Welcome to another edition of the LKP Treasure Trove
Sometimes people will flock to things that seem really interesting even though they aren’t things we’re supposed to experience as Torah-observant believers. Or you may be invited to join a group for something adventurous because it’s full of danger. Well, Scripture commands us to not go along with the crowd when it comes to doing wrong. While following the crowd is a popular thing these days, crowds of worldly-minded people often choose the wrong thing to flock to. In today’s story, Simon will have to resist following a crowd in doing wrong.
The Out Crowd
Simon heard his name being called in front of the house. When he looked through the living room window he saw a small gang of kids on bikes waiting for him to come outside. Simon knew these kids were bad news. They often got into trouble around the neighborhood for doing mischief, and several of them were expelled from school more than once since the school year started. The thing is, Simon was nothing like these boys, and he never hung out with kids that got into the kind of trouble they did, so he didn’t know what they wanted with him.
Simon stuck his head through the front door and said to the leader of the group, “What’s up, Billy?”
Billy, who sat taller in his seat than all the other boys and was the oldest among them, said, “Some of our members had to drop out, so we’re a few kids short. How’d you like to hang with us from now on and have some real fun?”
All of the boys watched Simon in silence, eager for a response. Simon was even a little intimidated by all the impatient eyes staring at him, but he managed to say, “What you guys do for fun isn’t my kind of fun.”
All of a sudden, Billy burst out laughing, and all the other boys laughed along with him. “What a wuss,” Billy shouted, popping a wheelie as they rode off.
When Simon closed the door and turned around, his older brother Clarence was standing there.
“That took a lot of courage, Simon,” Clarence said. “You know, most of those kids are probably following Billy because they were pressured to. He makes it seem cool. And it’s kind of hard saying no to something everyone else is saying yes to.”
Simon rubbed the back of his head nervously and said, “You heard all that, huh? I did feel kind of pressured, but I remembered a Scripture verse we read three Sabbaths ago.”
“Which one?” Clarence asked.
Simon said, “A verse in Exodus 23. ‘You must not follow the crowd in doing wrong.’ ”
“Good one,” Clarence said. “Truth is, ancient Israel had a habit of following the wrong crowd. Remember that story in Numbers 16 where over 250 leaders in Israel joined Korah in rebelling against Moses?”
Simon nodded. “Korah even got the entire community to turn on Moses and Aaron.”
“Right,” Clarence said. “Well, even though a crowd followed Korah in doing evil, Yah judged them by swallowing them and everything they owned into the ground. And the rest burned to death in Yah’s fire. So instead of being the in crowd, they were the out crowd. In other words, you made the right choice today, little brother.”
NOW, WHAT ABOUT YOU?
When you feel pressured by people to do something you are not comfortable with because it is against Scripture, do you feel like giving in and joining them? Well, remember today’s Scripture Treasure verse. The Torah commands that we are not to follow the crowd in doing wrong, regardless of how popular that thing is. While going against the crowd might seem hard, Yah always gives us the strength to turn against evil, even when people are trying to invite us to partake in it. Do not follow the crowd in doing wrong.
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