Seeking
Security
A few weeks ago, the two nationwide lottery jackpots
were in the news for both
having big prize amounts.
People began wondering what it would be like to win
hundreds of millions of
dollars…
What would you do…
new house and car…vacations…
donations to your
favorite charities and non-profits…
giving to your church and
community…
gifts for family and
friends…investments?
Why did so many people line up for the chance
to spend $2 and maybe
receive millions in return?
My theory,
they were seeking
security…financial security…
never
having to work again…
having money for their
kid’s college education…
knowing they could afford
a nice house…
not worrying about bills.
The allure of the lottery is about financial security
and the hope that it will
buy other forms of ‘security’;
security -the state of
being free from danger or threat.
What does security mean to you?
Safety…
Shelter…
Assurance…
Guarantee…
Peace…Ease…Calm…
What kind of security is important for us today?
You
and I hope for security/safety
in our daily lives.
Today is Veteran’s day when we remember and honor
those who have served in
order that we as a nation are safe.
Others serve our community to keep us safe…
people
from the fire department,
police officers, sheriff
deputies, emts.
These and
others give of themselves to make others safe.
Yet, there are still things that we have no control over
which make us afraid,
feel unsafe,
and threatens our sense
of security.
Something like the synagogue shooting 2 weeks ago,
which brings up memories
of the
Charleston church
shooting from 3 years ago and
so many random acts of
violence
that occur in our world
today.
Where do you and I look for security?
Naomi
is seeking security for Ruth.
Naomi had urged Ruth to return to her mother’s home
because
Naomi had no further security to
provide.
For women, security was found in marriage.
In Ruth 1, there are many losses,
Naomi
loses her husband and her sons;
a widow
has no legal status,
no
power, even to provide for herself.
What had to be considered, was survival.
Ruth, gleaning fields is a means of survival.
Naomi works for,
you
may even say ‘plots’ a way for
Ruth to
once again find security in marriage.
Naomi is the matchmaker for Ruth and Boaz
and in
chapter 4, the blessings of God,
for
both Ruth and Naomi are celebrated.
The birth of a son;
a child, a next of kin,
an assurance for the
future.
When I read through Ruth as I prepared for today,
it came
to mind that on some basic level,
the
Book of Ruth, Naomi’s journey may be
compared
to Job.
Naomi has losses and blessings,
Job too experiences
losses and restoration;
yet when they each complete their journey,
they
have more than they had before and
they have been
transformed by what has happened to them.
Is that not
how life is?
When each of us go through a loss or a change of
circumstances,
you
and I are different than before…
we have
learned something…
we have
discovered our strengths and weaknesses…
we have
hope, faith, renewal and some form of restoration.
Restoration is defined as
a return to a state that
had once existed.
In the Old Testament restoration is used in reference
to:
return
or to turn such as
the
captive Jews returning to their land after the exile.
In the New Testament it refers to:
to
re-establish or to restore, such as
what
Jesus can do for you and me;
The big picture: restoring the human/God relationship,
the cosmic connections to
the primal state
before the sin of Adam
and Eve.
Restoration.
That brings us to the passage from Hebrews…
in the
Old Testament.
sacrifices,
offerings to God,
were
made for atonement,
for
a hope of returning to favor,
for
blessings,
a
way of expressing faith,
in hope of receiving and being thankful
for
security.
How does God give us security?
The New Testament promises something better;
purification
through the death of Christ.
Jesus does not act
like the high priest…
the high priest enters the Holy Place year after year
with blood that is not his own.
Jesus is the sacrifice
to bear the sins of many.
Author, preacher, and theologian Thomas Long
explains in his
commentary on Hebrews…
Jesus
made a final and fitting sacrifice once.
Jesus
is not condemned to an eternity of
crucifixions,
a
ceaseless round of suffering, a never-ending and
always
unfinished series of little atonements. No.
Jesus
is our Savior.
The Westminster Confession of Faith[1]
tell us:
The Lord Jesus, by his perfect obedience
and sacrifice
of
himself, which he through the eternal Spirit once offered up unto God, hath
fully satisfied the justice of his Father; and purchased not only
reconciliation, but an everlasting inheritance in the kingdom of heaven, for
all those whom the Father hath given unto him.[2]
Jesus is our Savior.
You and I
seek security in this life;
in the Gospel of John,
Jesus speaks as the Good Shepherd,
about his flock:
“I give them eternal
life, and they will never perish.
No one will snatch them out of my
hand.”
Theologian Jean Calvin calls this eternal security:
salvation
will not be lost.
God is full of grace and mercy. ‘saving mercy’.
Jesus has atoned for our sins.
One of the Psalms of David, Psalm 16,
expresses
trust and security in God…
“Therefore,
my heart is glad, and my soul rejoices;
my body also rests
secure.
You show me the path of
life,
in your presence there is fullness of joy.”
We move from lament to rejoicing.
I remember a song from my youth,
a hymn learned at summer
camp called Sabbath Prayer;
it extols the strengths
of Ruth and Esther and
asks God for blessings
and security…
May
the Lord protect and defend you,
May
He always shield you from shame,
May
the Lord preserve you from pain;
Favor
them, O Lord, with happiness and peace,
Oh,
hear our sabbath prayer.
You and I
will not find security in a lottery
ticket,
we cannot find security in something
that
brings temporary safety,
the
allure of a quick fix or a momentary solution.
You and I
know, we have security through our faith.
As the hymn we will sing together in a few moments
goes,
Heir of salvation, purchase of God.”
You and I
embrace the gift of eternal security,
the blessed assurance,
and act as witnesses to
the Gospel.
Security through our faith; eternal security,
God in
his mercy sent
Jesus
to reconcile,
redeem,
renew,
restore.
Jesus Christ
is our sacrifice,
sanctifier,
savior,
security.
The
Holy Spirit inspires you and me to act in this world,
for
the benefit of others,
those
who need our care,
for
the ones who cannot speak for
themselves,
those
in search of security like Naomi and Ruth.
We are blessed!
“Blessed
assurance, Jesus is mine…
Echoes
of mercy, whispers of love,
I
in my Savior am happy and blest.”
