Daily Devotion 20 January 2026

Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength. Mark 12:30

READING: Matthew 13: 45-46

Jesus’s parable of the pearl is a simple one; it is of a merchant who searches for fine pearls and when he finds the finest, he will sell everything to gain it.

Pearls in Jesus’ time had a particular fascination. What might be called the worship of the pearl originated in Egypt and was copied by the Romans. The curious thing was that the pearl was not desired so much for its monetary value; simply to look at a pearl was a source of delight.

There leaps out of this parable the sheer adventure of Christianity. If everything is to be given up for the higher good it follows that there is a certain element of sheer risk. There is a certain recklessness about giving up everything for one pearl of great price.

The invitation of Jesus to the disciples was, “Follow me”. But at that time, as William Barclay explains it, it was abundantly clear that following Him was a dangerous thing. The orthodox were against Him: the Scribes, Pharisees and Rulers were out to eliminate Him. His cause looked like a losing one. He seemed to be inviting men to face death. So in the parable He was saying, “Are you willing to sacrifice everything, security, safety, comfort, possibly life, to follow Me?” The willingness to risk is the price of entry to the Kingdom.

In the Middle Ages there was a brotherhood of Christians called the parabolani, or the gamblers. They gambled with their lives; wherever there was plague, trouble, strife, need, wherever a man might take his life in his hands to help others, they were there.

Certainly, it means risk to unqualifiedly follow Jesus. He calls us to give our efforts, actions, and resources to serve Him. But we should not consider it a gamble. Jesus has promised us the reward of His companionship, His guidance and His assurance of eternal life for all who choose to risk their material and worldly comforts to follow Him.

What a great way to start the new year – in an adventure with our Lord!

Prayer

Lord God, grant us strength of purpose to risk all in the adventure of following You, trusting that we will find perfect freedom and joy in doing Your will. Amen