Pastor Thanael Certa-Werner
Scripture | Ruth 3:11-18 (NIV)
11 And now, my daughter, don’t be afraid. I will do for you all you ask. All the people of my town know that you are a woman of noble character. 12 Although it is true that I am a guardian-redeemer of our family, there is another who is more closely related than I. 13 Stay here for the night, and in the morning if he wants to do his duty as your guardian-redeemer, good; let him redeem you. But if he is not willing, as surely as the Lord lives I will do it. Lie here until morning.” 14 So she lay at his feet until morning, but got up before anyone could be recognized; and he said, “No one must know that a woman came to the threshing floor.” 15 He also said, “Bring me the shawl you are wearing and hold it out.” When she did so, he poured into it six measures of barley and placed the bundle on her. Then he went back to town. 16 When Ruth came to her mother-in-law, Naomi asked, “How did it go, my daughter?” Then she told her everything Boaz had done for her 17 and added, “He gave me these six measures of barley, saying, ‘Don’t go back to your mother-in-law empty-handed.’” 18 Then Naomi said, “Wait, my daughter, until you find out what happens. For the man will not rest until the matter is settled today.”
Today we are continuing on in our sermon series taking a look at the Book of Ruth. In the first week, we discussed what loyalty looks like, even in the midst of loss, shown to us through Naomi and Ruth. Last week, Rev. Eric talked about generosity by looking at Boaz’s gift of an ephah. Now we’re on to the third chapter of Ruth. We’re going to be exploring one of the themes which is found throughout the Bible. It’s something which I think is not often talked about in this book and is often overlooked in our discussions on the Bible in general. What we’re talking about is integrity – specifically the integrity shown to us through the Bible.
But first, let’s set the stage. Last week, we read how Naomi sends Ruth to go and collect grain in the fields of their distant relative, Boaz. During that time, Boaz shows great generosity to Ruth and Naomi, and we find out that he is more than just a distant relative, he is a “guardian redeemer.” Guardian-redeemers were the people designated in a family who would marry its widows. Basically, the thought was that inheritance and life was lived through the passing on of heirs. When a man died and had no heirs, then his widow would be married by his brother or the guardian-redeemer. Remember, without a husband and with no sons, a widow would be destitute with no way of receiving a livelihood. So by his marrying of the widow, this guardian of the family would redeem the situation.
Naomi knows all of this so in chapter three, she does something about it. Just before our reading for today, we see that Naomi sends Ruth to Boaz while he is working on the barley harvest. Once she’s there, Naomi has told Ruth to wait until Boaz is asleep and to then lie at his feet. I don’t know about you, but this makes me feel a little uncomfortable! Nonetheless, they would have known what it meant at the time and wasn’t considered weird. Anyways, she does this and Boaz wakes up startled that there is a woman at his feet – as I think any single guy would be after going to bed with no woman at the foot of his bed. He asks who is there and Ruth replies, “I am your servant Ruth. Spread the corner of your garment over me, since you are a guardian-redeemer of our family.” In other words, Ruth is asking Boaz to fulfill his duty as the guardian-redeemer. Our scripture passage picks up with his response.
Before we unpack that response, let’s first talk about what biblical integrity even is. If we’re looking for it in this text, we might as well understand what we’re looking for! We know what integrity looks like in our everyday life. It means doing what you say you’re going to do. It means being a good person to everyone and always doing what’s right. Integrity in the bible is similar but starts with God. What we see through the story of the Bible, from story to story, chapter to chapter, book to book – that God is the same from start to finish. He acts differently in different situations and has reactions appropriate to the moment, but Who God is and what He’s about never changes. And He calls people who follow Him to do the same. So when we have biblical integrity, we act as God does, consistent in Whose we are and what we are about. But what does this really look like? Let’s break it down in three ways.
Biblical Integrity Means Following God Even When It’s Not Popular
The first part of Biblical integrity means following God even when it’s not popular. Boaz’s initial response talks about this with Ruth. In verse 10 he says, “The Lord bless you, my daughter, this kindness is greater than that which you showed earlier: You have not run after the younger men, whether rich or poor.” Remember, Ruth is new to the faith. We don’t know how long she and Naomi have lived in Bethlehem now, but it’s not for long. So, she is still learning what it means to be a follower of the One True God.
Yet, she knows the customs of the people who follow God. She knows what God says about seeking after healthy relationships – ones which are built on trust, loyalty, and faithfulness before attraction, wealth, or influence. Clearly, the second route is more popular for women in her situation – Boaz says so! Who wants to marry their former brother-in-law when you can go after someone who’s young or has money!? Even though its not popular, Ruth chooses to seek after what God calls a good relationship – not what is normal or popular for women to do. Furthermore, she could have easily ignored Naomi. Remember Naomi is the one asking for Ruth to do these things and she could have just said no. But she chooses to do as Naomi asks of her.
There’s another woman in another story from the Bible that I think of when talking about following God even when it’s not popular: Esther. Here is a young woman who is a Jew caught in the midst of political and personal battles in the Kingdom of Persia. Her relative is hated by the king’s advisor and so Haman finds a way for all the Jews to be killed. What can Esther do? She has been made Queen – but all of society, even the king, has turned against the people of God. It’s not popular to do what God asks. It’s not popular to claim your belief in God. In fact, it’s not just unpopular, it’s illegal.
Yet Esther decides that this is the time that she must do what God calls of her to save her people. So, she says to her family, “Go, gather together all the Jews who are in Susa, and fast for me. Do not eat or drink for three days, night or day. I and my attendants will fast as you do. When this is done, I will go to the king, even though it is against the law. And if I perish, I perish.”
Biblical Integrity Means Following God Even When There’s a Cost
This brings us to the next aspect of Biblical integrity: following God even when there’s a cost. It means that you choose to go where God calls you to even when you know it might cost you – possibly everything. We find this all over the Bible. In Daniel, we find it as a faithful man is living in Babylon serving the king there. He does such a good job, and the king trusts him so much, that Daniel is made a high advisor to the king, much to the dismay of others in the court. So they devise a plan and get a law passed saying that the king is so great and wonderful that the entire kingdom can pray to only him – by penalty of death. Daniel knows what this means. If he continues to pray to God, he will be killed. Still, he continues to pray as he always has.
He knows the cost, he knows what lies ahead, and he still chooses to follow God anyways. We know the story and that God delivers him from the lion’s den – but that’s not the moral of the story. Because God never promises to always deliver us from bad situations. There are times when He carries us out of the fire, and there are times that God holds us as we burn. Christians are guaranteed hard times and are not guaranteed that they will always escape them. Just look at the Apostles – every single one (besides John) of them was executed in some horrible fashion. Just look at Jesus! Talk about following God despite the cost! Yet in all these occasions, Daniel, the Apostles, and Jesus Himself all chose to follow God knowing that there would be a cost and that God would not necessarily see them out of that situation but would give them the strength, the peace, and wisdom to see them through.
Ruth is a great example of this. She decides to follow where God is leading her – to abandon her family, her ancestral home, her gods, her security and follow where God is leading her as she follows Naomi home. Even in this moment, Ruth doesn’t know how Boaz is going to react. She doesn’t know if she will be thrown out or worse! But she follows despite what the cost might be.
Biblical Integrity Means Following God Even When No One is Looking
This brings us to our last aspect of biblical integrity: following God even when no one is looking. This is the hardest one. We talked about integrity meaning that you live the same way no matter what situation you’re in – but what about when you’re alone? What about when the door is locked, when the windows are drawn, when there’s no one around to see or hear what you do – when it seems like there are no consequences for your actions. What about then?
Again the Bible is full of stories which show us that biblical integrity means even in those moments, we still choose to follow God. In our story for today, Boaz and Ruth could have done a million things while they were in the barn. No one was around, no one was watching in to make sure everything they did was right or good. But despite this, they chose to be blameless – to do nothing questionable or sinful.
But why does it matter? Because deciding what we do is not a matter of whether people think that its right or not. Society is a terrible judge of what is good and bad. People are terrible judges of what is right and wrong! In fact, it is that terrible judgement which separated us from God in the first place when Adam and Eve ate that forbidden fruit. But God is the perfect Judge – He knows what is good and bad. He knows what our lives should look like, because He is the one who has given us them. Choosing to follow God even when we are alone is not a matter of trying to please society, make your mom proud, or to appease an angry God who like forcing people to do stupid stuff. Choosing to follow God at all is a matter of choosing to be as we were made to be. It is a matter of choosing to dwell in the life and love we were created to dwell in. It is a matter of choosing to live the life we were always supposed to live.
There’s so much more I could say here, but what I will leave you with is that there’s another side to this coin. Biblical Integrity does not mean being the same at all times and ignoring God’s calls. It doesn’t mean that so long as you are the same in all situations, it’s okay for you to ignore some parts of what God is calling us to. This is something that society loves. It teaches us that so long as you’re you and living into your truth, then you’re okay.
But what did we just talk about? Humans are terrible judges. We don’t ultimately know how to live good lives. As Christians, we are called to the work of sanctification – to becoming more like God. What that means is as we become more like God, we become less like ourselves. By that same token, when we become more like God we gain integrity, we start doing as He wants us to despite the popularity of it, its cost, or whether there are people around, because God has that kind of integrity.
What This Means for Us
Ultimately, biblical integrity means setting aside our own self-determination. There is a lie which many of us have bought into which says that freedom is the absence of rules – that real freedom is being able to do whatever you want. But this kind of freedom is what leads people to lives full of sadness, addictions, anger, hate, violence, greed. This kind of freedom leads to almost every bad thing in our world. But the freedom found in God and in biblical integrity is the ability to know and choose the best life possible for you. This freedom leads to love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, gentleness, faithfulness, and self-control. When we choose to live our lives with integrity, we dwell in this freedom. This freedom sanctifies us, makes us more like God, and brings us every good fruit and gift. It’s hard work but work we can do when we surrender ourselves to the integrity of following Christ. Amen.