It is, in many ways, easier to follow the crowd than to stand alone, under the scrutiny of the majority, because we are all connected; we are social beings. It is natural for us to copy each other’s behavior, follow the trend, life styles, the way we dress, even the way we speak. We are copy-cats in many aspects of life, learning from each other, as in, “Monkey see, monkey do.” However, there will be times when exercising our faith, we must separate ourselves from the crowd to follow the Word of God. In Romans 12:1-2 “Paul appeals to them saying, Therefore, brethren, I beg of you in view of [all] the mercies of God, to make a decisive dedication of your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and well pleasing to God, which is your reasonable service and spiritual worship; do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, so that you may prove what is the good and acceptable and perfect will of God, even the thing which is good and acceptable and perfect.” The Lord spoke to the prophet Isaiah with His strong hand and warned and instructed him not to walk in the way of the people saying, “Do not call conspiracy all that this people will call conspiracy; neither be in fear of what they fear nor in dread. The Lord of hosts- regard Him as holy and honor His holy name, and let Him be your fear and let Him be your dread and He shall be a sanctuary; but He shall be a Stone of stumbling and a Rock of offense to both the houses of Israel, a trap and a snare to the inhabitants of Jerusalem” (Isaiah 8:11-14).
God’s instructions and guidelines continue for us today. Life is without meaning, and without success when God is out of the equation. The phrase, “But as for me,” denotes a personal commitment, based on knowledge of Scripture coupled with the desire to follow God’s instructions. It is also based on the love we have for Him, as we have died for the world and live for Him. While the report from the spies who were sent to explore Canaan was discouraging to the congregation, Joshua’s report and Caleb’s report had a different view. They had made a choice not to support what they had heard, but stood firmly to change the congregation’s view, saying, “The land through which we passed as scouts is an exceedingly good land. If the Lord delights in us, then He will bring us into this land and give it to us, a land flowing with milk and honey, only do to rebel against the Lord, neither fear the people of the land, for they are bread for us. Their defense and the shadow are removed from over them, but the Lord is with us. Fear them not.” (Num. 14:77-9)
Light from the Word 