Session 13
Ruth 3:8-13; 4:13-17
Memory Verse: Colossians 1:14
There will be seasons on this fallen earth,
especially those times of trial and tribulation, when it feels like God is distant.
We might even be tempted to believe that He is absent.
Yet, it’s often during such times that He does His greatest work.
Hard circumstances force us to depend on Him more,
which allows His strength to shine through us in ways that just don’t happen when things are going smoothly.
This simple book of Ruth begins in a period of desperate famine and tragic death.
Doubts and disobedience led a Jewish family into a strange land.
However, as God would orchestrate events, it closes against a backdrop of harvest and the celebration of a new birth.
Those who were broken are restored, and God used an unlikely couple to pave the way toward ultimate redemption!
Nobody likes feeling helpless and insecure during crises.
People often struggle to ask for help.
Some isolate and withdraw from others, making things worse.
Crises challenge our faith to the point
that we may wonder if God is in control or cares about our situation.
Social media allows people to put on their best face, hide, and pretend they have it all together.
Down deep, everyone knows they need something more than what society offers.
God has answered the world’s cry with an ultimate solution. (PSG, p. 118)
Highlight the information for Naomi, Ruth, and Boaz.
Allow adults to share what they recall about these individuals from the previous session.
Summarize this content from “Understand the Context” (PSG, p. 119):
“Simply trying to survive, Ruth went to the fields of one of their family’s close relatives.
While there, she met Boaz, ‘a prominent man of noble character’ (2:1).
Immediately, Boaz was attracted to Ruth’s integrity (2:11-12), and he invited her to glean from the best parts of his field under his protection.
Naomi knew this budding relationship could be a chance for their family redeemer to take notice of their plight.”
Today’s session considers how Boaz’s role as Ruth’s kinsman-redeemer
applies to our need for a redeemer today.