TWO IMPORTANT PRINCIPLES

TWO IMPORTANT PRINCIPLES 
LUKE 16:10 & 13 NKJ 
10 He who is faithful in what is least is faithful also in much; and he who is unjust in what is least is unjust also in much.   
13 "No servant can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or else he will be loyal to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and mammon." 

OBSERVATION:

Jesus is teaching in this chapter and shares two principles that are important for our lives.   

How we handle little things is how we will handle big things. Faithful in little, faithful in much. Unjust, mishandling little, then unjust in much.   

We can see that how we handle the things that don't seem important gives a picture into how we will handle the big things in our lives.   

We had a staff event a number of years ago where we played some games together after hours. I was fairly upset as I noticed some of my key leaders cheating in the game. In their minds, they were playing to win. So, to them, the game was a little thing. In my mind, there was something much bigger going on. If I could not trust them to play according to the rules, it was going to be hard to trust them in more important things regarding the church. And I watched as not long after the game, this principle played out in a bigger area.   

The second principle is that something will take first place in your life. You can't have two number ones. You can't serve God and money equally. One is going to win out.   

This is another area I have seen too often. People have looked at me and said, "it's family first." Family is certainly important, but family does not come before God and His will, nor can money, the pursuit of it, come first.  

God does not want everything; He simply wants to be first. And the wonderful thing is when we put Him first, He helps us with the other areas of our lives.    

APPLICATION: 

These two principles. Little things and first things are great questions to reflect on.   

How do I handle the little things in my relationship with God, church, job, and important people in my life? 

Who or what is first in my life? And don't forget that one of the biggest challenges to putting God first is taking ourselves off that throne.   

Don't be discouraged; rather, know that our Christian life is a continual process of insight and adjustment. So, stay in there. The rewards are well worth it.