Standing Apart From The Crowd

You shall not follow a crowd to do evil…. 

Exodus 23:2a 

Moses, the man of God, had much to say regarding right and wrong. Whereas Christ is ‘the end of the law for righteousness,’ there are many things which Moses iterates which are statements of moral and ethical ‘oughtness.’ These are worthy of our consideration and are in no way divorced from the Person of Christ. Our text for today declares, ‘You shall not follow a crowd to do evil.’ Why is this important to us? It is important because the ‘crowd’ tends to sink to the lowest moral common denominator. Beyond that, history and observation of human behavior shows us that the majority is usually wrong. Here Moses is arguing for the moral ‘oughtness’ of doing right, which will often entail standing apart from the crowd. By contrast to ‘following a crowd to do evil,’ Christ said to Peter, ‘Follow Me.’ Here is where we depart from the multitude. For us to follow Christ means that it will lead us away from ‘the crowd,’ both the non-religious, and in many cases the overtly religious. For us to follow Christ means that we will stand apart from more than one type of crowd. Having said that, by following Christ, we will find ourselves in excellent Company. Better to live in the Presence of the One with a clear conscience, than to follow the crowd with all the regret that that will bring. Christ said, ‘Follow me.’ So let us do as He has said. 

Our most Kind and Wise Shepherd, 
we rejoice that You lead us aright. 
We praise You, that we may follow You, without fear,  
even though that will separate us from the multitude. 

Tomm Tice
Where the Bush is Burning