In Touch Devotional 2nd March 2024 Message by Dr. Charles Stanley
Read In Touch Devotional 2nd March 2024 – Saturday Daily Devotional Message Written by Dr. Charles Stanley
TOPIC: God Redeems Our Losses
TODAY’S SCRIPTURE: Ruth 4:9-17
Then Boaz said to the elders and all the people, “You are witnesses today that I have bought from the hand of Naomi all that belonged to Elimelech and all that belonged to Chilion and Mahlon.
“Moreover, I have acquired Ruth the Moabitess, the widow of Mahlon, to be my wife in order to raise up the name of the deceased on his inheritance, so that the name of the deceased will not be cut off from his brothers or from the court of his birth place; you are witnesses today.”
All the people who were in the court, and the elders, said, “ We are witnesses. May the LORD make the woman who is coming into your home like Rachel and Leah, both of whom built the house of Israel; and may you achieve wealth in Ephrathah and become famous in Bethlehem.
“Moreover, may your house be like the house of Perez whom Tamar bore to Judah, through the offspring which the LORD will give you by this young woman.”
So Boaz took Ruth, and she became his wife, and he went in to her. And the LORD enabled her to conceive, and she gave birth to a son.
Then the women said to Naomi, “Blessed is the LORD who has not left you without a redeemer today, and may his name become famous in Israel.
“May he also be to you a restorer of life and a sustainer of your old age; for your daughter-in-law, who loves you and is better to you than seven sons, has given birth to him.”
Then Naomi took the child and laid him in her lap, and became his nurse.
The neighbor women gave him a name, saying, “A son has been born to Naomi!” So they named him Obed. He is the father of Jesse, the father of David.
MESSAGE: The book of Ruth begins with death: Naomi loses her husband and sons, and her daughters-in-law Ruth and Orpah are widowed. Though Ruth is a Moabite who could easily return to her family of origin, she chooses to stay with her mother-in-law, adopting Naomi’s faith in God as her own.
Ruth and Naomi go to Bethlehem, the older woman’s hometown, where faith in God’s provision leads Ruth to a barley field as a gleaner. In a story only God could write, the owner of the field is Boaz—Naomi’s relative who can restore the family line. Through this “kinsman-redeemer,” God displays His remarkable power to provide.
This can be true for us as well, even when our life looks far different than the one we envisioned. Though the book of Ruth begins with death, it ends in life, through the birth of her son Obed.
Ruth’s story teaches us that even if we experience loss, God is faithful to refashion our circumstances into a new story that sings of His lovingkindness. He can redeem all things—even death. Centuries later, another descendant of Ruth and Boaz would be born in Bethlehem: Jesus, who rescued us from the grave by giving His life on the cross.
BIBLE IN ONE YEAR: Deuteronomy 28-30
THOUGHT FOR TODAY: Because of the cross, we have sure hope for a better tomorrow.
Dr. Charles Stanley was the founder of In Touch Ministries and a New York Times best-selling author. Throughout his ministry, he demonstrated a keen awareness of people’s needs and provided Christ-centered biblically based principles for everyday life