But if we say, ‘From man,’ we are afraid of the crowd, for they all hold that John was a prophet.”
Matthew 21:46 (ESV)
And although they were seeking to arrest him, they feared the crowds, because they held him to be a prophet.
Mob pressure is the worst pressure. When we fear the crowds we lose direction in life. The above passage are in reference to those who wished to harm Jesus. So, we might think it is a good thing they feared the mob. But latter they will use that same mob violence to crucify Jesus. Peter will succumb to the mob by denying Jesus three times.
Matthew 26:73-74 (ESV)
After a little while the bystanders came up and said to Peter, “Certainly you too are one of them, for your accent betrays you.” Then he began to invoke a curse on himself and to swear, “I do not know the man.” And immediately the rooster crowed.
Later, Herod will so fear the crowd he will give the command to crucify Jesus:
Matthew 27:24 (ESV)
Pilate Delivers Jesus to Be Crucified
So when Pilate saw that he was gaining nothing, but rather that a riot was beginning, he took water and washed his hands before the crowd, saying, “I am innocent of this man’s blood; see to it yourselves.”
Crowd pressure is the worst type of fear to get caught up with when making decisions. Shame is a powerful tool used against mankind to get them to acquiesce to whatever the crowd wants. When we give into the fear of man we find ourselves in a snare we can’t friend escape:
Proverbs 29:25 (ESV)
The fear of man lays a snare,
but whoever trusts in the LORD is safe.
If we wish to walk with God we have to avoid the fear of man.
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