Where is the crowd when I need them?

Exodus 23: ² “Do not follow the crowd in doing wrong. When you give testimony in a lawsuit, do not pervert justice by siding with the crowd, ³ and do not show favoritism to a poor person in a lawsuit.

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Smiles and laughter reigned this evening. I reserved the multipurpose room in the dorm for our small gathering and somehow word got out that we were having a party. People from all over the campus showed up. It felt cool being the person who people were asking for until a fight broke out.

Everyone was asked to leave and the dorm director asked “who reserved this room?” Everyone scattered and I had to face this with only a few brave souls but the crowd thinned quickly.

• The crowd is quick to do wrong as long as they can get away with it.
• The crowd wants to be as wild as it can be without responsibility.
• The crowd doesn’t want justice rather it wants what it wants when it wants it.

Many times I have regretted following the crowd. The argument “everybody is doing it” is only an excuse to let my guards down and do what I want to do. What’s bad about this is the crowd will let me take the fall alone while it goes off and does something else wild.

• GOD wants me to stand firm for what HE says even when it’s not popular.
• GOD wants me to follow HIM when everyone around me is doing otherwise.
• GOD wants me to be different even when the crowd says follow us.

I have to examine every crowd I’m in, even church. Yes I said church. Sometimes this crowd can be the most dangerous. The religious falsely accused JESUS, murdered HIM and assumed the highest positions to rule over people and to be admired. This crowd was eternally wrong. GOD wants me to show discernment between judgment and compassion.

• Are you following the wrong crowd?
• Are you doing things because everyone is doing them?
• Can you use discernment to determine if the crowd is going in the direction GOD wants you to go?