An Anchor for the Soul

Hebrews 6:19–20

"This hope we have as an anchor of the soul, a hope both sure and reliable and one which enters within the veil, where Jesus has entered as a forerunner for us, having become a high priest forever…"

God's covenant love covers us with assurance, fills us with purpose, and changes everything about our lives.

Ruth at the Threshing Floor

Ruth 3:3–5

"Wash yourself therefore, and anoint yourself and put on your best clothes, and go down to the threshing floor; but do not reveal yourself to the man until he has finished eating and drinking . . . And it shall be when he lies down, that you shall take notice of the place where he lies, and you shall go and . . . uncover his feet and lie down; then he will tell you what you should do." And she said to her, "All that you say I will do."

Ruth 3:6–8

"So she went down to the threshing floor and did according to all that her mother-in-law had commanded her. When Boaz had eaten and drunk and his heart was cheerful, he went to lie down at the end of the heap of grain; and she came secretly, and uncovered his feet and lay down. And it happened in the middle of the night that the man was startled and bent forward; and . . . behold (!?!), a woman was lying at his feet."

Ruth 3:9

"So he said, 'Who are you?' And she answered, 'I am Ruth your slave. Now spread your garment over your slave, for you are a redeemer.'"

NASB: "I am your slave, now spread your garment over your slave." NKJV: "I am Ruth, your maidservant. Take your maidservant under your wing."

Prayer Is the Remedy for a Rattled Heart

• Two things we always have in Jesus: Assurance and Purpose

God's covenant love covers us with assurance, fills us with purpose, and changes everything about our lives.

Assurance

Assurance: the settled confidence that, because we are in Christ, there are truths we can always count on.

2 Corinthians 5:17

"Therefore if anyone is in Christ, this person is a new creation…"

Romans 8:1

"Therefore there is now no condemnation at all for those who are in Christ Jesus."

Ephesians 1

"…has blessed us with every spiritual blessing… in Christ," and "He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world…"

Colossians 2

"For in Him all the fullness of Deity dwells in bodily form, and in Him you have been made complete."

You are in Christ. Presently. Forever.

Romans 8:35–39

"Who will separate us from the love of Christ?" Neither death nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor things present nor things to come, nor height nor depth, nor any other created thing "will be able to separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord."

His assurances keep us anchored and tethered to His love and work in our lives.

Assurance | Salvation

In Christ, we are sure of our salvation.

Assurance | Status

In Christ, we are sure of our status as sons and daughters. We are united with God in Christ through the closeness and tenderness of a parent's affection and care.

Galatians 4:6

"Because you are sons, God has sent the Spirit of His Son into our hearts, crying out, 'Abba! Father!'"

Assurance | Satisfaction

In Christ, we are sure to find satisfaction.

When we are most satisfied in God, we are both most at rest and most on guard.

"O God, I have tasted Thy goodness, and it has both satisfied me and made me thirsty for more." A. W. Tozer

Our satisfaction in God is inseparable from His purpose for our lives.

Purpose

Living content and satisfied — fully into the joy of His salvation, our status, and satisfaction in God is not the absence of issues or lack. It is finding every one of your needs met in Him in such a way that you can begin to sense the plot of your life.

God's assurance changes how we think, but His purpose changes how we live.

Ruth 3:9–10

"So he said, 'Who are you?' And she answered, 'I am Ruth your slave. Now spread your garment over your slave, for you are a redeemer.' Then he said, 'May you be blessed of the Lord, my daughter. You have shown your last kindness to be better than the first, by not going after young men, whether poor or rich.'"

God's plans and purpose for our lives are a premeditated response of His love.

Ruth 3:10

"May you be blessed of the Lord, my daughter. You have shown your last kindness to be better than the first, by not going after young men, whether poor or rich."

This is a covenant of love.

"So now, my daughter, do not fear. I will do for you whatever you say, for all my people in the city know that you are a woman of excellence…"

Ruth 3:11, 14–15

"So she lay at his feet until morning, and got up before one person could recognize another; and he said, 'Do not let it be known that the woman came to the threshing floor.' Again he said, 'Give me the shawl that is on you and hold it.' So she held it, and he measured six measures of barley and laid it on her. Then she went into the city."

The Redeemer's Provision

1. The Provision Is for Others

Ruth 3:17

"She also said, 'These six measures of barley he gave to me, for he said, "Do not go to your mother-in-law empty-handed."'"

2. The Provision Is Extravagant