Wisdom Wednesday: Against the Crowd

Some advice from Soren Kierkegaard

I’ve been thinking a bit about this passage from Soren Kierkegaard, the Danish Christian philosopher:

The crowd is indeed untruth. Christ was crucified because he would have nothing to do with the crowd (even though he addressed himself to all). He did not want to form a party, an interest group, a mass movement, but wanted to be what he was, the truth, which is related to the single individual. Therefore everyone who will genuinely serve the truth is by that very fact a martyr. To win a crowd is no art; for that only untruth is needed, nonsense, and a little knowledge of human passions. But no witness to the truth dares to get involved with the crowd. His work is to be involved with all people, if possible, but always individually.

It is easy to win a crowd. Just tell them what they want to hear. It might be their politics, red or blue. It might be their money. It could be pleasure or power. But whatever it is, promise them what they treasure in their hearts, and you win them. But Jesus is different. He was good at reducing his own popularity. And he did so on purpose, for the sake of the kingdom of God.

Jesus came to make the kingdom of God available to all who would enter it. As followers of Jesus, our fundamental identity is who we are in Christ. We are God’s beloved, each and every one of us. But what Kierkegaard refers to as “the crowd” can pull as away from following the Way. Political partisanship, consumerism, selfishness, pride, so many things that are praised by different “crowds” are used to divide and distract us from the Way of Jesus.

Rather than promising we’ll get what we treasure in our hearts, Jesus challenges us to examine what is in our hearts. Then he asks us to give it—and all of our hearts—over to him. Money, pleasure, politics, comfort, power, prestige….whatever it is, we are to put him in charge of it. We are to submit our little kingdoms to His Kingdom. He is the way, the truth, and the life. It may seem like, even feel like, a sacrifice. In that sense, we are martyrs, as Kierkegaard notes.

But there is more to the story. This is not self-denial for its own sake. It is actually the Way to life. Different crowds will draw us away, but wisdom dictates that instead of the crowd, we follow Christ. It is up to us to discern with God and others who know us well what crowds tempt us. Then we must spurn what they offer, and receive from Christ more of the life that is truly life.