The Most Misunderstood Thing Jesus Said About Money

Recently, I heard a story about a young man who went skiing in Colorado for the first time. His friends, fueled by booze and bravado, convinced him to start his skiing journey on a massive Olympic aerial ramp—you know, the kind where professionals are launched 60 feet into the air to perform flips and twists before landing.

With the chant “Go big or go home!” ringing in his ears—and eventually coming out of his own mouth—he put on skis for the first time. He raced down the hill, hit the ramp, launched into the air… and landed on his head. He broke nearly every bone in his body. It was a miracle he survived.

Moral of the story? If you can’t do the small thing, you’re not ready for the big thing.

We get this idea in real life—start small, grow in skill—but we forget it in our spiritual life. Jesus actually lays this out plainly in Luke 16. He tells a parable about a dishonest manager who was being fired for wasting money.

Luke 16:1-12 NLT - Jesus told this story to his disciples: “There was a certain rich man who had a manager handling his affairs. One day a report came that the manager was wasting his employer’s money. So the employer called him in and said, ‘What’s this I hear about you? Get your report in order, because you are going to be fired.’ “The manager thought to himself, ‘Now what? My boss has fired me. I don’t have the strength to dig ditches, and I’m too proud to beg. Ah, I know how to ensure that I’ll have plenty of friends who will give me a home when I am fired.’ “So he invited each person who owed money to his employer to come and discuss the situation. He asked the first one, ‘How much do you owe him?’ The man replied, ‘I owe him 800 gallons of olive oil.’ So the manager told him, ‘Take the bill and quickly change it to 400 gallons.’ “‘And how much do you owe my employer?’ he asked the next man. ‘I owe him 1,000 bushels of wheat,’ was the reply. ‘Here,’ the manager said, ‘take the bill and change it to 800 bushels. ’ “The rich man had to admire the dishonest rascal for being so shrewd. And it is true that the children of this world are more shrewd in dealing with the world around them than are the children of the light. Here’s the lesson: Use your worldly resources to benefit others and make friends. Then, when your possessions are gone, they will welcome you to an eternal home. “If you are faithful in little things, you will be faithful in large ones. But if you are dishonest in little things, you won’t be honest with greater responsibilities. And if you are untrustworthy about worldly wealth, who will trust you with the true riches of heaven? And if you are not faithful with other people’s things, why should you be trusted with things of your own?

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In a scramble to prepare for life after losing his job, the man went to his master’s debtors and made deals, cutting their debts significantly.

Surprisingly, Jesus says the master commended this shrewdness—not the dishonesty, but the strategic thinking. The key lesson? Luke 16:10 says, “If you are faithful in little things, you will be faithful in large ones.”

Faith Starts with Finances

So what are the “little things” Jesus refers to? Money.

Money is the preschool of faith. If you can't trust God with your finances, you won’t be able to trust Him with anything greater. But here's the kicker—for most Christians, money is not a "little thing." It's the big thing calling all the shots.

Every decision—where to live, what job to take, what dream to pursue—gets filtered through one question: “How much does it cost?”

You Can’t Serve Two Masters

Jesus continues in verse 13: “No one can serve two masters… You cannot serve God and mammon.” Mammon isn't just money. It’s a spirit—a dominating force that demands loyalty and devotion.

It doesn’t matter if you’re rich or poor. Both can serve mammon. The key sign? If money is making your decisions, you’re serving mammon.

When God is your master, money becomes irrelevant to decision-making. He already promised to provide. He owns everything. The only question that matters is: “What does God want?”

The Vision Will Cost More Than We Currently Have

Right now, at our church, we believe God has called us to build a 1,200-seat auditorium that declares, “God is a God of no limits.” We don’t have the money. Not even close. But we’re moving forward in faith.

If we let money make the decision, we’d build a small, uninspiring, budget-friendly metal building. But that’s not what God asked for.

God's End-Time Wealth Transfer

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So what are we doing? We’re meeting with the city, interviewing architects, and taking step after step—because we have the money for that step. And as we go, the rest will come.

Faith Walks While Finances Follow

We don’t wait for money to obey God. We act in faith, and money shows up along the way. Jesus said God “richly provides all we need for our enjoyment.”

Yes, enjoyment. He’s a good Father who gives good gifts. He’s not a slave master. He wants you to live a fruitful, blessed life—not scraping by, not settling for “just enough.”

Stop Worrying About Needs

Jesus told us to take on the mindset of a bird. Birds don’t stress over sowing, reaping, or storing—they fly around, trusting that their needs will be met.

If you’re spending your whole life trying to meet your own needs, you’re doing something Jesus never told you to do. Either you’re taking care of your needs, or God is. But not both.

God has always met my needs. Even when it looked like the money would run out—it didn’t. Every time. Every single time.

Who's Making Your Decisions?

Let me ask you some hard questions:

• Is money the reason you took that job?

• Is it why you moved to that city?

• Is it the reason you’re not tithing?

• Is it why you’re saving instead of giving?

If money is your deciding factor, then mammon is your master. And it's time to break free.

Right now, you can make a bold declaration: “Money no longer gets a seat at the board meeting of my decisions.” From this day forward, the only question is: “What does God want?”

When you live like this, your life changes. Your stress changes. Your finances change. Your vision expands.

A Word from the Lord

The Spirit of the Lord says: “Some of you have bags with holes—bags of provision leaking through disbelief. But I’m sewing them up right now. And when the blessing comes, don’t store it up in fear. Use it boldly. Don’t apologize for my blessing—use it as a megaphone for my goodness.”

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You can’t be a candidate for God’s wealth transfer if you’re still serving mammon. When that money comes, mammon will knock again. Decide now that the answer is no. Forever.

What If You Were a Billionaire?

What would you do if you had $1 billion? That’s 1,000 millions. Plan now. Don’t wait. Ask God today: “What do you want me to give?”

Whether He says zero or a million, just do what He says. Nothing more, nothing less. He’s not after your money—He’s after your heart, your faith, your trust.

Let’s graduate from preschool, church. Let’s move into the greater works Jesus said we would do.