Turn,
Turn, Turn
Turn, turn, turn…
…an interesting title for a sermon from the first
chapter of Ruth.
Turn, turn, turn…
…may bring to mind the Pete Seeger song
made famous by the Byrds
back in the 60s;
Every thing has a season,
a time for every purpose
under heaven.
We will get back to those verses from Ecclesiastes in
a moment,
first
to the Book of Ruth.
Two reasons…
First, in the Book of Ruth, there is a lot of
traveling,
turning
to Moab in time of famine,
returning
to Judah after loss of husbands,
Naomi urging her
daughters-in-law to turn back,
to return to their mothers’ house.
Secondly, the first chapter of Ruth contains a lot of
changes,
many
seasons of life…
famine,
death, marriage, childlessness,
loss,
saying goodbye…
events
keep happening, turning.
For everything there is a season,
and a time for every
matter under heaven.
In Genesis it is a famine that sends Jacob and his sons to
Egypt,
there
is a greater purpose in God’s plan.
The generations living in Egypt
then Moses leading the
Exodus,
receiving
the commandments and
God forming these
wandering slaves into a united people.
In Ecclesiastes,
the times are neither
proclaimed good nor bad,
they just are and
each has its own purpose
in God’s plan.
Elimelech
and his family live in Bethlehem:
literally translated as ‘house of
bread’.
however, it is a time of famine, no bread, no food.
A time of famine, a time to eat.
If there had been no
famine,
there would have been no need to go to Moab.
a time to mourn, and a time to
dance;
Naomi has lost her husband but has gained daughters-in-law.
If they had stayed in Judah during the famine,
surely, they would have all faced
death.
For a time, there is hope for the next generation.
it is time to
return to Bethlehem for there is family there.
A
time for despair and a time for hope.
Naomi has hope,
even
through her sorrow,
she makes the hopeful
plan to return to Judah,
where the famine has
passed;
“for she had heard in the country of
Moab
that the Lord had considered his people
and given them food.”
should her
daughters-in-law come with her?
What is best for these
two young widows?
Would they not be better off in their own land?
In the home of their
mothers?
Can these two find a life in Judah, among the
Israelites?
Is Naomi being selfish wanting to have them with her?
Naomi reconsiders; she gives them motherly advice.
Go back each of you to your mother’s house…
Turn back, my daughters…
Turn back, my daughters, go your way…
Orpah follows her mother-in-law’s advice
and turns back to Moab.
Ruth does not;
she clings to Naomi.
a time to embrace, and
a time to refrain from embracing;
Ruth replies with words of commitment,
to
Naomi, to her people, and to God.
“Do not press me to leave you or
to
turn back
from following you!
Where you go, I will go; where you
lodge, I will lodge;
your
people shall be my people, and your God my God.”
Naomi accepts Ruth’s declaration and determination.
a time to keep silence, and a time
to speak;
They would travel together, mother and daughter.
seeking security for
Ruth;
the matchmaking of Ruth
and Boaz.
Without Ruth returning with Naomi from Moab,
Ruth
would not have become Boaz’s wife,
there
would be no son Obed,
who became the father of
Jesse,
who
became the father of David.
David, the shepherd boy who would become king.
If there had been no famine, no journey to Moab,
no marriage to Moabite women,
no loss of husband
and sons,
no determined
daughter-in-law
who
was willing to leave her land behind,
her people, her gods,
no new life, no marriage
to Boaz,
and
thus, no David.
Israel, King David,
and the hope for a
Messiah born in Bethlehem,
a Savior for all the
people of the earth,
all of it was always part of God’s plan.
you
and I cannot always see the big picture,
yet,
there is a time for every purpose under
heaven.
How do the events in our lives, good and bad,
speak not only to the seasons of life
but to the bigger purpose
in God’s plan for us?
I know there have been occasions in my life when I
questioned,
‘why is
this happening to me?’
However, months or even years later,
I can look back and
understand ‘oh, that led to this’.
Think back and remember
when those events in your
life happened;
when a yes or no made a difference,
when an event had a
change of plans,
when an insignificant
choice led to something greater.
One phrase I love is ‘there is joy in the journey.’
Life is full of unknowns,
you and
I do not know what adventure is
around
the next corner or what
purpose may come from it.
There is always a purpose to God’s plan for our lives;
In Genesis 50, Joseph tells his brothers:
“Even
though you intended to do harm to me,
God
intended it for good.”
Sometimes it seems you and I are on our own,
a wandering path, without
direction or a guide…
yet, step back, take a
look at where we have been;
all the things that have happened
form us,
and
lead us to who we are today.
Family, friends, places traveled and lived, choices
made,
things
we have done or had done to us,
all of who we are,
has brought you and me
to the place,
the
person who believes,
the one
who has faith in God,
the disciple of Christ,
the one inspired by the
Holy Spirit.
For everything there is a season,
and a time for every matter under
heaven.
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