Wisdom Principle - Materiality

24 When thou comest into thy neighbour’s vineyard, then thou mayest eat grapes thy fill at thine own pleasure; but thou shalt not put any in thy vessel.
25 When thou comest into the standing corn of thy neighbour, then thou mayest pluck the ears with thine hand; but thou shalt not move a sickle unto thy neighbour’s standing corn.
Deu 23:24-25

Wisdom, the power of right judgment, is our topic. We are seeking out some of the principles of wisdom that are taught in the Word of God. The principle today is one that is recognized in the financial world. It is the principle of materiality.

Observe how the principle of mercy we have already studied comes into play with this principle. In this passage the LORD tells His people that as they are traveling down the road, if they are hungry, it is permissible for them to go into an Israelite's field and take some produce to ease their hunger on the spot. The amount of grapes or grain needed to satiate a man's hunger is extremely small compared to a large field or vineyard.

While used slightly differently, a bank works on the same principle. At the end of the day each teller does not have to balance to the exact penny. Each institution has its own standard and no bank, with the thousands of dollars flowing through its teller windows each day, expects 100% accuracy. The cost of balancing to that level would be more costly than the effort is worth, so they set the figure at, say, $5 and anything below that they don't worry about. It is am immaterial loss, part of the cost of doing business.

Life is too short to be concerned about every little detail. The LORD expects us to be careful and diligent to a reasonable extent, and then says, don't worry about the small and the insignificant aspects. I'll take care of those for you.