Don't Go To Moab!

By John Stallings

This story could be ripped from  todays headlines.

Elimelech, his wife Naomi, and their two sons, Chilion and Mahlon have left their homeland because of famine.

They were refugees. They went into a new land called Moab searching for food and shelter. Like many people, because of wars, famine, or economic scarcity, they left their homeland in an attempt to begin life anew.

Moab wasn’t a nice place- to say the least. In fact in Psalm 60:8 God called Moab His wash pot, a wash basin where they would wash the guest’s feet. God said that Moab was as filthy as a wash pot. It was a place of trash. Moab was the off-spring of Lot and his oldest daughter Gen. 19:37

So Moab was born out of an incestuous relationship. God had constantly warned His people about Moab. In Jeremiah 48:11, Jeremiah prophecies about Moab and he paints a little picture. He says that Moab has been at ease from his youth. He has always been “no good”, even while he was growing up. And he says here is Jeremiah 48:11 that he has not been emptied from his lees. The picture here is that of wine making. When they made wine, they put it in a vessel and let it set for a while and while it was sitting, the trash would fall to the bottom.

Then they would take that vessel and pour it through a filter into another vessel and let it sit until more trash fell to the bottom. They would do that over and over again until the wine was crystal clear.

God said about Moab that his lees had not been emptied; that he is full of trash. God said about Moab in Zephaniah that He would destroy Moab like Sodom and Gomorrah. Moab was a not a place to be. It was a place of filth.  Moab is a type, a picture of the world.

Sometimes people seeking a newer and better life think of a new land as the Promised Land. But promises don’t always work out, and the dreams  can sometimes turn into nightmares. This happened for Naomi and her sons.We read the story in the book of Ruth chapter one.

Naomi’s husband Elimelech died leaving his wife and children behind. His sons eventually married wives from their adopted country. Two daughter-in-laws, Orpah and Ruth now became part of this immigrant family.

After tens years both of the sons die, leaving their mother, Naomi, their wives Orpah and Ruth alone and destitute. The cultural times meant that without men/ husbands as providers the women were alone and poor. But famine had come to Moab and Naomi decided it was time to return home. She felt that she had left with everything, and now her returning would be with nothing. In fact, her spirits and hopes were so low when she returned home, she said to the people, "do not call me Naomi but Mara." Mara means bitterness or sorrow. This statement illustrates the depths to which Naomi had plummeted. There was a deep and inconsolable sorrow and hopelessness in her soul. But let’s back up.

Naomi, realizing that there is nothing to stay in Moab for decides it’s time to go home. She releases her daughter in-laws from their family obligation, in part knowing exactly how hard it is to start life in a foreign land. Orpah decides to return to her kinfolk in Moab obviously with hopes of starting all over again. But Ruth refuses to depart from Naomi uttering some of the most memorable words in scripture:

"Do not press me to leave you or to turn back from following you! Where you go, I will go; where you lodge, I will lodge; your people shall be my people, and your God my God. Where you die, I will die - there will I be buried. May the Lord do thus and so to me, and more as well, if even death parts me from you!"

These are powerful words. Many sermons have been preached on the undying love that Ruth had for Naomi. Her love, commitment and loyalty come through poignantly and powerfully in these words of poetic verse. These words, wherever thou goest I will go- are often used in weddings, which is somewhat strange because the words weren’t spoken by a bride to a husband-to-be but rather by a daughter-in-law to her mother-in-law. To me it just goes to show how powerful those words of love and commitment really are.

I WONDER…

I wonder why one of the wives would return home and the other not? I wonder why Orpah would go home to her kinsfolk and Ruth refuse. It causes me to wonder what kind of situation Ruth came from. Was her family dead? Was the family in abject poverty and there was nothing there for her to return to? I wonder whether life for Ruth had been one of abuse, and the marriage to one of Naomi's sons was a relief from the violence and possible death. I wonder why Ruth didn’t go home. Was it because, for the first time in her life she found kindness and care under the tutelage of Naomi? Was it because she found the love of a family in the family of Naomi and didn't want to give that up? Or did she so worry about the future and well being of Naomi that she just didn't want to leave her alone to the elements? I don’t know the reasons for her not returning to her family and kinsfolk, and the scriptures give us no clues. But I do know that there was some compelling reason that she accompanied Naomi into an uncertain future and place.

LIFE CAN HAVE SOME CRAZY BOUNCES

When we think about life and living, you and I understand that life is uncertain and our futures are uncertain! We don't know what will come our way. We don't know what will happen in the next moment. One minute everything can be going along just fine, and the next moment we don't know what hit us! In one moment Naomi had a husband and two sons, and the next she had no husband. Then Naomi had two sons and two daughter in-laws, and then her sons were gone and her life uncertain and frightening. Life is like that! We don't know what twists and turns will come in our lives.

A spouse can die. A child can die. We can lose our family, just like it happened in this story. We might have to start all over again. We may have to start a new job or go back to school for more training and start a new career. We find ourselves in places where we have to make decisions, and sometimes those decisions are difficult ones.

Naomi was going back home with nothing, and Ruth was going into a foreign land with an uncertain future. Sometimes we stare into our futures with more questions than answers. At times we stand in the present moment and cannot imagine what tomorrow looks like. One thing is sure; life can come at you fast! You may remember a blog I posted some time back entitled “Life comes at you fast.” Sometimes it’s too fast for my taste. We can find ourselves looking at problems, things we don't want to face, troubles, and hardships that cause emotional trauma. Naomi and Ruth had this and more. In many of those moments there isn't anything much that we can do about what comes our way. So what do we do? How do we cope? How do we carry on?

Naomi and Ruth didn't know what was before them, but they knew what was behind. They also knew they couldn’t bring the good times back! They knew that they had to go forward because there was nowhere else to run and hide. Naomi returned home saying, "from now on call me "Mara;" bitterness or sorrow. She had lost everything, but there she stood, along with Ruth, with happier times at their backs and uncertainty ahead. It reminds me of the old lPopular song,  "Side by side.”

One thing Ruth and Naomi had was love. Surround me with love and I can face some pretty awesome things if I know that love is real. If someone reminds you that they’re with you, backing you up with open hands and hearts offering to heal your hurts and soothe your worries it makes a world of difference doesn’t it? Naomi and Ruth had the love of one another with which to face the future!

FAITH

They seem to also have faith. Faith allows us to face the uncertainty of life, when it comes at you fast, and the joy is sucked out of it. Faith reminds you that whatever happens -it will be all right! Faith allows you and me to stand and face tomorrow, and another tomorrow, and another after that until the sorrow fades and the disappointment turns back to joy.

Faith allows us to face difficulty with a trust and belief that says -hold on and God will work it all out for your good and His glory. Romans 5:3-5 says:

"More than that, we rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, and endurance produces character, and character produces hope, and hope does not disappoint us, because God's love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit which has been given to us."

Faith assures us that we can not only endure, but through our endurance our character is perfected. Through the character building experience hope starts to loom and we find that the hope is real.

Naomi and Ruth had been through some things. They faced the uncertainty and the suffering and eventually came to understand the character that God had placed in them, and through it all found it was not hopeless.

Consider the counsel of Ephesians 6.13:

"Therefore take up the whole armor of God, so that you may be able to withstand on that evil day, and having done everything, to stand firm."

This means that we have the stuff to face life, and take it as it comes. Faith enables us to take the lemons of life and make lemonade. There is nowhere to run so we will have to stand. Jesus also reminds us of the gift of having faith if only the size of a mustard seed. It doesn't take much faith to start a triumphant process – but it does take some faith. Faith increases if you use it, just as the mustard seed starts small and becomes a shrub where life resides. Remember Hebrews 11:1:

"Faith is the substance of things hoped for, and the evidence of things unseen."

In faith we can face the present and the future.  We can’t go back, but we can go forward. As long as life resides in us we will have the option of going forward.

Naomi and Ruth couldn’t go back, that wasn’t an option. They had no choice, so now they will face the future with love and faith!

DON’T GO TO MOAB

This Book of Ruth is a Book about strong women. It’s a time when men were weak. The reason why I know that Naomi was a strong and unusual woman is because when she came back to Bethlehem the whole town knew her. The whole town was stirred. Another thing to notice in the narrative is that Naomi and her family weren’t starving when they left Bethlehem. By Naomi’s own admission in verse 21, she said we left full.

A STRONG WOMAN CAN LEAD A WEAK MAN TO MOAB

 All too often men are so weak spiritually they throw all the decision making on the women folk. Naomi’s name means pleasant, smiling, beautiful, charming, and delightful. Men, strong women can lead you to Moab. A pleasant woman can lead a man almost anywhere. Don’t let your friends, your mama your sister your brother, take you to Moab.

You think things are messed up now. You think you’re having it hard now? Sir, you go  to Moab and stay awhile and tell me how you like it there. Tradegy always comes sooner or later to people who leave the House of God for the filth of this world. Moab ruined Naomi because as you read this text and look at verse 13 she said “the hand of the Lord has gone out against me.” She said “I was responsible.” And if you notice in verse 20 she said “the Lord has dealt very bitterly with me.” And in verse 21 she said the Lord has afflicted me. She said -"the Lord has testified against me."

Naomi understood that it was her leading that got Elimelech and her two sons down into Moab. She made it back to Bethlehem but her husband died in Moab. She made it back. But her sons married women in Moab, and then her sons died in Moab. If you hang around in Moab, you can lose your family. Naomi lost her family after 10 years in Moab. Everything was gone.

MOAB WILL RUIN YOUR FINANCES

Naomi said in verse 21, “I went out full. I left Bethlehem and I did not know how blessed I was. I didn’t know what I had, but now in retrospect I can see I was full and didn’t know it." Many people don’t know they’re blessed until they go to Moab. Someone has rightly said, “You don’t miss your water until your well runs dry.” Moab will ruin your finances. She said “I went out full but now I’m empty.”

By her own admittance she says “I’m broke.” I've got nothing left, no husband, no sons, I am broke.” It reminds me of the prodigal son who left his father’s house, who by his own admission at the hog pen said, “My father's servants have bread and enough to spare and here I am desiring to eat from the hog pen. " Moab will ruin you financially. I’ve seen people leave the family of God, wipe their hands, get mad  and through with God. They take off to Moab and, I’ve seen them come back. I’ve seen them go out full and come back empty.

Moab will impact the way you look. Look at verse 20. Notice that when they came back to town in verse 19, the whole city was moved. She’d been a woman of influence. The townspeople said - "is this Naomi? This can’t be Naomi. This can’t be that, gorgeous, beautiful, eloquent woman of influence who left Bethlehem. This can’t be Naomi."

Moab will even mess up your facial features. I’ve seen people who live in Moab. I’ve see what sin can do. I’ve seen how Moab can eat you up. I’ve seen what dope and substance abuse can do.

They said, Naomi, you haven’t been gone but 10 years and you look far beyond your age. Time has plowed furrows of worry across her face. That body that was like a sculptor’s dream, that figure eight has turned to a figure O. Hair that was as black as a raven’s back—time has speckled it with gray. Skin that was as smooth as a Georgia peach now looks like 10 miles of bad road. Moab will suck all the life from you. Moab will take your joy and age you, quickly.

Naomi said in verse 21 “The Lord has afflicted me.” The word afflicted in the Hebrew means to break into pieces. And sometimes in order to get you back to Bethlehem, He has to break you down. He has to break your pride. He has to tear that ego down. So she says “don’t call me Naomi,” which means beautiful, amiable and pleasant, “call me Mara,” which means bitter. It means “worn out.” "My name is not Naomi any more, it’s Mara."

YOU CAN RETURN

Let me offer a ray of hope here. You can return.

Naomi was hurt and she was lost in Moab, but she heard that God was blessing His people back in Bethlehem. The Bible says “the day you hear my voice, harden not your hearts.” I hear the Bible say “he that hath ear to hear, let him hear what the Lord is saying to him.”

Moab will wound you. Moab will weaken you. Moab will leave you without strength. When Naomi heard that God was blessing His people she said,-  "I know that I've been living in Moab. I know that I did wrong and I led my husband away." But she said,  "I’m going to hurry up and go back to Bethlehem/ Judah."

Let me tell you why you ought to be in a hurry. James said you ought to get in a hurry because- your life is like a vapor, it’s slowly vanishing away.


I can almost hear Naomi saying, “Lord, I know I messed up. Oh Lord, I left home with gold around my neck, but now I don’t have anything. But I’m going back to Bethlehem. I left home with children and I’ve lost them, but I’m going home to Bethlehem. I left home with a loving husband, but I lost my husband in Moab. But I’m coming back to Bethlehem.”

Are you living in Moab? You can come home today. You can come home… You may have a bad habit … Come home...You may be strung out… Come home…. You may be messed up….. Come home. You may have lost what you had…. Come home. Trouble in your life?… Come home. Family fractured?…. Come home. Finances all gone?… Come home.

God welcomes you back to Bethlehem…. Moab has wasted you… Come on back.

Come back to the father’s house.


Blessings,


John