CAN GOD TRUST YOU WITH WHAT HE HAS GIVEN YOU?

BIBLE PASSAGE:
“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)

MEDITATION:
“He cannot be trusted”
“You can’t believe a word she says”
These are phrases we have all heard too many times, haven’t we?
What causes others to say those things about a person? It’s a result
of the reputation they have established, isn’t it?

The reputations we create are important, especially for Christians.
We can create negative reputations, but we can also create positive
ones. If we are dishonest, then people will say we can’t be trusted.
However, when we’re honest, others have confidence that we are
someone who can be a trusted friend of theirs.

Reputations are established in little things and grow with bigger things.
For instance, if someone loans us a dollar and we pay it back, they will
will be more likely to loan us more. If someone loans us a tool and we
not only return it, but it is in the same condition as it was when they
loaned it to us, then they will feel comfortable loaning us other tools.

When it comes to Christians, being trustworthy is important for many
reasons. For one, if we can be trusted, then people will be more receptive
to us when we share our faith with them. Unfortunately, some who claim
to be Christians have a ‘walk’ that doesn’t match their ‘talk’. When that
happens, they are building a reputation as someone who is untrustworthy.

Some claim to have a love for the Lord but spend very little time
with Him. Some avoid worshiping altogether, or they only worship
when they have nothing else to do. Worship serves as confirmation
of our faith and our commitment to following God’s will for our life.
    Therefore, since we are receiving a kingdom that
    cannot be shaken, let us be thankful, and so worship
    God acceptably with reverence and awe…
    (Hebrews 12:29)

Whether we like it or not, those who are lost observe us. They
may not say anything to us, but they may question the sincerity
of our faith. Consequently, our actions (or inactions) will affect
their opinion of us and our faith. If they can’t see that we are
worshippers of Jesus, then they could possibly be thinking,
    “Why should I believe what they say about their
      faith? I’m just as good as they are, and maybe
      better, because I worship, and they don’t”

There is another reason we need to be trusted is our relationship
with the Lord. When we receive salvation from God, He gives us
spiritual gifts to use in serving Him. If we fail to use His gift to us,
then we may lose it, and God will give it to someone who has proven
to be trustworthy with the gift He has given them.

Read Matthew 25:14-30.
We want to be the one who hears the Lord say,
    “Well done, good and faithful servant!”
and not the one who hears Him say,
    “You wicked, lazy servant!”

We may only receive one spiritual gift until we prove we can be
trusted to use it. But when God sees that we can be trusted to
use the gift He has given us, we may receive additional spiritual
gifts from Him.

How great would that be? When God gives us any additional
spiritual gifts, it confirms to us that we have proven ourselves
to be trustworthy in His eyes. And, as a result, we can blessed
even more as we serve Him in new ways.

We should remember that one of the weapons Satan will use
against us is creating a smug attitude about our religiosity.
If he can convince us that we are too righteous to have any
faults, then he has succeeded in causing us to believe we have
less need for the Lord than others.

He will also create in us a habit of justifying anything we do that
is not pleasing to the Lord. When he creates that type of attitude
in us, we will become critical of others, including our brothers and
sisters in Christ.

We can get an idea of Satan’s influence on us with these questions.
    – How often do I look for faults in others?
    – Do I look for opportunities to belittle others?
    – Do I think I have all the answers and reprove the opinions of others?
    – Do I have an arrogant attitude that
       causes me to be rude and inconsiderate to other people?
    – Do I consider myself to be ‘a cut above’ others
       (including my brothers and sisters in Christ)?
    – Do I struggle with considering others as my equal?

ACTION:
We should ask ourselves:
    – What type of reputation do I think I have established?
    – Would others agree with my assessment of myself?
    – If others observed my actions, would they know without
       a doubt that I have a fervent love for the Lord?
       Or, would they question my
       love for Him based on what they see in me?
    – Have I identified the spiritual gift
       the Lord gave me when I was saved?
    – Am I actively using my spiritual gift, or is it collecting dust?
    – Has God blessed me with additional spiritual gifts, or
       expanded the use of the one I have because He has
       considered me to be trustworthy?
    – Would I expect to hear the Lord say to me,
           “Well done good and faithful servant”
         or would He say to me,
           “You wicked, lazy servant”

Pray,
“Heavenly Father, thank You for wanting to include me in
Your earthly ministry. Make me aware of any of my actions
that cause others to view me as untrustworthy. Help me to
make whatever changes I need to make to ensure others will
know of my sincere love for You. Show me if I have fallen into
any of Satan’s traps of justifying anything I do (or don’t do),
that is really disobedience of Your commands. I pray that You
can trust me with a little, so that You can trust me with much.
When I am serving You, it is Your satisfaction with me, and
not the praise of men, that is important to me.”

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