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Courtship or Dating, Part 4: Purpose and Purity
Series Ruth/Courtship Series
836
Introductory Observations of what God blessed in Ruth and Boaz's relationship:
- Parental honor (Ruth 3:5-6, 17; God blesses Ruth's honoring of her only parental figure left)
- Purposed towards marriage (3:9-10; note: no positive portrayal in Scripture of recreational relationships)
- Pre-eminence of the LORD and His blessing (3:10)
- Personal character attracts the godly (3:11; focus first on being the right person, not finding the right person)
- Principles of God's Word govern relationship (3:12-13, 4:1-10)
- Purity till marriage (4:13; saving its blessings till the covenant commitment)
The Responsibility of Parents as Believers
- In God's Law, the father was held responsible for the purity of a daughter living in his house (Dt. 22:20-21)
- fathers teach children: guard your heart (Prov. 4:20-23) and eyes (4:25-27) and ears (5:1-4) and steps (5:5-14)
- both father and mother's wisdom and teaching is to protect from impurity and its consequences (6:20-33)
- a mother to her son on what to look for in a wife (Prov. 31; Naomi also counsels Ruth as ‘my daughter')
The Responsibility of Other Believers
- Titus 2 models older believers instructing the younger of the same gender in purity, self-control, conduct, etc.
- The whole church should honor marriage (Heb 13:4) and hold its own accountable to God's standard (1 Cor 5)
The Responsibility of the Single Believer
- Follow the above Scriptures and flee as far and fast as you can from youthful lusts, with godly believers in your life for accountability (2 Tim. 2:22) so you can be more useful and pleasing to the Lord (v. 21)
- Some focus on ‘abstinence' but Christians should focus on purity
Sermon ID | 72111147102 |
Duration | 46:42 |
Date | Jan 31, 2010 |
Category | Current Events |
Bible Text | Ruth 3 |