In our society, a small group seems to be leading the changes that are happening in our culture, and they are very enraged. The whole situation reminds me of the large crowd who stormed into Ephesus’s stadium in protest of Paul’s ministry. In Acts 19:21-41, the people leading the riot were the idol-makers, but for the thousands of other people in the stadium, scripture doesn’t use the word “enraged.” It uses the word “confused” for them.
I don’t know if you’ve ever seen that show where the television reporter goes to college campuses and asks protestors questions about why they believe what they believe or why they have a placard “Pro-this” or “Anti-this.”
The reporter asks them why they’re there, and they say, “Well, because it’s right. It’s a movement. This is correcting an injustice.”
They’re just spouting off what professors, society, the media or friends are trying to tell them is “cool” or “relevant.” If you’re not supportive, you’re a hater. Who, as a teenager or young adult, wants to be an outcast? They have no idea what they’re actually doing there. No idea at all. They don’t know the history of the movement they’re supporting. They don’t know why they believe what they believe. They’re not standing on any real moral fiber of their own.
A large percentage of people are confused. I would even go so far as the estimate that probably as many as 90 percent of people don’t know why they believe what they believe when it comes to major cultural issues. They’ve heard that ‘enlightened’ people think this particular way; they read an article; they saw something on the news, and so they began to believe it. Most aren’t really enraged about the issues; they’re just confused. Similar to the Ephesians in Acts 19:29-32, most of them do not know why they’ve come together.
Our response should be the same as Paul’s after the riot. “After the uproar ceased, Paul sent for the disciples, and after encouraging them, he said farewell and departed for Macedonia. When he had gone through those regions and had given them much encouragement, he came to Greece” (Acts 20:1-2, ESV).
We need to stand up and not be discouraged. We ought to encourage one another and continue to live as witnesses. We must live as hope and light for our society.