Not long ago an individual was setting forth the truth of the gospel to a man who was part of a traditional religious organization. The individual spoke only in the language of scripture, claiming no authority but the Word of God. But when confronted by the truths of scripture that contradicted the erroneous doctrines that the man and his religious organizations held, the man responded with this observation: Essentially he said, "I don't see how you who are so few who believe these things can be right and so many be right and so many be wrong who believe otherwise." What he was saying is that the religious majority must be right and the believing minority must be wrong.
But do not the words of Christ reveal that this man's reasoning is typical in every age and therefore produce the result that Christ predicted? "Wide is the gate, and broad is the way, that leadeth to destruction, and many there be which go in thereat; because straight is the gate, and narrow is the way, which leadeth unto life, and few there be that find it," Matthew 7:13,14.
When we look back to Noah's day we see the majority believing error and the minority believing the truth. Eight souls were saved and all the remaining inhabitants of the earth were destroyed by the flood. It was also Gideon's three hundred in contrasts with the host of the Midianites. Look back to Mt. Carmel and see one man of truth, Elijah, set against 850 prophets of error.
Can one be right and 850 wrong?
Yes, they can and they were!
Notice the ratio in the gospel accounts and see the few apostles and disciples compared to the many priests, rabbis, elders and followers of false religions. See one single man, Christ Jesus, Who is the Truth, despised, rejected, crucified by the religious leaders, government officials and masses of His day. Hear the word of the scriptures, "Many are called, but few are chosen," in Matthew 22:14 and the "not many…" of I Corinthians 1:26-29.
No, the truth of God's gospel does not need to be ratified or approved or voted in by the majority to be true. The Word of God is true even if no man on earth believes it. General acceptance by modern religionists is not required for that which we are to believe.
If God says it; we must believe it regardless of what others think or do. The great masses always have been and continue today to be deceived. The great masses in our day are almost all involved in some kind of religion. In matters spiritual there is no "strength in numbers" before God. All the inhabitants of the earth are before Him as a drop in the bucket, dust in the balance and reputed as nothing.
May we be numbered among the few that believe the truth. Do not automatically assume that in your particular religion you are such! Christ Jesus the Lord alone is the Truth. All that does not glorify and exalt Him as all of God's salvation for His people is error. "Even as David also describeth the blessedness of the man, unto whom God imputeth (credits) righteousness without works" (Romans 4:6). God has laid the sins of His people on Christ and He paid the full debt of them before the justice of God on the cross. God also has given the righteousness of Christ to them and accepted them in Christ apart from any and all human works. All who "worketh not, but believeth on him that justifieth the ungodly," their "faith is counted for righteousness." (Romans 4:5). God receives them because He counts Christ's righteousness on their behalf. It is a gift of His grace!
Our faith and confidence is not to be in the most widely accepted views of men but in the person and work of the Man, the Lord Jesus Christ, and what He actually says about Himself.