Faithful in little things

 

Dr. Victor R. Aguilan

 Scripture Text: Luke 16:10-13

10“Whoever is faithful in a very little is faithful also in much; and whoever is dishonest in a very little is dishonest also in much. 11 If then you have not been faithful with the dishonest wealth, who will entrust to you the true riches? 12   if you have not been faithful with what belongs to another, who will give you what is your own? 13 No slave can serve two masters; for a slave will either hate the one and love the other or be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and wealth.”

 

Most of you came to the Seminary because you want to be trained in the ministry. And you chose Silliman because this University is known for its academic excellence.  In the University you have been introduced to the wonderful world of science and the arts.  You were introduced into the amazing ancient worlds of the people of the Bible.  You were initiated into the faith through the creeds and doctrines of the church.  Acquiring skills in public discourse, in teaching and church administration, in pastoral care and counseling -- it looks like you have everything that will equip you to be an effective church worker!

 

But training takes time. It needs your commitment, your faithfulness to your calling, to your purpose for coming to the Divinity.

 

The reading from the Gospel of Luke tells something about faithfulness.

 

The Greek word translated “faithful” in the Bible is pistos; it means trusty and faithful. It also means being easily persuaded, believing, confiding and trusting.

 

When pistos is used to mean trusty or faithful, Thayer’s Greek Lexicon says the word (pistos) is “used of persons who show themselves faithful in the transaction of business, the execution of commands, or the discharge of official duties.”

 

In Luke 16:10, there was a manager who had squandered his master’s funds and was about to be fired. But then he figured out how to take care of himself. He cut the debts of those who owed his master, so that they would like him and take care of him after he was fired and had no money. He said, “I have decided what to do, so that when I am removed from management, people may receive me into their houses.” Luke 16:4. Through a shrewd use of his master’s wealth he took care of his future.

 

To our surprise, the owner commends the dishonest manager for his shrewdness. Why is he commended? And why does Luke include this story in his Gospel?

The answer is found in verse. 10-13

“10“Whoever is faithful in a very little is faithful also in much; and whoever is dishonest in a very little is dishonest also in much. 11 If then you have not been faithful with the dishonest wealth, who will entrust to you the true riches? 12 And if you have not been faithful with what belongs to another, who will give you what is your own? 13 No slave can serve two masters; for a slave will either hate the one and love the other, or be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and wealth.”

 

Jesus has a way of driving a point to make his audience remember the lesson of his parable- that is - faithful in little things is an indicator of faithfulness in big things.

 

I have been doing a lot of work that involves agreement, contract and promises. And when a deal is made the number one concern of all parties in the contract is this “Will they be faithful”. Why do they want to know that? Because they want to make sure the other party will fulfill what they have agreed to deliver.

 

If we are concerned about faithfulness in earthly things how much are we faithful to our covenant as a member of the DS Koinonia and the Church.

 

First, being faithful in things can make a difference.

Jesus always placed great emphasis on little things. Just look at His parables. Every one of His stories dealt with some big spiritual issue, but have you noticed that in the telling of the story, He always focused on the little things of life—like the hairs on a person’s head or birds of the air or flowers of the field or seeds or weeds or lost coins or dinner parties. He noticed the little things.

 

As Christians, we often fail to see how little things can reveal the depth of our faith.

 

In 1 Corinthians 10:31, Paul says, "Whether you eat, or drink, or whatsoever you do, do it to the glory of God." Even the smallest acts of life are acts of faithfulness.

 

To help prevent the spread of COVID 19 there are little things we can do

-         Wash hands

-         Observe social distancing

-         Get vaccinated

Little Things Count. We should mind little things—little courtesies in life, little matters of personal appearance, little prayers, little saving from our budget, little details in our work.

 

In the DS Koinonia what little things of faithfulness can we practice? There are many little things we can do that are acts of faithfulness.

 

Faithfully observing promptness and time management

Faithfully attending your online classes

Faithfully readings the assigned chapters and doing your requirements

Faithfully sharing your stories to your pastor, local church and other supporters.

Faithfully budgeting your scholarships

Faithfully loving others

 

In the covenanting community, we are to nurture each other, to show compassion, and help those who are in need.

 

A smile seems like a small thing, but that smile and making eye contact ways we show someone that they are not alone.

 

NOW, please turn on your video and smile

 

Second, Small things can become big things.

 

There are many stories in the Bible about small things becoming big things

 

The great servants of God were faithful in little things that led them to do great things: Abraham – God asked Abraham to go on a journey with him. A journey that would lead him to his destiny, promising Abraham, he would make him into a great nation, make his name great, and bless all the peoples on earth through him (Genesis 12:2-3).

 

Remember the farthest journey would always start with a single step. Imagine if Abraham did not take that first step.

 

The story of Elijah who when into hiding after Jezebel killed thousands of God’s prophets. He waited for a sign from God, expecting something extraordinary, something grandiose. But God came to him in a voice. 

 

God came in a voice. Even God makes his presence in little or simple things

 

The building of the temple required many individual stones, small elements that would make up the large building. Yet there could be no temple without the individual stones.

 

Little things are important, not because of what they are in themselves, but because they can be part of something greater.

 

Jesus usually employs little things, simple things to accomplish God’s will. Like the story of Feeding the Multitudes

 

Jesus' miracle in feeding thousands of hungry people is another example of the miraculous ways the Lord can use small things. As he gazed over a crowd of 5,000 who had come to hear his message, Jesus could see they were hungry and ill prepared. But the disciples informed him they had only five loaves of bread and two fish. Jesus had them gather the people together and blessed this meager amount of food. The food was miraculously multiplied so that all 5,000 were fed with 12 baskets of food leftover (Luke 19:10-17).

 

It is important to recognize the Lord's ability to bless the common, the ordinary, the small, the insignificant things to accomplish His will. Sometimes the Lord will use little people, people who do not have any standing, to accomplish great things

 

To quote St. Augustine

What is a little thing, is (just) a little thing.

But to be faithful in a little thing is a great thing.

 

Faithful in little things—who cares? God does.

 

Let us pray. Let us Pray. Look upon your people, dear God, Father, Son and Holy Spirit. Help us see how much blessings we have received from you through your Seminary-the Divinity School of the United Church of Christ in the Philippines. And move us from our complacency and fill us with a deeper sense of who we are and our responsibilities as your chosen people, as you church which you send to bear witness to the world, to do good in the midst of evil and injustice, and  to sing praises to you O Lord. Amen.