WISDOM FROM VIRTUE (Case Study of Ruth and Naomi)

Bible Passage: Book of Ruth

Introduction

When we hear the word virtue, majority of us think of one’s character, morals, or principles, and we are not wrong to think that. However, what I have learnt lately is to ask myself, what is the source of my information? Or where did this thought originate from? Doing this has made me realise that I have many preconceived ideas of what a thing means.

Hence, God has put it in my heart to always check the source of every idea I have before acting. I must tell you this, it has tremendously helped me and I hope as you continue to read this article, it will also help you to seek for the truth.

In this generation, if you want to find the definition of a thing or word, all we have to do is to ask Google or ChatGPT. Well, I asked both Google and ChatGPT, both were not totally wrong.

Google said, “virtue means behaviour showing high moral standards.”

ChatGPT said “virtue is the habitual practice of moral excellence, encompassing traits like honesty, kindness, and integrity.”

I also asked God who happens to be the true source and creator of everything (Genesis 1:1). He showed me a different perspective of what virtue meant. I learnt so much that I am grateful I asked God ‘what does virtue mean?’

Also, He has put it in my heart to share it with you, so thank you for taking the time to learn what virtue means from God’s perspective. I promise you; you would not be disappointed as you read through it. You will learn the biblical definition of virtue, the benefits of being a virtuous person and how you can personally apply it in your workplace and life.

Biblical Definition of Virtue

To have a clearer understanding of virtue, we will be using two women, Naomi and Ruth, as the case study. I will give a brief background of Naomi and Ruth.

Naomi:

Naomi was married to Elimelek with two sons, Mahlon and Kilion. They originally came from Bethlehem in Judah but moved to Moab because of a famine in Bethlehem. While in Moab, Naomi’s husband and two sons all died in Moab leaving her with only her daughters-in-law. She did not have any grandchildren from her sons and daughters-in-law.

Ruth:

Ruth was married to one of Naomi’s sons, who died leaving her a window. She did not have any children during her marriage.

Now you may ask, what does this have to do with the meaning of virtue. But I want you to remember that we are looking at virtue from God’s perspective.

Simply put, Virtue is the character of God derived through pain, in other words, virtue originates from pain.

Naomi had lost her husband and her two (2) sons, yet she had it in her to care for her daughters-in-law by blessing them and thinking about their well-being. Virtue does not come naturally or suddenly; it grows gradually as we grow in maturity and understanding. Whenever you see someone who is always gentle, kind, and considerate, especially in this world that we live in, most likely, that person has been through deep pain. Pain brings out compassion for people, compassion is not something that one can inherit or learn on the job, it takes a kind of pain to genuinely care about someone’s well-being especially a stranger.

Hence, what we call virtue (gentleness, kindness, longsuffering, peaceful, loving, and much more) has its source from pain. Pain makes us gentle. Pain makes us love. Pain makes us kind. Pain makes us considerate. To have virtue is to have the character of God which comes from experiencing pain.

So, if you are going through a season of pruning or challenges, please be patient with yourself, God is moulding you to have a heart that truly loves people. When you have this, you will be a leader that people would willingly follow because they would see that you genuinely have a heart for people.

Invitation To Worship with Us

Please if you are interested in worshiping with us this Sunday, this is the address of Dunamis Toronto .

Regards,

Ayomide Sunmola.

[email protected]