A Generational Life-Changing Decision sermon teaches that choosing to serve God early in life can lead to generations living in the way of the Lord.

Key verses:
Ruth 1:1-18
Ruth 4:9-17

Let’s take our Bibles. Let’s go to Ruth chapter one, Ruth chapter one. Tonight, we’re going to be looking at a generational life-changing decision, and we’re looking at Ruth chapter one. This morning’s message and this evening’s message piggyback off one another with kind of the same theme, but in a different aspect, while also honoring grandparents all at the same time.

Decisions Affect the Future

Ruth chapter one, by way of introduction, in life, we make choices that will shape our future. Some will have long-lasting effects, whether positive or negative. Tonight, we will examine a decision that would change many generations to come. Without this decision probably, maybe, one of the most notable people may not have come onto the scene.

So, Ruth chapter one. Let’s look at verse number 16, and we’ll look at the majority of this chapter and one other spot in Ruth, and then we’ll be finished. This evening, in chapter 1, verse 16, the Bible says these words. As we open the Bible, I want us to understand this evening that we’re opening up the mind of God, and so as we look into the Bible.

Let’s look at verse 16:

Ruth 1:16: “And Ruth said, Intreat me not to leave thee, or to return from following after thee: for whither thou goest, I will go; and where thou lodgest, I will lodge: thy people shall be my people, and thy God my God:”

A generational life-changing decision I submit to you this evening that you make God your God and set the example for generations to come. The service at the top, they say leadership, everything rises and falls on leadership. Well, in your family life, it starts from the top. If the grandparents are serving the Lord, most likely, the parents will hopefully be doing the same thing, and their children and their children. But if it doesn’t start at the top, it’s going to be very difficult for those generations below them to have a desire for the Lord because it hasn’t been said at the top.

We’re going to look at Ruth here this evening and see what this choice entailed and how it changed a lot of things given to us.

Dire Circumstances

Let’s look at the first verse here. Verses one through five, we see here a tragic setting.

Ruth 1:1: “Now it came to pass in the days when the judges ruled, that there was a famine in the land. And a certain man of Bethlehemjudah went to sojourn in the country of Moab, he, and his wife, and his two sons.”

So, this is during the time of Judges. I am not sure which judge it is, but they occurred during that time frame in Israel’s life, in the nation of Israel.

Ruth 1:2: “And the name of the man was Elimelech, and the name of his wife Naomi, and the name of his two sons Mahlon and Chilion, Ephrathites of Bethlehemjudah. And they came into the country of Moab, and continued there.”

Let’s look at the origin of Moab real quickly. Moab was the name of one of Lot’s daughters after she had been impregnated by her own dad while getting him drunk. So, a picture that’s painted there is not a good start. The Moab people commentators have said, people have said, that it was a very wicked city, a very sinful city. Some people even equated it to Las Vegas. It’s a fact that it’s known as Sin City. It’s a place of desires and temptations. So, they go from Israel to Moab, not a good place, and here’s who they meet:

Ruth 1:3: “And Elimelech Naomi’s husband died; and she was left, and her two sons.”

Already, the first scene of tragedy here.

Ruth 1:4: “And they took them wives of the women of Moab; the name of the one was Orpah, and the name of the other Ruth: and they dwelled there about ten years.”

Ruth 1:5: “And Mahlon and Chilion died also both of them; and the woman was left of her two sons and her husband.”

So, in a matter of 10 years, Naomi loses her husband and she loses her two sons. It’s never easy to lose anybody, especially your own husband or your spouse. I know there are widows in the audience today. It’s not easy to lose your spouse. It really isn’t. Especially if you’ve been with them for multiple years on end and now have an emptiness and void. It’s very hard to feel that. And then not only that, but I also know there are people in this room tonight who have lost their own children. Naomi has not only lost her husband but she’s also lost both her sons. It’s a pretty sad scenario we find ourselves in.

So, what happens from this? Well, the setting is that she lost her husband and her sons in a matter of years. Now, let’s see what happens next. First of all, we see a tragic setting.

Difficult Decisions

Number two, we see in verses 6 through 13 a choice to make.

Ruth 1:6: “Then she arose with her daughters in law, that she might return from the country of Moab: for she had heard in the country of Moab how that the LORD had visited his people in giving them bread.”

This might have been one of those cycles in Judges where things had gone well, and then they abandoned the Lord, and then someone took captive of them, and then a judge delivered them, and then God blessed them again. It could have been one of those cycles; I don’t really know. The text doesn’t indicate that, but Naomi now wants to go back home to Bethlehem and wants to go back to Israel. So, what does she do?

Ruth 1:7: “Wherefore she went forth out of the place where she was, and her two daughters in law with her; and they went on the way to return unto the land of Judah.”

So, all three of them were traveling there: Naomi, Orpha, and Ruth.

Ruth 1:8: “And Naomi said unto her two daughters in law, Go, return each to her mother’s house: the LORD deal kindly with you, as ye have dealt with the dead, and with me.”

What’s she telling them? “Go home. You’ve been with me, you’ve helped me out, you’ve helped me through my mourning of the loss of my husband and the loss of my sons. You’ve comforted me. You don’t need to waste your life with me anymore. Just go back home and go back to Moab.” That’s basically what she’s saying.

Ruth 1:9: “The LORD grant you that ye may find rest, each of you in the house of her husband. Then she kissed them; and they lifted up their voice, and wept.”

She said they should just go marry someone else. “I can’t produce any children.” She says that. She continues in verse nine, “Then she kissed them; and they lifted up their voice, and wept.”

Ruth 1:10: “And they said unto her, Surely we will return with thee unto thy people.”

So, the ladies wanted to go back with Naomi. They want to go to the nation of Israel. But Naomi, looking at herself, looking at the misery, in the sense, that she’s in, she doesn’t feel like she wants Orpha and Ruth to partake in that because she says here in verse number 11:

Ruth 1:11: “And Naomi said, Turn again, my daughters: why will ye go with me? are there yet any more sons in my womb, that they may be your husbands?”

“What’s the point of going with me? I’m a widow.” What else? “Are there yet any more sons in my womb, that they may be your husbands?” I wrote in my Bible here that Naomi should not have turned people away from the Lord. Now, in her misery, to her despair, she should have accepted them wanting to stay with her. But she was kind of turning them away. She didn’t really want to be with them anymore because she felt that they needed to find – they were young enough that they should go and remarry someone else. It’s really what she was thinking about. Think about them being married again. And why do we, why does she, think that?

Ruth 1:12: “Turn again, my daughters, go your way; for I am too old to have an husband. If I should say, I have hope, if I should have an husband also to night, and should also bear sons;”

Naomi’s saying, “Hey, I’m too old to remarry, but even if some miraculous miracle happened and I got married tonight, it’s still going to take a while. This is going to take at least 20 years for me to have a son for you to marry. I don’t know how old these ladies were. They were probably maybe in their 20s or maybe early 30s, and so Naomi’s thinking, “You know what? By the time my sons, if I could get married tonight, and I could have a child. It’d be at least 20 years before you could marry them.” These ladies would no longer be in their thirties but be in their 40s, upper 50s probably. And so, she’s looking at it from that point of view, thinking, no you don’t need to stay with me because I can’t help you anymore.

Well, in reality, these girls were trying to search for the Lord, and we’re going to see that when we get back to verse 16. Again, they were trying to follow Naomi because they wanted to know more about who God was. But Naomi was looking at circumstances and trying not to really bring them toward the Lord, but pushing them away. So, we continue on the text verse, number 13:

Ruth 1:13: “Would ye tarry [wait] for them till they were grown? would ye stay for them from having husbands? nay, my daughters; for it grieveth me much for your sakes that the hand of the LORD is gone out against me.”

Basically, she says, “It’s not your fault that the Lord has treated me this way. It’s not your fault that I lost my husband and my two sons who were married to you. You don’t need to be partakers in this. Just go on your way. So, Naomi gives them a choice to make. First, they wanted to go with her. She wanted them to go and find a new life for someone else. But now we’ll see, third of all, what choices were made.

Choices Made

So, first of all, we’ve seen the tragic setting. Secondly, we’ve seen the choice to make. And third of all, we see the choices are made. Two different choices are made here in verses 14 to 18, Orpha’s choice in verses 14 and 15.

Ruth 1:14: “And they lifted up their voice, and wept again: and Orpah kissed her mother in law; but Ruth clave unto her.”

We’re going to come back to verse 14 in a second. I’m not going to read the last phrase because I want to tie it in with Ruth. So, verse 15:

Ruth 1:15: “And she said, Behold, thy sister in law is gone back unto her people, and unto her gods: return thou after thy sister in law.”

Now, you’d think that’s pretty sad. Yeah, it is. But in a sense, they only caused this because she was telling them, “Hey, go back, go find someone else to marry. Just go back to what you were comfortable with because I can’t help you anymore.”

And you know the Bible does teach the church in the New Testament to help the widows, the widows indeed especially. But that’s one of the ministries, sometimes in church ministry, that gets neglected a lot is the ministry of widows. It’s trying to help care for and comfort them. And these girls were trying to comfort her, Naomi. But she has kind of pushed them away and is now letting them stay with her. So, Orpha made a choice to go back.

Let’s go back to verse 14, and let’s look at that last phrase, “Ruth clave unto her.” She clung, she followed closely, she literally stuck right to Naomi. She didn’t want to leave. I kind of equated it this way: that child, that grandchild who runs up onto your leg and clasps your leg and doesn’t want to let go, and you’re trying to pull that grandchild off or that child at all. I feel like that’s kind of the way. Now, I don’t think Ruth actually did that to her mother-in-law, but it’s kind of the idea behind that word is that she was just stuck to her. She did not want to let go, almost like super glue, “But Ruth clave unto her.”

And so, why did she do that? She’s telling her, “Go back to your gods, go back to the things that you knew.” But here is why Ruth did not go. Come back to verse 16 where we started:

Ruth 1:16: “And Ruth said, Intreat me not to leave thee, or to return from following after thee: for whither thou goest, I will go; and where thou lodgest, I will lodge: thy people shall be my people, and thy God my God:”

“Intreat” means don’t cause, to entreat, don’t meet together, run-in – don’t drive me away. She’s literally telling Naomi, “Stop pushing me away. Stop trying to push me off and try to make me separate from you because I’m not going.” That’s essentially what she’s saying here, “Intreat me not to leave thee. Stop pushing me off or to return from following after thee.”

Ruth’s Reason

You say, “Man, Ruth is pretty harsh here.” No, there’s a reason why she wanted to follow her. Here’s the reason, “For whither thou goest, I will go; and where thou lodgest, I will lodge: thy people shall be my people, and thy God my God:”

Follow that logic. It’s going to tie in verses 17 and 18 and, more importantly, in verse 16, “And thy God my God.” Who had Ruth found? She had found God. She had found Jesus, and she wanted to soak it all in.

This is why we have to be careful not to push people away because you never know who that one person is who is searching and seeking like Ruth was. And she didn’t come from an area of success. Moab was not a good city, but she desired something better. She desired God. She desired a relationship with God.

Ruth 1:17: “Where thou diest, will I die, and there will I be buried: the LORD do so to me, and more also, if ought but death part thee and me.”

She literally took the phrase in the marriage vows we say today: until death do you part. She didn’t want to separate from that family even though her husband had passed away. She did not want to separate from that. Why? Continuing on in verse 17:

Ruth 1:17: “Where thou diest, will I die, and there will I be buried: the LORD do so to me, and more also, if ought but death part thee and me.”

“I will stay with you, Naomi, until death separates us.” Why? Because Ruth wanted to serve God. Ruth made a choice. I don’t know how old she was, probably in her 20s, maybe her 30s. But she had found God, and she couldn’t stop the taste of just knowing how good God really was. She didn’t have Psalms back then. She didn’t even have Joshua; hadn’t really come. Okay, I’ll take that back. She was in the period of Judges, and what was going on, the judges, well, every man thought that was right in their own eyes. And in the midst of a of a crooked world, in the midst of an evil world, Ruth made the decision to not follow the world, follow God. And so, verse 18:

Ruth 1:18: “When she saw that she was stedfastly minded to go with her, then she left speaking unto her.”

Basically, she is looking at Ruth, and she’s like, “I ain’t gonna get her away. She’s just gonna come with me.” She knew that she was not going to change Ruth’s mind. Ruth made a choice to follow God, to reject all that she knew to follow Him. But what will happen now because of her choice?

Results of Choosing Rightly

Skip now to chapter four. I know most of you know this narrative, but I’ll kind of clue you in on it. In chapter two, she goes to work in the fields. She meets a man. She meets Boaz, and she’s working with him. Boaz recognizes her working out in her field, takes her out of the field, has Ruth working closely in the house, and then she goes home after the day’s work supporting Naomi.

Naomi finds out, “Hey, Boaz is related to us. He’s a kinsman.” We could talk about the whole kinsmen redeemer aspect. We’re not going to do that tonight as I’m focusing on which is the type of Christ because she mentions, “Hey, he’s related to us.”

Now, you think to yourself, “Why didn’t Naomi remember that back when she was trying to tell them to go home? I’m pretty certain because of the misery and sorrow she was in, she wasn’t thinking that way. She probably wasn’t thinking clearly then as she was at that point.

So, then she tells Ruth, “Hey, go in. When he’s having his party that you’re invited to, go in, sleep at his feet, or lay at his feet.” He’ll wake up, and he’ll know exactly what’s going on, and that’s what happened in chapter three.

So, later on in chapter three, Ruth finds out, wait, there’s someone closer who could have the opportunity to marry her. So now, we pick up the narrative in Ruth chapter four. This other kinsman comes along, and he basically says, I’m not going to do it. Chapter four, verse number nine:

Ruth 4:9: “And Boaz said unto the elders, and unto all the people, Ye are witnesses this day, that I have bought all that was Elimelech’s, and all that was Chilion’s and Mahlon’s, of the hand of Naomi.”

Ruth 4:10: “Moreover Ruth the Moabitess, the wife of Mahlon, have I purchased to be my wife, to raise up the name of the dead upon his inheritance, that the name of the dead be not cut off from among his brethren, and from the gate of his place: ye are witnesses this day.”

Basically, the other kinsman says, “No, I’m not going to buy her. I’m not going to take it, it’s too much. I can’t do it. She’s yours.” Essentially, this is what he told him. The result of her choice is she found the love of her life. She remarried and, more importantly than that, continuing on verse 11:

Ruth 4:11: “And all the people that were in the gate, and the elders, said, We are witnesses. The LORD make the woman that is come into thine house like Rachel and like Leah, which two did build the house of Israel: and do thou worthily in Ephratah, and be famous in Bethlehem:”

“Build the house of Israel,” that would be them having the children, the 12 tribes, “and do thou worthily in Ephratah, and be famous in Bethlehem:”

Ruth 4:12: “And let thy house be like the house of Pharez, whom Tamar bare unto Judah, of the seed which the LORD shall give thee of this young woman.”

Ruth 4:13: “So Boaz took Ruth, and she was his wife: and when he went in unto her, the LORD gave her conception, and she bare a son.”

Ruth 4:14: “And the women said unto Naomi, Blessed be the LORD, which hath not left thee this day without a kinsman, that his name may be famous in Israel.”

Ruth gets married, now has a child. Naomi is blessed. We talked about the grandparents, and how grandchildren are a blessing to you. Naomi finally had a grandchild. We’ll see a little bit of that in just a little bit and see her reaction to that.

Ruth 4:15: “And he shall be unto thee a restorer of thy life, and a nourisher of thine old age: for thy daughter in law, which loveth thee, which is better to thee than seven sons, hath born him.”

She was saying, “Because of Ruth’s choice, Naomi, you’re blessed.” That’s what they were saying. Children and grandchildren are a blessing to their grandparents. And we’ve heard that tonight in our testimonies. What happens?

Ruth 4:16: “And Naomi took the child, and laid it in her bosom, and became nurse unto it.”

Ruth 4:17: “And the women her neighbours gave it a name, saying, There is a son born to Naomi; and they called his name Obed: he is the father of Jesse, the father of David.”

I’m sure you know David. You know, he was only that guy who had the five stones and the sling and killed Goliath right in the forehead, first shot. And he only became probably the most well-known king. He wasn’t the first king of Israel, but he was known as a man after God’s own heart. He became the King of Israel.

Then, 2 Samuel chapter seven is the Davidic Covenant, which was the promise of Christ coming through the line of David. I think Ruth made a life-changing, generational life-changing decision. Had she not chosen to go with Naomi and had she not chosen the Lord to follow, maybe none of this would have happened.

Now, of course, we look at it in history and we see this all take place, but sometimes I like to think of the what-ifs. Do you think that’s horrible? Yeah, it is, but what if it didn’t happen? Imagine she didn’t. Imagine she went back to Moab. Imagine she didn’t marry Boaz and bear a son or married the other kinsman, and it wasn’t Boaz. But her choice and faith in God had generational effects for years to come. She was the great-grandmother to King David.

A Generational Choice

In conclusion, Ruth made a choice early in life to serve God. She was an adult when she became a believer. But after that point, she did not want to turn away from God. We can be encouraged in that and lead our house and our home in the way of the Lord. The example starts at the top with the grandparents to the parents to the children, grandchildren, and so on and so forth. May you and your house serve the Lord and see the leadership from the top down.

Our invitation will be pretty simple. God’s spoken to your heart to do business with Him, whether it be to encourage you to be one who follows Him faithfully, or maybe it’s someone asking Jesus Christ to be their Savior. Whatever choice that God’s laid on your heart, I encourage you to act upon what God’s stirred within you and convicted you of this evening.

~~~~~~~

Father, we come to you in prayer. We thank you for what you have given to us. We thank you for the opportunity we have, and we can come to you, and we can hear your Word preached. We can preach it, and we can just share who you are.

Father, I pray that you will just be with us this evening with the different decisions and choices that we have to make, that we want to make. May we make a choice to consistently follow you. We wouldn’t put ourselves in the way of our service to you. Now, we will follow you wholly, with the whole heart, as we saw with Caleb this morning.

Father, bless and move in this invitation time. We pray in Jesus’ name. Amen.

---

Watch the prerecorded live version of the entire service and sermon, A Generational Life-Changing Decision, on Facebook.

A Generational Life-Changing Decision — Related Sermons

You may also want to listen to or view these sermons:

The Potter’s Wheel

And the Common People Heard Him Gladly