December 28, 2023 - Ruth 4:9-12

We’re nearing the end of our story.  Well, that’s not exactly true, is it?  Ruth’s story is the continuation of a story begun long ago and a story that has much more to be told.  There are scenes, which are important to take one by one.  Boaz brings the situation before the elders and all the people as witnesses, explaining that the descendants of Naomi, through Ruth, will inherit all the inheritance, not him.  What integrity, not only in the granting of the inheritance to Naomi’s descendants but, also, in bringing all the people in as witnesses.  There will be no going back.  There will be no future court cases.  There will be no fights with Boaz as to who owns the inheritance.  There’s a billboard on Lexington Avenue that I have seen while driving to Baxter.  It's an ad for a big law firm, which states, “Size matters!”  The idea is that, in court proceedings, you don’t want some small, inconsequential law group representing you.  You want a big firm with lots of resources.  Size matters.  But even more, integrity matters.  And we see it in abundance with Boaz, a good man for us to emulate.  One final thought, this morning, which finds its fuller meaning in the closing verses that follow today’s text.  The people say to Boaz, “May your house be like the house of Perez, whom Tamar bore to Judah, because of the offspring that the Lord will give you by this young woman” (4:12).  That is, may the Lord bless you mightily because of your integrity and faithfulness!  The Lord does that, you know!  And so, we pray and sing:

Be Thou my Vision, O Lord of my heart;

be all else but naught to me, save that Thou art;

be Thou my best thought in the day and the night,

both waking and sleeping, Thy presence my light.

Be Thou my Wisdom, be Thou my true Word;

be Thou ever with me and I with Thee, Lord;

be Thou my great Father, and I Thy true son,

be Thou in me dwelling, and I with Thee one.   -- Mary E. Byrne (1919)

That is, let me be like Boaz but, even more, like Jesus!  “To this you have been called, because Christ also suffered for you, leaving you an example, so that you might follow in his steps.  He committed no sin, neither was deceit found in his mouth” (1 Pet. 2:21-22).