Is It Too Good To Be True

We are bombarded by advertisements, commercials and infomercials. They come by way of mail, newspapers, text messages, email, radio and television.

We’ve all heard some pretty fantastic claims made for everything from capsules for memory enhancement, to weight loss drinks, to antiwrinkle cream.

Now if the products worked as advertised, wonderful. But is it too good to be true? Often it is too good to be true, and when we fall prey to a scam or make a bad purchase, we’ll agree with that conclusion.

A fellow was losing his hair so when the commercial for hair growth cream came on, he decided to give it a go. He was convinced by testimonies by users of the product, and was taken in by the claim, “It’s so good, that if it was any better, it would grow hair on a bowling ball.”

When it arrived, he hid it in his bowling ball bag to avoid teasing and ridicule by his wife. A week later, no new hair, not even peach fuzz, appeared on his head. He went bowling with his pals that night and was surprised when he took out his ball that it was hairier than an ape. Not what he had bargained for.

Satan makes all kinds of promises that are all half truths, misleading statements and complete lies. He promises what he cannot, and will not, deliver as when he tempted Jesus.

Consider his persuasiveness as a salesman: “Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. And after He had fasted forty days and forty nights, He then became hungry. And the tempter came and said to Him, ‘If You are the Son of God, command that these stones become bread.’ But He answered and said, ‘It is written, “Man shall not live on bread alone, but on every word that proceeds out of the mouth of God.’ Then the devil took Him into the holy city and had Him stand on the pinnacle of the temple, and said to Him, ‘If You are the Son of God, throw Yourself down; for it is written, “He will command His angels concerning You”; and “On their hands they will bear You up, so that You will not strike Your foot against a stone.” Jesus said to him, ‘On the other hand, it is written, “You shall not put the Lord your God to the test.” Again, the devil took Him to a very high mountain and showed Him all the kingdoms of the world and their glory; and he said to Him, ‘All these things I will give You, if You fall down and worship me.’ Then Jesus said to him, ‘Go, Satan! For it is written, “You shall worship the Lord your God, and serve Him only.”’ Then the devil left Him; and behold, angels came and began to minister to Him.” Matthew 4:1-11 (NASB).

It is evident that some claims or offers are too good to be true because:

I. THE PROMISE IS OFTEN BIGGER THAN THE PERFORMANCE:

A. Satan offered to give kingdoms in return for praise.

1. But, the kingdoms were not his to give, so his promise exceeded what he could provide.

2. He still promises what he cannot deliver.

3. That’s what you will discover if you buy what Satan is selling.

a. He promises freedom and we end up in bondage.

b. He promises joy and we end up in grief.

c. He promises kicks and we end up getting kicked in the gut.

d. He promises kingdoms and delivers ghettoes and slums.

e. He promises life and we get death.

f. He promises that we can have that extramarital fling with no consequences, but we will end up with a ruined marriage, a broken family, loss of innocence, guilt and shame.

B. Satan never fulfills his promises.

1. He is a liar from beginning to end; a scammer in every deal; a con man in every facet of his being.

2. You can be sure of this: you will get the opposite of what he offers.

C. The path is littered with broken hearts, ruined lives, wrecked potential, and the lost souls of those who believed Satan’s lies.

D. Don’t do business with Satan. His promises exceed his performance.

E. A bunch of years ago, at the state fair, we saw a demonstration of a stove top cleaner. The demonstrator had burner rings which were black with crud. With a small application of the product and a brief rubbing with a rag, she had those rings shining like new.

We bought a can and discovered that even with lavish application and vigorous scrubbing, the rings were as black and gukky as before. A new set of rings was less than half the price of the useless goop. The promise was far greater than the performance.