"We should not allow the world and its culture to drag us down to its level of immaturity. You are not created to fit in. You are created to stand out, to let your light shine, no matter how dark it is around us."
Learn a valuable lesson from the life of Ruth - who chose to let her light shine rather than succumb to the darkness surrounding her - in this practical sermon from Christina titled, 'We Are Not Here To Get Used To The Dark But To Shine As Light'.
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Learn a valuable lesson from the life of Ruth - who chose to let her light shine rather than succumb to the darkness surrounding her - in this practical sermon from Christina titled, 'We Are Not Here To Get Used To The Dark But To Shine As Light'.
➡️ Receive Daily Encouragement on WhatsApp - https://godsheart.tv/whatsapp/
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TVTranscript
00:00We should not allow the world and its culture to drag us down to its level of immaturity.
00:07No, you were not created to fit in.
00:11You were created to stand out, to let your light shine no matter how dark it is around us.
00:20Grace and peace to you all in the mighty name of Jesus Christ.
00:25My name is Christina and it is the amazing grace of God that I get to share with you from the living Word of God.
00:36Yes, the psalmist made it clear in Psalm 119 and verse 105 that the Word of God is a lamp for our feet and a light for our path.
00:49Are you walking in darkness today without direction?
00:54Wondering what the future may hold for you?
00:58I want to encourage you that if you take God's Word to heart right now and truly make it a part of you, it will by its very nature change you.
01:13It will carry you out of darkness and into his marvellous light.
01:19And you will find yourself acting with God.
01:25So today we are going to start by reading from the book of Isaiah chapter 60.
01:34Have you got your Bible with you there at home?
01:37Oh, I can see some people have their Bibles with them.
01:41Can I see your Holy Bible?
01:43To God be the glory.
01:45To God be the glory.
01:47So turn with me to Isaiah chapter 60 and let's read from verse 1.
01:54It says, Arise, shine, for your light has come and the glory of the Lord rises upon you.
02:06See, darkness covers the earth and thick darkness is over the peoples, but the Lord rises upon you.
02:15And his glory appears over you.
02:19You see, Isaiah was making clear here that the people of God are distinctly different from the people of the world.
02:31As different as day and night, dark and light.
02:35Therefore, as Christians, we should not sympathise with sin or downplay darkness and yet claim to be people of the light.
02:48No, as Apostle Paul admonishes us in 2 Corinthians chapter 6 and verse 14,
02:58we should not allow the light of God within us to diminish because we are dabbling in darkness through mismatched alliances.
03:08For what does righteousness have in common with rebellion?
03:14Or morality with carnality?
03:21If we are a Christian, we have been called out of darkness into his marvellous light, as it says in 1 Peter chapter 2 and verse 9.
03:36This will take us to the title of the message today.
03:38We are not here to get used to the dark, but to shine as light.
03:46Tell somebody next to you, we are not here to get used to the dark, but to shine as light.
03:58Who here today is ready to arise and shine?
04:01For God's light has come.
04:05Hallelujah. Thank you for your faith.
04:08Yes, Jesus said in Matthew chapter 5 verse 14 to 16,
04:13You are the light of the world. A city on a hill cannot be hidden.
04:18Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl.
04:22Instead, they put it on its stand and it gives light to everyone in the house.
04:27In the same way, let your light so shine before men that they may see your good work.
04:37But why? To glorify who? For your own glory?
04:42No, for the glory of God, to glorify your Father in heaven.
04:48You see, we cannot be the light of the world on our own.
04:53We have no integrity of our own. We have no righteousness of our own.
04:58But Jesus Christ is the light of the world.
05:01And as he said in John chapter 8 and verse 12,
05:05He who walks with me shall not walk in darkness, but have the light of life.
05:11So just as the moon has no light of its own, but reflects the sun.
05:19So we reflect the light of Jesus Christ.
05:23Through our relationship with him.
05:26Because the main thing, people of God, about Christianity,
05:30It's not the work we do, but it's the relationship that we maintain
05:35and the atmosphere that is produced by that relationship.
05:42What atmosphere are you creating?
05:46Is your relationship with God shining a light in this dark world?
05:51Or are you blending into the world around you without even noticing it?
05:58You see, the world can be a pretty dark place.
06:02And if we are not careful, we can allow the darkness on the outside to influence us.
06:09We allow the standards to slip a bit, our integrity to fail.
06:14As the book of Song of Solomon says,
06:16Catch the little foxes, for it's the little foxes that spoil the brine.
06:22This can look like our relationship with God going lukewarm
06:28as we begin to focus on what the world says instead of the light of God's word.
06:33This can look like growing weary in doing good
06:38or allowing ourselves to fall into sin.
06:44Have you ever experienced a situation where you have started a job
06:49or you've been working, maybe you're cooking a meal
06:52or maybe you're sitting there working on your laptop
06:55and suddenly you notice that the sun is going down.
06:59But you didn't quite realize how dark it was until somebody switched the light on
07:05and you realize, wow, I'm sitting in darkness.
07:09This is what can happen.
07:11Slowly but surely we can find ourselves getting used to darkness if we are not careful.
07:18Until God's word is illuminated in our lives and we see ourselves clearly,
07:24we understand God's word and how to apply it to our daily lives.
07:30You see, it says in Romans chapter 12 and verse 2,
07:34Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world.
07:38Because the world has a very dark pattern which is against God's will and God's word.
07:45Do not conform therefore to the pattern of this world
07:48but be transformed by the renewing of your mind through God's word.
07:55Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is for your life.
08:03His good, pleasing and perfect will.
08:07Another version says, do not become so well acquainted to your culture
08:13that you fit into it without even realizing it.
08:18We should not allow the world and its culture to drag us down to its level of immaturity.
08:26No, you were not created to fit in.
08:29You were created to stand out, to let your light shine no matter how dark it is around us.
08:36So we're going to have a look today at the case of Ruth who let her light shine among men
08:45even though she lived in a time of great darkness.
08:49If you turn in your Bibles to Ruth chapter 1,
08:52we see how the story of Ruth was set in the times when the judges ruled
08:59and everyone did as they seemed fit.
09:03People lived for themselves, it was a very lawless time
09:07and there was very few people who showed the kind of integrity that Ruth showed.
09:14So in the first chapter of Ruth, we see a man called Elimelech
09:17and his wife Nemi and there is a famine in Bethlehem.
09:21So with their two sons, they go to the land of Moab, Israel's ancient enemy.
09:29And they live there for 10 years and tragedy strikes
09:34as the father of the family dies, leaving Nemi a widow.
09:39So the two sons marry Moabite women, one who is Ruth
09:43the other one who is Orpah.
09:46But then tragedy strikes again and those sons also die
09:51leaving both Nemi, Ruth and Orpah not only widows but also childless.
10:01So Nemi has no reason to stay where she is and she decides to go back home to Bethlehem.
10:09So she urges her daughters-in-law saying, go back to your people,
10:15go back to your parents, go back to your gods
10:20and readjust yourself to your culture because I don't have anything to offer you.
10:27Let's see what Nemi said to Ruth and Orpah in Ruth chapter 1 and verse 11.
10:32Nemi said, return home my daughters, why would you come with me?
10:37Am I going to have any more sons who could become your husbands?
10:42Return home my daughters, I am too old to have another husband.
10:47Even if I thought there was still hope for me, even if I had a husband tonight
10:52and gave birth to sons, would you wait until they grew up?
10:56Would you remain unmarried for them?
10:59No, my daughters.
11:02So Orpah agrees and returns home but Ruth remains loyal.
11:09See we have two women here in pretty much the same situation
11:15but they choose very separate paths.
11:18Orpah goes down that familiar road back to her people, back to her gods
11:24and readjust herself to her culture and that's the last we hear of Orpah.
11:30But Ruth chooses the selfless way.
11:34Ruth walks down the path of faith, humility and love.
11:40She doesn't mind the fact that she will have to leave her biological family to follow Nemi.
11:49She was willing to give up her culture, the security of her home.
11:57It didn't matter to her whether she was ever going to have a husband or children.
12:02Her love for Nemi cut across the barriers of age, culture and ethnicity.
12:10And she said to Nemi, I am not following you.
12:16She said to Nemi, I am not following you for what I can get.
12:24Because while the world may have alliances for selfish and classic and material reasons
12:30I am not like the people of the world.
12:33I choose to let my light shine because I am not here for what I can get.
12:38I am here for what I can give.
12:41Let's see what Ruth said in Ruth chapter 1 in verse 16.
12:44But Ruth replied, don't urge me to leave you or turn back from you.
12:50Where you go, I will go.
12:52And where you stay, I will stay.
12:54Your people will be my people and your God will be my God.
13:01Wow, that was a determined statement there.
13:07And as we know, that statement was tested as Nemi continued to urge her.
13:13But Nemi understood that she was serious.
13:16So Nemi and Ruth therefore moved back to the land of Bethlehem.
13:21But there was a further test in that Nemi initially did not seem all that appreciative of Ruth.
13:30Yes, Ruth was determined to let her light shine even though it was not convenient.
13:35But at the same time, initially, Nemi went back to Bethlehem overwhelmed by grief and her sorrow.
13:44That she could not see the benefit and the blessing that she had in Ruth.
13:48You see, she went back to the land of Bethlehem.
13:51And after 10 years, people were like, oh, is that Nemi?
13:54They were eager to know if it really was her.
13:56And she said to them in verse 20, don't call me Nemi, which means pleasantness.
14:03She said, call me Mara, which means bitterness.
14:08Because the Almighty has made my life very bitter.
14:12I went away full, but the Lord has brought me back empty.
14:17Why call me Nemi?
14:19The Lord has afflicted me.
14:21The Almighty has brought misfortune upon me.
14:24You see, I think if Ruth was like the people of today,
14:29she would have been tempted to be quite offended by that statement.
14:35If she were like the people of today, she may have said to Nemi, hey, why are you calling yourself empty and bitter?
14:42Have I not just given up my security, my home, my culture, my people to come and look after you?
14:49I am offended.
14:51But Ruth never did that.
14:54Because while the world today serves to be seen,
14:57cares to be compensated and mentors for that public mention
15:03and gets discouraged when they don't hear that shallow admiration from men.
15:08Ruth continued to love without expectation.
15:12She continued to do it for God's sake.
15:15She was loving God and she was serving Nemi without expecting any appreciation or reward.
15:23But I just want to take a moment to ask you a question today.
15:27Are you one like Nemi who has allowed your situation to define you?
15:34Are you facing loss?
15:38It may not be widowhood.
15:41It may be sickness.
15:43It may be barrenness.
15:45It may be poverty.
15:47You might have experienced one trouble or the other.
15:50And have you allowed that situation to define you?
15:54Have you now decided that that is it, that there is no hope, that there is no future?
16:00Have you become so overwhelmed by your situation that you can't even see the blessing of God that is right beside you in your situation?
16:10You see, Ruth understood the principle laid out in 1 Corinthians chapter 10 and verse 13.
16:17That says God is faithful.
16:21He will not allow your temptation to overcome you, but he will find a way out.
16:29So while Nemi was bitter and overcome by her situation, Ruth chose to think about the way that God was preparing for her.
16:40She said, well, I am young.
16:43I am healthy.
16:45As long as I have breath in my lungs, God still has a purpose for me.
16:51God still has a plan for my life.
16:53I may be a foreign widow who is likely to face xenophobia or abuse or neglect.
17:00But that doesn't matter because God is with me.
17:03He is my strength.
17:05He is my defender.
17:07He is the father to the fatherless.
17:09He is the defender of the widows.
17:11And he sets the lonely in families.
17:13So I shall not fear for God is with me.
17:16And she went out and started to do what she could do, which was to work and glean in the fields.
17:24And as she took that step of faith to go and work in the fields and did what she could do, God did what only he could do.
17:34Now I want to ask you today.
17:37You might be here with one problem or the other.
17:41But do you know you have a part to play?
17:44It's not all up to God.
17:47And certainly it's not all up to you.
17:51It takes your willingness and God's ability to bring about that change you are looking for today.
17:57You too need to step into faith and step out of your situation and take God at his word.
18:04And when you do, you will start to see God will challenge and change you and bring you into his good, perfect and pleasing will.
18:13So Ruth goes out into the field by faith and starts to glean.
18:18And after that, it sets off a bunch of things that just so happened.
18:24God was working all things together for her good because as she walked out into the field,
18:30God was guiding her steps into a field of a man named Boaz, who just so happened to be a wealthy man.
18:41But not only that, happened to be extremely generous and a man of noble character.
18:47And he just so happened to show up on that field when she had arrived and noticed her.
18:54And he just happened to be a relative of Naomi and the Kingsman redeemer.
19:00And God had just so happened arranged and designed it that Boaz would be used by God to rescue and redeem this family.
19:09That she would marry him and that they would have a child together, who would be the grandfather of David in the lineage of Jesus Christ.
19:19What an awesome God.
19:23Ruth was on the outside at rock bottom, but she played her part and the unseen hand of God intervened in her affairs.
19:35So what is your situation today?
19:38I want to tell you that if you approach God's word today with faith and belief, God will direct your path.
19:47He will take you from where you are now to where he wants you to be.
19:51And I want us to learn a lesson from Ruth's attitude as she comes into this blessing.
19:57So when she just so happens to meet Boaz on that field, he starts to offer her protection, generosity and provides for her needs.
20:08And let's see what Ruth said in Ruth chapter 2 and verse 10.
20:13So at this, she bowed down with her face to the ground.
20:17She asked him, why have I found such favor in your eyes that you notice me a foreigner?
20:23And then in verse 11, Boaz replied, I have been told all about what you have done for your mother-in-law since the death of your husband.
20:30How you left your father and mother and your homeland and came to live with the people you did not know before.
20:37May the Lord repay you for what you have done.
20:40May you be richly rewarded by the Lord, the God of Israel, under whose wings you have come to take.
20:45You see, Ruth expressed an acknowledgement that she did not deserve that blessing or even expect it.
20:55Because Ruth was sowing to the spirit without expecting material reward.
21:01She was saying, why do you notice me a foreigner?
21:05And I think the question today is, how are we coming into God's presence?
21:10Many times we come into God's presence, naming and claiming blessing, asking God for this or that before even thanking him
21:20and humbly recognizing that we are undeserving of God's mercy and favor.
21:27But then Boaz tells her, I am not looking at your outward qualities.
21:34I see that you are a woman of noble character because it was reported to him all the hard work that she had done
21:41because she was not working for money alone, but for a good name.
21:45And that's what God does.
21:47He does not consider our background or our past before blessing us and calling us into a relationship with him.
21:55Ruth then returns home to her mother-in-law, Naomi.
21:58With all this blessing, with all this grain.
22:00And then Naomi has joy knowing that God is working all things together for their good.
22:06So let's see what happened next in Ruth chapter 3 and verse 1.
22:11One day, Ruth's mother-in-law, Naomi said to her, my daughter, I must find a home for you where you will be well provided for.
22:19Now, Boaz, who's willful wife Naomi, said to her, my daughter, I must find a home for you where you will be well provided for.
22:27Boaz, whose women you have worked, is a relative of ours.
22:32Tonight he will be winnowing barley on the threshing floor.
22:36Wash, put on perfume and get dressed in your best clothes, then go down to the threshing floor.
22:42But don't let him know that you are there until he has finished eating and drinking.
22:48You see, there was a cultural practice in Israel at the time that if a woman was a widow and she had property,
22:54then it was possible for a near relative to acquire the property at a wonderful price and support the family.
23:03So this was the plan that was being made.
23:05But when we read Naomi's instruction to Ruth, we may think that Naomi was telling her to look beautiful on the outside.
23:13But you see, the significance of this action was that Naomi was telling Ruth,
23:19take off your widow's clothes.
23:24Those clothes that represented her loss, her bitterness, the pain of the past.
23:32She was saying, Ruth, take off those widow's clothes and put on your best clothes because God is about to do a new thing in your life.
23:41Because she knew she cannot build her future around her past.
23:46She was saying, wash off those ashes because the Lord is about to give you a crown of beauty.
23:53She was saying, put on your best perfume.
23:57In other words, put on the oil of gladness instead of mourning.
24:01And take off that spirit of despair and put on that garment of praise.
24:08People of God, who is ready to put on a garment of praise right now?
24:11Because you know that God is about to intervene in your situation.
24:16You do not have to wait for the prayer to happen before you say thank you to God.
24:21Because faith acts now, faith believes now and faith receives now.
24:25If you are a man or woman of faith, you can start to say thank you, Jesus, right now.
24:30You can put off the old man.
24:33You can put off that garment of disappointment, the pain of the past and start to put on a garment of praise.
24:40Can I see someone putting on that garment of praise by faith right now?
24:44Come on, put on that garment of praise right now.
24:47Put on that garment of praise.
24:49Give the Lord the praise for what he is about to do.
24:52Because your past is over.
24:54Victory is yours in Christ Jesus.
24:57He does not consider your past to determine your future.
25:00Finally, Ephesians chapter 4 and verse 22 says,
25:05You were taught with regard to your former way of life to put off your old self,
25:11which is being corrupted by its deceitful desires,
25:15and to be made new in the attitude of your mind,
25:18and to put on the new self created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness.
25:24As Ruth was ready to give up her land, to give up her gods,
25:30and follow the direction of God's plan for her life,
25:35so she was planting seeds that would be multiplied back to her in God's way and in God's time.
25:42Are you ready to give up that old life?
25:46Are you ready to stop that sin that's holding you back?
25:52Are you ready to surrender that bad habit, that addiction?
25:56Because if you are, Jesus Christ is ready to receive you right now.
26:01So the book of Ruth encourages us that we should let our light shine,
26:08even when it's not convenient, or no matter how dark it is around us.
26:13It encourages us to let our light shine,
26:17to let our light shine, even when we don't seem to gain any appreciation.
26:25We should let our light shine for God's sake,
26:29because God is the rewarder of those who diligently seek Him.
26:35Remember, God does not consider our past to determine our future.
26:40He sees our hearts and He sees our faith.
26:44Right now, surrender yourself to the Lord.
26:48Open your heart to God's faith.
26:51Open your heart to His Holy Spirit,
26:55and allow Him, as He did for Ruth, to take you from where you are right now
27:00to where He wants you to be,
27:03right in the centre of His will, His good, pleasing and perfect will.
27:09In Jesus' name. Amen.
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