All the Small Things

You know, at Sunday service last week I was talking about the “right side-up” kingdom and how the kingdom of God is really so very different than the world. You can check that message out at churchinthecity.org if you want.

But one of the ways that God’s kingdom differs greatly is equating importance to size.

It’s of course no surprise that as people living in America we are immersed in a world promoting the idea that the bigger is what? Better. the _____better, bigger is more impressive, the bigger something is the more significance it has.

But, This idea isn’t just found in the world, it can easily creep into minds of hearts of believers....Our church has to have 4,000 members to be significant, we have to have the biggest and best worship teams, ministries, outreaches, discipleship programs, bigger buildings, etc.

At the individual level, some of us spend time wishing we had bigger ministries bigger influence, bigger callings, bigger giftings. Sometimes we ourselves can fall into the trap of thinging bigger is better.

But the kingdom of God is not like this. It’s unlike anything else.

Again, if you or me were God (which clearly we are not) but if we were....we would likely not think to provide salvation to mankind in the form of God incarnate in a manger as a little baby into a small county and into an even smaller pretty insignificant town...Bethleham...at night...I mean Bethlehem wasn’t exactly the New York City of it’s time. Most likely, if a person would plan it out, they’d arrive down on some gaudy staircase displaying might and grander and power and crazy lightship and sounds happening complete sensory overload and command attention in the middle of the day when everyone could see it in a major metropolis.

But God, didn’t.

He came in a small way, in a humble way. To a humble small people.

In the kingdom of God all the small things matter.

Lets think of just some of the references in the scriptures that drive this idea home...

Small things matter in the bible

David - He was the youngest smallest of his brothers...even his own dad didn’t include him in the original lineup of sons in front of Samuel....

Mustard seed Matthew 13:31–32 “He told them another parable: “The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed, which a man took and planted in his field. Though it is the smallest of all seeds, yet when it grows, it is the largest of garden plants and becomes a tree, so that the birds come and perch in its branches.””

Faithful in little will be given much....

Don’t despise the day of what???—-small beginnings

Zechariah 4:10 ““Who dares despise the day of small things, since the seven eyes of the Lord that range throughout the earth will rejoice when they see the chosen capstone in the hand of Zerubbabel?””

Luke 12:32 ““Do not be afraid, little flock, for your Father has been pleased to give you the kingdom.”

The widows mite...

Therefore I must decrease so that he would increase - John the baptist

Who is the greatest in the kingdom....?

Matthew 18:1–4 “At that time the disciples came to Jesus and asked, “Who, then, is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven?” He called a little child to him, and placed the child among them. And he said: “Truly I tell you, unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven. Therefore, whoever takes the lowly position of this child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven.”

Still small voice Gods voice - Elijah hears Gods voice as a whisper

The Savior of the world himself coming as a baby

In the kingdom and in scriptures small things are a big deal.

We really have to reject this idea that big extravengent things matter but small things don’t.

People are so prone to competing with each other comparing ourselves to others. We think about how much others have or how big their ministry is our house is or impact....but that not what God wants us to concern our selves with.

The kingdom often comes in seed form

Yeshua came as a small baby. There are the parables of the mustard seed which is tiny,

Small things are important.

To some, even the fruit of the Spirt may seen small and insignificant.

Love joy peace patience kindness goodness gentleness faithfulnessand self control...they may not be flashy or in your face or post worthy on social media but they demonstrate God.

The real issue is faithfulness not amount.

The issue is stewardship of what is front of you, now how much of it there is. Luke 16:10 ““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.”

God sees your faithfulness. God knows your faithfulness. No little thing you do for Him and others will ever go overlooked or unnoticed by Him. It may not be seen by people, but everything is seen by God.

He also knows if we’ve been unfaithful with the little things.

He’s looking for us to faithfully steward little things.

Luke 21:1–4 “As Jesus looked up, he saw the rich putting their gifts into the temple treasury. He also saw a poor widow put in two very small copper coins. “Truly I tell you,” he said, “this poor widow has put in more than all the others. All these people gave their gifts out of their wealth; but she out of her poverty put in all she had to live on.””

You know, I think some people play the lottery because they think if they hit it big and win all this money then they’ll be able to finally be able to give to others and live generously. That attitude and mindset is so far off from what scriptures teach.

It’s our faithfulness even in the little things, maybe even especially in the little things, that matters.

James 3:5 “Likewise, the tongue is a small part of the body, but it makes great boasts. Consider what a great forest is set on fire by a small spark.”

How faithful are we with this little part of our body, our tongue? Think about how impactful this little muscle can be. It can be used to build up through words of encouragement and comfort and support, or it can be used to tear down and destroy.

We need to be faithful with the little things.

Faithful stewardship leads to growth

Being faithful with little things in our lives leads to continuing growth.

In God’s kingdom, Yeshua compares it to a mustard seed which can be as small as a grain of salt. But then what happens to it? It grows and grows into something much bigger.

We read in the gospels that Yeshua Himself grew in wisdom and in stature and in favor with God and people.

He was faithful with His life. He was modeling how we can be faithful over time with little things and we grow.

Again, faithfulness, steadiness, consistency, not just starting well but finishing well, these things aren’t flashy but they are about taking care of small things well and consistently.

The Domino Effect

In God’s kingdom, this force of leaven or growth starts with small things but has a way to exponentially grow like a domino effect

Domino Video first 1:10

https://youtu.be/y97rBdSYbkg?si=EX6LAWfN6i-ng3eK

Each domino can knock down one 1 1/2 times it’s size.

What God is with us in the small things, big things happen.

The enemy wants to stop the domino effect from happening. We want to faithfully do the little things and God will use them nightly.

Small things are not small things at all

So, we realize that in the scriptures, these apparently small things are really not as small as we think they are. They mean a lot to God.

Here’s a list of practical little things we can do constantly that make a big difference to God

Smile at others, be polite kind and respectful

Hold the door for others

Give up your seat for someone else

Let people merge in front of you in traffic

Give people genuine complements

Offer to run an errand for someone else

Make a meal for someone

Pay for someones meal or coffee

Call someone just to check in on them

Leave a generous tip when eating out

Do the small things at your job well

Donate to a food bank

Serve at church

Volunteer

Pick up liter and throw it away

Spend a few min. every morning checking in with God

Spend a few min every night connecting with God

There's billions of things we can do that are seemingly small but when we commit them to the Lord and faithfully do them we are showing God that we are trustworthy and we honor little things.

You may never go to Asia and preach to thousands of people but you can share your faith with your neighbor. You can ask how they’re doing and offer to pray for them.

In the kingdom, our weakness is strength. So our age our upbringing our money or social status doesn’t minimize the impact we can have.

Small things are easily overlooked, but may we be a people that intentionally seek them out and do them well.

So, what is in front of you? Think about it. Write it down. What “small” things are in your life to steward and how can you do that better.