By Liaf
This is going to be a short but simple message. I hope it will inspire you as I hope the same for me. I heard a preacher once say, "The weak have overtaken the strong." He was making reference to the mainline religions hindering or even suppressing the few who know and practice the truth. The "way of the crowd" applies to mainline Christendom as does the "way of the crowd" applies to anything else (such as political or sports culture). If one does not think or act the "way of the crowd", they will at best be viewed as eccentric. In the more severe cases, one's reputation, career, or even freedom (due to threats of arrest) may be at stake.
I suppose I could give examples of my own personal gripes, but I will spare my dear readers. You've heard enough and I'm sure you have your own personal examples and experiences where you had to conform to the "way of the crowd" or else face some sort of consequences. And to add insult to injury, when you follow the dictates of the authorities, it seems that there isn't much personal recognition when things go well. Somebody else (usually higher in rank) takes the credit claiming this is an example of "teamwork" (after all, we're all in this together). But if you have noticed as I have, this is not the case when the rules of the culture produce negative results. Somehow the eyes are on you alone when things go wrong.
Why do you think this is? Why are the eccentrics as they are called so much of a threat? In the true spirit of mathematics, I can state why it is possible for the weak to overtake the strong--- at least for a season. But with the aid of Scripture, I can show why the non-conformists (a.k.a. the 'strong') are a threat. This paradox is easily explained.
I will express this "weak overtaking the strong" phenomenon in a simple and straightforward equation if you will:
Let p=the ratio of strength that the average "weak" person has to the "strong" one. When I was a kid, I remember watching a cartoon about Hercules. When he put on the magical ring, he'd gain the strength of ten ordinary men. So in a case as this, p would equal .1 since the weak man was 1/10 the strength of Hercules.
Now let n= the ratio of the total number of weak people to the total number of strong people on this Earth.
The "weak over strong" power ratio would be np.
Let's use Hercules again as an example. Suppose there was a small village of 50 weak people, but only one Hercules. He has the strength of ten ordinary men. Hence, n=50 (i.e., 50 weak people to one strong one) and p=.1 . The "weak over strong power ratio"= 50 x .1= 5. Even with Hercules there, 50 men would have five times the strength over Hercules and could subdue him. See my point?
In the abstract sense, this idea still applies. After all, there is strength in numbers. Weakness may not take the form of physical weakness, but ignorance for example. A strong, intelligent "Hercules" may be ten times more apt to debate a weak, ignorant person, but if there are 50 weak people, then there are fifty times the ideas thrown at the "Hercules". He may falter on his own.
Now for the reason that the non-conformist is a threat to any established order. It does not take an Einstein to understand that if more people get strength and nourishment from the Lord and His word, that there will be a smaller weak-to-strong ratio, i.e., a lower n. Likewise, smarter and more nourished people may even make the p ratio lower, i.e., Maybe they will become twenty or thirty times stronger than the weak. Let's increase our "Hercules" in the village to about ten people making n about 4-to-one instead of fifty-to-one. Likewise, each Hercules is thirty times stronger than a weak person making p= .03. What is the "weak over strong power ratio" now? It would be 4 x .03 = .12. The weak, although still a majority, only have about 1/8 the power of the ten strong men. That's why the minority can become a potential threat to the established order. When people gain strength and knowledge, both "n & p" go down, and so does the power of the remaining weak people. Usually there are a few elitists that somehow benefit off of the weak masses, and hence their power, authority and order are shaken when the weak now become strong. If they cannot combat the strong with more weak people from somewhere, they will usually falter and run with their tale between their legs (and brown trails) as their regime falls. If they can populate their ranks with more weak people in the future, they may come back with a vengeance, but the key is to keep people strong so that this does not happen.
I can give lots of Scripture showing a person to place their trust in the Lord. There's oodles of Scripture stating the Lord is our strength, shield and salvation. But I want to close this message with a certain mathematical insight that will encourage you even more. You see, this "np" formula is only a half-truth. This would work in physics, but when we look to the Bible, we see that there seems to be an exponential rate of increase when a few extra strong people put their trust in the Lord. In other words, a few more strong people increases might faster than the straightforward "np" drop relationship. The "np" relationship acts more as an illustration to convey this idea.
To show what I mean based on Scripture, consider the following two verses promised to the Israelites:
Leviticus 26:8: And five of you shall chase an hundred, and an hundred of you shall put ten thousand to flight: and your enemies shall fall before you by the sword.
And again,
Deuteronomy 32:30: How should one chase a thousand, and two put ten thousand to flight, except their Rock had sold them, and the LORD had shut them up?
Now in the first instance, if five could put a hundred to flight, then a hundred should put twenty times that many to flight, or 2000. However, the Scripture says 10,000. And again, if one puts a thousand to flight, two should route 2000. But the Scripture says 10,000! I'll spare you the details of that equation, other than to say that a few extra strong folks "take off" a lot faster than what common sense even dictates.
My whole point is this: although a person of strength may have power many times over a weak person, if there are too many weak people, the strong may still be subdued. However, with a little learning and strength from the Lord as we place our trust in Him, even a few more strong people can take over any "hopeless" situation. This is the inspiration I want to convey in this message. And if that is the case, we need not live in fear or defeat the way the masses are lead to believe. And don't believe anyone or anything that implies one should live in defeat that way.