Ruth 4:8-12. Final chapter – The virtuous woman creates a home as a type of Christ, part 3.Thursday June 21, 2018
Title: Ruth 4:8-12. Final chapter – The virtuous woman creates a home as a type of Christ, part 3.
Pro 31:10 An excellent wife, who can find? For her worth is far above jewels.
Pro 31:11 The heart of her husband trusts in her, And he will have no lack of gain.
Pro 31:12 She does him good and not evil All the days of her life.
Pro 31:13 She looks for wool and flax, And works with her hands in delight.
Pro 31:14 She is like merchant ships; She brings her food from afar.
The excellent woman is rare, most valuable, trustworthy, loves what she does, she loves God’s good, prepared, proactive, and brave.
Pro 31:15 She rises also while it is still night, And gives food to her household, And portions to her maidens.
She rises early because the care of her home is more to her than comfort because this care is a satisfaction and a joy.
She prepares for the children and the servants their daily portion while they sleep. The picture is of her being up before the others and giving out or preparing the necessary food for the day.
She could choose her own ease and they still would be fed, but because she loves the home and the work as our Lord did, she is diligent to provide in the best way possible. She cares more for others than for herself. This is certainly the mind of Christ, and His mind is to be in each of us.
Just days before His death Jesus described to His disciples the pattern of watchfulness and laboring in bels vs. unbels before His Second Coming.
Though this passage refers to the attitudes of believers and unbelievers living in the Tribulation, the principle of labor applies to all believers in all ages.
Mat 24:45 "Who then is the faithful and sensible slave whom his master put in charge of his household to give them their food at the proper time?
Mat 24:46 "Blessed is that slave whom his master finds so doing when he comes.
Mat 24:47 "Truly I say to you, that he will put him in charge of all his possessions.
Mat 24:48 "But if that evil slave says in his heart, 'My master is not coming for a long time,' [Jesus isn’t going to return as predicted – unbeliever]
Mat 24:49 and shall begin to beat his fellow slaves and eat and drink with drunkards;
Mat 24:50 the master of that slave will come on a day when he does not expect him and at an hour which he does not know,
Mat 24:51 and shall cut him in pieces and assign him a place with the hypocrites; weeping shall be there and the gnashing of teeth.
Try and picture yourself as a believer during the Tribulation. The abomination of desolation just put his image in the holy place and declared himself God. You know that in 1,260 days the Son of Man is going to return. Is there any way you’re going to say, “I think I’ll beat up weaker people and get drunk with the drunkards.”?
The 144,000 Jews have evangelized the world for some time. The people know the prophecy of the Lord’s return in relation to the time of the antichrist claiming deity and breaking his covenant with Israel. The unbeliever will say “Pshaw, He’s not coming back.” And they will act accordingly.
This difference highlights why some women love their labor in the household and others detest it.
Some have faith, which gives vision to the eyes of their soul of a meaning and purpose that is much higher than any comforts, concessions, or reputation.
Those who do not have faith see nothing but comforts, concessions, and their own reputation amongst the other blind people of society. Being so shortsighted they see no reason to labor in the way of the obedient disciple of Christ.
Think of the feminist movement which instilled in the minds of women everywhere that managing a house and raising children and taking care of their husbands was the equivalent of slavery and a life without the glory that women should have.
The Christian might reply that yes, it is slavery, but to my Lord, not a man.
The attitude presented for the excellent woman as well as the excellent steward is God’s love towards others.
Most people will give as long as it doesn’t interfere with their own personal goals. The Lord’s attitude is to sacrifice anything that God wills for the well-being of another.
Don’t play games with what you think God wills for you to sacrifice. He doesn’t call us to stand naked on the street with nothing, but all who seek His will in reference to the other people in their lives will find it. Some don’t seek it and then try to convince themselves that they do it.
Php 2:1 If therefore there is any encouragement in Christ, if there is any consolation of love, if there is any fellowship of the Spirit, if any affection and compassion,
Php 2:2 make my joy complete by being of the same mind, maintaining the same love, united in spirit, intent on one purpose.
Php 2:3 Do nothing from selfishness or empty conceit, but with humility of mind let each of you regard one another as more important than himself;
Php 2:4 do not merely look out for your own personal interests, but also for the interests of others.
Php 2:5 Have this attitude in yourselves which was also in Christ Jesus,
Php 2:6 who, although He existed in the form of God, did not regard equality with God a thing to be grasped,
Php 2:7 but emptied Himself, taking the form of a bond-servant, and being made in the likeness of men.
Php 2:8 And being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.
Php 2:9 Therefore also God highly exalted Him, and bestowed on Him the name which is above every name,
Php 2:10 that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of those who are in heaven, and on earth, and under the earth,
Php 2:11 and that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.
It is this attitude that makes for obedience and labor under the proper power and motivation.
Pro 31:10 An excellent wife, who can find? For her worth is far above jewels.
Pro 31:11 The heart of her husband trusts in her, And he will have no lack of gain.
Pro 31:12 She does him good and not evil All the days of her life.
Pro 31:13 She looks for wool and flax, And works with her hands in delight.
Pro 31:14 She is like merchant ships; She brings her food from afar.
Pro 31:15 She rises also while it is still night, And gives food to her household, And portions to her maidens.
Pro 31:16 She considers a field and buys it; From her earnings she plants a vineyard.
Virtuous, faithful, a lover of good, prepared, delighted with the work, brave, energetic, and now … industrious and wise.
She is not rash. She considers the property.
A lot of people in our society are rash at buying things. They do not consider deeply enough, and so our homes and garages are filled with stuff we don’t need and don’t use while the manufacturers are richer.
She is also industrious. She plants a vineyard from her earnings. Without an abundance of idle time she can consider and find ways to help her household through outside investment.
Our Lord fully considered the cost of what He was to do. He voluntarily came to earth as a man and He knew what would happen to Him. Since He always followed the will of the Father, He was never rash.
He responded to Satan’s temptations calmly and with the word of God. He responded to the attacks and emotionally charged questions of the Pharisees with a composed and serene response to the true issue at hand.
We don’t have to be as smart as He was, but we have to be smart.
Think the truth before you act or speak. It will take you longer to act and speak, but in the long run the results will be far better. God will provide.
Jesus knew that the Father would provide all that He needed, including the time needed to do things properly.
Satan’s temptations against Christ were for Him to display what He came to do, but at the wrong time and in the wrong way. Jesus patiently refuted Satan with the word of God and waiting on the Father to provide for Him.
|