Transcription downloaded from https://sermons.heritagesermons.org/sermons/56382/handfuls-of-purpose-for-her-quality-good/.

Disclaimer: this is an automatically generated machine transcription - there may be small errors or mistranscriptions.
Please refer to the original audio if you are in any doubt.


[0:00] In dependence upon the Lord for all needed help, I venture to draw your prayerful attention to Ruth chapter 2 and a part of verse 16.

[0:20] Ruth chapter 2 and a part of verse 16. Handfuls of purpose for her.

[0:39] Handfuls of purpose for her. But the background of a subject tonight is the time of harvest.

[1:01] And by way of introduction, that we might just spend a moment or two in thinking of those spiritual teachings as we think of harvest.

[1:25] A time of thanksgiving. Not just when the farmer gathers the fruit of his trees. But when he gathers the wheat into his barn.

[1:40] That when the vegetables are plucked out of the bowels of the earth. But when we are blessed providentially in whatever sphere of labor in which we are engaged.

[1:57] A time of thanksgiving before God. And then this.

[2:11] God is not mocked. Man may be. God isn't. Whatsoever a man soweth.

[2:22] That shall he also reap. What have we sown today? Not just the farmer, is it? The words we utter.

[2:34] Our deeds. The spirit in which we move. All sowing. And if we are unkind.

[2:46] If we speak hurtful words. If we misjudge. If we're filled with pride. If we act wrongly.

[2:59] If we are covetous. If we are rebellious. If we are discontent. We shall reap that which we have sown.

[3:16] What are we doing? With that which God blesses us with. Is it grab, grab, grab? Is it all for self?

[3:30] No thought for others? Greed? Do we go down on our knees and pray, Lord, give me a willing heart. Help me to liberally give.

[3:43] And bless my giving. The Jew. When he had gathered the sheaves in. He might have left a sheave in the field.

[3:56] When he'd beaten his olive tree. He might have left a few olives at the top of the tree. When he gathered the grapes. He might have left a bunch there underneath. Now is he to go back and gather it all?

[4:08] No. No. He's to be left there for the poor. Our solemn responsibility. And accountability. Before God.

[4:21] In the use of that. Which God gives us providentially. And then. The time of the harvest.

[4:33] Is a time of final separation. The harvest. They don't gather in the chaff. They don't gather in the weeds.

[4:46] They are burned up. Or what a burning up there is in the time of harvest. Friend, is there time. Should there be a bit of burning up.

[4:56] In our lives. Is there a lot of. And I've been trying to write an article. Anticipating for the friendly companion. On the word rubbish. There's that in our life.

[5:11] It needs burning up friend. But how solemn when you come to die. If everything is burned up. Nothing's left. If everything's reduced to ashes.

[5:23] How blessed. How blessed. If there is that. Which abides the fire. And gather the wheat. Into my barn. And just one more thought. I know this may seem somewhat off the subject.

[5:36] But my mind. There's simply flooded. To the background here. The time of harvest. And that is. When the harvest is gathered in. Does the man. The farmer finish.

[5:47] Does he sit back. And say there's nothing more for me to do. Of course not. Well he's out with his plow. He blows the field. He gets the field ready.

[5:58] For the sowing of the seed. Industry. Continuing. And how this is. A word for us in the ministry. Particularly. To continue.

[6:10] To sow the seed. And he that goeth forth. Weeping. Bearing precious seed. Shall doubtless goeth. Come again with rejoicing. Bring his sheaves with them. But now I want to come.

[6:22] To this great word. It's a tremendous word. Purpose. Why is it a tremendous word? Because.

[6:34] Or do we. See God in it. This is where we should look. And God.

[6:46] And indeed. I think of a word in. Isaiah. Where the prophet says. And God speaking. Yea. I have spoken it.

[6:58] I will also bring it to pass. I have purposed it. I will also. Do it. Seen in creation.

[7:11] Telling our. Bible class Sunday afternoon. That I can look. I can look in my diary. And take a Saturday. As later this year. And I can read there.

[7:22] The moment the sun rises. The moment it sets. I can get a tide table. That will tell me. The height. And the depth of the tide. And the moment. When it will be high tide.

[7:32] And low tide. And it is. Because. God. Has ordered it. Man. Cannot touch it. Man purposes. But often cannot fulfill the purpose.

[7:45] But what a mercy. Our God. Always will fulfill. And that purpose. Of his promise. Exceeding great and precious.

[7:56] That. The great purpose of his. In so great salvation. That finished work of Christ. On the cross. That purpose of his. In the salvation. Of all his dear people.

[8:08] At that time. When. God has appointed. Not to propose. But to call. By grace. And that purpose. That.

[8:19] All the redeemed. Shall be kept. By the power of God. Preserved in Jesus Christ. They shall never perish. Neither shall any man pluck them.

[8:31] Out of my. Hand. Purpose. And. How sweet it is. To trace out.

[8:43] In our lives. Plate word. Purpose. In a. Twofold way. And that twofold way. Very closely. Intermingled.

[8:54] Interwoven. Providential. And spiritual. In a. Wait a minute. Can you.

[9:07] Beloved. Trace out. The purpose. Of God's grace. Spiritual. Blessings. In your soul.

[9:20] Good. To trace out. Providential. Dealings. The Lord's goodness. Health. Given. In times of trouble. Need. Supplied. Pride. But what about your soul?

[9:33] What about the blood of Christ? What about eternity? What about your deathbed? Is it well with your soul?

[9:44] Is it well? Purpose. Do I seek. As the Lord may help me. To come more closely. To this. Word.

[9:54] As it is. For instruction. In it. Book of Ruth. And we go back to. A time of famine. In Bethlehem.

[10:06] And how that. Elimelech. And. Naomi. Left. Bethlehem. It is not for me to judge. Nor for you. But it does seem.

[10:20] That. They tried to find a way. Out of their trouble. We do not read. They prayed about it. We do not read.

[10:30] That. God had directed them. Friend. There's teaching here. It is better. To walk. In a path.

[10:41] Of tribulation. In a time. Of famine. With the blessing. Of God. In your soul. Than to try. And find. Some way.

[10:51] Out. Which will lead. To trouble. Now. It may be said. But surely. There was. God's purpose. That they did go to Moab.

[11:02] Because of Ruth. Well. God overruled this. But what. A dreadful. Cost. To Naomi.

[11:14] Think on it. Three graves. Husband. Her two sons. And yet.

[11:25] This great word. Out of all the darkness. All the death. All the sadness. All the sorrow. This word.

[11:37] Purpose. And. God's providence. That the famine. At Bethlehem. Is now past. And.

[11:49] Naomi. Doubtless weary. In Moab. Finding no spiritual communion. You see. Is a solemn thing.

[12:00] To seek. To. Leave. To. Leave. God's people. To. Find. An easy way. Out of our trouble. And. Be found. Right away.

[12:11] From. Spiritual communion. But. There was a purpose. Even. In Naomi. In all her sorrow. There was a witness.

[12:21] In her life. But. Let's just take this word. Purpose. Another step. There's a return. And there's two. Their daughters-in-law.

[12:31] Orpah. And Ruth. They. Are both. Mark what I said. Both. Very. Deeply. Fond. And attached.

[12:42] To Naomi. As far as. Orpah was concerned. In natural love. And in respect. And.

[12:52] A willingness. To go back. With her. But. Only. So far. Till they came. To the port of life. Land. And there.

[13:04] Was the test. And there. As. And Naomi. And Naomi. Spoke to them. And put them to the test. I haven't time. To go into all the detail. Of course.

[13:15] But we read. That. Orpah. Kissed. Her mother. It was a real kiss. It was a natural kiss. It was a kiss of affection.

[13:26] But there was no spirituality. In it. Her heart. Was in Moab. Her gods. Were in Moab. There was no separation.

[13:39] And. There was a turning. Back. Are we not reminded. Of the. Lord Jesus. Here on this earth. The teaching.

[13:51] And you know. How. There were those. That. Turned back. And walked. No more. With him. Friend.

[14:01] What a mercy. It is to be. Kept. By the. Power of God. What a bruise. Oh.

[14:12] Entreat me. Not to leave thee. Nor to return. From following. After thee. For whether thou goest. I will go. Where thou lodgest. I will lodge. Thy people.

[14:23] Shall be my people. And thy God. My God. Oh. Friend. Can you come in there. Some of you. Seekers. Some of you. That hope. In the mercy of God. Some of you.

[14:34] That tremble. At his word. Some of you. That. That feel. To be such a sinner. And as far as you can go. And perhaps no further. God be merciful. To me. A sinner. But.

[14:45] Blessed be God. That's the right path. Can you go back. Can you give it up. Can you turn your back. On the word of God. Upon the preaching. Upon the.

[14:56] Meeting with God's dear people. Is there not this one. This Lord. I long to know for myself. That thou the great God. The God of these dear people.

[15:07] Thy people here. That thou art my God. Darius said to Daniel. Is thy God. Daniel could say.

[15:19] My God. My God. My Father. Blissful name. Oh may I call thee mine. May I with sweet assurance. Claim a portion.

[15:29] So divine. Purpose. And. We read this. That. When Naomi saw. That she was. Steadlessly minded.

[15:41] To go with her. Wasn't that a purpose. Wasn't that a gracious determination. Wasn't that a turning her back on Noah. Wasn't that setting her face. Ironward.

[15:52] Wasn't that a willingness. To take up the cross. Wasn't that a willingness. To bear the reproach. Wasn't that a willingness. To go. Into a path. She'd not walk heretofore.

[16:06] Our mind governs our walk. Literally. You see. Somebody with a doubtful mind. You see them hesitant in their walk.

[16:20] You see a double minded person. Turning round and twisting just as they wish. As it sears them. You see a feeble minded person. Fearing as they walk along.

[16:31] At some. Afraid any moment. Something's going to happen to them. A steplessly minded. You see. A determined step. Not in one's own strength.

[16:42] I'm speaking of this spiritually. But in faith. A determination. Devil. You're turning me back. But I can't go back. Wicked heart.

[16:54] You seek the easy things. No. I must. Give me Christ. Or else I. Die. Like minded. Says the apostle.

[17:06] And that is why. That. Depressed. Toward the mark. Of the prize. Of the high calling of God. Which is in Christ. Jesus the Lord. Purpose.

[17:16] I just want to touch. About Naomi. A middle hymn. Seemed to confirm it. Poor soul. How did she come back.

[17:29] Did she confess. She said that. I went out full. And I. The Lord. Had brought me home again empty. See the I.

[17:40] Went out. Full. The Lord. Brought me back. Empty. That's teaching. Then. Spiritually. Friend.

[17:52] For the Lord. To bless. Poor sinners. There must be an empty. There must be a humbling. Proud self. Has got to be brought down. We've got to be stripped.

[18:04] Of all hope. In self. And here. In God's dealings. Sanctified affliction. Here she sees.

[18:15] That. The. Hand of God. And. As she felt. That it had gone. Against her.

[18:26] Yet it was for her. The purpose of God's grace is still. For this dear soul. And. Then. Again. In the last words.

[18:37] In this first chapter. As they. Return both together. In the beginning. Of barley harvest. Purpose. Do you see friend.

[18:48] In your life. Some little circumstance. And. Your whole life. In the future. Is changed. By that small. Minute.

[19:00] Circumstance. Why? Because it's the purpose of God. God. God moves in a mysterious way. That is to us. Not to God.

[19:12] His wonders to perform. And. He plants his footsteps. In the sea. And rides upon the storm. His purposes. Will ripen fast.

[19:23] Sometimes they do. Unfolding every hour. The bud. May have a bitter taste. But sweet. Will be the flower. A purpose. I may be permitted.

[19:34] Just to give. A little example. A little example. And. You. You look back now. And you see these things. So clearly. But. I was returning. From.

[19:45] Singapore. Uh. Uh. Uh. For my. Uh. After the. War. A family. In Bedfordshire. Desiring to move. To Tunbridge Wells.

[19:57] And. The. Husband and wife. Travelled down. To the town. And. Couldn't find anything. Suitable. And they turned back. To go to Bedfordshire. Reached Southborough.

[20:09] And the car broke down. They had to stay the night. The car was ready. The next afternoon. One property. They hadn't looked at. So they thought.

[20:19] Well. They'll just go and have a look. Well. There was a mistake. In the. Estate agents. Details. I gather. But it was just. What they were looking for. Then you may say.

[20:30] Well. What's that to do with you? Well. That's how I met my wife. The purpose. The purpose. The purpose.

[20:41] Can you trace it out in your life? Can you see the hand of God. In your providential leadings. And bound with that. Your spiritual leadings. It's humbling.

[20:52] Isn't it? I love to look back sometimes. Thou should remember all the way. That the Lord thy God has led thee. And see the hand of thy God. He led them forth by.

[21:04] In the right way. And even there. There shall thy hand lead me. And thy right hand shall hold me. This great word. Purpose.

[21:16] And this humbling word. It seems sometimes to us as though. Well. How can I put it? It fills us with awe.

[21:28] With amazement. That God should deal with us. Personally. With such a poor vile sinner. As one feels to be. And humbly acknowledges one to be.

[21:42] Purpose. And then let me just take another step or two here. And dear Ruth. She desires to go forth.

[21:52] And glean her industry. To be commended. And her hat. Was to light on part of the field.

[22:04] Can you see? Was it just that she looked there. And I thought I'll go there. I believe Naomi prayed. I believe Ruth prayed. And I know God worked.

[22:16] But I know. That it was not what the world would say. And I'm not going to use the words. That the world would say. You well know what they would say. But we say this is the hand of God.

[22:29] Her hat. Directing. Ordering. The steps. Friend. And I could speak of occasions. And may I just name one.

[22:40] That just comes to my mind. It's only a detail. But when I joined the Air Force. I wanted to go into the medical branch. I was told there was no vacancies. I applied for air crew. And I went.

[22:52] To be tested for that. And without going into the long story. In coming before those examiners. My mind went into a complete blank. I said no.

[23:05] We can't accept you. But. As I went from that place. To another. To seek another job. It was like a voice speaking to me.

[23:16] Medical. And there was the way open. You see friend. We see the hand of God. I might not be standing here.

[23:27] If I had gone air crew. I know God could have watched over me there. But. You see the purpose of God. The wonder working God.

[23:37] And we don't trust God. Do we? As we should. We get so worried. We live as though. There is no God that loves us. And no God that cares for us. But there are times. When I believe.

[23:48] Yes. Blessed be his name. We can put everything. Everything. Providence. And all their. Concerns. Spiritually. Time and eternity.

[23:58] We feel we are resting. In those wonderful arms. Of his love. And of his grace. Not after we feel there. But I felt that. Just before the operation. That I underwent.

[24:08] In October. And such a sweet sense. My friend. I could leave it all. With my God. He. Yes. His left hand. Is under my head.

[24:19] And his right hand. Doth embrace me. Purpose. In the field. Lord. But I must hasten. Going on.

[24:30] When she comes back. From the days gleaning. And she tells Naomi. Yes. She's being. And is in the field. Belonging to a man called Boaz.

[24:42] Oh. Can you see Naomi? Can you see. Light. Dawning. Can you see. The dear soul's captivity.

[24:53] Being turned. Can you see. A little hope. Rising up in her heart. Can you see. That the hand of God. That seemed. To her. That had gone. Against her. Reflicting her. Is now.

[25:04] Nevertheless. Guiding. Directing. And leading. It is not time for me. To go into the details. Of the third chapter. That which to. Western minds.

[25:15] Would seem most improper. To send a young damsel. To the threshing floor. At night. To lie down. At the feet. Of a stranger. But we must remember. That. What.

[25:26] Naomi. Told Ruth. Was in line. With. That. Which was. Her. Right. As. Boaz. Was. A near kinsman.

[25:36] And had. Right. To redeem. There was. Nothing. Improper. That took place. At the threshing floor. On that night. But rather. I see. Such spiritual.

[25:47] Beauty. Here. In this. Purpose. That she. Went there. And. As she. Was. There. And was. Bidden. To go. Down there. And I. Like. Those words. Lay thee down.

[25:59] And he. Will. Tell thee. What thou. Shall do. Oh. Friend. That you. And I. Might be. Helped. To do that. At the feet. Of dear. Jesus Christ. And that. We might.

[26:10] Just. Be helped. Be. Given the ear. To hear. Lord. What wilt thou. Have me. To do. And then. The next day.

[26:20] The gate. At the gate. And you see this word purpose. There's a nearer kinsman that has a right above Boaz. To claim.

[26:31] Ruth. And that very moment. That very spot. That very time. That very instant. See the word purpose. Boaz. sees that.

[26:41] Here is that. A kinsman. Well. As you know. How they. Spank together. And then this kinsman said. No. I can't take her. I won't receive. Or my.

[26:52] Inheritance. So. Boaz. Says. I'll take her. And then. As you know. And it's a beautiful word here. Then. Moreover. Ruth. The Moabitess.

[27:04] Have I. Purchased. To be my wife. And the purpose. Just think of that. Damsel. Right over there.

[27:15] In Moab. In. The land of darkness. And idolatry. And now. The wife of Boaz. The mother. Of.

[27:26] Of. Of. Babe. And then. Later. In the line. Right down to. The coming of the Lord Jesus Christ.

[27:38] But. Wonderful. But what about you? Are you married to Christ? Are you the bride of Christ?

[27:51] Look. Boaz. In this redemption. Didn't have to die for Ruth. But.

[28:02] For Christ to take. To himself. To himself. His bride. He paid redemption's price. And he had to come. He had to die. Had to come in a body.

[28:14] Sinless and holy. And. That life to be laid down. And that blood to be shed. And that price to be paid. Purpose.

[28:24] I might just have added. And. And. And. And. And. Passed over. But. In between that threshing floor. And that day. Dear Naomi. I gave sweet.

[28:36] Instruction. Sit still. My daughter. Until thou know. How that matter shall fall. For the man. Will not be in rest. Until he have finished the thing. This day.

[28:48] Sit still. Be still. Stand still. All. But now. I want to come. To this world. Handfuls of. Purpose for her.

[28:59] We've noticed. Then. The harvest field. We've noticed. The way. In which. Ruth. Was directed by God. Into that harvest field. Do you ever.

[29:10] And you're sitting down. In your seat. In the chapel. Think. What am I doing here? Why am I here? Why am I not. In the. Doing the things.

[29:20] Of the world. And I won't name them. But. No more a stranger. Nor a guest. But like a child at home. And that the Lord.

[29:31] Should meet with me. That the Lord. Should bless. And speak to my soul. All the wonders of it. Let's just look at it. You see. Boaz comes. And he looks.

[29:42] And he sees a stranger. But our Lord. Knows all. That are gathered. In his house. He knows all. His dear people. He knew all about. Nathaniel.

[29:52] Under the fig tree. He knows you. Dear friend. Perhaps in the sea tonight. You've had a. Burdened spirit. You've been groaning out. Before God. You've been crying. For mercy. You've had.

[30:03] Some sorrow. Some fear. Some temptation. The Lord knows. He knows your name. Why he. Says. I know my sheep. And then.

[30:14] Not only that way round. But the other way. And. Known of mine. Blessed be God. Blessed be God. But. He's told.

[30:24] This is. Naomi. This is. Ruth. That's come back. Naomi. Naomi. What is. This man. Going to do. And drive that out. And say. There's no room for you.

[30:36] Friend. Isn't a wonderful thing. There's still room for sinners. And room. For poor. Vile sinners. For the door of mercy.

[30:46] Stands open all day. To the poor. And the needy. Who's. Not by the way. The none. Ever. Empty. Sent back. Who comes. Seeking for mercy. For Jesus's sake.

[30:59] And when. Boaz. Spake to her. And didn't drive her out. But encouraged her. Continue. And she fell on her face. And bowed herself.

[31:11] To the ground. And said. Why. Have I found. Grace in thine eyes. Seeing. That there should. Take knowledge of me. Seeing that. I am a stranger.

[31:22] And when your soul. Is blessed. What happens. Lifted up with pride. Then you haven't been blessed. If the Lord.

[31:36] Has blessed you. With the blessings. Of his grace. Well you can't get low enough. So dear old minister. Years ago. Mr. Sam Perry. Perhaps some of you knew him. Dear old man.

[31:47] Death. But oh. He was favoured. And he used to say. When the Lord. Blessed him. Is that. I couldn't get low enough. That's. Real religion friend.

[32:00] Tears. Oh. On such love. My soul. Still ponder. Love so great. So rich. So free. Say whilst lost.

[32:11] In holy wonder. Why. Oh God. Such love to me. That's it. Isn't it? Boaz. And Boaz. Could speak. Of what had been shown him.

[32:22] And I do love this word. The Lord. Recompense. Thy work. And a full reward. Be given thee. The reward of his grace. Of the God of Israel. And you might say.

[32:33] But am I one of these? Is this. My portion? Well. Here's a beautiful description. Under. The Lord God of Israel. Under. Whose wings.

[32:45] Thou art come to trust. Are you there friend? You come. Hide me. Oh. Thy. Saviour. Hide. Till the storms. Of.

[32:55] Life. Have passed. Safe into the high. Haven guide. Oh. Receive. My soul. At last. Lord. I flee. To thee. For refuge. For shelter.

[33:06] I flee. To the riven side. Of Christ. To the precious blood. Of the saviour. I've no other plea. I've no other hope. It's all in that. Precious Jesus.

[33:17] I flee. For refuge. And hiding there. But then. The handfuls. Of purpose. And look. Just this thought. Though. Boaz said.

[33:28] At mealtime. Come thou hither. And eat. Of the bread. And dip thy moss. In the vinegar. And she sat. Beside the reapers. And he reached.

[33:38] A parched. Corn. And she did eat. She sat. Beside the reapers. Oddly. The reapers. Spiritually. Can be set forth.

[33:49] As the ministers. Of the gospel. But I believe. It's he reached her. And this. Parched corn. And surely. That takes us.

[34:00] To Jesus. That takes us. To the bread of life. That takes us. To the food. For the hungry soul. That leads us.

[34:11] To this. But it's parched. The sufferings. Of Christ. On Calvary's cross. The sufferings. Of Christ.

[34:21] Upon Calvary's cross. Those blessings. Those blessings. For my soul. Now. Again.

[34:32] He said. Now. Leave these handfuls of purpose. For her. And. Cleaning.

[34:44] Would be. Require. Endurance. Bending the back. Patience.

[34:55] A little here. A little there. Some years ago. Staying in Wiltshire. With a dear. Friends of ours.

[35:07] I stood in one of his. Harvest fields. A tremendous field. It was. It was nearly ready. For the. I was going to say. Sickle. But for these great. Instruments. That are used today.

[35:18] And. I just took. A little handful. Well. Not a handful. Just a few grains. Out of one of the ears. Of. Wheat there. And I looked at it. And I thought. Yes.

[35:29] It's ever so little. When you think of the vast field. Around. But I thought. It's real. It's real. It's part of the field.

[35:40] God. So. Friend. It's handfuls. Isn't that? Do you know. What it is to greet. How do you come to chapel? I want to speak kindly.

[35:52] I want to speak affectionately. You know. Some people seem to be. Quite satisfied. And they're ever so diligent. And I commend them for it. They're never missing. They come in and out of the chapel.

[36:02] For service time. But is that enough? Have you been gleaning? Are you just satisfied. To listen and say. Ah. Well I've listened. And I.

[36:13] And that's all that I need do. Friend. You need much more than that. You do. Has there been some. And it's for her. It's personal.

[36:26] And it may be so little. And yet so precious. But I love to think of. And I've said it before my people at times. You see. These handfuls of peps. Would be found by the sheaves.

[36:38] And you may say. Well I feel to know so little. There's for example. The sheaf of election. There's a sheaf of salvation. Of redemption. Of justification.

[36:50] Of adoption. Of regeneration. I know so little about these great doctrines. But. Has there been a handful for you?

[37:01] You take that word election. That sheaf as you like. Well what about this word. All that the father given me. There's the sheaf. There's the election. Shall come to me.

[37:13] And there's this poor sinner. Lord thou knowest. Thou searchest my heart. Thou knowest. That by thy grace. I'm a coming sinner to thee. And what hast thou said. Thou shalt in no wise counsel.

[37:24] Isn't that something precious? Doesn't your faith cling to that? Don't you hold it tight? And doesn't the devil try and snatch it out of your hand. And says he's not for you? You take that word salvation then.

[37:36] You take the precious blood of Christ. You take the word pardon and peace. A handful. Who delivered us from the power of darkness. And had translated us into the kingdom of his dear son.

[37:49] In whom we have redemption through his blood. Even the forgiveness of sin. Now look at it. You say yes I believe I've been called. And I've been a believer being brought out.

[38:03] But oh I want to know that my sins are forgiven. But what does God say? In whom we have redemption through his blood. Even the forgiveness of sins.

[38:14] Look at that justification. Look at that glorious dress. Look at that robe of righteousness. And if you look at that. You'll see some filthy rags which you're wearing. Your own righteousnesses.

[38:27] But my friend you'll say. Is that for me? Well what does the word of God say? Bring forth the best robe. And who was that for? Why the prodigal? And why is it the best robe?

[38:37] Because it's the most costly. And why is it the most costly? Because it costs the saviour. That life and death on Calvary's cross. But it was for him. I shall never forget one communion.

[38:49] And I believe my hard heart was softened just for once. And I put it on him. And I thought Lord I believe it's for me.

[39:01] Handfuls of. And then Mark has got an S to that word handful. It's a little here. And a little there. A little here. And a little there. And so precious.

[39:11] When it is all brought together. And it's the her. But just one more thought. And I mustn't keep you longer. Later. As we've said. Ruth went to the threshing floor.

[39:23] Later. And in that morning. Boaz bid her bring the veil that thou hast upon thee. And hold it.

[39:34] And when she held it. He measured six measures of barley. And laid it on her. This is one of the most wonderful blessings.

[39:52] A poor sinner has this side glory. The psalmist speaks of it. The cup running over.

[40:03] When your soul is filled. With the love of Christ. When it's overwhelming. I had it just once or twice.

[40:18] In my life. Just prior to my baptizing. One Sunday night. Under the ministry of my pastor. It seemed as though the Lord gave that dear man.

[40:29] All the blessing. All the texts and words. That I've been blessed with. And put them all together. And it seemed just a pouring. Pouring. Overwhelming blessings.

[40:42] I believe I can say too. Just that morning of the operation. That I went. That I went. Underwent. It was a sacred time.

[40:53] friend. Friend. Friend. These things are very precious. Very very real. When you feel such a sense of the presence of Jesus.

[41:05] Oh. Don't let me leave you with this. And think. Oh. He's on the mountain top. Friend. I've been brought down. But these.

[41:16] The mark of this celestial seal. Shall never be erased. Never be erased. And it's for her. For him. And the devil.

[41:27] And sin. And the world. Will never snatch it out of your hand. It's yours. It's God given. And it will take you to heaven.

[41:38] Amen. Amen. Let us conclude by singing hymn 519.

[42:05] 519. Tune Mount Ephraim 48. Hymn 519.

[42:32] When Ruth the Galenian went. Jehovah was her guide. To Boaz field. He led her straight.

[42:43] And she became. His bride. Hymn 519. Now he was. That was. Here we go.