The Providential Christ

The Providential Christ

Then she said, “Let me find favor in your sight, my lord; for you have comforted me, and have spoken kindly to your maidservant, though I am not like one of your maidservants.” Now Boaz said to her at mealtime, “Come here, and eat of the bread, and dip your piece of bread in the vinegar.” So she sat beside the reapers, and he passed parched grain to her; and she ate and was satisfied, and kept some back. And when she rose up to glean, Boaz commanded his young men, saying, “Let her glean even among the sheaves, and do not reproach her. Also let grain from the bundles fall purposely for her; leave it that she may glean, and do not rebuke her.”

Ruth 2

Christ provides for us, long before He draws us unto Himself. The second chapter of Ruth shows us a wonderful picture of that Providence. Ruth is now in a land foreign to her. She is an obvious outsider; yet she must survive. Her industry takes her forth to the fields to glean. She, ‘by chance’ arrives at the field of Boaz. Her poverty drives her to seek sustenance for herself and for Naomi, her only remaining family. There are several things which Boaz does, which are pictures of Christ. He singles her out of the mass of people who were there. So Christ singles us out of the mass of humanity by His electing purpose. He sees to it that she is able to proceed unmolested. Moreover, he makes certain that she receives special encouragements. He instructs his laborers to throw, ‘handfuls of purpose’ for her. He sees to it that she has the society of his female servants, food to uphold her, and the protection of his male servants. He does all of this before they have any formal relationship. There has been but the barest of introductions. So it is with Christ and how He deals with His elect. He orders and arranges our circumstances, our opportunities, and our activities.  He arranges even our company to draw us inexorably to Him. We are the recipients of the abundance of His Providence, when we may have but a vague idea, at best, of His True Identity. After salvation, we may look back over the course of life and say, ‘Hitherto has the Lord helped me.’ Christ constantly works to draw His Own to Himself. Bless God, that we have that glorious testimony of His Abundant Providence.

Our Great Redeemer and Provider,
we praise you for drawing us unto Yourself,
by so many means and methods.
We rejoice in Your Abundant Providence towards us.

Where the Bush is Burning
Tomm Tice