“There is a way which seems right unto a man, but the end thereof are the ways of death.” -Proverbs 14:12
In the book of Judges, chapter 17, verses 1-13, there is a story of a man named Micah and his mother. He stole “eleven hundred shekels of silver” from his mother. Later upon hearing her curses he decided to confess and then give it back. She blessed him then and 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 (v.3). “..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. 5 The man Micah had a shrine, and made an ephod and household idols; and he consecrated one of his sons, who became his priest. 6 In those days there was no king in Israel; everyone did what was right in his own eyes.”
Beyond that, a Levite soon came along and Micah persuaded him to be a paid priest for him over his idolatrous home temple. The Levite agreed (See v.7-11). The text finishes in vs. 12-13, saying, “So Micah consecrated the Levite, and the young man became his priest, and lived in the house of Micah. 13 Then Micah said, “Now I know that the Lord will be good to me, since I have a Levite as priest!” (Judges 17:3-13, summarized).
As we read through this story in the Bible, comparing it with the teachings of the Scripture we realize that a very sad condition had arisen in Israel. Everyone was doing what was right in their own eyes. And it’s hard to know what is sadder, the fact that they were doing so, or the fact that they had fallen into so much spiritual darkness that people even thought God’s blessing was upon them in their sins. His commandments were clearly broken and all respect of God’s boundaries for a healthy human-to-God relationship were entirely disregarded (See Exodus 20:3-6).
The question then comes to us today, “How about us?” Do we do everything that seems right in our own eyes? Or, in God’s eyes? Is it all about my opinion vs. yours or another person’s opinion? Do we presume that our action is right and that we are honoring God because we have some form of worship and perhaps we are using some elements from the true worship of God? Do we think that merely attending church once a week or “having a Levite as our priest” is enough to please God and have His blessing, while knowingly living sinful lives in other ways? Or even beyond that, do we realize who God is and what He truly requires of us? Or do we just have a vague concept of who God is based on hear-say but not according to the knowledge of the Bible? It seems high time that we discover for ourselves from the Bible just who God really is! Let us seek Him in His word! Let us find out what HE wants for our lives and what is truly right! And let us follow the Lord wholly, according to His ways, and not according to our own. It may seem right in our own eyes (not being enlightened by His word, or being in doubt of it), but lets find out what the truth really is and live by it before we have to meet the Lord face to face! Let’s humble ourselves before God and surrender to His eternal wisdom. Shall we not?
