Ruth: The Current of Grace
This week’s texts from Scripture are:
Ruth Chapter 1 (ESV)
Sermon Outline:
I. Running (Ruth 1:1–5)
Context: “In the days when the Judges ruled” (Judges 21:25).
Elimelech’s choice to leave Bethlehem (“House of Bread”) for Moab.
Running from God rarely leads to safety—it often leads to emptiness.
Question: Where are we tempted to run from God?
II. Remembering (Ruth 1:6–18)
Naomi hears the good news that God has provided for His people.
“Re-membering” — Ruth clings to Naomi, covenant language of loyalty and faith.
Ruth’s declaration: “Your people shall be my people, and your God my God.”
Following God’s grace is costly, but it leads to true belonging.
III. Returning (Ruth 1:19–22)
“Return” repeated throughout the passage—central theme of the chapter.
Naomi’s bitterness (“Call me Mara”) vs. God’s unseen hand of redemption.
The return ends not in famine but at the beginning of harvest—hope is on the horizon.
God’s current of grace leads from emptiness to fullness, from bitterness to blessing.
Application Questions…
Scripture Content (Comprehension & Theology)
In Ruth 1, why did Elimelech take his family from Bethlehem to Moab, and what does this decision reveal about the times in which they lived?
How does the book of Judges (21:25) help us understand the spiritual climate at the beginning of Ruth?
What does Ruth’s declaration to Naomi in verses 16–17 reveal about her faith and loyalty?
Why is it significant that the word “return” is used repeatedly throughout Ruth 1?
What does Naomi mean when she asks to be called “Mara,” and how does this reflect her understanding of her suffering?
Life Application (Personal & Practical)
Where in your own life have you been tempted to “run from God,” like Elimelech and Naomi?
What are some “Moabs” (places of compromise or avoidance) that Christians might turn to today when life becomes difficult?
How have you experienced God’s grace gently pulling you back when you’ve tried to run from him?
Naomi felt that her bitterness defined her identity. What struggles or disappointments have tempted you to let pain define you?
Ruth “clung” to Naomi at great personal cost. What has it cost you to follow Christ? What might he be asking you to leave behind?
Where do you see the subtle “current of God’s grace” at work in your life right now, even if it feels invisible?
Naomi heard good news that God had visited his people and provided for them. How has the “good news” of the gospel moved you to action recently?
Chapter 1 ends with a hint of harvest. Where do you sense God might be preparing a new harvest in your life, family, or community?
Like Ruth, who was an outsider, who in your life right now may feel like they don’t belong, and how can you help draw them into God’s story?
The story of Ruth reminds us that God can take great loss and turn it into great redemption. Where do you need to trust God to bring a “chapter 4 ending” out of your current “chapter 1 struggles”?