Why does tragedy occur in
the world? If God is a God of love, why does He allow some things to
happen to some people and not to others? Why does it seem that the
innocent are often afflicted and those who are wicked seem to go
free? These and many other questions are ones that we all have asked
at one time or another in our lives. Today we begin a new book in our
studies together that perhaps will bring some answers to these
questions. We are looking at the book of Ruth. Ruth is a book written
in the days when the judges ruled in Israel. We find the book of Ruth
in the Old Testament, and while reading it we will discover tragedy,
hope and what is known as a Kinsman Redeemer. Let's begin in chapter
one and verse one:
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.
The
beginning phrase of this book is one that is important to remember as
we study the scriptures and consider our own lives, “Now it came
to pass.” The idea is that it happened, occurred or came and
went. The events in our lives are like a conveyor belt before us.
They come, and they go. They come, and they go, and like a parade
before our eyes events and people enter and exit over periods of
time. Sometimes those periods are short, and sometimes they last a
while. Some of these we know how long they will last, and others we
have no idea. But God does, and the overriding theme of this book is
that God has a plan even when it does not appear that He does. So,
when it comes to pass in our lives, we have the privilege to know
that God oversees all the events of our lives in one glance, and He
is working in places and people with whom we have not even known as
yet.
The
writer of Ruth continues, “Now it came to pass in the days when
the judges ruled, there was a famine in the land.” During the
days of the judges, the people of Israel would vacillate back and
forth in their worship and allegiance to God. The cycle was vicious
as the people would do “what was right in their own eyes”,
and then be judged for their behavior. They would cry out to God, and
He would send a judge by whom their behavior and attitudes would be
corrected until that judge died, and then they would fall away from
God again doing “what was right in their own eyes” and the
cycle would repeat again. During one of these times we have the story
of Ruth, and our setting is not only during one of these times of the
judges, but also when there was a famine in the land. Whether a
person is serving God or not, tragedy is subject to strike. Notice
that the famine spoken of was “in the land” and not just
over those who were wicked. Everyone in the area suffered from this
famine.
The
writer continues, “And a man of Bethlememjudah went to sojourn
in the country of Moab, he, and his wife, and his two sons.” So
when this famine occurred throughout the land, we focus upon the
effects that it had on one particular family. It's as if we have
zoomed in to take a closer look upon the ramifications upon a small
set of people among the masses. Notice too that this family includes
a man, “his wife and his two sons.” Often the effects of
horrible events are spread throughout a family, and those who
encounter them have a shared disposal rather than one person alone.
We will
stop here for today in our study and continue our sharing with this
idea in mind, How do we handle tragedy when it occurs in our lives,
and does it affect others we love when it does? Next time we will
continue to look at the first two verses of this wonderful book, so
read ahead, and we shall join together then.
Until
tomorrow...there is more...
Look
for the new devotional book “Equipped for Battle – From
Generation to Generation” in all major bookstore sites,
www.amazon.com
; www.barnesandnobles.com
; download
to e-books, and find it locally at www.mrzlc.com/bookstore
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