When Benjamin Franklin represented our country in Paris, he was asked to speak at a meeting of the leading literary critics. Many of these men were critical of the Bible and avowed unbelievers. Without telling them the source, Franklin read them the story of Ruth. When he had finished they clapped madly, saying it was the most beautiful love story they had ever heard. Franklin stunned them into silence when he told them it was from the Bible.
Without question, Ruth is one of the world's finest love stories. It involves a young Gentile widow who turned to God in her greatest crisis. From this experience, she found a new and exciting life. God led her to Boaz, gave her a new home, and later she became the grandmother of David, Israel's greatest king. Through him, she was an ancestor of our Lord.
Of the many lessons to learn from the beautiful book of Ruth, perhaps the most comforting is how God can take all the crises of our lives and make something beautiful from them. Rather than drifting into despair when her husband died, Ruth turned to God. Her pain of separation was eased, and God blessed her with a new family and a strong faith. Trouble can either make us better or bitter. If we learn to look at our trials as opportunities for God to draw us near to Himself, then they will open many new doors to spiritual adventure. Christ is still Master of the tempest and Lord of all our lives.
“And Ruth said, Entreat 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:”
Ruth 1:16 KJV
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