Ⅳ
Chapter 3 of the book of Ruth speaks of Ruth’s seeking for her rest:
A
“Naomi, her [Ruth’s] mother-in-law, said to her, My daughter, I must seek some resting place for you, that it may go well with you”—v. 1:
１
Naomi realized that the proper person to be Ruth’s husband was Boaz; hence, Naomi acted as a “middleman” in order to prod Ruth to get married.
２
The genuine ministers of the New Testament are like Naomi in that they stir up the believers in Christ to love Him as their Bridegroom that they may take Him as their Husband—2 Cor. 11:2; Rev. 19:7; 21:9-10.
３
The only way for us to have rest is to take Christ as our Husband; we must know Him as our Husband and take Him as our Husband, living in the closest and most intimate contact with Him—1 Cor. 2:9; cf. 16:22.
４
If we marry Christ, taking Him as our Husband, our life will be changed; we will realize that we must have a wife’s fidelity, and we will learn how to enjoy Christ as our life and our person, walking and behaving in oneness with Him—2 Cor. 2:10.
B
After coming to the good land and exercising her right to enjoy its rich produce, Ruth still needed a home so that she could have rest; this kind of rest could come only through marriage:
１
Although we may be saved and love the Lord, in order to have a home for our rest we must marry the Lord Jesus, taking Him as our Husband, and live together with Him in the church as our home—Rom. 7:4; 2 Cor. 11:2; Eph. 5:25-27.
２
Christ as our Husband and the church as our home are a complete unit for us to have a proper and adequate rest (v. 32).
Morning Nourishment
Ruth 3:1 And Naomi, her mother-in-law, said to her, My daughter, I must seek some resting place for you, that it may go well with you.2 Cor. 11:2 For I am jealous over you with a jealousy of God; for I betrothed you to one husband to present you as a pure virgin to Christ.
Ruth chapter 3 shows Ruth’s seeking for her rest. We need to enjoy Christ to such an extent that we have rest. In order to have rest, we surely need a home. No place can give us as much rest as our home. In chapter 3 Naomi proposed and even pushed to gain a home for Ruth.
The steps taken by Ruth correspond to our spiritual experience…. By believing in the Lord Jesus, we were organically joined to Him. Now He is in us and we are in Him. With this intimate, organic union, we must begin to pursue Christ in order to gain, possess, experience, and enjoy Him. This is typified by Ruth’s exercising of her right to gain and possess the produce of the good land. Just as Ruth had the right to enjoy the produce of the good land after coming into the land, so we have the right to enjoy Christ as our good land after believing in Him.
However, after our gleaning we still need a home so that we can have a settled rest. This kind of rest can come only through marriage….Naomi wanted to find a way to establish a home for Ruth [cf. v. 1]. If Ruth was to have a home for her rest, she needed a husband. Naomi realized that the proper person to be Ruth’s husband was Boaz, who typifies Christ. (Life-study of Ruth, pp. 17-18)
Today’s Reading
Have you ever had a time with the Lord when you said, “Lord, You are my Husband”? Even though you are saved and you love the Lord, you will not have a home for your rest until you marry the Lord Jesus, taking Him as your Husband.In this modern age there are many idols, such as entertainment, sports, and shopping, which cause Christians to be unfaithful. It seems as if they have never been married to Christ, that they have never actually taken Him as their Husband. As a consequence, they are roaming, wandering from place to place with no rest.
The place to find our Husband is in our home, the church. Christ is the Husband in the church. To have a husband is not sufficient. We must also have a home…. If we have Christ, enjoy Christ, and experience Christ, yet we do not have the church, we are still homeless. Therefore, we must stress not only Christ as our Husband but also the church as our home. Christ as our Husband and the church as our home are a complete unit for us to have a proper and adequate rest.
Naomi was clear that Ruth needed to be married to Boaz…. There was the need for Naomi, as the person in the middle, to push Ruth and Boaz to get married. My burden today is like Naomi’s. I am seeking a resting place for you, and the only way for you to have rest is to take Christ as your Husband. Thus, I am here as a person in the middle to push you to marry Christ….You need to do more than to glean in His field—you need to take Him as your Husband. My burden, therefore, is to push all of us to marry Christ. I am pushing us to marry Christ so that we can build up a home and enjoy Him in this home, which is the church.
Nothing is more intimate than marriage. Taking Christ as our Husband is a most intimate matter. If we marry Christ, taking Him as our Husband, our life will be changed. We will realize that we must have a wife’s fidelity, and we will learn how to enjoy Christ as our life, walking and behaving in oneness with Him. Then we will become those who gain Christ and enjoy Christ, loving Him, staying at home with Him, and living with Him at home, in the church. If we do this, we will truly know the church life in the Lord’s recovery. (Life-study of Ruth, pp. 18-19)
Further Reading: Life-study of Ruth, msg. 4; Life-study of Romans, msg. 1; Life-study of 2 Corinthians, msgs. 52-53