The Matchmaking Grandma

First Lesson: Ruth 3: 1-5; 4: 13-17
Responsive Reading: Psalm 127
Second Lesson: Hebrews 9: 24-28
Gospel Lesson: Mark 12: 38-44

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Grace and Peace from Our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ,

I want to tell you the story of a woman not unlike a woman that many of you might know.  This woman’s name is Naomi.  Naomi’s life for most of it seemed to be going along good but not great.  Her husband was a farmer who made a decent existence.  She had a couple of sons.  Naomi’s life was about to take a turn for the worst.  Naomi’s life was about to face one disaster after another.

Disaster 1- Famine strikes the land where Naomi lived.  Naomi’s life quickly went from the stable to the unstable.  Naomi’s whole family was going to be forced to move to the land of Moab.  No one would have lived in Moab by choice.  Moab was a violent and dangerous place.  The people of Moab didn’t just sacrifice individual human beings; they sacrificed entire villages to appease their Gods.  Moab was a strange land filled with people unlike Naomi in any way, yet Naomi’s life would now be in Moab.

Disaster 2- Naomi’s husband dies.  Ten years later then Naomi’s first son dies.  A few years after that Naomi’s other son dies.  Naomi was now as poor as any woman could be.  Naomi had no income, no social security, no pension, no immediate family, nor any means of support.  The only people that Naomi really even knew in Moab were her daughters in law Ruth and Orpah.

Naomi could have easily been the little old lady left to die alone with hardly anyone noticing.  Naomi decides that Moab is no longer for her.  Naomi hears that the famine is over in Judea.  Naomi hopes to travel back to her homeland hoping to get some support from distant blood relatives.  Naomi might get charity at home, but never in Moab.

Naomi’s Daughters in Law begin to travel with her out of Moab.  Naomi stops them.  Naomi wishes for them to remain in Moab living their own lives.  They were young and they didn’t need to be surrounded by an old anchor like Naomi.  They would never find men to marry in Naomi’s land.  The cultures were just too different.  One daughter in law Orpah returns home at Naomi’s pleading.  The other daughter in law was a stubborn woman named Ruth.  Ruth refused to leave Naomi’s presence.

I said earlier that we all know women like Naomi.  Women that figure that time has passed them by.  Women that think that they are just running out the clock on life.  Women that figure they’re better off being alone.  Women that assume that they have nothing else left to give.  Who you probably haven’t met is a woman like Ruth.  Many of us have heard horror stories involving someone else’s mother in law.  There is no less steady relationship than the one between mother in law and daughter in law, yet Ruth would not leave Naomi’s side.

Ruth begged Naomi not to leave her “Do not urge me to leave you or to return from following you. For where you go I will go, and where you lodge I will lodge. Your people shall be my people, and your God my God. Where you die I will die, and there will I be buried. May the Lord do so to me and more also if anything but death parts me from you.”[1].” The promise Ruth of loyalty made to Naomi would have seemed like the promise of a crazy woman!

Naomi probably thought Ruth to be a foolish woman wasting her life on her decrepit, mother in law.  Ruth was a young widow who could land a nice husband and enjoy a comfortable life in her homeland.  No other widow it seemed would display such loyalty to their mother in law in the last years of her life.  Ruth’s promise to Naomi though would not waver.

So even though Naomi had Ruth by her side, Naomi returned home a bitter woman.  When her relatives and former friends saw her, they did not recognize her because she had aged so poorly.  She no longer wished to be called Naomi which means “pleasant,” she wanted instead to be called Mara which means “bitter.” 

Naomi was truly a bitter, old woman.  Naomi was at the point in her life where she figured that she had nothing more to give.  Naomi believed that God had indeed abandoned her to die.

The thing about Naomi is that she had legitimate reasons to be unhappy about the direction of her life.  People will empathize with Naomi because everyone on some level probably had legitimate reasons to be unhappy with their lives. Naomi’s story speaks to all sorts of widows out there.

Here was Ruth vowing to stay with her mother in law, who seemingly had previously shooed her away like a stray dog.  Ruth now worked in the fields day and night hoping to support her and Naomi.  Ruth wasn’t going to make much doing this, but something is better than nothing. 

Ruth’s work ethic though one day gets her noticed by a man named Boaz[2].  Boaz was a few years older than Ruth.  But the thing to know about Boaz is that he was one of the most eligible bachelors in all the land.  Boaz had a good reputation; he owned the fields where Ruth worked, and people knew Boaz for his kindness[3].  As Boaz saw Ruth work away in the fields he wondered “What’s her deal?”  Boaz began asking around when he heard about her loyalty to her mother-in-law Naomi.  Boaz became intrigued by Ruth.  Boaz first offers Ruth water to drink.  Boaz then gave Ruth the gift of extra barley to take home to Naomi.
Ruth goes home to Naomi talking about what a nice man that Boaz was[4].  Naomi after earlier in the story figuring that she served no purpose now had her purpose come to the surface.

Naomi was going to help Ruth with a matchmaking plan[5].  The thing to know about the story of Ruth, Naomi, and Boaz is that it takes place during the Harvest.  Boaz was going to be spending days and nights during the harvest at the threshing floor.  Boaz was even going to sleep at the threshing floor.  Naomi instructs Ruth to sneak into the threshing floor to lie at Boaz’s feet.   Ruth’s moves were the definition of aggressive.  Ruth was the aggressor in the relationship with Boaz at Naomi’s wishes.  Ruth is saying to Boaz “marry me” in as forceful of terms as possible.  Thankfully, Boaz felt the same way about Ruth.  Boaz knew that Ruth might not have been his type being a woman from the land of Moab, yet Boaz is smitten with a woman so hard-working and loyal to her mother- in- law. 

The story of Naomi, Ruth, and Boaz ends happily.  Ruth and Boaz marry.  Ruth and Boaz have a son named Obed[6].  Whereas Obed might not be a famous name, Obed had a little more famous son named Jesse.  Even if you don’t know Jesse’s name, you might know his son’s name.  Jesse had a son who would be the greatest king that the land would ever know in David.  David united the people like never before.  The greatness of Naomi’s family tree though was just beginning.  Centuries later, another descendant of Naomi’s would be born in the same town of Bethlehem to which she returned.  This descendants name would be Jesus.  The story of Naomi had indeed come full circle.

You see the story begins with Naomi thinking that she was told old to offer anything of value. Naomi had given up.  In her descendant, Jesus he would encounter a lot of the same types of people: lepers, tax collectors, prostitutes, and sinners and others on the margins of society[7].  Jesus promised to be faithful unto people like these, regardless of whether the believed it to be possible.  Whereas Naomi thought she had been abandoned, Ruth promised to be faithful unto her in both life and death.  This is the same type of promise that her descendant Jesus gives unto us, today.  Naomi’s story will play out like many of all our stories.

How does the story of Naomi relate to our lives?  We all know someone like Naomi.  We might even think of ourselves like Naomi.  We wonder what the closing chapters of life’s story might have for us as a people?  As long as God has us in this place, we have something to give. 

Now matter how old a person might be the words of Jeremiah ring true “For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope.”[8]

The story of Ruth and Naomi might appear to be a story of God and suffering and how things will work out in the end.  That’s not Ruth and Naomi’s story though that story rather belongs to Job[9].  The story of Ruth and Naomi is ultimately a story of the value that God places upon our elders. Ruth saw in Naomi what she could no longer see in herself.  Ruth saw wisdom and understanding brought about by a life that no one would desire to live.  Ruth saw God’s purpose in Naomi’s life at a point where Naomi had given up.  Naomi and Ruth’s actions impacted those around them long after either of them were around to witness them.  So the point is don’t give up on the days that you have left.  Our actions today can influence thousands of years from now.

Why are you here today? I can not give the answer to this question.  Perhaps you’re here to teach the Christian faith to a grandchild or a friend either in good times or suffering.  God might even have you around to play matchmaker. 

God has a plan and purpose for your life even if you might be like Naomi thinking that time has gone past you. Above all else the story reminds us that our God will come through in the end for his people. The following is the Biblical story of Naomi and Ruth as told in the Book of Ruth. Amen
 


[1] Ruth 1:17-18
[2] Ruth 2:1-18
[3] Hoffracker, Reverend Charles. “Naomi, Ruth, Boaz and You.” Lectionary.org. 2006. Web. Nov.2.2015.
Hoffracker is citing from Eugene H. Peterson, Five Smooth Stones for Pastoral Work. Eerdmans Publishing, Grand Rapids. MI. 1980. p.102
[4] Ruth 2:19-23
[5] Ruth 3:1-5
[6] Ruth 4:17
[7] Gerhardy, Vince. “A Love Story”. Lectionary.org. 2006. Web. Nov.2.2015
[8] Jeremiah 29:11
[9] Markquart, Ed. “Ruth: Old Testament Series: Ruth 4:13-17”. Sermons From Seattle.com. Web. Nov.3.2015.