Judges 17-18

Judges 17-18

We Need a Hero

I.                    Breaking Commandments Without Breaking a Sweat!          (Vv. 7:1-6)

a.       Is this a typical Israelite family? Theft, dishonoring of parents, idolatry, vanity, pride, false witness, and coveting. Micah steals from his mother and only gives the money back when he fears her superstitious curse. It seems his mother is a gracious and godly parent, until she doesn’t hold Micah accountable, and then dedicates all the money to God only to have an idol made out of it. Even then she only gives a small portion of what she promised for the idol. Giving it over to Micah, he sets up an idol church in his back yard and then ordains his son the family priest. Micah and his mother broke at least seven commandments, without even breaking a sweat. Verse 6 sheds some light on the subject, “In those days there was no king in Israel; every man did what was right in their own eyes.” Every individual did what they though was right and best. This is the story of disfunction from religious and moral depravity in an average Israelite family. But it’s just one family, right; how much damage could one dysfunctional family really do? Look into many of the homes in our world today? Many parents don’t consider God, His glory, or His will in any decisions; they follow their own hearts and teach their children to do the same. Our culture, media, entertainment, and instruction, all tell us repeatedly that we should, and are even rightfully entitled, to follow our hearts and seek individual fulfilment without regard for God or others. We don’t who the hero and who the villain is, but we should be on notice that our lives are very much connected to the plight of these characters, and for the same reasons. (Judg. 7:1-6; Exod. 20:1-17; Numb. 3:10;  Deut. 5:8-9, 16, 19; 6:4-12; 12:1-14; 13:6-11; Ps. 11:3; 34:11; 78:1-7; Prov. 12:15; 14:12; 30:8-9; Eph. 6:1-3; Col. 3:20)

II.                 My Lucky Levite!? (Vv. 7:7-13)

a.   Now we meet a traveling Levite, who disregarded God’s call on his life and set out on his own way. He couldn’t believe his fortune when he stumbled into Micah’s offer to pastor his “House of gods” church in his backyard. Micah could hardly believe how fortunate he was to acquire a genuine Levite. Surely God is smiling on him and his family! The Levites were specifically responsible for teaching the law and leading the people in worship. But this Levite worshipped comfort and served himself by serving Micah and his “Backyard Idol Club”. Unfortunately, his selfish worship and service affirmed Micah’s misplaced confidence and worship, leading he and his family further astray. The farther humanity sinks into religiousness and immorality, the more they will look for “spiritual representatives” to validate the misguided desires of their hearts. Today, those in the church who validate people’s sinful desires are lauded and sought after, but those who are faithful to teach and lead others to live obediently according to God’s Word are called narrow minded and hateful. Sadly, Micah, his family, and the Levite, all thought they were doing right, because their confidence was in the flesh and not in God. We still don’t who the hero and villain are, but we should be on notice that our lives are very much connected to the plight of these characters, and for the same reasons. (Judg. 7:7-13; Numb. 3:6-13; 8:17-18; 18:21-32; Deut. 14:28-29; 26:12-15; 1 Chron. 23:28-32; 2 Chron. 17:7-9; 35:3; Ezra 3:10;  Neh. 8:7-9; John 10:12-14; Eph. 4:1-16; Phil. 3:1-11; 1 Thess. 2:4; 2 Tim. 4:1-5)

III.              What’s the Matter with You!? (Vv. 8:1-31)

a.   The tribe of Dan also weren’t satisfied with God’s will. The Danites ignored God, followed their own hearts, and bullied, robbed, and killed. They stole Micah’s idols, hired away his “Mercenary Minister”, who turns out to be Moses grandson, and senselessly destroyed Laish and its people, only to set up a system of idolatry just miles away from the true tabernacle of God. It seems as though the Danites get the good end of the deal, but when God calls the role of His people in Revelation, Dan is completely absent! So the problems facing Israel aren’t isolated to one family, to one Levite or the “church”, or one tribe. The problem in Israel was the result of every man doing what was right in their own eyes. Now we’ve identified the enemy, and it’s us! The hero, the deliverer, isn’t identified in this story like others in Judges. That’s because ultimately no judge, king, president, member of congress, organization, or action group can accomplish righteousness and justice. We need a hero! We need a King, not on the throne of our nation, but on the throne of each individual heart! That hero and King must be Jesus Christ, who alone can save us! (Judg. 18:1-31; 1:34-36; 2:6-10; Josh. 19:40-48; Prov. 4:23; Isa. 29:13-14; 40:18-20; 44:9-20; 46:1-7; 49:17; Jer. 17:5-10; Matt. 15:7-9; Luke 6:46-49; John 3:16; 7:17; 14:6; Acts 4:12; Rom. 3:19-26; 5:6-11; 8:1-9; 10:8-13; Jas. 4:1-4; Rev. 7:1-10)