John 6:65-66

Calling themselves adherents, followers, and disciples – though not part of the twelve – these “many” shrank back from Jesus’ Words – their apostate actions proving His teaching to be unpalatable to their tastes. God both draws and enables the willing to come to Him – apart from this drawing or enabling us with grace and strength we would have no heart to follow. The willing heart appropriates this grace - Jesus turns no one away who seeks Him. Our Lord states it is impossible for mere fleshly hearts to follow:

44 "No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws him, and I will raise him up at the last day. John 6:44 (NIV)

“The grace of God does not find men fit for salvation, but makes them so.” Augustine

The carnal heart is so ensnared with sin and unbelief that unless God opens our blind eyes, drawing and enabling us, we are left in a helpless and hopeless state. The prophet Isaiah tells us:

10 "You are my witnesses," declares the LORD, "and my servant whom I have chosen, so that you may know and believe me and understand that I am he. Before me no god was formed, nor will there be one after me. 11 I, even I, am the LORD, and apart from me there is no savior. 12 I have revealed and saved and proclaimed--I, and not some foreign god among you. You are my witnesses," declares the LORD, "that I am God. Isaiah 43:10-12 (NIV)

1 Who has believed our message and to whom has the arm of the LORD been revealed? Isaiah 53:1 (NIV)

It is certainly a lamentable fact that so few people believe, willingly choosing to reject God’s Surety for their salvation. Like Orpah, Naomi’s daughter-in-law, who, though hugged and kissed and wept her model for the faith goodbye forfeited her call and turned back to her people and her god - never to be heard of again in Holy Writ:

14 At this they wept again. Then Orpah kissed her mother-in-law good-by, but Ruth clung to her. Ruth 1:14 (NIV)

Contrast to Ruth’s actions of clinging to Naomi while stating one of the most beautiful expressions of immovable resolution regarding a loving committed relationship to another human found in literature. It was an instance of the grace of God inclining the soul to a resolute choice of that which was the best:

16 But Ruth replied, "Don't urge me to leave you or to turn back from you. Where you go I will go, and where you stay I will stay. Your people will be my people and your God my God. 17 Where you die I will die, and there I will be buried. May the LORD deal with me, be it ever so severely, if anything but death separates you and me." Ruth 1:16-17 (NIV)

While Orpah is not mentioned again in Scripture, Ruth is not only mentioned but prestigiously so – being found in the genealogy of our Lord Jesus – one of only five women mentioned, one of which being Mary, Jesus’ mother:

5 Salmon the father of Boaz, whose mother was Rahab, Boaz the father of Obed, whose mother was Ruth, Obed the father of Jesse, 6 and Jesse the father of King David. David was the father of Solomon, whose mother had been Uriah's wife, Matt 1:5-6 (NIV)

Orpah certainly showed affection for Naomi and was reluctant to part from her company yet allowed herself to be persuaded to yield and follow her own corrupt inclinations – back to her own gods – even though she found herself in a favorable position for an effective call away from it. She did not love Naomi well enough to leave her country for Naomi’s sake – she being blinded to the fact that it would have been even more for her sake to depart her false deity. Many esteem and have affection for Jesus in in much the same way – they love Jesus and yet leave Him because they do not love Him enough but love other things more. Like Jonah states, they find themselves clinging to their idols and forfeit the grace that could be theirs:

8 "Those who cling to worthless idols forfeit the grace that could be theirs. Jonah 2:8 (NIV)

“What is needed is not mere present professions, but perseverance to the end in the power of faith.” Ignatius of Antioch