For those of you who know the Bible, the first person that would come to mind is Micah the prophet, a prophet who prophesized judgement to the southern and northern kingdoms: Israel and Judea. He also prophesized judgement to specific groups of people: evil-doers, rulers, and false prophets. Well, sorry to tell you, but that is not the guy I will be focusing on in this message.
The Micah I am going to talk about is the kind of person who presents himself as a godly person…worshipping a god of his own creation. You may even know a modern-day Micah who is waist-deep in idol worship, or it could be you.
Now there was a man from the mountains of Ephraim, whose name was Micah. And he said to his mother, “The eleven hundred shekels of silver that were taken from you, and on which you put a curse, even saying it in my ears—here is the silver with me; I took it.” And his mother said, “May you be blessed by the Lord, my son!”
Judges 17:1-2
Right off the bat we see that this Micah is a thief, and not just any ole thief, but one that would steal from their own mother. In today’s rate of currency, that would be $6,600 - $7,000 dollars he stole.
I don’t know about you and your family, but there are a few members of my family that would cause me to take an inventory of my things before and after I know they are coming over. Some of you may be wondering…what does this guy’s thievery have to do with idolatry? Well, when someone steals, they prioritize their desire for material gain over ethical and moral values; they have no care for the property or concerns of others, because their needs supersede everyone else’s, believing what they do is right and just, placing a greater emphasis on the material things, ignoring the God of creation who would supply their every need.
The modern-day Micah is much the same, although they may not steal from family members, but they do steal from work, whether it is material things or not putting in the full amount of time in the workplace. It is also the individuals who try to scam you over the phone, through Facebook, ebay, Instagram, and other social media platforms. And let’s not forget some of our local churches with their focus on prosperity and materialism. Along with those churches that beat you over the head with the messages on your lack of tithing.
While living in Sacramento the Lord moved me to find a church; but at that time, I was far from being a religious person. So, I found this nice church, now when I say nice, I mean the place looked like one of the Mega Churches you see today, but that was my idol…the look of the church, not what was being preached in it. In this church, for three weeks straight the message was on tithing, and how bad each of us were for not giving to the Lord what was due Him. I don’t know if they preached a fourth message on tithing because I realized what my idol had done to me…it caused me to lose what God wanted me to find, and that was Him. You see, the idols you worship cause you to not see the true living God of creation.
Now back to our Micah in Scripture. He confesses that he took the money, not because he felt any remorse, but because of fear of the curse his mom placed on whomever stole her money. This is a bright spot in this story… because the mother is quick to forgive. And she’s so happy that she tries to reverse her curse. And so now she utters a blessing upon her son. And she does this IN THE NAME OF THE LORD. Now I call this a bright spot because I know if that happened to one of us, we would never let them live it down, also because it starts to go off the rails.
So when he had returned the eleven hundred shekels of silver to his mother, his mother said, “I had wholly dedicated the silver from my hand to the Lord for my son, to make a carved image and a molded image; now therefore, I will return it to you.” Thus he returned the silver to his mother.
Then his mother took two hundred shekels of silver and gave them to the silversmith, and he made it into a carved image and a molded image; and they were in the house of Micah.
Judges 17:3-4
So, you might have thought this was a godly woman. If that’s what you originally thought, then I’m sure your proverbial jaw dropped when she directed Micah to take a bit of the money he stole and now returned...and make two idols – one carved out of wood, and one poured from melted metal. Once the silversmith was done, the idols found their place in Micah’s house.
So, blessing in the name of Yahweh? The true God of Israel! And then...having idols made? These two things don’t mix. Yahweh revealed on Mount Sinai that he doesn’t want Israel to worship idols – whether they’re intended to represent him or not. He doesn’t want our worship to him to be filtered through or directed toward idols. Even though the Bible is littered with God’s command to not bow down to idols, it still blows my mind that the Israelites, whom Micah is one of cannot stop from doing it. Micah should know this all to well, being that it is the first two commands of the Ten Commandments, something that is drilled into the mind of Jewish people.
“You shall have no other gods before Me. “You shall not make for yourself a carved image—any likeness of anything that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth; you shall not bow down to them nor serve them. For I, the Lord your God, am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children to the third and fourth generations of those who hate Me, but showing mercy to thousands, to those who love Me and keep My commandments."
Exodus 20:3-6
So, something’s not right here. And you’ll be saying a lot to yourself throughout this message. And you ought to. The narrator is taking us on a strange journey through the times of the judges to show us the utterly desperate condition of Israel during this time, and guess what, it has not gotten any better. The modern-day Micah of the Jewish faith have replaced the wood and metal idols with that of traditions and extra laws. while the modern-day Micah of the gentiles still bow down to almost anything...some have wooded idols, some have metal idols, some have piles of sand, rocks, and dirt, some worship animals, and some worship other people.
Okay, so Micah and his mom are going down the road of idolatry, and here’s what happens at the next road marker.
The man Micah had a shrine, and made an ephod and household idols; and he consecrated one of his sons, who became his priest. In those days there was no king in Israel; everyone did what was right in his own eyes.
Judges 17:5-6
Like I said, the train of Micah has gone off the rails and skidded to the point where Micah takes those idols and puts them into his house of gods. You see, here is the problem with idol worship…you can never have enough idols to worship, because none are sufficient to the task. I need a god for money. I need a god for making babies. I need a good to help increase my harvest. I need a god to watch over my family…when will it end?!
Now, God demanded to be worshiped in one central location in Israel. The prophet Daniel, while in exile in Babylon could not get to Jerusalem to worship, so he worshipped the true living God from where he was, and God blessed him. But Micah set up his own place to worship in the hill country of Ephraim.
In the centralized house of God, God wanted Levites to take care of the property and worship of that sanctuary. Levites were the priestly line of the Children of Israel, and it was their job to mediate between you and Yahweh by handling your sacrifices, presenting them to the altar of God. Micah doesn’t have a Levite – not at this point at least. And so, he just takes his son and makes him a priest. Here we see another problem with idol worship…you begin to mimic that relationship with something material, other than a real relationship with the living God who loves you and wants to fellowship with you. So, to mimic that relationship…anyone will do…Micah used his son, but the modern-day Micah gets himself a person that tells them what they want to hear and will pay handsomely for the time, and that person may be a pastor that tells them everything is going to be okay, and you will prosper…as long as you keep giving money. It may be a shaman who will speak to your god and let you know what to do.
The prophet had something to say about the foolishness of idolatry. Here’s what he mockingly had to say:
Those who make an image, all of them are useless, And their precious things shall not profit; They are their own witnesses; They neither see nor know, that they may be ashamed. Who would form a god or mold an image That profits him nothing? Surely all his companions would be ashamed; And the workmen, they are mere men.
Let them all be gathered together, Let them stand up; Yet they shall fear, They shall be ashamed together. The blacksmith with the tongs works one in the coals, Fashions it with hammers, And works it with the strength of his arms. Even so, he is hungry, and his strength fails; He drinks no water and is faint.
The craftsman stretches out his rule, He marks one out with chalk; He fashions it with a plane, He marks it out with the compass, And makes it like the figure of a man, According to the beauty of a man, that it may remain in the house.
He cuts down cedars for himself, And takes the cypress and the oak; He secures it for himself among the trees of the forest. He plants a pine, and the rain nourishes it. Then it shall be for a man to burn, For he will take some of it and warm himself; Yes, he kindles it and bakes bread; Indeed he makes a god and worships it;
He makes it a carved image, and falls down to it. He burns half of it in the fire; With this half he eats meat; He roasts a roast, and is satisfied. He even warms himself and says, “Ah! I am warm, I have seen the fire.” And the rest of it he makes into a god, His carved image.
He falls down before it and worships it, Prays to it and says, “Deliver me, for you are my god!”
Isaiah 44:9-17
Want to know something? We Christians have the same setup. We worship our God, the God of creation, Yahweh. We also have a priest that stands between us and God mediating for us. We also present sacrifices to our God. The difference is that our God is not made of material things. He is a spirit that transcends time, space, and matter. He knows all, sees all, and has this entire thing in His control. Our mediator priest is also His Son and His name is Jesus. Unlike the priests of Micah and modern-day Micah’s, our priest died for us. Our priest died on the cross so that we can be forgiven of our sins. No priest other than Christ Jesus can forgive you of your sins…no monk, no shaman, no pastor, no preacher, no church elder…nobody other than Jesus can forgive you of your sins. No one other than Jesus can get you access to our Father God in heaven. Jesus says “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me."
Jesus can make this emphatic statement because He was sent by Father God to be that pure sacrifice for each and everyone of us who accepts His gift of eternal life. Jesus left heaven and took on a human body and was born of a virgin. He lived a life like you and I. He suffered, he was poor and had no place to lay His head. He mocked and beat. He was made to carry His cross through the streets of the city to the place called Calvary, where He would die on that cross for the sins of the world. He was a man who knew no sin but took on all our sins to be the sacrificial lamb of God. He died on that cross, but in three days He rose from the grave with all power, the power over death, the power to give eternal life in heaven, the power to be called the first fruits of the resurrection. That is who we serve. So, if you are serving any dead idol that provides you nothing but lost income, then I feel sorry for you and I will pray for you so that you will come to want a relationship with the living God through His Son Christ Jesus.
So, looking back to Micah in our Scripture we see things are a spiritual mess here. And if you want confirmation that that’s the case, read verse 6 again. In those days there was no king in Israel; everyone did what was right in his own eyes. Sadly, that is the state modern-day Micah, doing what is right in their own eyes…pushing homosexuality and transgenderism upon our children, children who have little to no concept of sexuality or maturity. Allowing crime to run rampant and rewarding the criminals by not giving them jail time. Allowing individuals to come in illegally, providing them food, money, travel, and shelter at the expense of those legally here having the same needs, all so that a political party can gain dominance and control of the nation.
By the same token we will rea about a person in Micah’s life that does what is right in his own eyes.
Now there was a young man from Bethlehem in Judah, of the family of Judah; he was a Levite, and was staying there. The man departed from the city of Bethlehem in Judah to stay wherever he could find a place. Then he came to the mountains of Ephraim, to the house of Micah, as he journeyed.
And Micah said to him, “Where do you come from?” So he said to him, “I am a Levite from Bethlehem in Judah, and I am on my way to find a place to stay.” Micah said to him, “Dwell with me, and be a father and a priest to me, and I will give you ten shekels of silver per year, a suit of clothes, and your sustenance.” So the Levite went in.
Judges 17:7-10
Let’s just take in the scene here. This man comes from Bethlehem just wandering around trying to find a place to live. Why did he leave? Was he forced out by Canaanites? That’s a very good possibility. Was he forced to leave because the people stopped providing for him? After all, the Levites were called to dedicated full-time service for the Lord. As a result, they relied on God’s people to provide for them through their offerings and other means. Maybe the Israelites stopped supporting this Levite. Or maybe he thought he could do better someplace else.
Whatever the case, this Levite is on the move. And he just happens upon Micah’s house of gods in the hills of Ephraim. And so, Micah makes a proposition to the Levite. “Be a priest in my house of gods.”
Now, surely, any Levite would know that this was not right. A house of gods? No! Israel was supposed to be worshipping Yahweh at the Tabernacle. Not in a shrine full of idols. So, a Levite – one who was supposed to know the Law and teach others also – he, of all people, would have the sense to rebuke Micah. The Levite would be in the right, even, to lead the people in stoning this idolatrous man. That was God’s punishment for idolatry – stoning. That’s how much it provoked the Lord.
When fully studied, idolatry is simply any desire or service that is placed before God. A person may not consider that an automobile, house, certain possessions, a hobby, a person, a political party, a cause, a job, a sport, an addiction, lusts, pleasures, or some other thing, can become an idol. Very few people realize that anything or anyone that is more important to a person than obeying God may be considered an idol.
Then the Levite was content to dwell with the man; and the young man became like one of his sons to him. So Micah consecrated the Levite, and the young man became his priest, and lived in the house of Micah. Then Micah said, “Now I know that the Lord will be good to me, since I have a Levite as priest!”
Judges 17:11-13
So, now the Levite is waist-deep in idolatry with Micah, and happy to be there.
Modern-day Micah behaves in the very same manner. I know of a church where the choir director is the modern-day Micah. The choir was her idol because there is no semblance of godliness in her. She too hired pastors and deacons to help her worship her choir, and any pastor that did not do as she demanded or spoke to much about repentance and sin was kicked to the curb, and the people happily sit there and accept it.
So, please be aware that idolatry can come upon you subtly where you have emerged in a culture that slowly adapts to it. Or it can be taught when you were young by family or friends. Or it can be blatant, where you just decide that you want to do things your own way and serve a god that you can control.
So, Modern-day Micah, what is your idol? Is it sports? Is it the lust for money? Is it the fame and riches of entertainment? Is it friends or family? Is it your church or your pastor? Is it yourself? Is it your religion? Anything that keeps you from a relationship with God, through Christ Jesus is an idol.
Although God no longer commands the people to stone those who practice idolatry, but He does let you know that the punishment is death, not by the hands of man, but by Him. The justification is this…you no longer want the living God as your god, so He allows you serve your god outside the presence of Him in a place that He originally made for the angels who no longer wanted to be in His presence, and that place is hell. But there is an alternative, and that is heaven, which is a place for those who love the Lord and want to be in His presence forever. All it takes for that to happen is to take hold of the hand of Lord Jesus and ask Him to come into your heart and change you.
