If you’re a fan of reality TV, you’ve seen “Undercover Boss.” Workers meet a new employee, and eventually are shocked to learn that the “regular guy” they’ve been rubbing elbows with is actually one calling all the shots.
The show has a great story line. CEO adopts new identity, complete with a great disguise; then shows up incognito and gets to see the good, the bad and the ugly parts of their business. Sometimes they find diamonds in the rough, at other times they discover problem employees that get fired on national television. Finally the CEO reveals their true identity, and then hands out penalties and rewards.
And that, believe it or not, brings us to today’s verse, which says:
IF YOU ARE FAITHFUL IN THE LITTLE THINGS, YOU WILL BE FAITHFUL IN THE LARGE ONES
Faithfulness and trust are wound together. People who are faithful can be trusted. Character is developed and demonstrated in the small areas. Faithfulness is always measured by an external standard. For the believer in Jesus, that standard is the bible. The challenge is proper interpretation. It’s far too easy to change the rules and re-interpret them according to our own warped standards. Before you know it, you’ve twisted things inside-out and come up with the exact opposite of what God communicated.
The television show Undercover Boss gives vivid demonstrations of people warping the rules in ways the boss never intended. In one episode a front desk worker at a fitness gym literally yelled at a customer as they were passing by, “HEY !!! Your payment is way overdue!” When her rudeness continued with both customers and co-workers, she was let go. When the Undercover Boss saw the general manager of a fast-food place threaten to beat one of the employees for not working hard enough, the CEO took the GM outside, revealed his true identity, and fired him on the spot.
But one also gets to see the flip side of the coin, as well. In one episode, Mitch Modell, CEO of Modell’s Sporting Goods is getting “trained” by an employee named Angel, a hard worker that gives every job her best effort. Angel knows that anyone entering a minimum wage job at Modell’s age must be facing some tough times, so she encourages him to keep trying and not give up. She reveals that she lives with her children in a local homeless shelter. Before she got this job, Angel says, they struggled to find enough food to eat and regularly slept at bus stops. Angel tells Modell that jobs like this can help both of them turn things around; that with faith and hard work life will get better for him.
Angel’s faithfulness with the little things opens the door for her to be faithful in the large ones. At the end of the episode, when Mitch Modell reveals his true identity, Angel is rewarded beyond anything she could have imagined. First, Modell praises her hard work, amazing attitude and caring heart. He says her performance is above and beyond any expectations, and so her reward will be, too. Second, Angel gets a promotion and a $14,000 raise. Finally, Modell hands her a check for a quarter of a million dollars, taxes pre-paid, and tells her to go buy a house and get her family out of the homeless shelter.
IF YOU ARE FAITHFUL IN THE LITTLE THINGS, YOU WILL BE FAITHFUL IN THE LARGE ONES
You’ve got to admit, Jesus was the ultimate undercover boss. No one thought that the babe in the manger was actually the creator of the universe. Talk about an impressive disguise !! Jesus understands our weakness. He’s walked the path we are walking. He stands with us as one who has been tempted in every way we are, yet without sin. He understands because He has walked among us in human flesh.
And He gave us an example to follow. He healed the sick, raised the dead, cast out demons and told us that the Kingdom of Heaven is at hand. Then He sent His disciples out to do the same things He had been doing. He sent His Holy Spirit to empower and enable us to keep healing the sick, raising the dead, casting out demons and preaching that the Kingdom of Heaven is at hand. The job of advancing the Kingdom of Heaven is ours today.
For you and I, this is not dress rehearsal. The program is real. You may think you’re the boss, but the end of the program is coming soon; and the CEO is going to return, sit upon His throne and reveal His true identity — KING OF KINGS and LORD OF LORDS. And we’ll all stand in judgement. Some folks will say, “Wait, what? HE’S THE BOSS?” and get “fired,” but it will be with real, eternal fire. Others will get rewarded for their faithful actions. The decision of regret or reward will be based upon who we decided to serve as the real boss – Him or us.
And you get to decide that today.
