December 3
Scripture of the day: "There was a man of the hill country of Ephraim whose name was Micah ... and his mother said, 'Blessed be my son by the Lord.' 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.' So when he returned the silver to his mother, his mother took two hundred pieces of silver and gave them to the silversmith who made them into a graven image and a molten image, and they were in the house of Micah. And the man Micah had a shrine and he made an ephod and household idols and consecrated one of his sons, that he might become his priest. In those days there was no king in Israel; every man did what was right in his own eyes." Judges 17:1-6
Thought of the day: Micah's mother was wrong ... her dedication was in conflict with the law of God. It was good that she wholly dedicated the 1,100 pieces of silver to the Lord. But using it to make a graven image and a molten image violated Exodus 20:4. And Micah was of the tribe of Ephraim (not of the Levites) ... his consecration of one of his sons as a priest violated God's law. Both mother and son disregarded God's law. They did what was right in their own eyes.
Challenge of the day: Be a student of the Word. Submit to the Bible. Let the Word define your Christianity. Make the Bible be your basis of authority. Be very careful that you do not create your own version of Christianity ... one that is right in your own eyes but not right in God's eyes.
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