READING:
One-year plan: Exodus 22-24, Matthew 21:22:1-22
Two-year plan: Genesis 36:20-37:11, Matthew 12:22-37
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It’s amazing to me how easy it is to fall into the trap of wanting to fit in. I remember how it was as an older elementary kid when you wanted to be popular (even though that was a LONG time ago for me…). Then came the teen years when fitting in seemed to matter almost more than anything. You’d think we would soon grow out of that tendency, but college years can be even tougher. And, now in my 63rd year, I still recognize within myself and others a desire to be accepted, to fit in, to be in the “in crowd.” My sense is that though that desire loses force as we grow older, it’s tough to avoid altogether.
In today’s reading, Moses addresses a similar issue in the context of calling for honesty and justice in dealings with others. The specific application most likely refers to a court setting, but the command is valid at any level: “You must not follow a crowd in wrongdoing” (Exo 23:2). As one writer put it, “the temptation warned against here is that of being swayed in any action that would be wrong by the fear of looking foolish, incorrect, odd, or dishonest because of taking a position different from that taken by everyone—or virtually everyone—else.”*
The voice of the crowd may be loud, but it is often wrong. The lure of popularity and acceptance may be ever attractive, but it’s ultimately fruitless. The fun of affirmation may feel good, but it’s fleeting. When the crowd calls, we must remember that the cry of the Father is that we listen to His voice.
PERSONAL REFLECTION: Are you ever tempted to “fit in”?
PRAYER: “God, give me ears to hear Your voice above all others.”
MONDAY’S READINGS:
One-year plan: Exodus 25-27, Matthew 22:23-46
Two-year plan: Genesis 37:12-38:30, Matthew 12:38-50
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*Stuart, D. K. (2006). Exodus (Vol. 2, p. 524). Broadman & Holman Publishers.