So Boaz took Ruth and she became his wife. When he made love to her, the Lord enabled her to conceive, and she gave birth to a son. The women said to Naomi: “Praise be to the Lord, who this day has not left you without a guardian-redeemer. May he become famous throughout Israel! He will renew your life and sustain you in your old age. For your daughter-in-law, who loves you and who is better to you than seven sons, has given him birth.”

Then Naomi took the child in her arms and cared for him. The women living there said, “Naomi has a son!” And they named him Obed. He was the father of Jesse, the father of David. Ruth 4:13-17 (NIV)

Tired of paying kennel fees for our dog every time Patti and I went out of town, we decided to find a dog-owning neighbor in our community with whom we could trade canine sitting chores. After a few of months of talking to fellow dog walkers, we settled on Jim and Susan, a couple up the street whose dog, “Joey”, gets along fabulously with our “Dixie”.

Two weekends ago it was our turn to watch Joey while Jim and Susan spent a few days in Dallas. When they arrived home and came over to pick up their dog, we asked Jim and Susan what they did in Dallas, and they proceeded to tell us a fascinating story.

Turns out Jim’s dad, Colonel Bill Bower, piloted one of the sixteen B25 bombers in the famous WWII Doolittle Raid that attacked Japan on April 18, 1942. It was America’s first air raid to strike the Japanese home islands and served as an impressive response to Pearl Harbor. It also boosted morale tremendously for our country. Lacking the ability to return after the raid, fifteen of the bombers reached China and one landed in Russia.

Over the years, the Doolittle survivors and their relatives have gotten together to commemorate the raid. This year, one of the two remaining pilots turned 100 and the relatives of all the Doolittle Raiders decided to meet in Dallas and celebrate one more time.

After Jim and Susan left our home, Patti and I marveled at the heritage they shared as a family. It made me think about the heritage I’m leaving my children, which in turn prompted me to mull over the concept of heritage itself.

It turns out that “heritage” has a broad spectrum of meanings. It can refer to property that is inherited, or something that is passed down from preceding generations, or the status that is acquired by a person through birth, or even the traditions and achievements that are a part of the history of a group or nation. Boiling all this down, “heritage” always refers to desirable things, practices or achievements that one’s predecessors have passed down to you and that you consider fortunate that you have and hope to pass down to your descendants.

For example, a history of diabetes in one’s family is not considered a heritage. While it is something you have received from your ancestors, it’s not desirable to have a tendency toward diabetes. It’s also not an “achievement” of one’s ancestors. And we certainly wouldn’t relish the thought of our children inheriting this tendency as well. But having a father who risked his life in a daring raid to defend America, as my neighbor Jim up the street has, now that is a heritage. In his dad Jim has a very desirable story of bravery that will be told and retold in his family for generations to come.

Our text this month is about a family line with a remarkable heritage of faith, love and obedience. Before being written down in the form that we have today, the story of Ruth’s love and sacrifice for Naomi, and of God’s faithful provision for them, was told and retold orally for at least four generations. One descendant in particular would hear that story and act upon it. That descendant was David.

It was this heritage of the value of character and the knowledge that there is a personal God who responds to those who believe in Him and love Him that imbued the formative years of David. Most likely, David knew this story by heart. How else could he understand that it was God who enabled him to kill the lion and the bear and who would also give Goliath into his hand (1 Samuel 17:37). David knew that his victory over Goliath was a sure thing, not only from his own experience, but from history; from his heritage.

That fact is, when we pass on a heritage, or when we start a heritage, we are passing on things our descendants can use. It could be in the form of furniture, a house, art, language. All of these are things our descendants can use. But a heritage can also be positive character traits and a deep and profound knowledge of, and love for, God.

And the latter is the most valuable heritage of all.

Discussion Questions

1. What kind of heritage have you received from your parents, grandparents and earlier ancestors?
2. What about your heritage has been most valuable to you?
3. What kind of heritage do you want to pass down to your children and grandchildren?
4. In what way has your faith in Jesus influenced what you want to pass on?