Introduction.

1. The train I was travelling on come to a stop between stations, from the window I could see children playing in the backyard. Some renovations must have been in progress for a very large set of glass sliding doors stood in the middle of the yard. About five girls, dressed very prettily were having a tea party with all their dolls seated around a little table next to the sliding doors. On the others side of the glass doors three boys filled buckets with water from the hosepipe and then with a mighty shout run at the closed door and threw the water at the girls. The girls heard the noise, saw the buckets of water being flung at them and immediately let out a scream and dived for cover. The boys thought the actions of the girls hilarious and fell about laughing. The girls had screamed and dived for cover needlessly, the glass doors stopped the water from reaching them. The girls had forgotten that the door would protect them from the boys prank. Our God is invisible and has promised to protect his children by his constant living active presence. Boaz recognised that Ruth had come to Bethlehem to find refuge under the wings of the Lord God of Israel.

1. The fullness of the metaphor used to describe the Lord's concern for his loved ones.

1. Ruth, says Boaz came to find refuge under the wings of the Lord. The picture is that of a bird providing her chicks with warmth and protection under her wings. Was Boaz thinking about Deuteronomy 32:11 which says, ‘As an eagle stirs up its nest, hovers over its young, spreading out its wings, taking them up, carrying them on its wings?' Eagles are extremely powerful birds and very good parents. Eagles, like most birds protect their young by spreading out their wings to form a shield, any attacker would first have to deal with the adult bird before attacking the chicks. Eagles are wonderful hunters and are tireless in finding food for their chicks. Young eaglets are taught by their parent to fly, firstly by fluttering over them, to show them how to use their wings and then by coaching them to fly short distances from the nest until they become proficient in flight and hunting. Throughout history the symbol of an eagle has stood for power and freedom. The metaphor of the eagle portrays God as the ultimate provider and protector of those he loves and that would be very comforting for the Lord's people. Eagles do have the reputation of being fierce and merciless hunters and are seen as totally focused on efficiency.
   
   
2. I find it very interesting that when Jesus weeps over Jerusalem he does not use the metaphor of an eagle but that of a chicken. Listen to what he says in Luke 13:34. ‘O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the one who kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to her! How often I wanted to gather your children together, as a hen gathers her brood under her wings, but you were not willing!' When a hen catches sight of a hawk it gives a commanding ‘cluck, cluck' calling her chicks to take refuge under her wings. The same thing happens when a thunderstorm breaks the hen conceals her chicks with her wings. Jesus uses this imagery to show the great mercy the Lord lovingly extended to Jerusalem, but they ignored his call to find safety and protection under his wings. The willingness of the Lord is contrasted with the unwillingness of the hardhearted Jews. The picture of a hen with her chicks is much gentler and communicates more compassion than the picture of the eagle with her chicks.
   
   
3. The Psalmist David often used the imagery of the wings  of a bird to  communicate the wonderful  grace of the Lord towards those he loves. Listen to the prayer David offers in Psalm 17:7-8. ‘Show Your marvellous loving kindness by Your right hand, O You who save those who trust in You from those who rise up against them. Keep me as the apple of Your eye: Hide me under the shadow of Your wings, From the wicked who oppress me, From my deadly enemies who surround me.' Living as a fugitive completely exhausted David. King Saul's constant pursuit of David left him weary and worn out emotionally and physically. David felt that he was surrounded by enemies and was in deep danger. In his prayer he asks that the Lord to hide him under the shadow of his wings. He needed a place of safety, warmth and comfort. David was asking the Lord to shield him from those who hated him. Under the shadow of the Lord's wings is a place of ultimate safety. The same concept comes through in Psalm 57:1, ‘Be merciful to me, O God, be merciful to me! For my soul trusts in You; And in the shadow of Your wings I will make my refuge, until these calamities have passed by.' David wants to abide under the shadow of the Lord's wings until the calamities have passed. The picture here is a place of shelter during the very stormy times of life. Finding a place to rest during calamitous times is wonderful as your strength is restored and your body refreshed. To find a place of peace during the storms of life is priceless. David in Psalm 36 talks about the Lord actions towards the wicked and the righteous. The Lord's amazing loving kindness towards the righteous is as obvious as a lit-up billboard at night, you can't miss it. The righteous count the loving kindness of the Lord precious and greatly enjoy all the benefits God generously bestows on them. Listen to David praising the Lord in Psalm 36:7-9. ‘How precious is Your loving kindness, O God! Therefore the children of men put their trust under the shadow of Your wings. They are abundantly satisfied with the fullness of Your house, and You give them drink   from  the river of  Your pleasures. For with You is the fountain of life; In Your light we see light.' Concerning these verses C H Spurgeon makes two points: (reworded and modified)
   
   
1. Those that come to the Lord are attracted by the excellence of God's loving-kindness and put their trust under the shadow of his wings. God's loving-kindness is precious to believers. They relish it; they taste a transcendent sweetness in it; they admire God's beauty and benevolence above any thing in this world, nothing is so amiable or so desirable. Anyone who does not admire his loving kindness knows nothing of the Lord. Anyone who does not covet the loving kindness of the Lord does not know the truth about themselves or life.
   
   
2. Those that know the loving kindness of the Lord have utmost confidence in him. They have access to him: to place themselves under his protection, and then think themselves safe and find themselves comforted, as the chickens under the wings of the hen. It was the character of proselytes that they came to trust under the wings of the God of Israel (Ruth 2:12); and what more proper to gather proselytes than the excellence of his loving-kindness? What could be more powerful than God's loving-kindness to engage our contentment in him? Those that are drawn by love in this way will cleave to him.'  Being under the shadow of the wings of the Lord is being in the place of great blessing and abundance. The best place on earth to abide is under the shadow of the Almighty; therefore it is also a place of gladness as Psalm 63:7 says ‘Because You have been my help, therefore in the shadow of Your wings I will rejoice.' The experience of the Lord's people living under the shadow of the wings of the Lord ought to fill them with absolute delight and put endless praises on their lips. Listen to the delight of those living under the shadow of the Lord expressed in Psalm 91:1-4. ‘He who dwells in the secret place of the Most High shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty. I will say of the Lord, "He is my refuge and my fortress; My God, in Him I will trust. Surely He shall deliver you from the snare of the fowler and from the perilous pestilence. He shall cover you with His feathers, and under His wings you shall take refuge; His truth shall be your shield and buckler.' This is a grand declaration of the benefits and assurances that belong to those who abide under the shadow of the Almighty.
   
   
4. To come under the wings of the almighty is to find a place of great security, safety, peace, joy, provision, and amazing loving kindness. From a human point of view Ruth was a woman who had very little going for her; she was a widow, destitute, derogatorily referred to as the Moabitess (the non kosher one), with no-one in the world except the sad and broken Naomi. She faced a future that seemed dark, bleak, hard, depressing and lonely. It would be absolutely wonderful for Ruth to find the rest, peace, security, joy and abundance contained in the concept of under the shadow of the wings of the Lord God of Israel. Living under the wings of the Lord would give her a very full life.

2. Finding refuge under the wings of the Lord.

1. Listen to the translation of the last part Ruth 2:12 in the KJV, ‘under whose wings thou art come to trust' in contrast to NJKV, ‘under whose wings you have come for refuge. The KJV focuses on the trust that Ruth needs to exercise in the Lord, while the NKJV focuses on the relief of finding refuge under the Lord's provision. I looked at 12 different translations and not one of them follows the KJV and translates the word as trust. The Hebrew word ‘hasah' appears 37 times in the Old Testament. On 35 occasions the translators of the KJV translate it as    to trust,  only in Psalm 57:1 do they translated it as to make a refuge. If the word can be translated as to trust or to take refuge there must be a connection between these two concepts. When does the meaning of to trust merge into the meaning of refuge? While riding home from school on my bicycle I was caught in a massive storm. What was different about this storm was the fact that I could hear it coming, not because the thunder grew closer, but because hail stones the size of cricket balls were smashing down on corrugated iron roofs. Seeing the hail coming I took refuge inside a metal bus stop shelter trusting that I would be safe. When the hail stones hit the roof of the bus stop shelter the noise was deafening and violent, and I could see massive dents appearing in the metal roof. I sought refuge in the shelter and trusted it to protect me from the hail stones. If I had put my trust in an umbrella I would not have survived. If you turn to the Lord for refuge, you trust that he is able to supply you with the refuge you need. Ruth trusted the Lord and found refuge under the shadow of his wings. Her trust in the LORD was the reason she left Moab, she had turned away from idolatry and turned to the only true and living God. Ruth was a child of the living God and trusted him to give her refuge under the shadow of his wings. The translators looked at the context and concluded that the word refuge gives a better and fuller sense than is communicated by the word trust.
   
   
2. We need to make the link between trust and refuge clear. You will never find refuge under the wings of the Lord if you do not trust him. You must trust the Lord before you can find refuge. Exactly what does it mean to trust the Lord? The word trust as a verb has a very interesting meaning: it means to exercise confidence in a person, to rely, believe, depend and commit to a person. If a seriously ill person says, ‘I trust my doctor.' It tells us that the patient has committed his health into the hands of his doctor;  he  believes, depends, relies on and is confident that the doctor knows best, and will only do what is in the best interests of the patient. The attitude of the patient assumes that the patient actually knows the doctor personally and has heard good reports about the doctor. You cannot trust God unless you know him personally and have heard glorious things about him. You trust God because you know him and believe the testimony of the Scriptures concerning his being and character.
   
   
3. Finding refuge under the wings of the Lord demands real conviction concerning four essential truths about God.
   
   
   1. A conviction that God is your God, bound and committed to you through the covenant of Christ. You must be totally convinced that God is my God.
      
      
   2. A conviction that God is absolutely sovereign over all creation. Absolutely everything is under his control. Everything he does is perfect.
      
      
   3. God is infinite in wisdom; there is absolutely nothing that he does not know. All his decisions are perfect.
      
      
   4. God is perfect in love. God does not simply have the capacity to love, love is part of his essence and being - everything the Lord does is done in perfect love.
      
      
   These must be conviction and not simply feelings. You must have an unshakable belief in these four great and glorious truths about God. Perhaps the best example of men with these convictions is found in Daniel 3, Shadrach, Meshach and Abed-Nego have been threatened with death if they do not bow down and worship the image the king set up. Listen to their reply in Daniel 3:16-18, "O Nebuchadnezzar, we have no need to answer you in this matter. If that is the case, our God whom we serve is able to deliver us from the burning fiery furnace, and He will deliver us from your hand, O king. But if not, let it be known to you, O king, that we do not serve your gods, nor will we worship the gold image which you have set up." Shadrach, Meshach and Abed-Nego trusted God and put their lives totally into his hands. I have no doubt that they found refuge in the Lord as they were cast into the fiery furnace. Applying these four truths to life has been expressed as follows: My God in his love always wills what is best for me. In his wisdom he always knows what is best, and has the power to make it happen. You must be able to say this with deep conviction.
   
   
4. We need to be absolutely honest about ourselves and our trust in God. Is it more difficult, to obey God than it is to trust him? Personally I think that in one sense it is easier to obey than it is to trust. When the Lord commands me not to covet, he explains his moral will and supplies arguments that make my obedience rationale and reasonable. We can easily understand that God's Law is good for us, even if we do not obey it. To trust God when you do not know his will or understand his purpose and your pain and sorrow keeps on growing it is extremely difficult. To trust God because he is God when you face the unknown with uncertainty and pain is very demanding.
   
   
5. How do I increase my trust in the Lord? The only way faith is increased is through the Word and prayer. Only the Scriptures can adequately explain the Lord's commitment to you as one of his own and his involvement in all your circumstances. The Holy Spirit takes the Scriptures and applies them to your heart and mind so that you can learn to trust God more and more. The Scriptures and the working of the Holy Spirit will convict you of your shallow view of how trustworthy God is, by showing you the great trust exercised by the saints in the Old and New Testaments.  You  will  be  challenged  to  answer  the question, ‘If God showed that he was absolutely trustworthy throughout the history of God's people, why do you doubt him today?'  God is immutable; he does not change, he is the same yesterday today and forever. The Scriptures will press on your heart and mind the firm conclusion that God is absolutely trustworthy in all things. God has promised that all who trust him will find shelter under his wings.
   
   
6. The church at Philippi was passing through hard and stressful times and the division between Syntyche and Euodia made things worse. To these troubled believers Paul says, ‘Rejoice in the Lord always. Again I will say, rejoice! Let your gentleness be known to all men. The Lord is at hand. Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.' This injunction given by Paul can be phrased in Old Testament language as follows; ‘through prayer seek refuge under the wings of the Lord.'  You find refuge in the Lord by trusting him for his great grace, draw near to God in prayer and he will draw near to you. True and lasting refuge comes only from the Lord as David testifies in Psalm 46:1-3. ‘God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble. Therefore we will not fear, even though the earth be removed, and though the mountains be carried into the midst of the sea; though its waters roar and be troubled, though the mountains shake with its swelling. Selah' Those who trust in the Lord have a fortress that is unshakable. Ruth had come to trust God and found in him an unshakable refuge.

Conclusion.

You need God to be your refuge from the storm of life. I  say  storm of  life because I truly believe that as  the Lord's people living in a fallen world, life is one great storm that varies in intensity but never stops. The need for a refuge only stops when go to the place in the Father's house prepared for us by Christ Jesus our Lord. True refuge is found only in the Lord, to trust any other refuge is to trust in that which cannot weather the storm of life. Today you need to seek the Lord and find in him your refuge.