Any schoolboy knows that the Earth revolves around the sun. Any learned man of science back in the 1400’s knew something quite different. Back then they all believed that the Earth was the center of the universe and that the sun moved around the Earth. In fact, if you disagreed with this “majority” scientific belief you ran the risk of being branded a heretic.
Nicolaus Copernicus (1473-1543), a Polish astronomer, had a different idea. He believed that the sun, rather than the Earth, was the center of the universe. He stated that the earth and all the other planets moved through space and revolved around the sun. Copernicus was quite scared to publish this theory for fear he might be considered a heretic. Strange how his theory, back then, could have cost him his life, while the prevailing “majority” theory of his time would, if you held it today, brand you as a candidate for the “loony bin.”
Pastor Rick Warren sums this idea of being in the majority well when he stated: “A lie doesn’t become truth, wrong doesn’t become right and evil doesn’t become good, just because it’s accepted by a majority.”1
In New York City, where I used to live, many of the laws may be the majority opinion but they are far apart from biblical truth. Same sex marriage, abortion up until birth, and the teaching of evolution in our public schools as scientific fact, are the rule of the day. And our Christian worldview is seen as being out-of-date, intolerant, and downright foolish. However, truth is never a product of majority rule or some law, but is based on the only absolute arbiter of truth – the Bible.
My friends as Christians we will never be in the majority for we read in (Matthew 7:13-14): “Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it. But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it.” What these verses say is that only a small minority has a market on the eternal truths in life. And when it comes to the knowing the truth it will always be dangerous to be part of a crowd that is more interested in popularity and sin than doing the right thing.
And while it may be OK to be wrong about some things in life, it’s an entirely different ballgame when it comes to how we view Christianity. Perhaps C. S. Lewis summed it up best when he said: “Christianity, if false, is of no importance, and, if true, of infinite importance. The one thing it cannot be is moderately important.”2
Biblical truth will always be true no matter what the majority crowd may think. And, I believe, we in America, as Christians, over the next few years, need to be prepared to see even more assaults on our precious biblical beliefs. While our society continues to seek to suppress the truth, we, as Christians, need to continue to proclaim it – even if it means more persecution. We need not be afraid to stand for what is true for even if we are persecuted and ostracized – God will always have our back. And in the final analysis I would rather be persecuted for proclaiming the truth than be popular for defending a lie.
1 A lie doesn’t become truth, wrong doesn’t become right and evil doesn’… Quote by Rick Warren – QuotesLyfe
2 Quote by C.S. Lewis: “Christianity, if false, is of no importance, an…” (goodreads.com)
“The Crowd Is Not a Compass”
(Mikal Saterbo, with teeth…well, dentures anyway)
Mr. Blattman’s commentary is point blank blunt in a nice way, isn’t it?
The majority opinion doesn’t transubstantiate lies into facts. Curt nails it with that Rick Warren line: a lie doesn’t become truth just because the crowd voted for it.
…And you thought this one was gonna be boring. It’s more like a tuesday evening halfway-house sermon where there’s no smoking, but you can smell the liquor & sweat, you can feel the guilt & anger, and you’re the only outsider in a room scented with hellion.
But they all want help and not to be judged…and they are the majority, aren’t they?
The Danger of Being in the Mojo…
The “majority” can be sincere, educated, emotional, and still dead wrong, like the old geocentric certainty that would’ve branded us heretics for noticing the sun doesn’t orbit our egos.
The Danger of Being in the Majo…this isn’t a TED Talk topic. It’s a pressure blade. So here are my thoughts about the majority, without pulling a hamstring.
The schoolyard football game draft:
You’re standing there while the “bad team” has twice the bodies & half the character. The smart move is obvious: get picked by the biggest pile of muscle so you don’t get steamrolled.
And that’s how the majority works. It offers safety in exchange for your spine. That crowd is always recruiting. It doesn’t need you to believe, just to stand where it stands and laugh when it laughs.
Let’s swing to the Jailhouse supermax gladiator unit.
Walking into a young housing unit (you’re twice the age of these kids) with your bedding and sharpened toothbrush, where the air is thick with tribal rage. It’s the quiet time before the jump, where the unit just split into whites/blacks/latino huddles getting ready to jump.
And you’re looking for the empty bunk while looking for the guards (they’re watching on the monitor and taking bets).
The unspoken question gets spoken from a latino shotcaller anyway: “Yo Homie, where ya from? Who Ya claim?”
Nobody’s asking because they love your nuanced worldview. They’re asking because the majority clica needs numbers, and fear needs witnesses. That moment is the adult version of the playground. Same mechanics, higher stakes.
The majority’s favorite trick is calling itself “normal.”
Curt points out that laws and popular culture can drift far from biblical truth. “Normal” starts doing cosplay as “good,” & suddenly dissent sounds like hate. Holiness sounds backwards. That’s not modern sophistication. That’s old sin with a fresh haircut.
The narrow way is not a branding problem. It’s math, a word problem. Curt goes straight to Matthew 7:13–14: wide road, many people; narrow road, few find it.
Christianity is not “be in the majority and win.” It’s “be faithful and follow.” If you need the crowd’s permission to be obedient, you’re not following Christ, you’re following a mob mentality.
In times like these two above, Attitude is everything.
Attitude can be a platitude…or it can be unconscious retching, or it can be a sharp tool, or it can be a blunt force weapon, or it can be a bright light on a dim paper, with eyes blurring through bent sunlight.
Attitude is everything.
, and it frames this as servant leadership, not self-help glitter
Attitude is everything
Since we dealing with your soul here, that matters here: the moment the crowd demands you choose, your attitude becomes your steering wheel. If it’s fear-fed, you’ll drift into the majority. If it’s Spirit-anchored, you can stand where truth stands without turning into a self-righteous statue.
I keep thinking about how the crowd always offers a false sacrament: belonging without truth. It’s communion without Christ. And it tastes good for about six seconds. After that it’s just the aftertaste of betrayal, because you know what you traded. You traded conscience for comfort. You traded obedience for applause. And applause is the cheapest currency in the universe. It doesn’t buy you peace. It buys you noise.
Curt says truth isn’t manufactured by majority rule. It’s anchored in the Bible
That’s the crossroads. The crowd says, “Take the easy road. Say the lines. Wear the colors. Don’t complicate it.” The Spirit says, “Take the narrow gate. Lose some friends. Keep your soul.”
Look, I’m not pretending the “minority” is automatically holy. Plenty of tiny groups are just wrong louder, with worse hygiene. 😏 The point is simpler: numbers do not certify truth. They only certify popularity. And popularity is a terrible priest.
Curt’s C.S. Lewis quote is the gut-punch: Christianity is either infinitely important or it’s nothing, but it cannot be “moderately important”.
That line is a spiritual audit. It’s asking: when the unit is boiling, when the playground is choosing, when the city is legislating, when the crowd is chanting… do you treat Christ like a hobby, or like a King?
Because the danger of being in the majority is this: you stop checking whether you’re right. You start checking whether you’re liked.
If you need the crowd to agree before you obey God, you’re not walking the narrow road, you’re just taking the wide road with religious stickers.
thanks Curt.