The Book of Ruth
*The Book of Ruth*
BIBLE STUDY- 4
We can find the names of five wome in the genealogy of Jesus Christ.
Out of the five, four of them have very questionable credentials.
Rahab was a prostitute.
Ruth was a widow.
Tamar had committed incest with her father-in-law and gave birth to Perez.
Bathsheba. was the mother of Solomon
Among these four women, Rahab and Ruth were Gentiles.
Boaz is the one who was born in the womb of Rahab, a prostitute in the land of Canaan. (Matthew 1:5)
Boaz's excellent qualities may also be attributed to his mother, Rahab.
That is why he has a special attraction or concern for Ruth, the Gentile widow.
Although Boaz was a wealthy Jew, he paid special attention to Ruth, a Moabite woman.
Even though she was a widow, he did not hesitate to accept her.
The reason may be his family background.
Boaz understood his mother's history very well. He learned that God accepted the Moabite widow Ruth's faith in the God of Israel, who left her own people to come with her mother-in-law just as God accepted his mother on the basis of her faith even though she was a prostitute.
Boaz was not just outwardly zealous for God as the other Jews.
He had an intellectual zeal for God.
What kind of knowledge or understanding it was, the knowledge that Jehovah God accepts anyone who seeks Him, regardless of race or language.
This is what Paul refers to in his letter to the Roman church in his later days.
"Since they did not know the righteousness of God and sought to establish their own, they did not submit to God’s righteousness."
(Romans 10:3)
According to the Jewish customs of that time, Gentile women who came as migrants from
other countries would be considered the most downtown people of the society. (Leviticus 23:22,19:9.) She was at the lowest rung of the social ladder.
Understanding how God accepted the poor and outcast Ruth he began to help her and eventually married her.
It is a sad thing that today's Christian leaders and believers lack this spiritual understanding of Boaz.
Let me compare this with today's situation.
How many believers are like Boaz today?
How many leaders have this mindset?
How many missionary movement leaders follow this?
Boaz was above money or race. It was the blood of Jesus Christ that broke down the wall of separation and made people of all races one.
What does this reveal about the absence of people like Boaz in our Christianity?
Christendom of today does not understand the true meaning of the gospel of Jesus Christ.
They have not yet realized the noble truth that God has made everyone who accepted Jesus Christ into one body.
Holding on to divisions is a sin. As long as they hold on to this sin, their gospel of deliverance is meaningless.
There are many lights that the Lord gives us when we meditate on Boaz. May our good God lead us to such lights.