Environment is a major driver of social behavior. By environment, we refer to prevailing circumstances around which people react to situations. Let’s use some mental cues. You’ve come to an elevator and found one unknown person waiting. Are you inclined to say “hello” or to ignore the person? What if you found ten strangers waiting; would you act differently? Why? Now suppose the single individual you found standing by the elevator suddenly fell to the ground and passed out. Would you swiftly jump into action and try to help? If there were ten strangers standing with you and one suddenly passed out, would you jump into action or hope that someone else would make the first move?
Diffusion of responsibility is a sociopsychological phenomenon that makes individuals less likely to act responsibly in the presence of a group. Responsibility is diffused—scattered. It becomes everybody’s task; nobody’s task! A group of bystanders seeing a person in need of emergency attention offer no help whatsoever. Everyone expects someone else to take up the challenge. No one is liable for the outcome. Bystander apathy drew psychological inquiry when in 1964 a young woman, Kitty Genovese was murdered outside her apartment in New York city. At least thirty-eight neighbors were alerted to her situation but none answered her screams.
Social psychology is not my forte. The thoughts above are shared only as a fitting preface to the topic of this article. We become awfully apathetic by diffusing responsibility. Inversely, when we are in charge of a task, we want all members of our team to pay attention and play active roles. We exercise extra discipline, reliability and courtesy so as to encourage participation of others. Success depends on our leadership, and we don’t want to be blamed for failure. When that premise is a formula for success for the teams we lead, it should also inspire our attitude toward other leaders. If we don’t expect to succeed without active goodwill from other players, how do we expect others to succeed while denying them our own support?
The Ahava River Challenge
After Israel had served a seventy-year sentence in Babylonian captivity, God orchestrated a return to their homeland. Two Old Testament Books—Ezra and Nehemiah—detail the accounts of that momentous restoration. These are short books which an average reader can complete in less than two hours. If I were to explain all that here, I’d have to cite entire passages. However, procuring accurate Biblical data is your personal responsibility. This article stresses that obligation, and Ezra’s situation offers great teaching aids.
At the time of invasion, Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon had burned Jerusalem down and carried away the vessels of the temple. This was Israel’s greatest treasure, a symbol of God’s Presence. The instruments of divine service were extremely precious. As king Artaxerxes released Israeli captives, he gave Ezra the vessels to restore to their rightful place. There were also huge monetary donations towards the rebuilding of Jerusalem.
The journey from Babylon to Jerusalem was nearly nine hundred miles. It would take about four months. Soon enough, the hazards of ferrying such wealth became apparent. Marauding desert bandits were sure to waylay, rob and kill the people.
21 Then I proclaimed a fast there, at the river of Ahava, that we might humble ourselves before our God, to seek from Him a good route for us, our little ones, and all our substance. 22 For I was ashamed to ask the king for an escort of foot and horse soldiers to help us against the enemy on the way, because we had spoken to the king, saying, “The hand of our God is upon all who seek Him for good, but His power and His wrath are against all who forsake Him.” 23 So we fasted and sought our God for this, and He was moved by our prayers. (Ezra 8:21-23 ~MEV)
Joint Trust for a Communal Burden
Some folks see problems as a sign of God’s disinterest. They are wrong. God doesn’t oppose His children’s efforts. He supports them. Every significant undertaking is a testimony of divine intervention in the face of incredible odds. If your mission is great, so is your opposition. Challenges should draw God’s people to seek Him more, not dampen their resolve. Realizing their predicament, Ezra called on everyone to humble themselves, fast, pray and ask God’s help. It was not up to Ezra alone to swim or sink. The burden was on everyone’s shoulders.
24-27 Then I picked twelve of the leading priests—Sherebiah and Hashabiah with ten of their brothers. I weighed out for them the silver, the gold, the vessels, and the offerings for The Temple of our God that the king, his advisors, and all the Israelites had given: 25 tons of silver,
100 vessels of silver valued at three and three-quarter tons of gold, 20 gold bowls weighing eighteen and a half pounds, 2 vessels of bright red copper, as valuable as gold. 28-29 I said to them, “You are holy to God and these vessels are holy. The silver and gold are Freewill-Offerings to the God of your ancestors. Guard them with your lives until you’re able to weigh them out in a secure place in The Temple of our God… in Jerusalem.” (Ezra 8:24-29 ~Message)
Having entrusted the treasure to other men, Ezra could focus on guiding the convoy. Neither did folks have the luxury to incite silly mutinies along the way. They had grave responsibility to take care of. If anything went wrong, a holy mission would fail and everyone on that mission would bear blame forever. To bring God’s holy vessels to their place was a privilege of tremendous hazard. Like the struggle to liberate a nation from alien domination, custodians guarded it with their lives. The fate of their men, women and children was on the line. All boots, all hands, and all eyes were needed on deck. Vigilance was not the preserve of a few professionals.
Ashamed to Contradict Testimony
As Ezra took the riskier option, he was fully aware that king Artaxerxes was ready to offer armed escort. It was he, after all, who ordered that mission. Soldiers would certainly facilitate an easy escape. But how about the testimony of God’s faithfulness? Asking for soldiers would imply that God was not able to defend His own interests. Ezra and his team were not mere subjects following orders of a pagan king. They were devout Jews doing service to the God of their ancestors. His power was matchless, His record unbroken. Would the returning exiles rely on God or give enemies an opportunity to tarnish His reputation? The choice was theirs to make.
How about you; does your Christian testimony affect your everyday choices? As a follower of Jesus, what standards do you hold yourself to? Are you compelled to compromise your values when the going gets hard? What kinds of examples do you set for those who look up to you? If Christian testimony does not hold its bearers to commensurate ethics, what good is it?
Return to Egypt is an express highway. Folks who abandon Biblical faith begin to drown in their unbelief. Convinced that the end justifies the means, they are lured into alternate routes. They discard ethical norms, questioning high standards in a world of moral relativism. It is the diffusion of responsibility. “If others aren’t doing what is right, why should I?” Destinies are ruined every day while bystander apathy dictates human behavior.