A Difficult Choice – Stepping in the Light

“The young man saith unto him, All these things have I kept from my youth up: what lack I yet? Jesus said unto him, If thou wilt be perfect, go and sell that thou hast, and give to the poor, and thou shalt have treasure in heaven: and come and follow me. But when the young man heard that saying, he went away sorrowful: for he had great possessions.” Matthew 19:20-22

Some people read this passage and come away with the impression that we can earn our way into heaven by giving away all of our possessions. But that cannot be true because of the overwhelming number of passages that point to salvation by grace through faith without works. So what does it mean?

This man was presented with a difficult choice: spiritual gain or temporal gain. We know that there were wealthy people such as Joseph of Arimathaea (John 19:38) who did follow Christ and were not asked to give up their wealth first. So, a vow of poverty is not a necessary step to salvation or even to becoming a faithful Christian. Then why did Jesus make him choose? The answer is in the choice that the young man made. He chose his possessions just like Jesus knew he would.

If you were faced with the same dilemma, what would you choose? We know what the right answer would be, but how easy would it actually be to sell everything and give it away? The Lord isn’t asking us to walk away from those things; He gave them to us. He wants us to value eternal things most and to use our temporal possessions for eternal purposes.

Morning: Exodus 21-22

Evening: Matthew 19

About This Site

“Thy word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path.” Psalm 119:105

If you were to find yourself walking down a path in the dark of night with only an old-fashioned lantern to light the way, you wouldn’t be able to see very far ahead. You would be able to see just enough of the pathway to know which direction to take your next step and enough of the ground to choose the best place for your feet. When it comes to our daily lives, God’s Word is a lot like that lantern. It will not show us the whole path at once, but it is exactly what we need to help us decide how to take the next step.

The Bible is our source of spiritual light, and if we consistently seek God’s direction as we read from its pages, we will always have enough light for our next step along the pathway of life. It is then that we are, in the words of an old gospel song, “stepping in the light.”

The goal of this devotional guide is to encourage you to spend time in the Word of God each day. Reading the passages listed at the bottom of the page will take you all the way through the Bible in one year. The devotional thought for each day is taken from a text within that day’s reading, so even that small daily portion of reading will take you on a journey through God’s Word. It is my prayer that this guide would help you to walk closer to the Lord and that you will find yourself taking each step in the light of His Word.