How should we approach God in prayer and rely on Him for our earthly provisions? How can we grow in our communion with God and dependence on Him especially in an age where resources for daily life are available in abundance? How should we approach God for forgiveness of sins? Listen to the sermon to learn more on the Lord’s Prayer.
Blaise Pascal once said – “There is a God shaped vacuum in the heart of every man which cannot be filled by any created thing, but only by God, the Creator, made known through Jesus.” In this passage, we learn how to find our satisfaction and fulfillment only in God.
The Bible is filled with God’s promises. These promises are not primarily about God promising to provide for material things. It is about God promising to keep the covenant which He made to His people. However, it’s not just important to see how God kept His promises and will continue to keep them, but also realizing that even His children are called to be faithful to the covenant keeping God of the Bible.
Bible constantly emphasizes God’s steadfast love and His mercy towards sinners since the beginning of creation. This kind of love is also reflected through God’s people among themselves. In the Book of Ruth, until 3rd chapter, Ruth’s steadfast love for Yahweh and Naomi’s nation is seen. In this passage, we now see Boaz’s steadfast love and kindness being displayed and its implications for us.
Christians can never be hopeless or in despair because they always have God on their side for help. But in reality, most Christians have a tendency to doubt God’s presence and His goodness in their life, which leads them to be in despair. In this passage, we see how God’s providence brings Christians out of difficult and desperate situations.
What do you do when there ‘seems’ to be no answer from the Lord in your current situation? Would you still remain committed to God? Would you still have a level of trust in the Lord without any bitterness against Him? In this passage, we see three characters from the book of Ruth, who respond very differently to God’s providence in their lives. Their responses teach us what genuine commitment to God looks like.
God abundantly blesses those who seek to live obedient lives. Obedient living does not allow for “accidents” in God’s plan. He orchestrates events in our lives to bring us to Himself, even through our misery and hopelessness. In the book of Ruth, we see Him working out His perfect plan in Ruth’s life, just as He does with all His children.
The God of the Bible is a promise keeping God, therefore our hope shouldn’t be dependent on our ability to manage life, or our distorted commitment to God, but on His faithful and unending commitment to us.
“Not only does the Lord through forgiveness of sins receive and adopt us once for all into the church, but through the same means he preserves and protects us there. For what would be the point of providing a pardon for us that was destined to be of no use? . . . We must firmly believe that by God’s generosity, mediated by Christ’s merit, through the sanctification of the Spirit, sins have been and are daily pardoned to us who have been received and engrafted into the body of the church.”
These are the words by John Calvin, a much needed reminder on God’s protection over His bride, the Church.
Christian life is about learning to trust God simply because of His unfailing love towards us as His children, and also for God’s faithfulness in keeping promises throughout history. The reason why trusting and believing in God is essential for us to persevere in faith is because we’re incapable of handling circumstances and uncertainties in life by our own strength and wisdom. This passage shows us how we’re called to keep believing in God’s promises especially when the situation might appear unfavorable.