December 30th 2018.

December 30th 2018

Shout to the Lord Carol and Caitlin Schools

Welcome Daniel Palmer

Rock of Ages: Forgiven and Free
The Schools Family

Joy to the World

Joy to the world The Lord is come Let earth receive her King
Let ev’ry heart prepare Him room And heav’n and nature sing And heav’n and heav’n And nature sing 1

And makes the nations prove The glories of His righteousness
He rules the world With truth and grace And makes the nations prove The glories of His righteousness And wonders of His love And wonders wonders of His love 4

Joyful Joyful We Adore Thee

Joyful Joyful we adore Thee God of glory Lord of love Hearts unfold
Like flowers before Thee Opening to the sun above

Melt the clouds of sin and sadness Drive the dark of doubt away
Giver of immortal gladness Fill us with the light of day

Thou art giving and forgiving Ever blessing ever blest
Wellspring of the joy of living Ocean depth of happy rest

Thou our Father Christ our Brother All who live in love are Thine
Teach us how to love each other Lift us to the joy divine

Offering

Missionary Name Here Missionary Name Here Missionary Name Here
We’re going to pray for two of our missionaries who serve in a country in South Asia that is so dangerous we cannot use their real names, even here. We’ll call them Mitch and Nellie.* Mitch and Nellie have served there nine years and all this time they have been training and discipling church leaders to go out and start new churches. Just in the last five years, they have seen more than 1,200 new churches started and seen thousands of new believers baptized. Now, did you get that? This one missionary couple has helped plant more than 1,200 new churches! Is God blessing their work or what? Our church has had a small part in every one of those churches and every one of those baptisms! That’s because our church’s Cooperative Program giving helps Mitch and Nellie serve there in South Asia. Our giving is helping change lives for eternity! Often in a baptism service there, many new believers will be baptized. Here’s now they do it. A national pastor will baptize the first new believer. Then that new believer, still wet from being baptized himself, will baptize the next new believer. And that new believer will baptize the next one and so on. That really teaches that every Christian is supposed to help bring more people to Christ, doesn’t it? Join me today in praying that Mitch and Nellie can continue their wonderful ministry and that the Lord will keep blessing what they do. *Name changed to protect identity. Missionary Name Here LOCATION HERE Missionary Name Here Missionary Name Here Missionary Name Here LOCATION HERE LOCATION HERE LOCATION HERE

God of Heaven The Schools Family

R u t h 4 Now Boaz went up to the gate and sat down there, and behold, the close relative of whom Boaz spoke was passing by, so he said, “Turn aside, friend, sit down here.” And he turned aside and sat down. 2 He took ten men of the elders of the city and said, “Sit down here.” So they sat down.

R u t h 4 3 Then he said to the closest relative, “Naomi, who has come back from the land of Moab, has to sell the piece of land which belonged to our brother Elimelech.

R u t h 4 4 So I thought to inform you, saying, ‘Buy it before those who are sitting here, and before the elders of my people. If you will redeem it, redeem it; but if not, tell me that I may know; for there is no one but you to redeem it, and I am after you.’” And he said, “I will redeem it.”

R u t h 4 5 Then Boaz said, “On the day you buy the field from the hand of Naomi, you must also acquire Ruth the Moabitess, the widow of the deceased, in order to raise up the name of the deceased on his inheritance.”

R u t h 4 6 The closest relative said, “I cannot redeem it for myself, because I would jeopardize my own inheritance. Redeem it for yourself; you may have my right of redemption, for I cannot redeem it.”

R u t h 4 7 Now this was the custom in former times in Israel concerning the redemption and the exchange of land to confirm any matter: a man removed his sandal and gave it to another; and this was the manner of attestation in Israel. 8 So the closest relative said to Boaz, “Buy it for yourself.” And he removed his sandal.

R u t h 4 9 Then Boaz said to the elders and all the people, “You are witnesses today that I have bought from the hand of Naomi all that belonged to Elimelech and all that belonged to Chilion and Mahlon.

R u t h 4 10 Moreover, I have acquired Ruth the Moabitess, the widow of Mahlon, to be my wife in order to raise up the name of the deceased on his inheritance, so that the name of the deceased will not be cut off from his brothers or from the court of his birth place; you are witnesses today.”

R u t h 4 11 All the people who were in the court, and the elders, said, “We are witnesses. May the Lord make the woman who is coming into your home like Rachel and Leah, both of whom built the house of Israel; and may you achieve wealth in Ephrathah and become famous in Bethlehem.

R u t h 4 12 Moreover, may your house be like the house of Perez whom Tamar bore to Judah, through the offspring which the Lord will give you by this young woman.”

R u t h 4 13 So Boaz took Ruth, and she became his wife, and he went in to her. And the Lord enabled her to conceive, and she gave birth to a son. 14 Then the women said to Naomi, “Blessed is the Lord who has not left you without a redeemer today, and may his name become famous in Israel.

R u t h 4 15 May he also be to you a restorer of life and a sustainer of your old age; for your daughter-in- law, who loves you and is better to you than seven sons, has given birth to him.”

R u t h 4 16 Then Naomi took the child and laid him in her lap, and became his nurse. 17 The neighbor women gave him a name, saying, “A son has been born to Naomi!” So they named him Obed. He is the father of Jesse, the father of David. 18 Now these are the generations of Perez: to Perez was born Hezron,

R u t h 4 19 and to Hezron was born Ram, and to Ram, Amminadab, 20 and to Amminadab was born Nahshon, and to Nahshon, Salmon, 21 and to Salmon was born Boaz, and to Boaz, Obed, 22 and to Obed was born Jesse, and to Jesse, David.

The Redeemer Willingly Pays the Price
Act 4, Scene 1: Boaz Deals at the City Gate Redemption is costly (1–8).

The brief and commanding language used to describe Boaz’s actions indicate he is decisive and will not be deterred. He is on an unstoppable mission to redeem.

“Boaz is supposed to get the land and the girl, but how can that happen now?” (Holmstead, 189)

Since the property would be inherited only by any son produced with Ruth: it would not be divided among the nearer kinsman’s other sons. When the property was transferred to the heir who would continue Elimelech’s family line, any benefit of the produce of the land would be lost. (Lau and Goswell)

The nearer redeemer only wants to pay the cost of redemption if it benefits him.

Act 4, Scene 2: Ruth is Married, Naomi is Redeemed The Redeemer willingly pays the price, unites himself with the redeemed, and gives his Son to raise the sons of men (9–16).

In redeeming us, God does not hold back.

Boaz marries Ruth, and “the Lord enabled her to conceive” (13). In Ruth, as at Christmas, it is the Lord who makes the gift of a Redeeming Son possible.

We do not have to wait for the NT to know that redemption requires the resurrection of the sons of men through God’s gift of a miracle son.

When we stand back and look at vv. 9–16, we are compelled to worship our God who redeems.

Redemption means we have an inheritance.

He who did not spare His own Son, but delivered Him over for us all, how will He not also with Him freely give us all things? Rom 8:32

Redemption brings restoration.

Redemption means intimacy with God as a part of His multi-ethnic family.

When we stop trying to fix the deadness of our lives and give ourselves to Jesus, we become so united with Christ the Son, that His Father becomes our Father.

Because we are sons, God has sent forth the Spirit of His Son into our hearts, crying, “Abba! Father!” Therefore you are no longer a slave, but a son; and if a son, then an heir through God.” (Gal 4:6–7).

Redemption is about the fame of the Son.

“There is no one of the titles of Christ which is more precious to Christian hearts than ‘Redeemer’…It gives expression not merely to our sense that we have received salvation from Him, but also to our appreciation of what it cost Him to procure this salvation for us…

Whenever we pronounce it, the cross is placarded before our eyes and our hearts filled with loving remembrance not only that Christ has given us salvation, but that He paid a mighty price for it.” (B. B. Warfield)

Act 4, Scene 3: A Royal Genealogy God saves His people by sending His King, and He uses us in the process (18–22).

Ruth begins with a reminder this story occurred during the time of the judges, a time when there was no King in Israel. It ends with King David’s royal genealogy.

Ruth teaches us that God works “on the small scale of our apparently insignificant lives…to work out a larger master plan for the world” (Ferguson, 109–10).

There in Bethlehem, God takes a family that is as good as dead to give Israel her King.

Don’t let your current circumstances drive you from a God who has already proven His faithfulness by sending His Son.

When God redeems us, like when He redeemed Ruth, he does it for a purpose far greater than our own salvation (as great as that is!). He does it so that we would point others to God’s all- glorious Son and King.

As we begin 2019, may we measure God’s faithfulness by the size of Christ’s sacrifice, and may we build Christ’s Kingdom by living not for a life of comfort, ease, or convenience but desperate for God to fill us and use us for the glory of Christ our King.

Only Trust Him

Come, every soul, by sin oppressed There’s mercy with the Lord
And He will surely give you rest By trusting in His Word Only trust Him, only trust Him Only trust Him now He will save you, He will save you He will save you now

For Jesus shed His precious blood Rich blessings to bestow
Plunge now into the crimson flood That washes white as snow Only trust Him, only trust Him, Only trust Him now He will save you, He will save you, He will save you now

Yes, Jesus is the truth, the way That leads you into rest
Believe in Him without delay And you are fully blest Only trust Him, only trust Him Only trust Him now He will save you, He will save you He will save you now

Come, then, and join this holy band And on to glory go
To dwell in that celestial land Where joys immortal flow Only trust Him, only trust Him Only trust Him now He will save you, He will save you He will save you now

Prelude for Worship Carol Schools

December 30th 2018

Rock of Ages: Forgiven and Free
The Schools Family

Welcome

Go Tell It On the Mountain

While shepherds kept their watching O’er silent flocks by night
Behold throughout the heavens There shown a holy light

Go tell it on the mountain Over the hills and everywhere
That Jesus Christ is born

The shepherds feared and trembled When lo! Above the earth
Rang out the angel chorus That hailed the Savior’s birth

The humble Christ was born And God sent us salvation
Down in a lowly manger The humble Christ was born And God sent us salvation That blessed Christmas morn

Jesus Messiah

He became sin Who knew no sin That we might become His righteousness He humbled Himself And carried the cross Love so amazing

Jesus Messiah Name above all names Blessed Redeemer Emmanuel The Rescue for sinners The Ransom from heaven Lord of all

His body the bread His blood the wine Broken and poured out All for love The whole earth trembled And the veil was torn Love so amazing

All our hope is in You All the glory to You God The Light of the world

Jesus Messiah Lord of all The Lord of all

Give Me Faith

I need You to soften my heart And break me apart
I need You to open my eyes To see that You're shaping my life

Give me faith to trust what You say
All I am I surrender Give me faith to trust what You say That You're good and Your love is great I'm broken inside I give You my life

I need You to pierce through the dark And cleanse every part of me

But Your Spirit's strong in me
'Cause I may be weak But Your Spirit's strong in me My flesh may fail My God You never will