Character

 Do nothing from selfish ambition or conceit, but in humility count others more significant than yourselves. ⁴ Let each of you look not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others.  (Phil 2.3,4)

When I was a young man, book stores and libraries had a large section called “Character Development.”  I don’t see that today.  Most of the books under “Character Development” on Amazon are Christian books.  With the loss of absolute truth and absolute moral values, our society sees no need.

This week I’d like to look at the character found Ruth chapter 2.  There are two main individuals in this chapter, Ruth and a wealthy land owner named Boaz who is related to Naomi, Ruth’s mother in-law, and therefore related to Ruth.

The two women are widows.  They are in need of food, so as is the custom, the poor are allowed to glean from the fields of grain in the area.  Sometimes they are driven off by greedy landowners sometimes the women are even attacked.  It is often a dangerous task, but Ruth, a strong young woman, is willing to take the chance in order to provide for her mother in-law and herself.

Ruth was respectful and a hard worker.  Boaz asked who she was when he saw her gleaning in his field.  His foreman said, “She said, ‘Please let me glean and gather among the sheaves after the reapers.’ So she came, and she has continued from early morning until now, except for a short rest.”

Boaz was impressed both with her work ethic and her courtesy in asking first before gleaning.  Gleaning was a right.  He was also aware of how she had left her people in Moab to join Naomi in a strange land and how she had taken care of Naomi.

There was a lot of work to gleaning.  You spent the day “harvesting” the grain the workers missed, then you needed to beat out the grain from the husks before it could be roasted and eaten.  Ruth put in an extremely long and difficult day.

Boaz asked her to stay in his field to glean, and he told his men to watch over her.  He told them to leave grain in her path and even let her take grain from the sheaves they had harvested if she wanted.  This was so she could gather more and provide well for Naomi and herself.  Boaz respected Ruth and Naomi’s situation.  He saw the dedication and hard work of the young woman and had high regard for her.

As a result, Ruth took home an ephah (more than six gallons) of grain at the end of the day as well as some baked grain Boaz had given her after he invited her to lunch with him and the other workers.

Naomi, seeing an opportunity, saw the favor Ruth had gained in the eyes of Boaz and thought of how Ruth might gain a rich husband.  But that’s for next week.

How is this important?

People hear things about us.  They see how we act in difficult times and judge us accordingly.  We get a reputation.  Both Ruth and Boaz were people of high degree.  They both had excellent reputations and responded to the same character traits in others. 

As we see in Phil. 2:3,4, we Christians are to look out for the interests of others as Boaz did for Ruth and Naomi.  We are to help who we can with what we can. 

God has shown us in this chapter of Ruth character matters both in those in need and those who are not.

During the Depression, the crime rate in the U.S. did not rise.  Though there was widespread poverty, the character of the average American was high.  They didn’t want something for nothing.  They felt the pain of their neighbor.

God tells us to give to the poor.  This builds character in the giver, it builds gratitude in the recipient, and it does not create entitlement.  The recipient depends on others and is expected to fend for himself as soon as possible.  I believe this is God’s plan.

We need to watch our character.  Feed it with good wholesome nourishment.  We need to be more like Ruth and Boaz.