Introduction
     There are many parallels one could make between the ancient days and today. Many of the same mistakes and sins of the past are being repeated. After all, even Scripture acknowledges that there is nothing new under the sun (Eccl. 1:1-9). Sadly, these mistakes don’t have to be made; neither do the sins once committed, repeated. After all, this is one of the reasons we have the Scriptures, given us for our learning and admonition: For whatever was written in earlier times was written for our instruction, so that through perseverance and the encouragement of the Scriptures we might have hope, Romans 15:4. (New American Standard Bible used throughout, unless otherwise noted.)
    We should learn from the mistakes of those who came before us, not repeating them. One mistake (sin) committed more than 2500 years ago is constantly repeated today by those who profess to know the Almighty.

A Sin of Pride
     This particular transgression was committed by King David and is recorded in 1 Chronicles 21:1-18:
    Then Satan stood up against Israel and moved David to number Israel. So David said to Joab and to the princes of the people, “Go, number Israel from Beersheba even to Dan, and bring me word that I may know their number.” Joab said, “May Yahweh add to His people a hundred times as many as they are! But, my sovereign the king, are they not all my sovereign’s servants? Why does my sovereign seek this thing? Why should he be a cause of guilt to Israel?” Nevertheless, the king’s word prevailed against Joab. Therefore, Joab departed and went throughout all Israel, and came to Jerusalem. Joab gave the number of the census of all the people to David. And all Israel were 1,100,000 men who drew the sword; and Judah was 470,000 men who drew the sword. But he did not number Levi and Benjamin among them, for the king’s command was abhorrent to Joab. Elohim was displeased with this thing, so He struck Israel. David said to Elohim, “I have sinned greatly, in that I have done this thing. But now, please take away the iniquity of Your servant, for I have done very foolishly.” Yahweh spoke to Gad, David’s seer, saying, “Go and speak to David, saying, “Thus says Yahweh, ‘I offer you three things; choose for yourself one of them, which I will do to you.’ So, Gad came to David and said to him, “Thus says Yahweh, ‘Take for yourself either three years of famine, or three months to be swept away before your foes, while the sword of your enemies overtakes you, or else three days of the sword of Yahweh, even pestilence in the land, and the angel of Yahweh destroying throughout all the territory of Israel.’ Now, therefore, consider what answer I shall return to Him who sent me.” David said to Gad, “I am in great distress; please let me fall into the hand of Yahweh, for His mercies are very great. But do not let me fall into the hand of man.” So, Yahweh sent a pestilence on Israel; 70,000 men of Israel fell. And Elohim sent an angel to Jerusalem to destroy it; but as he was about to destroy it, Yahweh saw and and was sorry over the calamity, and said to the destroying angel, “It is enough; now relax your hand.” And the angel of Yahweh was standing by the threshing floor of Ornan the Jebusite. Then David lifted up his eyes and saw the angel of Yahweh standing between earth and heaven, with his drawn sword in his hand stretched out over Jerusalem. Then David and the elders, covered with sackcloth, fell on their faces. David said to Elohim, “Is it not I who commanded to count the people? Indeed, I am the one who has sinned and done very wickedly, but these sheep, what have they done? O Yahweh my Elohim, please let Your hand be against me and my father’s household, but not against Your people that they should be plagued.” Then the angel of Yahweh commanded Gad to say to David, that David should go up and build an altar to Yahweh on the threshing floor of Ornan the Jebusite.
    The sin David committed here was pride, trusting in numbers. David trusted more in the power of man and the numbers of strength than in Yahweh who gives strength (Deut. 8:17-18; James 1:17). Scripture repeatedly warns against pride and self-exaltation. Yahweh is the one who deserves the glory and thanksgiving for every accomplishment, because without Him we can do nothing at all. All our own power, gifts, and talents ultimately source from Him. What King David did was no different than what many Christian denominations and pastors do today. They value numbers over morality, and truth. One message at curbside posted by an institution of religion, read, “We Value Disciples More Than Doctrine.”

Boasting is Evil
     I am reminded of a testimony given by an Elder of our Assembly who had once been a pastor of a mainline denomination. He stated that often at minister’s meetings, attendees regarded success on the enrollment in Sunday School and the number of pew warmers every first day. This ought not to be the case. Certainly, while seeing people come to “the faith which was once delivered unto the saints” (Jude 1:3) – we exclude first-day Sunday-keepers – is joyous and uplifting, but the focus should not be upon quotas or numbers.
    Rather presbyters should be more concerned with speaking the Truth. Boasting their attendance numbers will be worthless on judgment day, because boasting is discounted. Where then is boasting? It is excluded. By what kind of law? Of works? No, but by a law of faith, Romans 3:27. In fact, boasting is itself evil. But as it is, you boast in your arrogance; all such boasting is evil, James 4:16. If there is boasting, it should be in Yahweh, as it is written: “Let him who boasts, boast in Yahweh,” 1 Cor. 1:31) and further confirmed by what’s read in Romans 15:17: Therefore in Messiah Yahshua I have found reason for boasting in things pertaining to Yahweh.
    We need to give Yahweh all glory and not trust in ourselves or boast in ourselves. We need to avoid King Nebuchadnezzar’s mistake. A read of Daniel, chapter 4, excites the imagination, as we can see the king strutting about the palace at Shushan, chest puffed out, looking from horizon to horizon, and musing to himself, “Is not this great Babylon, that I have built for the house of the kingdom by the might of my power, and for the honour of my majesty? While the word was in the king’s mouth, there fell a voice from heaven, saying, ‘O king Nebuchadnezzar, to thee it is spoken; The kingdom is departed from thee’ ” (Dan. 4:30, 31, KJV). For seven years Nebuchadnezzar was mooing like a cow, having his living among the beasts of the field. At the end of that time, his understanding returned to him, he lifted his eyes toward heaven, and praised and honored and extolled Yahweh, the King of heaven Whose works are Truth and His ways, judgment … acknowledging Him Who lives forever; Whose dominion is an everlasting dominion (Dan. 4;34, 37).
    So many first-day church leaders today, act like Nebuchadnezzar – flouting attendance numbers and conversions. This regard for numbers, while keeping the benches warm and occupied, has compromised the preaching of Truth.

Wrongful Majority
     Here is a quick question! Is the majority ever wrong? Contemporary Christianity would answer, “No,” because people are inclined to think, “might makes right.” Thus, they think that a large following means you must be right. Oh, they will say if you speak the truth people will come. Perhaps, but nowhere does it say in Scripture that many will come to the Truth. In fact, Yahweh’s Word says the opposite. Matthew 7:13-14 (KJV) says,
    Enter ye in at the strait gate: for wide [is] the gate, and broad [is] the way, that leadeth to destruction, and many there be which go in thereat: Because strait [is] the gate, and narrow [is] the way, which leadeth unto life, and few there be that find it. Here, Yahshua told us that many go the way of death and destruction and few find the path to Truth. All throughout Scripture, we read of the many going the way of death.
    In the days of EliYah, out of what may be supposed of the millions in the ten northern tribes of Israel, only 7000 remained faithful to Yahweh. Yet I will leave 7,000 in Israel, all the knees that have not bowed to Baal and every mouth that has not kissed him, 1 Kings 19:18. Think about how small the number of people choose right over wrong. Again, this is common in Scripture. We need only to look at the account of Noah. Yahweh destroyed the ancient world with a flood because the wickedness of man was great in the earth, his every imagination of the thoughts of his heart only evil, continually (Gen. 6:5). Only Noah and his family were spared, because Noah found grace in the eyes of Yahweh (Gen. 6:8; 1 Pet. 2:5).
    Conservative estimates put the pre-flood population in the 1-2 billion range. Only eight people were preserved from the flood. We can see, the majority of people tend to be in the wrong. More Scriptural evidence of this can be seen in the account of Sodom and Gomorrah. Abraham pleads with Yahweh on behalf of the righteous before Yahweh destroyed Sodom.
    And Yahweh said, “The outcry of Sodom and Gomorrah is indeed great, and their sin is exceedingly grave. I will go down now, and see if they have done entirely according to its outcry, which has come to Me; and if not, I will know.” Then the men turned away from there and went toward Sodom, while Abraham was still standing before Yahweh. Abraham came near and said, “Will You indeed sweep away the righteous with the wicked? Suppose there are fifty righteous within the city; will You indeed sweep it away and not spare the place for the sake of the fifty righteous who are in it? Far be it from You to do such a thing, to slay the righteous with the wicked, so that the righteous and the wicked are treated alike. Far be it from You! Shall not the Judge of all the earth deal justly?” So, Yahweh said, “If I find in Sodom fifty righteous within the city, then I will spare the whole place on their account.” And Abraham replied, “Now behold, I have ventured to speak to Yahweh, although I am but dust and ashes. Suppose the fifty righteous are lacking five, will You destroy the whole city because of five?” And He said, “I will not destroy it if I find forty-five there.” He spoke to Him yet again and said, “Suppose forty are found there?” And He said, “I will not do it on account of the forty.” Then he said, “Oh may Yahweh not be angry, and I shall speak; suppose thirty are found there?” And He said, “I will not do it if I find thirty there.” And he said, “Now behold, I have ventured to speak to Yahweh; suppose twenty are found there?” And He said, “I will not destroy it on account of the twenty.” Then he said, “Oh may Yahweh not be angry, and I shall speak only this once; suppose ten are found there?” And He said, “I will not destroy it on account of the ten.” As soon as He had finished speaking to Abraham Yahweh departed, and Abraham returned to his place, Genesis 18:20-35. Abraham pleaded with Yahweh and Yahweh agreed not to destroy the city if even ten righteous were found within. But apparently, He apparently did not find even ten, because only Lot and his two daughters were spared (Gen. 19:16, 26).
    Yahshua Himself says that few will be saved. And someone said to Him, “Master, are there just a few who are being saved?” And He said to them, “Strive to enter through the narrow door; for many, I tell you, will seek to enter and will not be able, Luke 23:23-24. This echoes His words about judgment day! In Matthew 7:21-23, He is recorded having said,
    Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Master, Master,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father who is in heaven will enter. Many will say to Me on that day, ‘Master, Master, did we not prophesy in Your Name, and in Your Name cast out demons, and in Your Name perform many miracles?’ And then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness.
    Yahshua is going to tell many who thought they were serving Him genuinely on that day to depart from Him. Why? because of their lawlessness.

People Pleasers
     Most of Christianity teaches the abolition of Yahweh’s Law (the Law of Moses). This is a compromise of Scriptural truth. In Matthew 5:17-18, Yahshua says,
    “Do not think that I came to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I did not come to abolish but to fulfill. For truly I say to you, until heaven and earth pass away, not the smallest letter or stroke shall pass from the Law until all is accomplished.
    Yet, the very thing He said not to think, is what people in Christianity are taught to believe. Why? Is it merely a misunderstanding of Scripture by Christian pastors? No, it isn’t. There are many pastors in Christianity who know they should teach their charges to obey the commandments. But, they don’t, and won’t, because they fear the loss of their members. Moreover, some know they’ll be reprimanded or dismissed from their pulpits for teaching sound doctrine that is at variance with their denominational beliefs.
    Thus, “wanting to have their ears tickled, they will accumulate for themselves teachers in accordance to their own desires, and will turn away their ears from the truth and will turn aside to myths,” (2 Tim. 4:3). This gives place to the myriads of denominational and nondenominational churches today – (How many did Messiah die for, anyway?). As one institution of religion posted at curbside, “Church Shopping? We Might Be The Right One For You!”
    That’s the mindset today, and sadly, few want to be corrected, or told they have to change their lifestyles. They would rather seek out teachers who twist the Scriptures – making private interpretations of the unadulterated Word – to justify their misdeeds (2 Peter 3:16).
    This is not a new phenomenon as it’s the same mindset ancient Israel had.
    For this is a rebellious people, false sons, Sons who refuse to listen to the instruction of Yahweh; Who say to the seers, “You must not see visions;” And to the prophets, “You must not prophesy to us what is right, speak to us pleasant words, Prophesy illusions. “Get out of the way, turn aside from the path, let us hear no more about the Holy One of Israel.” Thus says the Holy One of Israel, “Since you have rejected this Word and have put your trust in oppression and guile, and have relied on them, therefore this iniquity will be to you like a breach about to fall, a bulge in a high wall, whose collapse comes suddenly in an instant, Isaiah 30:9-13.

Stiff-Necked; Carnally-Minded; Uncircumcised Heart
     Nevertheless, some will seek salvation but desire not the way of righteousness which is life (Prov. 12:28). They desire salvation, but not the requirement to maintain their relationship with Yahweh through obedience to His commandments which are at enmity against their carnal natures. These are the same who in the company of others, will say, “we desire not the knowledge of Thy ways” (Job 21:14, KJV). In Romans 8:5-7 we read,
    For those who are according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who are according to the Spirit, the things of the Spirit. For the mind set on the flesh is death, but the mind set on the Spirit is life and peace, because the mind set on the flesh is hostile toward Elohim; for it does not subject itself to the law of Elohim, for it is not even able to do so,
    Scripture concludes them to be “stiff-necked” (Deut. 10:16, KJV); “carnally-minded” (Rom. 8:6, KJV); uncircumcised of heart (Deut. 10:16, 30:6; Jer. 4:4). Despite their claims, they are not partakers of the New Covenant, because all who partake of the New Covenant in Yahshua will desire to keep Yahweh’s law.
    “Behold, days are coming,” declares Yahweh, “when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah, not like the covenant which I made with their fathers in the day I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt, My covenant which they broke, although I was a husband to them,” declares Yahweh. “But this is the covenant which I will make with the house of Israel after those days,” declares Yahweh, “I will put My law within them and on their heart I will write it; and I will be their Elohim, and they shall be My people. They will not teach again, each man his neighbor and each man his brother, saying, ‘Know Yahweh,’ for they will all know Me, from the least of them to the greatest of them,” declares Yahweh, “for I will forgive their iniquity, and their sin I will remember no more,” Jeremiah 31:31-34.
    This parallels what Yahweh says in Ezekiel 36:25-28:
    Then I will sprinkle clean water on you, and you will be clean; I will cleanse you from all your filthiness and from all your idols. Moreover, I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you; and I will remove the heart of stone from your flesh and give you a heart of flesh. I will put My Spirit within you and cause you to walk in My statutes, and you will be careful to observe My ordinances. You will live in the land that I gave to your forefathers; so you will be My people, and I will be your Elohim.
    Again, Yahweh clarifies that He will put His Law in those who will enter into, and abide in His Covenant Promise. But someone who tries to justify and excuse his lawless behavior, will not become a partaker in the Commonwealth Yahweh has reserved for them who obey Him.
    This anti law teaching (anti-nomialism) amongst Christianity – they say, “the law’s been done away with … blotted out, taken out of the way, and nailed to the cross” – is nothing more than men’s traditions being exalted above Yahweh’s law and makes those who teach traditions (lawlessness) no different from the Pharisees whom Yahshua rebuked.
    And He said to them, “Rightly did Isaiah prophesy of you hypocrites, as it is written: ‘This people honors Me with their lips, but their heart is far away from Me. ‘But in vain do they worship Me, Teaching as doctrines the precepts of men.’ Neglecting the commandment of Yahweh, you hold to the tradition of men,” Mark 7:6-8.

The Little Flock
     From all that Scripture has said about this subject, we can understand boasting in numbers does not determine Truth. Yahshua never said many would follow Him. In fact, He often talks about the few that would. In Luke 12:32 (KJV), He tells us, Fear not, little flock; for it is your Father’s good pleasure to give you the Kingdom. Yahshua calls His disciples, a little flock. Not a large one, a little one. Few will desire Truth and even fewer will continue steadfastly in Truth, till the end. For many are called, but few [are] chosen, Matthew 22:14, KJV. Many doesn’t necessarily mean a lot. One hundred can be many but in that many, a few could be ten. Many may be called, but did they answer the call? Or did they hang up on Yahweh immediately? And out of those who did answer, how many remained long? Consider Yahshua’s parable in Luke 8:5-8, KJV:
    A sower went out to sow his seed: and as he sowed, some fell by the way side; and it was trodden down, and the fowls of the air devoured it. And some fell upon a rock; and as soon as it was sprung up, it withered away, because it lacked moisture. And some fell among thorns; and the thorns sprang up with it, and choked it. And other fell on good ground, and sprang up, and bare fruit an hundredfold. And when He had said these things, He cried, “He that hath ears to hear, let him hear,” And the interpretation, in Luke 8:11-15, KJV:
    Now the parable is this: “The seed is the Word of Yahweh. Those by the way side are they that hear; then cometh the devil, and taketh away the Word out of their hearts, lest they should believe and be saved. They on the rock are they, which, when they hear, receive the Word with joy; and these have no root, which for a while believe, and in time of temptation fall away. And that which fell among thorns are they, which, when they have heard, go forth, and are choked with cares and riches and pleasures of this life, and bring no fruit to perfection. But that on the good ground are they, which in an honest and good heart, having heard the word, keep it, and bring forth fruit with patience.”
    Only one fourth remained fruitful, and even among these, some produced thirtyfold, sixty, or some, a hundred (Mark 4:20). You can see how it is indeed a little flock.

Conclusion
     No one wants to be disparaged, but that’s what we, the few, who follow Yahshua will be. Yahshua declared in Matthew 10:22, You will be hated by all because of My name, but it is the one who has endured to the end who will be saved. Not only will we be hated by those in the world (John 15:19), but we shall also be disesteemed by churchianity which tout themselves, to be right … though majority does not equate to Truth.
    The fact that Yahshua affirmed that though many are called, but few are chosen and to be among the few chosen should confirm that they are right. Preachers, therefore, should not be afraid to speak the Truth, even if it negatively impacts their numbers. Even Yahshua weeded out His disciples with hard statements (John 6:47-70).
    Teachers and preachers of Scripture must be willing to sacrifice numbers for Truth. Teachers and preachers of Scripture need to be willing to sacrifice position for Truth and have the mindset of King David who repented of his prideful census.
    Then the angel of Yahweh commanded Gad to say to David, that David should go up and build an altar to Yahweh on the threshing floor of Ornan the Jebusite. So David went up at the word of Gad, which he spoke in the Name of Yahweh. Now Ornan turned back and saw the angel, and his four sons who were with him hid themselves. And Ornan was threshing wheat. As David came to Ornan, Ornan looked and saw David, and went out from the threshing floor and prostrated himself before David with his face to the ground. Then David said to Ornan, “Give me the site of this threshing floor, that I may build on it an altar to Yahweh; for the full price you shall give it to me, that the plague may be restrained from the people.” Ornan said to David, “Take it for yourself; and let my lord the king do what is good in his sight. See, I will give the oxen for burnt offerings and the threshing sledges for wood and the wheat for the grain offering; I will give it all.” But King David said to Ornan, “No, but I will surely buy it for the full price; for I will not take what is yours for Yahweh, or offer a burnt offering which costs me nothing.” So David gave Ornan 600 shekels of gold by weight for the site. Then David built an altar to Yahweh there and offered burnt offerings and peace offerings. And he called to Yahweh and He answered him with fire from heaven on the altar of burnt offering. Yahweh commanded the angel, and he put his sword back in its sheath, 1 Chronicles 21:18-27.
    The lesson here? Whoever exalts himself shall be abased; and he who humbles himself, shall be exalted (Matt. 23:12). He who has ears to hear, let him hear!