THE HIRELING LEVITE
Daniel Valles 11/16/06   www. informedchristians.com

Please take a minute and read Judges chapter 17 and 18. This chapter starts right after the death of Samson. Chapter seventeen and eighteen give the account of two men who were not obeying God, and the results of their choices. In short, one man (Micah) had a house of idols that he worshipped instead of the true God. He then persuaded a young Levite to come be the priest for his mini-temple. One man chose to worship idols instead of God, and the young man neglected his duty as a Levite to the one true God. What makes this account so interesting is that after Micah hired on the Levite, he made the statement, “Now know I that the LORD will do me good, seeing I have a Levite to my priest.” (vs. 13)

When I first read that statement, I shook my head and laughed at the ludicrousness of that man’s statement. Then, I sobered at the thought that a great deal of Christian ‘churches’ do the same thing. The people that flock to the mainstream, contemporary ‘churches’ are each Micahs. Their god is not the God of the Bible; it is the God of their own imagination. It is a god that tolerates worldliness, base humor, adultery, abortion, and even sodomy. Theirs is a god who does not require righteous living, separation, and purification. Theirs is a god who is their buddy, friend, and has only love for them. They go to their fancy mega-temples each service to give a hearty amen when they hear about their god.

Their Levite is their ‘pastor’. I was amazed by the correlation between how Micah picked a young man to be his priest, and today. A lot of the ‘pastors’ today are not the men of old whose lives helped command a proper reverence and sobriety in the fear of God. Today’s pastors mould their image into ones of charisma and energy in an attempt to appeal to the younger generation. The older pastors and elders are much truer to God’s Word, but they are not sought after today. Unfortunately, there are also a large number of older ‘pastors’ now adopting the ways of the younger levites. Micah knew that this young man would not hold him accountable, but would agree with him in his folly and sin.

John 10:12-13 says, “But he that is an hireling, and not the shepherd, whose own the sheep are not, seeth the wolf coming, and leaveth the sheep, and fleeth: and the wolf catcheth them, and scattereth the sheep. The hireling fleeth, because he is an hireling, and careth not for the sheep.” Just like the Levite compromised and shirked his duty for money, housing, and raiment, Christian ‘leaders’ today are pursuing the same thing. Today, money is still the greatest temptation. Today, ‘pastors’ want a megachurch, where they are mega-popular book sellers. It isn’t enough to receive a “well done” by Christ in Heaven one day, they want the adoration and commendation from the world, too. When a group of Micah’s wants someone to encourage them in their god, they hire a ‘hireling levite’.

Micah’s statement, “Now know I that the LORD will do me good, seeing I have a Levite to my priest” is very interesting because that is the same heart attitude as today. Average Christians, not just ‘churches’ get the twisted idea in their mind that as long as they have a semblance of Christianity, it makes whatsoever they are doing legit. For example, as long as they have a ‘pastor’, they can have their particular heresy – because they have a ‘pastor’ who said so. Or, how sodomites will form a ‘church’ for their blind god. Or, how the world’s style of music is now ‘Christian’ because it has some type of Christian theme garbled in it somewhere. Or, how the harlot apparel worn by young people today is now ‘modest’ because it has some vague Christian slogan on it – pearls before the swine, worn by one rolling in the world’s mud.

Don’t you see?! A Christian label or semblance does not make anything righteous or sanctified! God and His Word is what purifies and sanctifies. Isaiah 8:20 boldly proclaims: “To the law and to the testimony: if they speak not according to this word, it is because there is no light in them.” No light in them! No light in them! Yet how many so-called Christians naively think that they can be a light in this world by wearing skin-tight, body form-enhancing clothes even if it has John 3:16 printed on the front?! Their life and conversation is not speaking according to His Word, so their light is lost. Christian, if you are listening to so-called Christian music that sounds like the world, it is because it of the world! The unsaved will hear the world in it before they see any light. Your own flesh will hear the world in it more than your feeble grey matter hears the lyrics. Stop feeding your flesh!

2 Timothy 4:2-4 warns us, “Preach the word; be instant in season, out of season; reprove, rebuke, exhort with all longsuffering and doctrine. For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but after their own lusts shall they heap to themselves teachers, having itching ears; And they shall turn away their ears from the truth, and shall be turned unto fables.” The Bible clearly tells us what our flesh will do if we do not have proper teaching. Our natural tendency is to surround us with flatterers. Paul warned Timothy that he was not to appeal to what they wanted to hear, but to tell them what they needed to hear. Out of those five admonitions, three of them would be called negative by today’s church – reprove, rebuke, exhort. They don’t want to hear that; my own flesh does not like to hear that. But, as I seek to serve Him and maintain a clear communion with him in godly fear, my heart and mind will hearken to the Holy Spirit when He amen’s the messages I should pay heed to. With His help, I crucify the flesh (daily, as Paul had to).

What about you? Are you finding it hard to serve God wholeheartedly? Do you keep getting off track into listening to the flesh? Micah’s problem was exacerbated because He hired someone to encourage his actions. Yet, how many times do we fail time after time because we feed our sin? What circumstances do we deliberately allow ourselves to be in that we know feeds our flesh? If you stop feeding it, it will become weaker. People who have a problem with worldly thoughts sit down in front of their one-eyed glass god every evening in the living room. They then wonder why their mind can never meditate on the things of God, or why they never have a hunger and desire for God’s Word.

1 Timothy 4:12-13 exhorts, “Let no man despise thy youth; but be thou an example of the believers, in word, in conversation, in charity, in spirit, in faith, in purity. Till I come, give attendance to reading, to exhortation, to doctrine.” God has a plan and desire for young ‘Levites’ and older Christians. We should not follow the world’s ways and cast off our duty to serve and fear God. Christ desires so much for us be examples in every aspect and facet of our life for Him! Christ, not the world, should be seen in us. Our conversation in our walk and talk should not give place to the world. Our charity, care, concern, and action should reflect Christ’s heart. Our faith should be to what God has delivered to us in His Scriptures – not from some man’s ideas. Our purity and separation from worldly activities should be seen, not just given lip service. 1 Peter 4:4 tells us that “they think it strange that ye run not with them to the same excess of riot, speaking evil of you.” The world, and worldly Christians, will think and ponder over your testimony of purity. Paul exhorts us to read God’s Word. It should fill our mind and thoughts – not the world’s frivolous fluff. We are told to give attendance to exhortation. We should not seek out elders who will tell us what our flesh wants to hear, but what our heart for God needs to feed upon. Our attention to the doctrine and precepts of God’s Word is very important. There are no unnecessary doctrines that can be set aside in the service for Him.

Finally, Christian, where do we stand? In my own life, am I a Micah? Do I worship a god of my own imagination instead of the God of the Bible? Do I seek for ‘Christians’ who will agree with me and encourage me in a way that is contrary to clear teachings in God’s Word? Do I support and solicit others to turn aside from serving God? Am I like the Levite? Have I left my duties and responsibilities in serving God to instead seek reward from the world? Have I encouraged a Christian to do wrong in serving Christ? Have I turned a blind eye to what they are doing for the sake of what I can receive from them? Have I tried so hard to fit into a world’s mold and expectations instead of God’s?

Christian, God is always one prayer away. Lamentation 3:40 implores, “Let us search and try our ways, and turn again to the LORD.” The Levite could have left at any time and returned to what he should have been doing. Micah could have destroyed his temple and false gods at any time. Christian, now is your time. Do not be a Micah or his hireling Levite – be a Timothy.

I highly recommend that you set aside time today to read through the books of Timothy.

“Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.”   2 Timothy 2:15