I Can Trust Jesus – Part 1

By Ted Mock

July 15, 2026

Ruth 1:3-5 And Elimelech Naomi’s husband died; and she was left, and her two sons… And Mahlon and Chilion died also both of them; and the woman was left of her two sons and her husband.

I have been studying the book of Ruth off and on for more than a year now, trying to build a sermon series for when I go out to preach multiple day meetings.  It seems like I’m constantly drawn back to the short four-chapter love story that is full of gold nuggets. The deeper you look, the more you find.

One of the constant themes is where the different characters put their trust, where they find their security. Elimelech did not trust God to provide during the famine, so he moved his family to the greener grass of Moab, but all he found was a grave. Naomi, left of her husband and sons, could not find security in them anymore, or in the pagan land of Moab, and longed for her old home and people.  That pull of home drew her back to the only One she could trust, the God of Israel.

Why must we sometimes come to a place in life where we have failed in our plans, while our possessions run out and our own power vanishes, before we turn back to the only One we can trust?

The example of Ruth and her choice to put her faith and trust in the God of Israel is the perfect picture of the sinner, who puts his trust in the Lord, not just for salvation, but for every step in the journey of life.  With the determination to follow Naomi, declaring that only death could separate them, she will trust Him every step of the way, from Moab to the field of Boaz, the threshing floor, and into the godly line of Christ.

Reflection: “My grace IS sufficient for you.”  II Cor. 12:9