Loyal Ruth

“Then she said, ‘Behold, your sister-in-law has gone back to her people and her gods; return after your sister-in-law.’ But Ruth said, ‘Do not urge me to leave you or turn back from following you; for where you go, I will go, and where you lodge, I will lodge. Your people shall be my people, and your God, my God. Where you die, I will die, and there I will be buried. Thus may the LORD do to me, and worse, if anything but death parts you and me.’ When she saw that she was determined to go with her, she said no more to her.” Ruth 1:15-18

“Boaz replied to her, ‘All that you have done for your mother-in-law after the death of your husband has been fully reported to me, and how you left your father and your mother and the land of your birth, and came to a people that you did not previously know. May the LORD reward your work, and your wages be full from the LORD, the God of Israel, under whose wings you have come to seek refuge.’” Ruth 2:11-12

In the movie Ollie Hopnoodle’s Haven of Bliss, the family car runs out of gas while they are on vacation because of the father’s insistence on using a certain brand of gasoline. When the Lord speaks in the Bible of loyalty, He is not hinting of such excessive behavior but rather of an intense, personal commitment to the Lord Jesus Christ and to each other based on agape love. That means we are faithful even when misunderstanding and adversity occur.

There are seasons in our relationship that Jesus and other believers that test our allegiance. Will we still trust God when He does not answer our prayers as we want? Will we still support our brother in Chris when his actions seem illogical to us?

Biblical loyalty flows from a sense of belonging. If we are from Cleveland, we usually do not cheer for the Pittsburgh Steelers. We are loyal to the hometown team. We belong to Jesus Christ. He has purchased us with His shed blood. “...We are His people and the sheep of His pasture” (Psalm 100:3).

As members of Christ’s body, we are to be loyal to each other. Each person is interdependent on others. Loving the Lord and each other is the hallmark of genuine loyalty.

“...for where you go, I will go...” Ruth 1:16