MPC, 17th March 2002.Ruth 4 - "Bad Call!"
Phil Campbell MPC, 17th March 2002.
Dick Rowe is hardly a household name. You've probably never heard of him. But it could have been different.
Dick was an executive with Decca Records in London in 1962. Responsible for choosing new talent for recording contracts.
If Dick Rowe is famous for anything at all, it's for this. When he auditioned the new Liverpool band called The Beatles on New Year's day 1962, he wasn't impressed. On his advice, DECCA RECORDS refused to sign them. And on the company memo Dick Rowe said this. He said, "We don't like their sound, and guitar music is on the way out."
Bad call.
One of many. History is full of the stories of people who with the benefit of hindsight would have done things very differently. Like the executive at Western Union Telegraph Company back in 1876. Who said "This 'telephone' has too many shortcomings to be seriously considered as a means of communication. The device is of no value to us."
Or a similar report when a company called Texas Instruments built the first vest-sized pocket computer. They called it a pocket CALCULATOR; it was about the same size as a pack of cigarettes; and Texas Instruments built it for the US air-force. It will be useful, they said, in the missile and space industry. But because each unit would cost over $29,000 the company said they could see no other immediate practical use.
Bad call.
Or for the movie buffs, did you know Gary Cooper turned down the lead role of Rhett Butler in Gone with the Wind? He said, "Gone With the Wind is going to be the biggest flop in the history of Hollywood. I'm just glad it'll be Clark Gable who's falling flat on his face and not me".
Bad call.
Here's another one to add to the list. An all time classic.
How would you like it if you had the chance to be part of the family tree of the greatest king of Israel? How would you like it if you had the chance to be the forefather of the REDEEMER OF THE WORLD? And yet you turned it down. Because here in Ruth chapter 4, that's exactly what happens.
And in the biggest irony of all, the guy does it because he wants to make a name for himself – HIS WAY. Wants to PRESERVE HIS FAMILY LINE. His way. Wants to PROTECT HIS INHERITANCE… so he won't be forgotten.
And yet when we meet him, we don't even find out his name.
Pick it up with me in Ruth 4; where Boaz is sitting at the town gate. Waiting for Mr Nameless to come along. Which he does.
Boaz is sitting here, because if you can think back to last week, he's promised Ruth that he'll be her KINSMAN REDEEMER. If the one guy ahead of him in the line doesn't want the job. That he'll do what Israel's law provides for and COME TO THE RESCUE of this family that's lost the lot – if the closer relative doesn't want to do it.
And so he's sitting at the gate. And it seems like moments later, the kinsman-redeemer we're talking about comes along. And Boaz calls him over. "Come on over and sit down for a chat."
We're going to need some witnesses. Ten elders. Verse 2. The town elders who sit around at the gate. Chewing tobacco, talking about old times. And LEGAL WITNESSES to every transaction in the town. "You guys SIT HERE."
Because Boaz is going to make Mr Nameless the best offer he's ever going to get.
Naomi who's come back from Moab, he says, she's selling the piece of land that belonged to our brother, our relative Elimelech. Verse 4; I thought you should know about it. Because you're the closest relative. You've got the right of first refusal. He says if you want to redeem it, DO SO. But if you won't, TELL ME… so that I'll know. For no one has the right to do it except you. And I'm next in line.
Now the first reaction's positive. Because this sounds like a good deal. No strings attached. I mean, a cheap block of land, add it to the portfolio. And NAOMI THE OLD WIDOW won't be much of an incumbrance. All the business about raising up an heir for the family, NOT AN ISSUE. So the end of verse 4, he's saying, I'll DO IT. I WILL REDEEM IT. Could use a nice little block of land.
Just one catch. And Boaz doesn't mention it 'til verse 5. One more thing: "By the way. It's a package deal. When you buy the land, YOU HAVE TO TAKE THE GIRL AS WELL." Which girl? The Moabite DAUGHTER-IN-LAW.
He says, "The day you get the land, you get the dead man's widow as well… to keep the name of the dead with his property. The land's not just Naomi's. It's RUTH'S as well. And SHE'S the one who's going to propagate the family line."
At which the nameless kinsmen-redeemer goes a little pale around the gills. And starts to back off. He says, I've got an ESTATE OF MY OWN TO WORRY ABOUT. I've got my OWN HERITAGE TO TAKE CARE OF ALREADY. A block of land's one thing. But no way am I going to take on another FAMILY… just to preserve the Elimelech family line.
And I guess you can't blame him. Because the custom was, not only do you PAY FOR THE LAND. You then father a child for the widow. And the CHILD gets the land.
What's in it for the redeemer? I mean, I heard the other day on the news that in the week of September 5 last year, the week before Ansett collapsed, Air New Zealand tried to sell Ansett to Qantas… for A DOLLAR.
I mean, even I could have bought it. Your very own airline. Except that what you're really buying is the RIGHT TO A DEBT. As it is here. And here's his final decision. Verse 6. YOU REDEEM IT. I can't.
And so verse 7 he does the customary thing and passes over a sandal, and verse 8, in front of the witnesses at the gate he says, BUY IT YOURSELF.
Which as we're going to see, goes down in history along with Dick Rowe; and Garry Cooper. And H M Warner who wouldn't invest in TALKING MOVIES… because he said, WHO ON EARTH WOULD WANT TO HEAR ACTORS TALK?
Bad call. There's no future in hitching up with this MOABITE GIRL. Bad investment. The figures just don't add up. Pass the parcel to the next guy. And off he goes into the mists of history – kind of ironic – this guy so keen to preserve his own name and heritage – disappears in the crowd. And we don't even know his name. And he's never heard of again.
The fact is, REDEEMING Ruth and Naomi, buying them out of their poverty looks way too expensive. Makes no business sense at all. And if anyone's going to do it, it's only going to be out of KINDNESS. Or maybe even LOVE.
And guys, I know with some of you your wives are away on Women's Retreat for the weekend… and on the way through Ruth you might have even thought it's been a bit WIMPY and GUSHY. But let me tell you, you shouldn't be surprised to see a man of God like Boaz looking like a MAN OF LOVE. Which maybe for some of us, it's worth trying a bit more often.
So here he is. Deal done. Smelly sandal in his hand. Boaz has already said, IF YOU'RE NOT GOING TO REDEEM, then I WILL. Which is exactly what he does. And so at the top of his voice, maybe he even stands up on a chair or something to make the announcement. To the elders and all the people as well. Verse 9.
Today you are witnesses that I have bought from Naomi all the property of Elimelech, Kilion and Mahlon. 10 I have also acquired Ruth the Moabitess, Mahlon's widow, AS MY WIFE, in order to maintain the name of the dead with his property, so that his name will not disappear from among his family or from the town records. Today you are witnesses!
The moment Ruth's been waiting for. She's chosen to TAKE REFUGE WITH THE GOD OF ISRAEL. She's taken refuge with Boaz. And NOW, with that simple public statement, SHE'S HIS WIFE. And her mother-in-law Naomi's taken care of as well.
And so it's time to party. There's celebration in the air. Back slapping and balloons. And blessings. The elders and the crowd at the gate shaking his hand and saying, MAY THE LORD make the woman who is coming into your home like Rachel and Leah; Genesis 29, the two wives of Jacob. The great MOTHERS of the whole nation of Israel. May RUTH BE LIKE THAT. The start of something big.
They say to Boaz,
May you have standing in Ephrathah and be famous in Bethlehem. 12 Through the offspring the Lord gives you by this young woman, may your family be like that of Perez, whom Tamar bore to Judah.
Perez your forefather, they say to Boaz. May YOU be as distinguished as him. May you be FAMOUS ALL ROUND THESE PARTS… famous in Ephrathah, famous in Bethlehem.
And so we're told Boaz takes Ruth to be his wife; and she conceives. And there in Bethlehem gives birth to a son.
And who knows what the future holds? You wouldn't have known back on March 12th, 1914 when George and Annie Stanley had a baby called Julia that Julia would go on to be the mother of JOHN LENNON. And John Lennon would go on to form the Beatles. Who DICK ROWE would refuse to sign up in 1962. I guess history only works in retrospect.
But as the little book of Ruth comes to an end, the writer can look back over the way it's panned out. And wants us to know. That the BLESSING, that the PRAYER of the people for Boaz, it's exactly what happens. In a big way. That even then as Ruth is written is only just the start.
BOAZ is like the scale model. Of the IDEAL KINSMAN REDEEMER. I mean, the other guy had the option. But he didn't want to take it. Because of the cost. But Boaz is the KINSMAN REDEEMER full of KINDNESS. And it's an interesting thing… we're told he's the start of a significant family line.
And there's a subtle little shift of focus that takes us away from Boaz to another KINSMAN REDEEMER… another male from the family. A RENEWER OF LIFE. A provider. Who's destined for great things.
It's funny the book's called the book of Ruth in a way. Because it starts with Naomi. And it ends with Naomi. Naomi in her younger days heading away from the promised land with Elimelech. Coming home empty. And ends with Naomi – older. Nursing the baby grandson she never thought she'd have. And the other old women are clucking around congratulating her.
And do you notice the change of focus. The spotlight moves. From Boaz the kinsman redeemer. To the child. Have a careful read of what they're clucking about. Because they've got it right. You can pick up in verse 14…
The women said to Naomi:
Praise be to the Lord , who this day has not left you without a KINSMAN REDEEMER. May he become famous throughout Israel! 15 He will renew your life and sustain you in your old age. For your daughter-in-law, who loves you and who is better to you than seven sons, has GIVEN HIM BIRTH.
They're talking about the BABY. The baby boy they call OBED. Which means SERVANT. Who we're told in verse 17, becomes the father of Jesse. Who becomes the father of DAVID. Who becomes the GREAT KING OF ISRAEL.
The one who RESCUES ISRAEL from her enemies. Who RULES OVER ISRAEL in peace and prosperity.
So from the marriage of Ruth and Boaz, you get a KINSMAN. A REDEEMER. A saviour of Israel. And a great King.
But you know, if you stop there, you miss the best part of the story.
I mean, I know genealogies can be dull. Which is why we always avoid Aunty Marion at family get-togethers. But Ruth chapter 4 finishes with a genealogy. And Matthew chapter 1 BEGINS WITH ONE. Hundreds of years later.
And the point is, Matthew takes the family line of Ruth and Boaz… all the way to JOSEPH. The husband of Mary. Of whom was born Jesus, who is called CHRIST.
An unusual family unit. An unusual birth. Just like Ruth and Boaz. And Baby Obed.
But what better family to be part of. With it's great history of REDEEMERS. And KINGS.
We're right at the end of Ruth. So it's worth a recap. Here's Naomi. Gone far from the promised land and come home empty. Here's RUTH. From Moab. And they've both come back to take refuge in the PROMISED LAND with the PEOPLE OF GOD.
A clear decision on the road. That the GOD OF ISRAEL was going to be THEIR GOD once and for all. And what welcome do they find when they come home? They find that GOD HAS PROVIDED A REDEEMER FOR THEM. Who'll take on their debt. Who'll pay whatever price it takes to provide what they need… purely out of what the book of Ruth keeps calling "COVENANT KINDNESS." A redeemer who'll fill their emptiness. And now a new redeemer in Obed. Who'll RENEW THEIR LIVES and SUSTAIN THEM.
Which in the end is the story of all of us, isn't it. In Titus chapter 2, Paul says our Saviour Jesus Christ GAVE HIMSELF FOR US TO REDEEM US FROM ALL WICKEDNESS, and purify for himself a people of his very own, eager to do what is good.
Redeeming isn't cheap. The cost is, stepping in to TAKE ON THE DEBT OF SOMEONE ELSE TO SET THEM FREE. And what Jesus has done is exactly that. For each of us. At the cross.
Ruth was a book I think that was originally meant to warm the hearts of Israelites who were far away from God. Calling them home. Maybe it's doing the same for you. Painting a picture of God's kindness. And a GREAT OFFER. That if you come back the welcome mat's out. There's a fatted calf on the Barbeque. There's a party waiting. Because God's a God who loves redeeming. And you don't have to live in SPIRITUAL DEBT anymore. No matter where you've been.
You know it was crazy in a way for that other relative to say NO to being part of God's big plan as Ruth's redeemer. He had better ideas. But how much MORE CRAZY if you were to say NO TO JESUS. And miss out on THE OPPORTUNITY OF A LIFETIME.
Bad call.
And just as we close, a reminder too… that the PEOPLE OF GOD need to LOVE WHAT GOD LOVES. And if you've seen any KINDNESS in the book of Ruth, keep making it YOUR KINDNESS. If you've seen a warm welcome for people who come home to God, keep making it YOUR WARMTH. As we keep growing to be a church that loves to say WELCOME HOME… to anyone looking for their debt to be paid by Christ Jesus the redeemer.