Faith Capsule: God we serve sees the heart to reward or withdraw from man.

Ruth 1, 2

Serving God without pure conscience is wasting time claiming to be a believer. Apostle Paul in his letter to Timothy testified to the need for serving with good conscience when he stated, “I thank God, whom I serve with a pure conscience, as my forefathers did, as without ceasing I remember you in my prayers night and day.” (2Timothy 1:3) In every way of claiming to be a believer, are you serving with good conscience or serving with self-centered intention? Interestingly, the word admonished us, “Now the purpose of the commandment is love from a pure heart, from a good conscience, and from sincere faith.” (1Timothy 1:5) Have you really searched your heart and know that every way of living life good conscience is strange to you? Man can be deceived but God cannot. One’s with good conscience acts on every ground or every engagement with sincerity. Action is what reveals man’s heart and the God we serve sees the heart to reward or withdraw from man. The book of 1 Samuel 2:3 stated, “…the Lord is the God of knowledge; and by Him actions are weighed.” Man’s conscience is encased in man’s action. With good conscience comes genuine and sincere engagement or act towards others.
Boaz was a relative of Naomi’s husband (Naomi was the mother in-law of Ruth). He was described as a man of great wealth. When Boaz met Ruth, she put in place uncommon favor to protect and provide for her. Ruth responded to the favor, “So she fell on her face, bowed down to the ground, and said to him, ’Why have I found favor in your eyes, that you should take notice of me, since I am a foreigner?’” (Ruth 2:10) Ruth’s genuine and sincerity from a good conscience positioned her for uncommon favor.
Ruth`s good conscience caused her to genuinely and sincerely refused to turn her back and go away from Naomi at the time Naomi was going back to her family after the death of her two sons. By Ruth’s act of sincerity, she positioned herself to encounter favor. Ruth questioned such favor, Boaz responded, “…It has been fully reported to me, all that you have done for your mother-in-law since the death of your husband, and how you have left your father and your mother and the land of your birth, and have come to a people whom you did not know before. The LORD repay your work and a full reward be given you by the LORD God of Israel, under whose wings you have come for refuge.’” In this world, there is nothing that goes unnoticed before God. Act of faith is the evidence of believe. To believe is to work the works of God. (John 6:28-29) Ruth being genuine and sincere worked the works of God and got rewarded by the Lord God of Israel.

Prayer for today: Ask God to bestow upon you to consistently exercise good conscience in all your ways of living life.