The united opinion. [volume] (Bradford, Vt.) 1881-1970, 1906-03-09
THE UNITED OPINION FRIDAY MORNING, MARCH 9 1906


in regard to her allegiance to the divine
love. She was ready to go into exile
to starve and even to die, as she de-
clared to Naomi, "Thy people shall be
my people, and thy God my God" Can
we, dare we, say as much? viii we
give to God today our whole hearts
full of devotion and self sacrifice?
And what was the result of this sell
sacrifice and love for the divine Mas
ter? All Ruth herself never realized
what its far reaching result was to be
| think, even from Ruths standpoint
at times she must have become very
discouraged and felt that her sacrifices
amounted to naught. Everything that
she expected miscarried. She left hei
own home to go to the land of hei
husbands family. There, of course
she expected to be welcomed and cared
for Was she? No sooner did Naom
and this beautiful young girl cross the
Jordan and come up to the home land
of Bethlehem than her old neighbOrS
ridicule her. They met her with these
hooking words: rs this Naomi, who
persuaded her husband to go and live
in that wicked country of Moab? Is
this Naomi, who went and married hel
two sons to the daughters of the heath
en- Moabites? No wonder your hus
baud and both your two sons are dead
God has cursed you with poverty anc
bereavement" Cannot you see the
tears trickle down the poor wrinkleC
cheeks of the old woman and hear the
painting sobs choke the throat of the
beautiful young girl when the sheer
ing, hooking words are uttered, us
this NaomiE'
Naomi's Trial.
And this is not all. Not only did the
neighbors and the people mock Naomi
but they literally left her to starEe
She seemed to have no friend in the
world. She went down and down, as
some of you have gone down in the
struggle of life She got so low that
one day Ruth, who was compelled tt
do something to earn bread for then
to live upon, went out to CLEAN after
the reapers. The few grains of wheat
which the reapers accidentally dropped
were not allowed to be picked up by
the reapers, but were always left to be
gathered by the needy poor. Then il
was, when it seemed as though Rutf
could not sink lower, that Boaz saw
her and loved her. When we think we
are the most friendless and hopeless
then the Lord is going to open for us
as he did to Ruth, our greatest oppor
tunity of usefulness if we only remain
true to him. Are we willing to go tt
the land of exile for him? Are we
willing to trust him? Are we willing
to let him use us for his service?
ask Of you this question here and now
amid the darlS clouds in your life. VIII
you trust him and remain true to him
now?
Like Ruth cleaning in the fields as
pauper, in the darkest hours of your life
can you not learn to trust him and be
true to him? All, Ruth had her Boaz
IuIOuSu HNl lfpttH chC pSNdtiiS 'AiN t'A4
cestress of Jesus Christ. You today in
your fields have your Saviour, and
through him you shall yet win mighty
triumph. Are you, like Ruth, able to
stand the test of being true to your
divine Fathers love?
Our sermon OtyTmed with dirge. 1t
began at the door of three gaping
graves. "The book has a sad open
Ing" once said Joseph Parker. ut be-
gan with famine and misery. 1t opened
like a cloudy day. 1t went onward in
to widowhood twice told, and the first
chapter is like a rain of tears" But,
thank God, it ends in triumph. 1t ends
by the ringing of the wedding chimes.
Like Ruth, let us all bend the knee to
the King of kings, who is Lord of
lords.
Ny dear friends, as Ruth found shell
ter in the home of Boaz, canst thou not
find a haven in the love and the rescue
of Jesus Christ? Child, wilt thou CLEAN
today in thy Masters harvest field?
copyright, 1906, by Louis Klopsch.1