THE DANGER OF FALSE ADVERTISEMENT
MARK 7:5-9, 20-23 (v. 1-23)
As I grow and progress in my walk with the Lord, I’ve have uncovered and discovered some startling news concerning the church... I have found there to be some inconsistencies in the body of Christ… I have found there to be some disparity in our walk… And in light of these various situations, I have found the church to be constantly on trial! We are constantly being analyzed, dissected, and thoroughly investigated…! And as the investigation grows bigger and the digging gets deeper, we find that many of the claims we make don’t seem to be true at all!
Contrary to what others may see, some of our lifestyles are quite contradictory to what we sing, pray, and preach about…! For when the world looks at us, they see the hostility and hatred that is often portrayed in the structure of God’s church. And as a result they begin to question our commitment and sincerity to Christ… They see us acting certain ways, on certain days, with various personalities. Therefore they feel that they indeed do have the right to put us under the scope of scrutiny and the eye of examination… And as they analyze the findings of their inquisition, they are discovering that the church is indeed guilty of a crime… The crime of false advertisement...! But I hear the Spirit of the Lord telling us “If you can’t deliver, then don’t advertise!”
I have discovered that life comes down to one big advertisement. And whether we believe it or not, we tune in on advertisements. We tune in so much to the point that we learn the jingles without even realizing it… Advertisements become so much a part of us that we remember them for years to come. Advertising is so big that the Federal Government established the Better Business Bureau and the Federal Trade Commission to monitor these advertisements. Therefore, when someone advertises something they can’t deliver, they have to take it off the air…! How many times have you saw something advertised in the newspaper and went to the store only to find out that they didn’t actually have what you were looking for…? (Wal-Mart TV) You found that they advertised, but they couldn’t deliver…! Yes… Life boils down to one big advertisement…Consequently; there are a whole lot of advertisers in the church…!
But unfortunately many of them are falsely advertising, trying to fool everybody… They’re advertising one thing, and delivering another… But I want to let you know the Lord is saying in this text, “If you can’t deliver, then don’t advertise…!”
You see I’ve found out that there are some potential hazards in false advertisement… I’ve found out that there is a high risk of danger in false advertisement… When you false advertise, what you’re really doing is leading people astray… You are causing others to invest in (or take stock in) something that is not real… You’re selling ice cream cones in the middle of a blizzard… You’re offering swampland in the desert… You’re creating a façade… You’re perpetrating a fraud… In other words, you’re ‘faking the funk…’ And because of false advertising, many are literally bringing embarrassment upon the body of Christ…! (Why is it so embarrassing…?) False advertising destroys your testimony… It kills your witness… And in effect, has the proclivity and the propensity of making our efforts of bringing others into the saving knowledge of Jesus Christ null and void… For I have discovered that in the advent of false advertising our…
I. CONVERSATION BECOMES CONTAMINATED
There are many who say that they have been born again, that they know the Lord in the pardon of their sins… They advertise it on Sunday… But don’t deliver on Monday…! They are falsely advertising… In the songs they sing... For just like you can tell a lie, you can sing a lie! Many folks sing songs that they don’t even believe in… Many sing, “Oh, for a thousand tongues to sing, my great redeemer praise…” That sounds good, but too many of us won’t even use the one tongue that God gave us… False Advertising…! I don’t mean to pick on anybody but one of the biggest lies ever sung in the church is the song that talks about “Climbing up the rough side of the mountain…” (It’s often herald as a gospel classic!) God ain’t told you to climb no mountain…!
But He said (Mk 11:23) that if you would have the faith the size of a mustard seed, you can tell that mountain to move out of your way…! In fact He said, “Whosoever tells the mountain to be removed and not doubt in his heart, but believe that those things which he says shall come to pass, he will have whatever he says…!”
We’re false advertising… In our conversation with others… We talk about how “God will supply our every need, according to His riches in glory…” But we spend all of our time trying to get rich quick… Playing the lottery… Sneaking down to the casino… Instead of standing on the Word…! Look at what Jesus said to the Pharisees… “You’re nothing but a bunch of hypocrites… Isaiah spoke well of you a long time ago… You’re nothing but a bunch of hypocrites. You honor Me with your lips, but your heart is far from Me…!”
In other words, talk is cheap… We’ve got to learn how to honor God with our heart… You see it’s what’s in the heart that really matters… “As water reflects a face, so a man’s heart reflects the man (Prov 27:19).” Jesus goes on to explain that it’s “What comes from within a man that defiles him… (v 20-23)” What I’m trying to say is that God is looking for a people who will serve Him in Spirit and in Truth and not just lip service… He’s looking for a people who are willing to give more than just lip service… He’s looking for a people who will stand up and be a living witness of His Goodness…He’s looking for a people who are “not ashamed of the Gospel of Jesus Christ, because they know that it is the power of God unto Salvation for everyone that believes…” And what He’s really telling us today is that…“If you can’t deliver…Then don’t advertise…!”
There’s a danger in false advertising… Because not only does our Conversation Become Contaminated, but I’ve found that our…
II. WITNESS BECOMES WARPED
The text says that the Pharisees and the scribes followed Jesus around everywhere he went. They were in the crowd… They were in the midst of it all… Don’t fool yourself, but everyone that comes to church is not here for the same reasons. Everybody that comes through these doors is not here to praise the Lord…
Many come as the Pharisees and scribes did, to find fault. They couldn’t find any fault in Jesus, so they started looking at the disciples. Likewise, when folks want to find fault with you, they’ll start watching you… How you walk… How you treat your neighbor… How you respect the man of God…! Your witness (walk, way you carry yourself) goes on trial…
And when you mess up, they’re right there to point the finger at you…! These men came to Jesus and said, “Why are Your disciples eating without washing their hands…?” You see the Pharisees were trying to make something out of nothing… All in an effort to destroy the disciples’ witness… And I want to let know that the enemy will do anything he can to destroy your witness… That’s why you’ve got to watch the way you carry yourself…
One of the reasons we can’t get people to come to church anymore is because they see the people advertise one thing on Sunday, and do something else all week long… In other words, falsely advertising…!
They’ve heard too many choirs members lying on each other…
They see those same members fussing and fighting with one another… In other words, falsely advertising…!
They see the same members rushing out of the church to keep from speaking to one another…. They see the deacons praying melodious and soul stirring prayers, but they also heard the commotion before the devotion…. In other words, falsely advertising…!
Beloved, if you want the Lord to reign and rule in your life, you’ve got to be real in your walk… In your talk… In your lifestyle…It’s time that the Body of Christ come correct concerning the things of God… In other words, If you can’t deliver…Then don’t advertise…! You might have been getting by for a long time, but just because you’re getting by, doesn’t mean that you’ve gotten away…! Jesus said, “Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the Will of My Father in heaven.
Many will say to Me, ‘Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Your name, cast out demons in Your name, done many wonders in Your name?’ And then I will declare to them, I never knew you; depart from Me; you who practice lawlessness! (Mat 7:21-23)”
Empty words, and fancy deeds won’t get you in… For the Bible says that, “By grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves, it is the gift from God, not of works, lest anyone should boast…! (Eph 2:8-9)” You can’t earn it… It’s given to us through God’s Grace… But once you get it, you must conduct yourself in such way that you don’t bring dishonor to the Kingdom… You must conduct yourself in such way that you are a living example to others… You must conduct yourself in such way that others may desire to walk in His Goodness… To walk in His Ways…You’ve got to make sure that you have a good witness… “If you can’t deliver… Then don’t advertise…!” Because not only does false advertising Contaminate Our Conversation… Not only does it Warp Our Witness… But perhaps the greatest danger of false advertising is that our…
III. SERVICE BECOMES SUBSTANDARD
You’ve got to be true in your service to the Lord… So your best bet is this… If you can’t deliver…Then don’t advertise…! For the Apostle Paul tells us that we are to “Present ourselves as a living sacrifice holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service… (Rom 12:1)” “Well preacher, Why is it my reasonable service…?” (I’m glad you asked)… ^
Because Paul continues on over in 1Cor 6:19-20, where he tells us that, “Our body is the temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you, which ye have of God, and ye are not your own? For you are bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God’s!”
In other words, when God asks that you give your body and your all to Him in service, it makes sense…
Simply because when you give yourself in service to God, you’re giving Him back what He already owns!!!! And by giving back to Him what He already owns, your service is raised o another level…! By giving back to Him what He already owns, you demonstrate the fact that you understand what true servanthood is…!
When you give back to Him what He already owns, you have taken the first step in becoming a true disciple… A true follower of Christ…! For to follow Him means to walk in His way… It means to follow His example… And that’s good news…!
You see, when Jesus walked this earth, He set the example that all should follow… But even before He set the example for us to follow…The Bible gives us several accounts of those who came before Him… Advertising the Coming… And the Goodness of the Lord…!
For it was Isaiah himself who advertised over the 7th chapter and the 14th verse: “Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a Son, and shall call His name Immanuel…”
Then over in chapter 9, verse 6; he further advertises by letting us know: “For unto us a Child is born, unto us a Son is given; And the government shall be upon His shoulder. And His name will be called Wonderful, Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. Of the increase of His government and peace there will be no end…”
Luke told me (1:26-33) that it was, “In the sixth month that the angel Gabriel was sent by God to a city of Galilee named Nazareth… To a virgin named was Mary. And having come in, the angel said to her, ‘Rejoice, highly favored one, the Lord is with you; blessed are you among women!’
But she was troubled at his saying, and considered what manner of greeting this was... Then the angel said to her, ‘Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. And behold you will conceive in your womb and bring forth a Son, and shall call His name Jesus…! He will be great, and will be called the Son of the Highest; and the Lord God will give Him the throne of His father David, And He will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of His kingdom there will be no end…! ”But of all the advertising campaigns to come forth, I believe it was John the Baptist who said it best…
For the Bible says that while he was baptizing in the Jordan River, John saw Jesus coming towards him and said, “Behold! The Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world…! I saw the Spirit descending from heaven like a dove, and He remained upon Him…”
He says, “I did not know Him, but He who sent me to baptize with water said to me: ‘Upon whom you see the Spirit descending and remaining on Him, this is He who baptizes with the Holy Spirit…’ (John 1:29-33)…”
But after Isaiah, Luke and John advertised… It was time for the Lord to Deliver…! He started by fulfilling the prophecy of His birth… By preaching and teaching in the synagogues with power and authority… By healing the sick… Raising the dead… Feeding the hungry… Walking on water…Turning water into wine… And all manner of miracles, signs and wonders…
Jesus was the perfect advertisement for sin-sick and sin-craved world… And when He gave His life for all mankind, it was the perfect example of One who did indeed Deliver what He advertised…
For when sin had infiltrated, infected, and indicted us… There was only one cure for this sin-sick world… That someone who was without sin would give his life, for the sake of others. And that someone was Jesus…!
He died that we might have eternal life…! And one day He’s coming back to receive His own… I all I want to know is will you be ready when He comes…?
