Lord’s Library contributor Jared Helms offers views from a branch on the topic of lies Christians should not buy, with commentary and key Bible verses. Check out Jared’s YouTube channel and two blogs: A Light in the Darkness and Blind Faith Examples. Lord’s Library’s Ministry Leaders Series is a collection of contributed articles written by ministry leaders on key Christian topics.
With the perspective of the abiding grace of Christ, we survey life through the lens of faith seeking after truth. See Ecclesiastes 1:1-2: “The words of the Preacher, the son of David, king in Jerusalem. Vanity of vanities, saith the Preacher, vanity of vanities; all is vanity.”
Each and every day we are bombarded by promises of better health, greater security, an easier life, of happiness. They are all the same in the end, a promise of something we desperately want and do not seem to have. Today the promises come at us through the airwaves, over the internet, along our daily commute, and in the mailbox. We can’t seem to get away from these offers to give us something wonderful; so long as we “act now!”
It is obvious that we are being baited, and it appears equally obvious that it is big corporations fixing that bait in order to get some of our hard-earned money. Behind all these little promises is one great big promise of fulfillment through anything and everything: save one thing in particular. It is the message behind the messages, a unifying theme that points us towards a life philosophy of acquisition. The danger is that this philosophy has spread to all of life.
We become nothing more than consumers looking for the best deals, our hope in the next purchase, our salvation sought through finding the magic product.
Lies Christians Should Not Buy
With so much of this philosophy pushed at us each day it begins to become ordinary, like the air we breathe without considering. We start to accept that this is just a fact of life, a necessary philosophy. It doesn’t matter if it is true, it is the way things work. Well, the thing is that: this philosophy does not work. Think about it, we have decades of reports on the current consumer culture, and none of them back up the promises of the advertisements. Look at your own life, how long has the glow of the latest purchase lasted?
Are we not being strung along from fix to fix like addicts?
I am not the first to ask this question, and I am sure I will not be the last; but here is a follow-up question to which I have an answer not so often heard. Who is pulling the strings? I posit to you (place within your thoughts), that it is Satan, the ruler of the world who is pulling the string of greed. See 2 Corinthians 4:4: “In whom the god of this world hath blinded the minds of them which believe not, lest the light of the glorious gospel of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine unto them.”
Ayn Rand and others have thought that greed is good, but the Bible begs to differ. I will leave this to your investigation.
What I wish to suggest is a broader principle that whatever is not of God is of Satan, and that whatever is of Satan is not good for us. After, the Spirit of Truth in the inerrant scriptures tells us, in 1 Peter 5:8 and John 10:10:
- 1 Peter 5:8: “And there are three that bear witness in earth, the Spirit, and the water, and the blood: and these three agree in one.”
- John 10:10: “The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy: I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly.”
Many times, we are willing participants in our own destruction. We judge things by our senses and intuitions and easily fall prey to suggestions of the Serpent bidding us to eat the fruit that looks good and seems desirable to improve our condition. If we slow down enough to really think what God has and has not said we can avoid a lot of suffering.
There is little harm in buying most products, but buying into promises can be extremely harmful. I am not calling for a war on advertisement (though I do feel it should be reformed), understanding that companies need to make potential customers aware of what they have to offer. If we go off on a crusade against marketing, or worse still against marketers, we have played into the enemy’s hand just as well as if we kept chasing after everything we see advertised.
I am calling on Christians to guard their thoughts when we watch commercials or read ads. Are we looking for a product that can help us, or one that can save us? Are we looking to meet a little need, satisfy a little want, or are we out for the key to happiness?
Of course, it is easy to give the right answer, but what we really need is the true answer. The truth is what sets us free from captivity to lie behind the lies and even the lie behind the lesser truths. It is the truth Solomon was seeking when he penned Ecclesiastes. You see they had ads back then just like we do today, and Solomon had the resources to thoroughly investigate each one.
King Solomon went back to school and learned all he could learn, but there was no end to it. He tried out every pleasure under the sun, but they all faded. He built up a splendid kingdom, but it wouldn’t stand the test of time. He worked, he played, he rested, and he studied; he did it all and in the end, none of it delivered on the promises made.
We can tell ourselves that we haven’t tried “this” yet, so it might really be “the one.” God through Solomon has imparted greater wisdom to us. If only we will believe it. So, back to my earlier observation about the ruler of this world and his ultimate goal; why would we put our faith in what he says? Because it feels (insert your favorite positive word here).
You see, we have reason enough to reject the lie, and faithfully assert the truth, but faith requires an act of conscious will in our thoughts. We must continually assert the true thought that is present in Ecclesiastes 12:13: “Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter: Fear God, and keep his commandments: for this is the whole duty of man.”
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