Day 19: Ruth 4:5-8 - and He Removed His Sandal

5 Then Boaz said, “On the day you buy the land from Naomi, you also acquire Ruth the Moabite, the dead man’s widow, in order to maintain the name of the dead with his property.”
6 At this, the guardian-redeemer said, “Then I cannot redeem it because I might endanger my own estate. You redeem it yourself. I cannot do it.”
7 (Now in earlier times in Israel, for the redemption and transfer of property to become final, one party took off his sandal and gave it to the other. This was the method of legalizing transactions in Israel.)
8 So the guardian-redeemer said to Boaz, “Buy it yourself.” And he removed his sandal.

Boaz had a bit of information he was holding back. With redeeming the land comes Ruth, who Boaz points out is a Moabite. Not only does he have to take this Moabite woman, he will have to share the inheritance. 

The closest relative declines, more concerned with the impact to his own estate than with helping his family... or obeying God.  How often do we follow God’s commands…until they cost us something? But in doing so, we are the ones who miss out on God’s gifts bloomed in obedience.

However, as we have seen from the beginning, God has a better plan. Boaz is free to be the guardian redeemer. To marry Ruth.

What one man sees as a burden and liability, another man sees as a treasure. Nearness and obedience to God clears our vision.

Have you ever done something or taken something that other people turned down or didn’t see any value in and it became a great blessing or treasure to you?

The man (not even named in the book of Ruth) did not have the vision to see what was available to him. He was an Israelite. Like all of the Israelites, he too was studying and waiting for the Messiah…the ultimate redeemer. Little did he know that he had a chance at becoming part of the story, but turned it down for the treasures he currently had. He didn’t want to risk losing some of his current estate.

How often we can cling to things that keep us from having even more of what God has in store for us. I love the end of TobyMac’s song Lose My Soul where he says, “Lord forgive us when we get consumed by the things of this world that fight for our love and our passion. As our eyes are open wide and on You, grant us the privilege of Your world view, and let Your Kingdom be what wakes us up and lays us down.”

How can you continually be open to God’s bigger plans instead of clinging to lesser plans?

Pray to see people and circumstances through God’s eyes. That you will not miss out on bigger things of God by holding on to what you think you want and need to make you happy.