Great Is Thy Faithfulness
Pentecost 11 – Narrative Lectionary Summer Series
August 5, 2018
Redeemer, Good Thunder, MN
Ruth 3.1-18
In 1964, the Supreme Court was deciding a case whether or not a movie was protected speech or whether it was pornographic. It decided that the film in question did not meet the test of being objectionable. In his written opinion, Justice Potter Stewart declined to offer a further definition of what would be intolerant in the court’s eyes and in doing so uttered the now infamous phrase, “…but I know it when I see it.”
Our scene of Ruth and Boaz on the threshing floor would not trigger a Supreme Court ruling, at least not today and in our country. But you may not be aware that Ruth’s acts, if not scandalous pushes the bounds of acceptability for that day and time. More importantly, this chapter also raises the important question, “Do we recognize faithfulness when we see it?”
Faithfulness—or loyalty—is one of the major themes running through the book of Ruth. The Hebrew word, hesed, is both a common one and an important one in the Old Testament. It gets translated frequently as “steadfast love” and is used to describe God’s attitude toward us, as in “God’s steadfast love endures forever.”In Ruth, Ruth shows hesed toward Naomi by refusing to leave her when they go back to Naomi’s homeland and by default, sharing in her poverty.
In today’s installment of this wonderful story, Ruth risks her stellar reputation by agreeing to do something scandalous. She puts on her best clothes and perfume and goes to the place no self-respecting woman goes. The threshing floor was not a safe place for an attractive, young woman and she compounds the scandal and multiplies the risk by lying down near Boaz. Indeed, when he awakes in the middle of the night, Boas is indeed surprised to find her lying next to him.
In some measure, Boaz’ response is a shock. But even more so, rather than rejecting her or taking advantage of her, Boaz praises her for her loyalty and faithfulness to her mother-in-law. He says that this act more so than all of the others displays Ruth’s hesed, or steadfast love for Naomi. In other words, Boaz may not be able to define it, but he knows hesed when he sees it.
This story, which will also show God’s hesed (steadfast love) for God’s people, challenges us to see faithfulness where we might not normally see it. We are asked to be open to see that faithfulness can take unexpected forms. What didn’t look like steadfast love to my in-laws when my wife had to make hard choices about their care was indeed, the deepest expression of faithfulness and loyalty to her parents. I imagine many of you have had similar experiences. We have the freedom to risk acts of faithfulness and hesed because of the one who took on human flesh, walked among us and gave himself for us so that we could love steadfastly, Jesus Christ. Thanks be to God. Amen.
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