“Whoever can be trusted with very little can also be trusted with much, and whoever is dishonest with very little will also be dishonest with much” (Luke 16:10).

Jesus had just reached into the business world for an illustration. He told a parable of a dishonest employee who was caught embezzling from his employer. Knowing that he would be fired, the employee compounded his sin by reducing the debts of those who owed the master money. Then the master commended him for his shrewdness.

Jesus didn’t mean, of course, that it’s okay to be dishonest. Who would trust this dishonest employee with his track record of dishonesty? Instead, Jesus made this statement. If you can’t be trusted with a little you can’t be trusted with much. That’s still true in the business world and it’s also true in God’s kingdom.

Jesus was referring to two kinds of treasure—spiritual treasure and material treasure. He was making the point that honesty in dealing with material things qualifies a person to handle spiritual things. It really doesn’t matter if we’re dealing with spiritual concerns or material things; what really matters is our character. When we are faithful with little things He will trust us with larger things.

It might be easy for us to think that an issue is so small we don’t need to pay careful attention to how we handle it. We tend to measure the importance of concerns by whether they are large or small. God looks at our heart in everything we do. When we are faithful with the small responsibilities we have been given He will trust us with the things we regard as important. In both large and small things God is looking for us to display honest behavior. Nothing is too small for us to handle with integrity.