In Exodus 23:2
God cautioned against something that has been a problem for man almost from the
very beginning. He said, You shall not
fall in with the many to do evil. Centuries later Jesus made a couple of
very informative statements along these lines. Enter by the narrow gate. For the gate is wide and the way is easy that
leads to destruction, and those who enter by it are many. For the gate is
narrow and the way is hard that leads to life, and those who find it are few.
(Matthew 7:13-14). Yet even with these warnings the appeal of the majority
remains incredibly strong.
It is quite
common for those in the minority on issues to be mocked and pressured to join
the majority. I can only assume that Noah and his family must have seemed like
a crazy (and tiny) group of religious extremists as they built the ark (Genesis
6-7). Righteous Lot infuriated the men of Sodom as he refused to take part in
their deeds, clearly judging them wicked and ungodly. They would have killed
him for it had he not been rescued (Genesis 19:5-9). Joshua and Caleb offered
their minority report, rocked the boat every which way, and nearly received a
stoning for going against the majority opinion (Numbers 13:25-14:10). Students
of the Scripture know that in each of these cases (and many more could be
added) the majority was wrong. If we can determine why the majority is nearly
always wrong in spiritual matters we can equip ourselves to stand correctly and
remove the appeal of “majorityism” (if that’s not a real word it should be!)
altogether.
Let’s
understand this first: no majority is ever wrong simply because it’s a
majority. Right and wrong are not determined by numbers, either great or small.
Some take a peculiar delight in holding a minority opinion on just about
everything. Where many believe the expression “might makes right”, these just
as heartily accept the proposition “if believed by few it must be true.” That’s
silly. A small group can be just as wrong as a large group. Nothing is true because either a majority or minority
accepts it as such. Let God be true
though every one were a liar. (Romans 3:4)
So why is the majority usually wrong on spiritual
matters? Well, how do the majority of people respond to divine truth and
authority? You don’t need to do any research into this besides considering your
own relationships. Set aside your brethren for a moment and answer the question
by simply considering all other acquaintances in your life. It doesn’t take
much thought to see that people, as a whole, lack faith in God (at least as God
Himself would define it). Every day we see the majority of people substituting
human plans and purposes for divine. Practically speaking this means that there
is very little chance for sound conclusions in spiritual matters from the
majority.
Neither is it
a surprise that most people seek out a majority. Without faith in God and the
strength to stand alone, most people seek security in numbers. When a majority
forms, regardless of the morality or appropriateness of the position they
advocate, they convince themselves that “everyone can’t be wrong” and continue
to “go alone to get along.” Their numbers grow and the broad way remains
heavily traversed.
Beloved, there
is nothing appealing about condemnation and if Jesus meant what he said in
Matthew 7:13-14 (he did) the majority is marching steadily toward destruction
even with its flowing banners of “might”, “popular opinion”, and “wisdom”. How
many fathers have asked the child who foolishly followed his friends into some
mischief, “If your friends jumped off a bridge would you?” The Father above
asks, “If the majority chooses condemnation will you?” Don’t say “no” and live
“yes”. Find God’s truth in Scripture and let it guide your steps. It will set
you on an awfully narrow road and for long stretches you may not see another
traveler upon it, yet it ends at the very gates of Heaven. The majority won’t
be there, but God will. No majority
is so appealing as that!
