Following the Crowd

Acts 14 records some of Paul’s travels on his first preaching journey. The account of his experience in the town of Lystra is quite an adventure: in the space of a few sentences, the crowds go from trying to worship him as a god (verses 11-13) to having him stoned and left for dead (verse 19).

I wonder: Did the superstitious mindset that led the crowds to think Paul was a god in human form also make them easily swayed when his Jewish opponents arrived to denounce him? Did Paul’s refusal to accept worship, insisting that they should “turn from these vain things to a living God,” leave many feeling disappointed, suspicious, or humiliated — and thus receptive to the Jews’ accusations?

Whatever happened exactly, it’s a prime example of the fickle and volatile nature of crowds.

There’s something about being together in large numbers that can addle people’s minds. Reason and judgment fade; people become rash, impulsive, and quick to mimic others in the crowd. One person starts doing something extreme, others pick it up, and soon a multitude of people may be doing things that most of them ordinarily wouldn’t dream of.

Sometimes the result is merely silly. Other times, it’s frightening. People in crowds can succumb to panic, outrage, violence. It’s how a peaceful gathering can turn into a riot.

Consider some Bible examples of the mob mentality at work:

• Matthew 27: When Jesus was before Pilate, the chief priests stirred up the crowds to demand that he be crucified. Soon there was such an uproar that Pilate gave in to preserve the peace (verses 20-26).
• Acts 19: In Ephesus, local craftsmen, seeing Paul’s preaching as a threat to their idol-making business, staged an angry protest. As the demonstration grew in size, “some were shouting one thing and some another, for the assembly was in confusion and the majority did not know for what reason they had come together” (verse 32). The crowd dispersed only after a warning from a city official.
• Acts 21: In Jerusalem, Paul found himself at the center of yet another disturbance when some Jews falsely accused him of desecrating the temple. They raised a cry, and soon a large crowd had siezed Paul and began beating him. (Again the text says that “some were shouting one thing and some another,” verse 34.) The commander of the Roman garrison had to intervene to restore order.

God warned ancient Israel: “You shall not follow the crowd in doing evil” (Exodus 23:2a). That warning is not so much about physical crowds, but about following the majority. We are social beings who are influenced by others. There is pressure to fall in line with most of those around us — what they think, what they say, what they do. Often that pressure is pushing in the wrong direction.

The “crowd” doesn’t have to be gathered in one place — certainly not in the age of social media. The mob mentality works quite capably online, whether the issue is political, social, economic, or religious. There is the same pressure to conform. Pressure to use the hashtag, to share the post, to identify yourself with the opinions and actions of the crowd. Pressure to do so without giving too much thought to the particulars, the implications, or sometimes even the facts.

One trouble with following the crowd is that the crowd itself may not know where it’s going. As at Lystra, popular opinion can shift on a dime. As at Ephesus, many people may join the crowd without really knowing what it’s all about. Jesus’ disciples should never be so thoughtless; God calls on us to show discernment, sound judgment, and self-control (see Philippians 1:9; 2 Timothy 1:7; 1 Peter 4:7; 2 Peter 1:6). He tells us to “examine everything carefully; hold fast to what is good; abstain from every form of evil” (1 Thessalonians 5:21-22).

The greater trouble, of course, is that the crowd is often wrong, particularly about spiritual things. It is God’s word, not majority opinion, that defines what is true and right. If we are devoted to Him and live by that standard, it will put us at odds with the crowd. That is nothing new. Among all the men of Sodom, only Lot was righteous (Genesis 19; 2 Peter 2:6-8). Among all the citizens of Jericho, only Rahab and her household feared God (Joshua 2). And in Noah’s time, he and his family were the only godly ones among all humanity (Genesis 6:5-8; 7:23)! These people chose the Lord regardless of what the multitudes around them were doing, and He took notice. Like them, we must love the approval of God more than the approval of men (Galatians 1:10).

“Enter through the narrow gate; for the gate is wide and the way is broad that leads to destruction, and there are many who enter through it. For the gate is small and the way is narrow that leads to life, and there are few who find it” (Matthew 7:13-14).

“Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may prove what the will of God is, that which is good and acceptable and perfect” (Romans 12:2).

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