My name is Rev. Ben Melli, I will be serving as the pulpit supply pastor for the foreseeable future at 1st Press. Whitefish. I could not be more excited to see the gospel grow this community as we see God’s grace form in the lives of all different generations.

I want to take this opportunity to share a little about the sermon series we are going to start this Sunday. For the next four weeks we will be looking at the book of Ruth. Many scholars believe Ruth could be considered the perfect ancient Hebrew narrative with it’s beautiful character development and redemptive themes. While the story does contain beautiful prose and a hopeful arc, the main message of the book must be understood in the revelation of Jesus Christ. One scholar put it like this,

“The book of Ruth shows us that our actions have consequences. However, our lives are not simply the consequence of the various decisions we have made and events have occurred, as if the universe were a giant supercomputer into which we feed all the variables and come out with a predicable answer. There is a mysterious x-factor that is evident in the book of Ruth – a variable that has the power to change everything. It is the grace of God, which directs the outcomes of those decision and events according to his sovereignty and good purpose for his people…Ultimately, for Christians, the grace of God is always the defining element of our lives.” – Ian Duguid (Reformed Expository Commentary, p. 130)

You see, the story of Ruth is only a smaller part of the larger story of redemption. It tells of an important point in time on the larger timeline of God’s redeeming story which is fulfilled in the person and work of Jesus Christ. All the Old Testament is painting a dynamic picture which is fully brought to light in the New Testament. I want to encourage you to see your life as a story being crafted by the sovereignty of God, held together by His grace and love for you. There were a great many twists and turns in the life of Ruth and Naomi, we will see that this Sunday, and it was probably hard for this young woman and older widow to understand how they fit into the larger story God was weaving. Yet, here we are many years later, reading their story, resting in God’s provision for them. The same God who cared for them in all their circumstances, cares for you.