Not Too Good To Be True

“Send in $500 and we’ll give you this prayer towel that will cure you of all your illnesses.”  Okay, so maybe I’m exaggerating a bit, but I bet you’ve all heard similar outrageous claims.  It’s amazing how many “too good to be true” offers there are out there.  Take the following actual claims as evidence.

1. Listerine can prevent and cure colds and sore throats.
2. The Q-Ray Bracelet provides immediate and significant pain relief from arthritis and other chronic conditions.
3. Kellogg’s Rice Krispies Cereal helps support your child’s immunity.
4. Dr. Koch’s Cure-All could cure practically “all human ills, including tuberculosis” and even cancer.
5. Regular use of Nivea My Silhouette! Skin Cream significantly reduces consumers’ body size.
6. Reebok Easy Tone Shoes strengthen and tone the muscles in your legs and thighs.

As I’m sure you’ve already figured out, all these claims were either proven to be false or removed by the producer as a result of legal or regulatory action.  But why do so many businesses make such outrageous claims when they know they are not true or cannot be proven?  It’s simple – making wild, unsubstantiated claims works.  It sells their products.

The reason their claims work is that they play on people’s fears, aspirations, and greed.  Nothing like good old-fashioned human vanity to turn us into suckers.  And if you think about, that type of marketing ploy is almost as old as humanity itself.  Playing on our vanity was essentially the game the serpent played in the Garden of Eden with Adam and Eve.  So as Solomon wrote, “There’s nothing new under the sun.”  (Ecclesiastes 1:9)

The important thing to remember is that consumers are not the only ones to give in to greed.  Businesses are often acting on greed as well.  Afterall, their goal when making their unbelievable claims is to rake in some quick, easy bucks.  So as a consumer, be very careful about trusting those “too good to be true” claims.  They usually are just that – too good to be true.

So with all the deception out there in the world, is there anyone you can trust?  Are there any claims that can be believed even if they do sound too good to be true?  The answer to both is a resounding yes!  And the reason why is simple. The one who is making the claim is not a con artist and not driven by greed.  Instead he is driven by passion – a passion to love the entire world.

So who is this person that we can trust?  And what claim does he make that we can bet is an absolutely sure thing?  Well, it is God, of course.  And the claim He makes is that once you are born again as His child, you will be His for eternity.

Now that is a startling claim.  Think about it for a moment.  Anyone who is a Christian will be His child forever!  There is nothing that you, me, or anyone else can do to change that.  And unlike those businesses that falsely guarantee their product for a lifetime, God’s promise really is a guarantee that will last for a lifetime, and it’s a lifetime that will never end.  Who wouldn’t want that?

So how can we know that God’s promise is believable?  There are several ways.  First, being a child of God means that you have the life of Christ in you.  And guess how long his life lasts?  That’s right, forever!  Listen to what John says about this.  “God has given us eternal life, and this life is in his Son.”  (1 John 5:11)  And as John states repeatedly in his gospel, those who believe in Jesus receive eternal life.  (John 3:16, 4:14, 6:47)

If the life we receive is eternal, then how long will it last?  Until we commit too many sins?  Until we commit some really bad sin?  Until some time has gone by and we still haven’t produced much fruit in our lives?  There are some Christians who believe all this to be true, but if it were, it would be making a mockery of three things – God’s promise, what Jesus accomplished on the cross, and the word “eternal.”  If God has promised the gift of eternal life to all who believe in Jesus (Romans 6:23) and eternal means, well, eternal, then how can it possibly be temporary?  To be a temporary thing would mean that Jesus’ death on the cross did not achieve total forgiveness of our sins and complete victory over the power of sin.  

A second reason we can know that God’s promise of eternal life is true is that He guarantees it.  Once we believe and are born again, we receive the Holy Spirit, and the Holy Spirit is the guarantee of eternal life.  As Paul explains, “And you also were included in Christ when you heard the message of truth, the gospel of your salvation. When you believed, you were marked in him with a seal, the promised Holy Spirit, who is a deposit guaranteeing our inheritance until the redemption of those who are God’s possession—to the praise of his glory.”  (Ephesians 1:13-14)

How’s that for a guarantee?  If you believe in Jesus, you have received the Holy Spirit and he will never leave you.  (John 14:16)  And as we saw last week, one of the gifts he gives to God’s children is life.  So if you have Christ’s life and you have the Holy Spirit, you are guaranteed to be God’s child forever.

 A third reason we can know that God’s promise is true is that God said it is and He never lies.  (Hebrews 6:18, Numbers 23:19)  It is just simply not in His nature.  He is holy and lying is impossible for Him.  

So if God can’t lie and He says that we will be His children for eternity, then that is a promise that you can take to the bank.  Unlike Listerine or Reebok, God’s claim is not too good to be true.  It is true!  It’s as true as anything can ever be.  You have the life of Christ and you have the Holy Spirit.  You can never lose either one.  There is no guarantee in this world that can compare to that.  So don’t go through life like a doubting Thomas, worrying that your next sin might cause God to finally reject you.  He won’t.  Jesus has already taken your sins away.  You are God’s and you will be for eternity.  That’s how passionately He loves you.  So take heart, brothers and sisters, and walk confidently with the Lord.