while today

It is very clear in the teachings of Jesus that He is concerned about our faithfulness in little things. As Jesus concluded His parable of the unrighteous steward, He said this: “He who is faithful in a very little thing is faithful also in much; and he who is unrighteous in a very little thing is unrighteous also in much. Therefore if you have not been faithful in the use of unrighteous wealth, who will entrust the true riches to you? And if you have not been faithful in the use of that which is another’s, who will give you that which is your own?” (Luke 16:10-12 NAS95)

In the parable of the minas in Luke 19, the master said to his faithful slave, “Well done, good slave, because you have been faithful in a very little thing, you are to be in authority over ten cities.” (Luke 19:17 NAS95)

Two important principles are laid out in these verses. First, we see that those who are faithful in the little things will also be faithful in the big things. Those who will not be faithful in little things will be unfaithful in much. Second, we see that God gives more to those who use what they have been given. The faithful slave had a relatively small amount of money entrusted to him, but because he used it wisely, much, much more was given to him by the Master.

Can you see how these principles will play out in our own lives? If we want to grow in wisdom, we must ask ourselves, are we being faithful with the wisdom God has already given? If we want to be used in greater ways in the kingdom, we must ask ourselves, are we fulfilling the roles we have already been placed in? Are we wondering why we have grown stagnant in our spiritual growth? Perhaps we need to ask ourselves if we are neglecting the little things. Are we being faithful in our speech, or do we let so-called “minor curse words” come from our mouths? Are we being honest with others, or do we think that “little white lies” are no big deal?

The “little things” are a big deal to Jesus. We will never move forward spiritually if we willfully neglect them. But if we will be faithful in little, we will also be faithful in much. If we will faithfully use whatever God has given, He will entrust us with more. Let us strive to be good and faithful servants of our Lord.