Articles
Choosing the Right Path
There are times in the lives of each one of us when we must make a choice that, probably unknown to us, will set the direction for the rest of our lives, or at least make a difference in how [and maybe even where] the rest of our lives are lived. It could be a decision regarding the education we seek and obtain, likely based on another choice we might make about which career we desire; or it could be someone we date with the intention of marrying. These choices and many more will affect and, ultimately, define our lives.
If you have any spiritual interests at all, then you will weigh each of these decisions with the spiritual impact in mind, or maybe even whether it would be wise or foolish or even dangerous, spiritually speaking. Certain decisions we may make can lead us away from God, and that must be a consideration for each and every decision if we seek to be pleasing to the Lord and receive the reward of eternal life in heaven with Him. In effect, the choices we make must take us down the path that is pleasing to the Lord and, ultimately, ends in heaven.
Since every individual’s experience and life differs from another’s experience and life, the choices for each will be different, but the choices all determine the path we take — either “the way that leads to destruction” or “the way which leads to life” (Matt. 7:13, 14). The thing is, these paths will not have large, easy-to-read road signs that tell us its end and which path it is; in fact, I am certain that, if anything, “the way that leads to destruction” is lined with false hopes, false messages, and outright lies that far too many people believe as they merrily drive headlong to eternal destruction.
So, how can we know whether we are on the right path? The short answer is: Compare our direction in life with the kind of life God demands to (1) be called one of His children, and (2) receive the eternal reward. This is not the time for ‘winging it’ or trusting in your own ‘sense of direction’ to get you to heaven. This is not the time to ‘be a man’ and never ask for directions, as we are sometimes prone to do. The wise writer stated many years ago, “There is a way that seems right to a man, but its end is the way of death” (Prov. 14:12). This is the time to seek God’s direction, and hear what He has said is the path that pleases Him and will lead us to eternal life in heaven. To ignore what God has said would be similar to ignoring road signs pointing us to where we seek to go!
We should know that the right path — the one that is pleasing to God and “the way which leads to life” — is described and defined a few different ways within Scripture, but they all speak of that same path. Let us consider each and what they tell us about this path.
The Path of Righteousness. The psalmist, in one of the most well-known psalms, wrote, “The Lord is my shepherd;…He leads me in the paths of righteousness” (Psa. 32:1, 3). The wise writer would also speak of this path, warning his son to seek after wisdom and discretion, that he might avoid the wicked and “keep to the paths of righteousness” (Prov. 2:20). In the New Testament, Peter warns against those who go back into the world after having learned and obeyed the truth, what he calls “the way of righteousness” (2 Pet. 2:20, 21).
Righteousness properly describes the path that is pleasing to God and which leads to eternal life, for it is the way of the Lord, who “is righteous in all His ways” (Psa. 145:17), and of whom it is said, “there is no unrighteousness in Him” (Psa. 92:15), while “The wicked in his proud countenance does not seek God; God is in none of his thoughts” (Psa. 10:4). To be clear, “All unrighteousness is sin” (1 John 5:17), and if there was any question, Paul plainly stated, in the form of a question, “Do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God?” (1 Cor. 6:9). The path of unrighteousness does not end in eternal life, but with eternal separation from God.
The Way of Holiness. Isaiah prophetically wrote of a time in the future when there would be “A highway shall be there, and a road,…called the Highway of Holiness…the redeemed shall walk there” (Isa. 35:8, 9). This sounds like a path worth knowing! But in a sin-filled, sin-seeking world, holiness is a term many seem to not comprehend — or desire. Holiness, though, is something desired by God of those who would be His people and be with Him eternally, and it is not surprising that He would say to them, “Be holy, for I am holy” (1 Pet. 1:16). The original command (Lev. 11:44) was prefaced by another: “You shall therefore consecrate yourselves”; they were to be set apart from the rest of the world and to serve Him alone. Their very character would be what distinguished them from the world and, today, that is still what sets God’s people apart from the world.
Holiness, by definition, means to be “pure in heart, temper or dispositions; free from sin and sinful affections.” [Webster’s] But in the Biblical usage, it also had the inherent meaning of being set apart for God’s service [such as the elements within the tabernacle and temple]. Again, this makes sense if it is God we seek to please and serve, and if it is eternal life in heaven we seek, rather than the pleasures and ways of the world. The writer of Hebrews stated plainly, “Pursue peace with all people, and holiness, without which no one will see the Lord” (Heb. 12:14). Stated another way: Without following the path of holiness, we will never reach heaven, for we will not be pleasing to God.
The Way of Understanding. The wise writer warns his son, “Forsake foolishness and live, and go in the way of understanding” (Prov. 9:6); he would later warn us all, “A man who wanders from the way of understanding will rest in the assembly of the dead” (Prov. 21:16). This does not sound like a path one should take if it is eternal life he seeks!
The Hebrew word translated as “understanding” in these proverbs could be rightly translated as discernment; that is something we can comprehend, but sometimes fail to exercise. Discernment is nothing more than “the power or faculty of the mind, by which it distinguishes one thing from another, as truth from falsehood, virtue from vice.” [Webster’s] In spiritual matters, it is the wisdom to know whether we are on the right path, and the humility to admit when we are not, and then change direction.
Discernment does not come easy, however. It is not going to be found on that broad, smooth path that everyone seems to be taking. It is not going to come by mere passage of time and physical aging. It does not come in a brown cardboard box, delivered to your front doorstep. It does not come by merely doing whatever everyone else is doing or by going with the majority.
The writer of Hebrews chastised the early disciples for lacking discernment, revealing that this comes only “by reason of use,” and only then can one “discern both good and evil” (Heb. 5:14). One who puts forth no effort to make such distinctions will be easily deceived into thinking good is evil and evil is good by those who purposefully confuse the two (Isa. 5:20). Just a casual look around at our world today would show this to be true.
Choosing the right path is not always easy, but let us never underestimate the importance of choosing correctly. Choose righteousness, holiness, and discernment. You will never regret it. — Steven Harper
