RPG Adults
PROVIDENCE AND THE BLESSINGS OF OBEDIENCE (1)
LORD’S DAY, JULY 21
Ruth 2:13-17
Colossians 4:1-6
“Let your speech
be alway with grace,
seasoned with salt…”
PROVIDENCE AND THE BLESSINGS OF OBEDIENCE (1)
Gracious words are like a healing balm to a wounded heart, and can be life-giving and revitalising. The experience of Ruth, thus far as recorded, had not been a pleasant one. Widowed and a stranger in a land where she was referred to as “the Moabitess” (Ruth 1:22; 2:2, 6), having to go out after the reapers to glean for a living, the words that Boaz spoke to her were full of grace, and came with a prayer of blessing from the LORD. They were words that acknowledged her efforts and her faith at a time when life was difficult and hard. When we are privileged and are approached by the underprivileged, we often fail in our speech and are harsh and insensitive with our words. We ought rather to speak of faith and the grace of God that can minister to their souls and hearts.
“…thou hast comforted me, and for that thou hast spoken friendly…” (Ruth 2:13). The response of Ruth to the words of Boaz presents to us the value of gracious words. It is a stark contrast to Job’s response to Eliphaz in Job 16:1-5. When under the stress and strain of life, burdened with life’s heavy load, and weighed down with sorrows and grief, what one needs is a mouth that strengthens, and lips that assuage one’s grief. Proverbs 16:24: “Pleasant words are as an honeycomb, sweet to the soul, and health to the bones.” We do not know what she thought or anticipated as she had audience with Boaz, but what she heard was evidence to her that indeed God had led her to the field of “him in whose sight I shall find grace” (Ruth 2:2). She acknowledged that when she said, “Let me find favour in thy sight, my lord” (Ruth 2:13).
A clear distinction has to be made between gracious/pleasant words and flattery. Gracious words “minister grace unto the hearers” (Eph 4:29), and, as such, edify and build up while “a flattering mouth worketh ruin” (Prov 26:28). The words of Boaz were not deceptive or manipulative, but rather helpful, encouraging and supportive. They brought dignity and value to Ruth and strengthened her during a very hard period of her life.
THOUGHT: (Read Proverbs 15:1-4.)
PRAYER: (Use Psalm 141:3 and Psalm 19:14.)