was close to despair as he focused on the Midianites, you came to him and gave him hope and victory. Lord, help me to walk by faith in you and not to despair when my circumstances overwhelm me. Help me to model that kind of faith walk to my students. Cement your Word in our minds that we might not sin against you, and that we might be light and life to the dark world around us.