We're returning today to our studies in the book of Ruth and in meditating upon this portion of scripture we have found already a lovely picture in the second chapter of a redeemed soul gladly serving the Lord of the harvest in his field. We talked last time about Ruth gleaning in the field of Boaz and it is remarkable how this individual Boaz is so prominent in this second chapter. In fact, he is the central figure in the book, even as Christ is the sum and substance of the message of the Bible. Boaz is seen here as the owner, the director and the superintendent of all that is connected with the harvest. We see him looking over the harvest field, inspecting everything that is done. Everything that happens there is under His authority and under His direct guidance. That reminds us of Jesus. That reminds us of Christ, who is Himself the Lord of the harvest. Remember how He said to the disciples, The harvest truly is plenteous, but the labourers are few. Pray ye therefore the Lord of the harvest. that he would send forth labourers into his harvest. So there's a parallel here very clearly with the Lord Jesus Christ. And as we looked at this second chapter, we mentioned the interaction between Ruth and Boaz. This is a love story in the making. one of many in the Old Testament. But it is a beautiful picture also, therefore, of Christ and His church. If we note the interaction between Boaz and Ruth, we see, first of all, the command that He gives to her. There in chapter 2, verse 8, He said, Go not to glean in another field. but abide here fast by my maidens." And then he said, let thine eyes be on the field that they do reap. Here's a command where he's telling her to labour in his field only and with his people only. Then he talks about the advantages of working on his land. And when we think of that, the advantages that accrued to her being directly under His leadership, under His authority in that field, we think of the benefits that accrued to us as Christians as we serve God in the centre of His will. There's no better place to be than in the centre of God's will, working in His field. And no better master could ever be served than the Lord Jesus. And as we work in the field, we need spiritual vision. Let thine eyes be on the field, he said. We're to look on the fields that are white unto harvest. So there was the command that we noted. And then the comfort. And the comfort was really found in the 11th and 12th verses where Boaz clearly shows that he knew all about Ruth and the service that she was engaged in. None of what she had done had gone unnoticed. He hadn't overlooked it, but he paid tribute to it. And so it is with the Lord he will not, as the Lord of the harvest, overlook the smallest deed of faithful service that you perform for Him. And Boaz here, you will see in verse 12, is wishing the best for Ruth, but is actually tantamount to a prayer for blessing. Listen to this. The Lord recompense thy work. In other words, the Lord pay you back for what you have done. And a full reward be given thee of the Lord God of Israel under whose wings thou art come to trust. And there was even comfort in those words, because you think about the fact that the Lord will recompense anything that you appear to give up for Him. A great preacher once was approached by a young man who was under conviction about his sins. And he said to the preacher, if I come to Christ, am I going to have to give up the world? And the preacher said, son, if you truly come to Christ, if you're truly converted, you won't have to give up the world. The world will give you up because you're following Christ. You're never a loser by following the plan of God. And Moses proved that. We mentioned that last time because there's a word there used in Hebrews 11, recompense, which means paid back. And we know that Moses had certainly a view to the recompense, the reward that he would receive by leaving behind all the treasures of Egypt. But look at this, under whose wings thou art come to trust. There's a hymn that goes like that, Under His Wings I Am Safely Abiding. The picture there is of the mother bird gathering her brood, like a chicken gathering her little chicks, or another bird protecting and sheltering her young. That's a beautiful picture of what God does, because the Lord protects us. He brings us under His wings, keeps us from harm and danger. And when you think about it, under the wings of the mother, The little birds can hear her heartbeat. And when we're under the wings of the Lord, we can feel and we can hear a heartbeat of love for us every moment of every day, no matter what transpires. We're in a place of safety and shelter near to the heart of God. And that word of comfort humbled Ruth's heart. And she spoke of that comfort in verse 13. Then we talked about the communion and how the reapers in the field had a real relationship with Boaz. They, for example, in verse 4, were seen greeting one another where Boaz said to the reapers, the Lord be with you. And they answered him, the Lord bless thee. And these were not just pleasantries, but these were prayers. They were actually desiring the best for one another. Boaz and his reapers. There was communion between them. And furthermore, they enjoyed his presence at mealtimes. And he talked about that in verse 14, inviting Ruth at mealtime to come hither and eat of the bread and dip thy morsel in the vinegar. And she sat beside the reapers And Boaz, it tells us, reached her parched corn, which was a delicacy, and she did eat and was sufficed. So there's communion here. And so there is between God and His workmen. And God has ordained mealtimes for us as His people, both private and public. We need to be fed, and it's important to be under the Word of God and to be reading the Word of God. But in these studies we've begun to see what the place and purpose of Boaz is in this book. He is the one who will undertake the duties of a kinsman redeemer on behalf of Ruth. I'll explain in a moment what a kinsman redeemer was. But let me just say that this task, this role, was by no means an easy or straightforward matter. A central theme in the book of Ruth, as you study it, is the Israelite law of redemption. In the Promised Land, each and every Israelite male had an inheritance given to him. It is true that through sin, one could lose his inheritance, but God, in His law, provided a way whereby a lost inheritance could be reclaimed or restored. This was called the law of redemption or buying back. This law covered three areas. The restoration of a piece of property or land. The restoration of slaves or servants. And thirdly, the extension or continuance of a family name. And it's this third one in particular that is relevant to the book of Ruth. This third aspect, the extension or continuance of the family name. You see, if a man died without leaving behind an heir, a son and heir to carry on his family name, it was regarded as something of a disgrace. And there are cultures even today where that is so. It was effectively a disaster if one had no son to carry on the family name. And this happened to Elimelech's family. Elimelech did have two sons with Naomi, Malon and Cileon. But we know what happened to them. They died. And they died before they could have a family. And hence we have Naomi's words in Ruth chapter 1 verse 11. And Naomi said, Turn again, my daughters. Why will you go with me? Are there yet any more sons in my womb that they may be your husbands?" She didn't expect to have any more children at her age. She didn't even have a husband at this stage. Her husband had died. And so, here's a problem. The family name is not going to be carried on. Now, if you go back in your Bible to the law of God in Deuteronomy, the book of Deuteronomy chapter 25, And by the way, this is a portion that we will be returning to when we consider the events recorded in Ruth chapter 4. But in Deuteronomy 25, verses 5 and 6, we read this, If brethren dwell together and one of them die and have no child, the wife of the dead shall not marry without unto a stranger. Her husband's brother shall go in unto her, and take her to him to wife, and perform the duty of a husband's brother unto her. And it shall be that the firstborn which she beareth shall succeed in the name of his brother which is dead, that his name be not put out of Israel." Notice that. That his name be not put out of Israel. Basically, a kinsman of the deceased man could marry his widow. And any son produced by that union would be reckoned under law to be the child of the dead man. And so the deceased's name would continue in Israel. And incidentally, That's what is in view in the New Testament incident in Matthew chapter 22 that you may have read, where there were those who came trying to catch out the Lord Jesus Christ in His words, trying to mock Him, trip Him up in His words. And so the Sadducees, and that's why they were called Sadducees, because they say there is no resurrection, and that's why they were sad, you see. They asked him, saying, Master, Moses said, if a man die having no children, his brother shall marry his wife and raise up seed unto his brother. Now there were with us seven brethren, and the first, when he had married a wife deceased, having no issue, left his wife unto his brother, likewise the second also, and the third unto the seventh, And last of all, the woman died also. Therefore in the resurrection, whose wife shall she be of the seven? For they all had her. And the Lord had to tell them, you don't even know the Scriptures, you don't know anything about the power of God, because in the resurrection they neither marry nor are given in marriage, but are like the angels of God in heaven. Then he began to speak about the resurrection itself. But the point is, what they were talking about there was this law of redemption. Where if a man died, The nearest kinsman had the responsibility to raise up seed in his name. And that law was in Naomi's mind when she told Ruth who Boaz was. I think Naomi was a bit of a matchmaker, don't you? As you read this portion, you find that Naomi has already got in her mind the fact that Boaz is a kinsman of her late husbands and she's thinking Ruth, Boaz, the answer to my prayers. So she says this In Ruth chapter 2 verses 19 and 20, her mother-in-law said unto Ruth, Where hast thou gleaned today? Where wroughtest thou? Blessed be he that did take knowledge of thee. She's talking about Boaz. And she showed her mother-in-law with whom she had wrought and said, The man's name with whom I wrought today is Boaz. You can just see Naomi's eyes lighting up. And Naomi said unto her daughter-in-law, Blessed be he of the Lord, who hath not left off his kindness to the living and to the dead. And Naomi said unto her, The man is near of kin unto us, one of our next kinsmen. And then in chapter 3, the first two verses, Naomi said unto her, My daughter, shall I not seek rest for thee? that it may be well with thee. She's talking about marriage. She's talking about being settled in that way. And now is not Boaz of our kindred with whose maidens thou wast? Behold, he winnoweth barley tonight in the threshing floor. Get down there, Ruth. Boaz is our near kinsman. He's the answer to our prayers. This is what Naomi had in her mind. Now in Israel, three things were needed to qualify a man to be a kinsman redeemer. One was association, the second one was ability, and the third one was agreement. Think about those three. Association, ability, and agreement. The association required, he must be a kinsman. Now this is a frequent word that's used in the book of Ruth especially in chapter 2 verse 20 and again in chapter 3 verse 9 and again it goes on into the further parts of chapter 3 and 4. If you look at verse 20 of chapter 2 At the end of the verse, Naomi said, the man is near of kin unto us, one of our next kinsmen. And if you have a margin in your authorized version, you'll see there that the words are alternately translated, one that hath right to redeem. One of our next kinsmen. One that hath right to redeem. That's why we come up with the term, kinsman redeemer. And again in chapter 3 verse 9, you'll see that when Ruth was talking to Boaz, she said at the end of verse 9, thou art a near kinsman. Again, it is one that hath right to redeem. So in this regard, the nearest of kin, the next kinsman or the near kinsman had the prior claim. He had the right. So there's the association. So far, so good. What about the ability? Well, that near kinsman must be able to redeem. That is, he had to be wealthy enough to purchase the inheritance of the dead man. But then thirdly, and equally importantly, there was the agreement. You see, it would be no good if he was a near kinsman. He qualifies. And if he had the ability to redeem, if in the end he was unwilling to fulfill that role, he had to agree to do it. He had to agree to be that kinsman with all the responsibilities that that brought to him. And as we shall see, Boaz was to become the redeemer of Ruth and the inheritance of Elimelech. If you go back to Ruth 2, verse 1, here's what it says, Aunt Naomi had a kinsman of her husband's a mighty man of wealth of the family of Elimelech and his name was Boaz. So there are two things there where he fits the bill. There's association. He is indeed a kinsman. There is ability. He's a mighty man of wealth. He can buy this particular property and this inheritance But would he agree to take on that role? That was the question. And we find the answer to it in chapter 3. We're going to be studying that in due course, but just to go to verse 13 to cut to the chase, so to speak. Tarry this night, he said to Ruth, and it shall be in the morning. that if he, that's the nearer kinsman, will perform unto thee the part of a kinsman, well, let him do the kinsman's part. But if he will not do the part of a kinsman to thee, then will I do the part of a kinsman to thee, as the Lord liveth, lie down until the morning." So here's a situation where there actually has been found a nearer kinsman than Boaz, and we'll explain that when we get to it. But in the event of that kinsman being unwilling to redeem Ruth and the property, Boaz said, I will do it. I'm willing to be your Redeemer. Boaz here represents Christ. We've been saying that from the beginning in our studies. Boaz represents the Lord Jesus. And frankly, this morning, each of us needs a Redeemer. We're lost in our sins. We're in the slave market of sin under the devil's control by nature. And we need someone to redeem us, to buy us back from the slave market of sin, from the servitude of the devil. We need someone, furthermore, who will take on all of our responsibilities. We need someone who will identify so closely with us that he can be our redeemer. The Lord Jesus meets all of the requirements of a Redeemer. Think of those three. Association, ability, and agreement. Oh, He has the association, doesn't He? He is God, but He is God manifest in flesh. He is God become man. by the miracle of the Incarnation, so that we can say of the Lord Jesus Christ, sin apart, for He had no sin. He knew no sin. He did no sin. There was never any sin in Him. He could not sin. But His humanity is real. He is bone of our bone and flesh of our flesh. He can be touched with the feeling of our infirmities. He has that association with us. He's the Man Christ Jesus. a near kinsman. But not only does he have that association with us, where he's made like unto his brethren, but he also has the ability. He has the ability to redeem. He is God and man in two distinct natures and yet one person forever. And Hebrews 7.25 says of him, Wherefore he is able also to save them to the uttermost that come unto God by Him, saying, He ever liveth to make intercession for them. He is able. Oh, He is, as the hymn writer said, abundantly able to save. So Christ has the association with us. He has the ability to be our Redeemer. But then there's the agreement. Was He willing to take upon Him all of our obligations? Was He willing to come to this scene of time and suffer and bleed and die for our sins? Oh, He was willing. How much He was willing to bear. And is He willing to save those that come to Him? I think that's a question that bothers a lot of people. They think, well, I'm too sinful for the Lord to save. He would never save me because of all the things that I have done. The Lord would never receive me. But the Bible says that it's sinners Jesus came to save. He didn't come to call the righteous. That is, those who think they're good enough. Those who think they're righteous enough. He came to call sinners to repentance. They that behold. That means those that are well physically. Need not a physician or a doctor, but they that are sick. And so the Lord Jesus said, I came not to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance. Some people think they're too good. to be saved. Oh, I don't need salvation. I'm already good enough. I'm better than the person down the road, or I'm not as bad as this other person. People think by comparing themselves with somebody who they imagine is worse, that that makes them look better before God. The reality is when we come to Calvary, the ground is dead level. We're all in need of a Savior. We need a Redeemer. Is He willing to save us? Yes, He's willing to save us. Jesus Himself said, John 6, verse 37, All that the Father giveth Me shall come to Me, and Him that cometh unto Me I will in no wise, that means under no circumstances, cast out. Get that into your mind and heart. I will in no wise cast out. He's a Saviour for all comers. You come to Him, He will save you. And He's abundantly able to save. And at this point, when we think about the kinsman redeemer, we need to consider a vital aspect of this entire story in the book of Ruth, which has application to ourselves and to the matter of our salvation. Whenever Ruth came out of Moab, she evidenced by her words and her actions, her desire to leave that old life and to come into the inheritance of the true people of God. In fact, it's interesting, the words that she used there, if you go back to chapter 1, when her mother-in-law said, return to Moab, just you go back like your sister. Go back to your gods. Return now after thy sister-in-law. We read this in verses 16 and 17 of chapter 1. Ruth said, entreat me not to leave thee, or to return from following after thee. Don't ask me to go back. For where thou goest, I will go. And where thou lodgest, I will lodge. Thy people shall be My people." See that? She didn't want to be among the Moabites anymore. She wanted to be among the Israelites. The people of God. Thy people shall be My people. And Thy God, My God. In Moab, she served false gods. Now she wants to serve the one true and living God. And she went on, Where thou diest will I die, there will I be buried. The Lord do so to me, and more also, if ought but death part thee and me. Ruth was steadfastly, verse 18 says, she was steadfastly minded to go with her. Here's Ruth's desire to come into the inheritance of the true people of God. I want to be, effectively she was saying, an Israelite. I want to serve the true God of Israel. Thy God shall be my God. The only problem is, there was a stumbling block that needed to be overcome before that could happen. Before Ruth could ever come under the covenant of Israel, before she could ever have a place among the Lord's people, she had to overcome what I would call the hindrance. the barriers that prevented her from entering into that inheritance. And what were those barriers? Well, as we bring this message to a close today, we want to think about this. There were two things that formed a hindrance, barriers to Ruth entering into the inheritance of the people of God in Israel. The first one is God's precept, the law of God. There is a name that's used five times in the book of Ruth to describe her. You see this name in chapter 1 verse 22, chapter 2 verse 2 and verse 21, chapter number 4 verse 5 and verse 10. It is simply Ruth the Moabiteess. Ruth the Moabiteess. That was her culture, that was her background, that was her nation. Now why was that important? It's important because this was the one thing that would and could prevent her from coming in among the people of God. You see, God's law was against it. Just turn back in your Bible to Deuteronomy chapter 23, and verse 3 simply says, An Ammonite or Moabite shall not enter into the congregation of the Lord, even to their tenth generation shall they not enter into the congregation of the Lord forever." That seems conclusive, doesn't it? That seems to be the end of any hope that Ruth might have of coming in among the people of God. She's a stranger. She's cut off from the covenants of promise. She's without hope. She's a Moabiteess. God's precept is clear. It really said effectively, you cannot come into the inheritance of God's people because you're a stranger and by nature you have no claim on the God of the covenant, the God of Israel. Wanting to come in? God's precept declared to her, you can't come in. That's the first thing, God's precept, the hindrance. But there's another barrier as well. And that is not only the precept of God, but the problem of the girl. And the girl's problem was that God's law was incapable of admitting her into the number of God's people. Let's think about this. The problem was not with the law per se. The problem was with Ruth herself and the blood that flowed in her veins. Really we could say it is what she was by nature that was going to keep her out. Her natural ties were with Moab. As someone remarked, Moab was in her blood. So we think about these two problems. There's God's precept and there's a girl's problem with her own nationality. How is this going to be fixed? We turn with me to Romans chapter 8. We see that we too and all men in common have a problem. Everybody in this room this morning has a problem. Romans chapter 8 verse 3 says this, For what the law could not do, in that it was weak through the flesh, God sending His own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh and for sin, condemned sin in the flesh, that the righteousness of the law might be fulfilled in us who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit." Now notice what it says about the law there, and we should not misunderstand this. There is no fault in God's law. There is no weakness in God's law. In fact, if you go back a chapter in Romans 7, it says that the law is like God Himself. It's just and holy and good. But when the Spirit of God writes what the law could not do, in that it was weak through the flesh, it's talking not about the impotence of the law itself, but of our impotence. It's talking about our problem. We are weak in the flesh. Because of who we are, because of what we are, we have a real problem. The problem lies, as it did with Ruth, in our nature. That's the problem in essence. We think of Adam and Eve, their way back into the Garden of Eden was blocked, wasn't it? Blocked by those angelic beings called Cherubim. They had a flaming sword that went every way, keeping the way of the tree of life. The argument of the Apostle Paul in the New Testament is not that you can try your very best and maybe find peace with God. His argument is that no matter what you do, no matter how you act, the way you think, everything about us is tainted by sin. This is our problem. In a sense, there's a flaming sword that turns every way and keeps us from coming to God. Every aspect of our lives is found to be faulty. That's why Romans 3 tells us, there is none righteous, no not one. All have sinned and come short of the glory of God. We have a big problem because there's nothing about us that is righteous. The problem lies in our nature. It's tainted. It's corrupted. By sin we are estranged from God. We're without hope and without God in the world. And that's what Paul argues in Romans chapter 8. There's something the law is unable to do because of our flesh. The law has no weakness, but the weakness is in us. So if you look at what the scripture teaches about the law, it's very clear. Perfect law keeping is the basis of eternal life. This do, and thou shalt live. This was what God had said. You must keep the commandments of God in order to live. And Paul uses that argument when he's talking about justification in Galatians chapter 3 and about Abraham and about true justification. He says that no man is justified by the law in the sight of God. It is evident that just shall live. by faith. It goes on to speak about the fact that the law is that which we cannot keep. But we're supposed to keep it. Salvation is by law keeping. But we have a problem. We're unable to keep the law. Think about Adam. Adam is our federal head. He represented the whole human race. He was told by God, in what we call in theology the covenant of works, that on the basis of his doing some things and not doing other things, he would enjoy unbroken fellowship with God. Basically, God told Adam, this do and thou shalt continue to live. But he said, in the day that you eat of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, you will surely die. And so instead of knowing life in its fullness, instead of being confirmed in a state of righteousness, purity, life, Adam sinned. And because he was representative of the human race, the whole human race sinned in Adam. That's the truth of original sin. Let me tell you, there are ministers today who don't believe that. And they don't preach it. Original sin. See, your problem today is not just what you do. And it's not just what you feel to do, it's what you are. The problem is that you are a sinner. I have, as I've often said, two peach trees in my garden, in my yard. Why do they bear peaches? Because they're peach trees. Simple. That's the nature of the tree. The nature of the tree determines the nature of the fruit. It doesn't bear apples, it never has. I never look for apples on my peach trees because that's not the nature of the tree. The Lord Jesus talked about the tree and the fruit that comes from that tree. And we are corrupt, we are wicked, and all that can come from us is that. Who can bring a clean thing out of an unclean? Not one. We have a problem. The problem is that when Adam sinned, we all sinned in him. And so we have a sinful nature. We are that corrupt tree bringing forth corrupt fruit. We're all in Ruth's position spiritually. Our sinful nature prevents us from enjoying communion with God. We can't have access into God's presence. We are sinners by nature as well as by practice. And as one man put it, we have far more of Moab in us than we care to imagine. There's an interesting verse in Psalm 24. It's asking some questions there. Let me just refer you to it. It's really talking about who is it that has fellowship with God. See, most people today, when you talk to them, they think they're already in fellowship with God. Oh, I say my prayers every night. Do you? Good for you. That will not save you. That will not save you. In fact, if you're not saved, God doesn't hear your prayers. The prayer of the sinner that he hears is, God, be merciful to me, a sinner. Be propitious. Look upon me as when thou lookest upon the blood. If you're by nature still in your sin, you've never been redeemed, you're not in any position to commune with God. That's why Psalm 24 puts it this way. In verse 3, and the verses thereafter. Who shall ascend into the hill of God, of the Lord? Who shall stand in His holy place? He that hath clean hands and a pure heart, who hath not lifted up his soul unto vanity, nor sworn deceitfully. The Bible speaks about standing in God's holy place. It's a bit like sharing a tent with God. There's probably an allusion to that here. The Hebrew idiom that's used here, it really speaks of hospitality. Giving somebody a place in your home. The way you would do by inviting somebody to your house and they can have a seat at your table for lunch or whatever, and you've established a bond and a friendship with that person. But who can share a table with God? Who can enter a tent with God and enjoy hospitality from God? Well, it's only those who have clean hands and a pure heart. Those that have been cleansed from their sins. The law of God stands before us as a barrier condemning us, driving us away, closing the door against us. The law says we cannot enjoy or enter into life because we're sinners. This is our problem. So what is Ruth to do here? She says to Naomi, I want to be with you. I want to be with your people. I want to be counted as one of your people. I want your God to be my God. Whenever you die and you're buried, when I die, I want to be buried there as well. This is what I want. I want to be in among the people of God more than anything else. But God's law says you cannot. You're not allowed. by the precept of God. You're a Moabiteess. Here's this uncompromising law of God that places a stricture in front of her. She can't come in amongst the people of God because of her nature. But then look at this. The glory of the grace of God shines through His law. You know, a lot of preachers, when they talk about the law of God and the gospel, they talk about them as being antithetical. It's almost as though, well, the law, you know, that was for the old days, just forget about the law, now we're under the gospel. The fact of the matter is that the law and the gospel go together. When God saves a person, He saves that person not by ignoring His law, but by looking to it having been fulfilled by Christ. The law of God is upheld in our salvation. It's not ignored. It's not set aside. And therefore, when we think about it, the law of God is actually just as much a revelation of grace as holiness and love as it is of justice. Why? Because the same law, you will find, that forbade Ruth from entering the congregation of the Lord also made provision for her to come in. This is not a contradiction. This is a glorious truth. This is a wonderful fact. The same God who in His precept declared that Ruth was unable to come in, in the very same law opened the door of grace to her. How so? Well, if you go back to Deuteronomy 23, I've already read, In verse 3 there, the reasons why she was excluded from the community of Israel. But read the next chapter. Deuteronomy 24 opens a way for Ruth to come in. Because in Deuteronomy 24 you have the laws regarding the harvest. Laws that regulated the harvest. God basically said to Israel, when you go out to harvest your corn, Don't cut down the corners of the field. I want you to leave those for the stranger and the fatherless and the widow to glean. When you're bringing in your grapes, I don't want you to gather all the grapes. I want you to leave certain gleaning grapes there for the stranger and the fatherless and the widow. You see, God here is making provision. If you drop anything, he said, when you're gathering in the corn, those sheaves that you drop on the ground, don't pick it up. Those are the sheaves that are to be gathered by the stranger, the fatherless, and the widow. And the reason that this law is incorporated into the book of Deuteronomy is in order that the people of God will remember that they too were once strangers. That they too were once in that helpless position like the fatherless and the widow. and that by the grace of God He had brought them out of the slavery, the bondage of Egypt and into the liberty of Canaan. He wanted them to remember that. Ye were strangers. And isn't that just the same as us as believers today? We've read it before. We want to read it again. Ephesians chapter 2, verse 11, Wherefore remember that ye being in time past Gentiles in the flesh, who are called on circumcision by that which is called the circumcision in the flesh made by hands, that at that time ye were without Christ, being aliens from the commonwealth of Israel, just like the Moabites, and strangers from the covenants of promise, having no hope and without God in the world. This is the way it was for you. But now, in Christ Jesus, ye who sometimes were far off are made nigh by the blood of Christ. You know, the amazing thing about Ruth is that she qualified on all three counts. As far as Deuteronomy 24 was concerned, she was a stranger in Bethlehem. She admitted that herself, didn't she? She said to Boaz, why are you taking knowledge of me? In verse 10 of chapter 2, why have I found grace in thine eyes that thou shouldest take knowledge of me, saying I am a stranger? She knew herself to be a stranger. But not only was she a stranger in Bethlehem, she was fatherless in Bethlehem. And she was a widow in Bethlehem, for she had lost her husband while still in Moab. And this is one of the most glorious truths in the book of Ruth. The very law which prevented her from having access to God and the covenant and the blessings was the same law that provided her with the access. The same law that says there's a provision here for the stranger, the fatherless and the widow. And God reached out to her and brought her into covenant blessings. You know, the teaching of the New Testament, folks, is that the same law that was weak through our flesh by our disobedience, that stopped us from enjoying the blessings of God's salvation, that law has been fulfilled for us in Jesus Christ. See, the Savior, when He came, He went about doing good. He earned for us by His life righteousness, perfect righteousness. He kept the law of God in its every precept perfectly. Remember how he prayed? He said, Father, I do always those things that please him. And the father endorsed that because when he was baptized and later on at another time, he said, this is my beloved son and whom I am well pleased. He kept the law perfectly. He made the law honorable. And then he suffered the penalty of the law that we had broken. By His death on the cross, He was hanged on a tree, cursed as everyone that hangeth on a tree. He there suffered the penalty of eternal damnation during those hours of darkness on the tree. And so that law, fulfilled for us by Jesus Christ, allows God in grace to reach out to you and to me, who have no natural right to His blessing, no natural access to His throne, It allows us to come to Him. By nature, we're excluded. But in the death of Christ, God has upheld His law and made it honorable. And by grace, our debt has been paid and our needs have been met by our Kinsman Redeemer. What a beautiful picture here of the Lord Jesus Christ. I trust that you know Him. And if you don't know Him, that you'll begin to know Him today, that you'll come to Him with all of your sin, say, Lord wash me in thy precious blood and take my sins away.