S) "3 He then returned the eleven hundred pieces of silver to his mother, and his mother said, 'I wholly dedicate the silver from my hand to the Lord for my son to make a graven image and a molten image; now therefore, I will return them to you.'"
Judges 17:3 (NASB)
O) So, first thing is first - this kid, Micah, stole 1100 pieces of silver from his mother in the previous verse. When he fesses up, his mom rewards him... already we're seeing bad parenting. Then, in the following verse, she only gives the kid back 200 pieces to make this idol... so there seems to be some lying going on there, too. Then, the root of the problem, she wants to dedicate to the LORD, the One True God, the Living Creator, the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, the One who commanded that no one is to make any graven image - this LORD - she wants her son to then use that dedicated silver to make an idol.
A) So, this whole problem boils down to one of two problems. Either, she doesn't know the character of the LORD (i.e., His desires, commands, character), or else she doesn't care. This is, unfortunately, a problem I see in Christianity, all too often. People seem to know that Jesus exists, but they either a) don't know His instruction, teaching, and personality; or b) they don't care. I hear a lot of people say they believe in Jesus, and they quote John 3:16, and think they and God, "have an agreement." or some-such garbage. The truth, is that there is only one way for me to be clear about who God really is, what He really wants, and how I am required to live my life in obedience; I must be in the Word. In the Bible, the heart of God is revealed. I cannot allow myself to be misled, by my own flesh, or by some misguiding teaching, and the best way to be on guard is to have a familiarity with who the LORD is, and how He is; and that is best learned by studying how He has been, since we are assured that the LORD does not change (see Malachi 3:6 and Hebrews 13:8).
P) Father, I want to know You well. I want to know what You're like, so that when I come across something - a belief, interpretation, or anything else - I can easily know it for a truth or a lie. Your Holy Spirit is alive in me, and You can guard my heart and mind against false doctrines. Let me be careful to check everything against Your Word, LORD. Discipline my mind to know Your Word, and seal it in my heart to quickly identify whether or not something is in line with Scripture. I never want to be fooled, and I never want to get something twisted. Thank You for giving me, us, Your word. Let me keep it close. In Jesus's name I pray. Amen.
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