“At mealtime Boaz said to Ruth, "Come and have a piece of bread, and dip it in the sauce." So, she sat with the workers, and Boaz passed some roasted grain to her. She ate until she was satisfied, and she still had some food left over.” (Ruth 2:14)
This is from the book of Ruth which chronicles the life of Ruth. She was a Moabite who had married Noemi’s son who died. When Noemi returned to Bethlehem, Ruth would not leave her. She served Noemi as a daughter. She worked the fields that she later learns belong to Boaz, a near relative to Noemi. Boaz favored her because she served Noemi and saw that she was honorable. This is but the beginning of her story. She eventually marries Boaz. And even though she was a Moabite, God honored her. She turns out to become King David’s grandmother and an ancestor of Jesus. It’s a beautiful love story. If you haven’t read it, you should.
Although she worked the fields, she was not hired to work. She would gather what the workers dropped and left. In the verse above Boaz honors her by letting her drink and eat with his workers. He gave her more than enough roasted grain so that she ate until she was satisfied and had some left over. We have a Savior Who like Boaz is generous and gives to us what we need until we are full and satisfied.
The Lord gives us His Truth abundantly. The Truth of the Lord is eternal and as one psalmist wrote, it reaches to the skies. “For Thy mercy is great above the heavens: and Thy truth reacheth unto the clouds.” (Psalms 108:4 KJV) It fills and satisfies our minds. It has the power to transform us. “Do not conform yourselves to the standards of this world, but let God transform you inwardly by a complete change of your mind. Then you will be able to know the will of God—what is good and is pleasing to Him and is perfect.” (Romans 12:2)
The Lord has abundantly poured out His love and hope on us. God is love. His love fills and satisfies us with love not only for Him, but for all His creation. “This hope does not disappoint us, for God has poured out His love into our hearts by means of the Holy Spirit, Who is God's gift to us.” (Romans 5:5) His hope fills us with joy and peace. “May God, the source of hope, fill you with all joy and peace by means of your faith in Him, so that your hope will continue to grow by the power of the Holy Spirit.” (Romans 15:13) The teachings of Jesus fill our intellect with wisdom, knowledge and understanding beyond this natural and limited world. “For the LORD giveth wisdom: out of His mouth cometh knowledge and understanding.” (Proverbs 2:6)
The Lord is a bountiful and generous God. He gives abundantly. Every gift He gives is good and abundant. “And God is able to give you more than you need, so that you will always have all you need for yourselves and more than enough for every good cause.” (2Corinthians 9:8) He knows what our need is, but we ask to demonstrate that our dependence is on Him. Asking Him honors Him and acknowledges Him as our Provider.
“He will always make you rich enough to be generous at all times, so that many will thank God for your gifts which they receive from us.” (2Corinthians 9:11) Again, this Scripture tells us that He is the Provider, that He gives abundantly and that we are not to consume the abundance on ourselves, but we are to share it with others. When we do that, God is glorified.
And because our Lord is generous and gives abundantly, as His children, we should also be generous and give abundantly. In the following Scripture, Paul is talking about the gifts we have been given. “If it is to encourage others, we should do so. Whoever shares with others should do it generously; whoever has authority should work hard; whoever shows kindness to others should do it cheerfully.” (Romans 12:8)
The generosity of Boaz toward Ruth illustrates the Lord’s generosity toward us. Boaz married Ruth. And the Lord’s bride is the church. He showers His gifts to the church, His bride, who will be joined with Him forever in eternity. “To Him Who by means of His power working in us is able to do so much more than we can ever ask for, or even think of: to God be the glory in the church and in Christ Jesus for all time, forever and ever! Amen.” (Ephesians 3:20-21)
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