Title: Giving more than you receive
Speaker: Pastor Scott Nobel
Date: 24th May 2026
Location: Geelong, Australia
Summary: “When we’re not looking to our own good, but to the good of others, many opportunities arise.” That line sits at the heart of this episode, and it comes out of one of the most practical corners of the Old Testament.
The episode works through Leviticus 19, where God instructs farmers to leave the edges of their fields unharvested so the poor, the foreigner, and the widow could come and take what they needed. It is a farming law, but it is also a framework for community and generosity. From there, the story moves into the book of Ruth, where a man named Boaz puts that principle into action in a way that goes well beyond what was required of him.
Boaz had no obligation to do what he did for Ruth. He gave her water, food, and protection. He told his workers to leave extra grain. He took on a costly responsibility that offered him nothing in return. The episode draws a clear line from his example to the words of Jesus in Luke and the teaching of Paul in 2 Corinthians, landing on a single challenge: what does it look like to give generously, without keeping score?
Key Points:
- The Old Testament gleaning laws were not just agricultural rules; they were a practical, built-in system for caring for the vulnerable in society.
- Boaz is a model of generosity that exceeds obligation; he gave freely to Ruth without expecting anything back, and his story became part of the lineage of Jesus Christ.
- Jesus and Paul both reinforce the same principle: genuine giving is directed toward those who cannot repay, and the reward for that kind of giving belongs to God, not to us.
Reference Scriptures:
- Leviticus 19:9-10, 13-14, 18
- Judges 21:25
- Ruth 1:1; 2:12; 3:1-17; 4:1-11
- Deuteronomy 25:5-10
- Luke 14:12-14
- Luke 6:30-36
- Luke 10:25-29
- 1 Timothy 6:17-18
- 2 Corinthians 9:7
- John 10 (Good Shepherd)