Have I got an offer for you...if you act now...operators are standing by...only pay shipping and handling
So in the mail last week I got, and you probably did too, a credit card application. This one said I was one of the select few to get this offer and I knew it had to be true because the application was addressed to Ashley Crouse or current resident. It said I could get up to a $5000 credit limit (that would buy a lot of bacon) and enjoy financial freedom with this card. I could even design my card to make it more personal. That was just the good stuff on the envelope and I knew that there had to more good stuff awaiting inside. Most of the time I do like everyone else and rip those offers into
hundreds of pieces before tossing it to the trash. For some reason I decided to look into this offer. Not that I had any plans of accepting it but I was curious what kind of credit card would be offered to anybody who happened to have a mailbox. So I read the information that came with the application and was very impressed. All I had to do to "qualify" to submit my application was to have a valid address which I did because that is how I got this application. The other part was to have an income. It must have been my lucky day because I have one of them too. So I was "qualified" to submit my information. It said for more details to visit their website so I did.
This is where the rest of the story was found. You know, the small print. There was a disclaimer on the online application that stated not every who applied would receive the $5000 credit limit and some may not qualify for any. So being "qualified" to submit my information didn't mean I was guaranteed to get a credit card from this outstanding company. It took a while but I finally found the terms of this credit card. I am sorry I didn't write down the company name because I am sure everyone will want one of these cards when I reveal the terms. Don't worry I am sure they will send another application to the whole United States soon. Here are the terms. If approved and before you could use the card there was a $95.00 application fee. Don't worry (that was the exact words they used) this was a one time only fee. The annual fee was $100 and would be conveniently (again their word) charged to your card so that you could pay for it by making their low monthly minimal payments. In order to show their appreciation for you opening a card they would give you 30 days interest free.
Now I am no math wizard and I had the grades to prove it. I am also not a financial master mind and I have a wife that reminds me of that. But I can plug in some numbers and figure a few things out. That is when I found out how good of an offer this company was offering. If you paid the minimal payment of $20 on the $100 annual fee the first month that would leave you a balance of $80 to which the interest would be applied to the next month. At 37% interest on the balance you would have $29.60 added to your account. The next month's minimal payment of $20 wouldn't even cover the interest. So your new balance after making a payment would be $89.60 to which the interest would be applied to the next month. So the next month you will add $33.15 to your balance. If you continue to make the minimal payments you could actually max out the card without ever making a purchase. This is a great offer, for the company. So with a smile on my face I ripped the application to shreds and put it into the trash. Once again a too good to be true offer was too good to be true.
We live in a world of too good to be true offers. It is not just true with credit cards, slashed below dealer cost car sales, limited time offers and 10 minute exercise programs but it is also true with sin. The world tells us that because sin is accepted there is no harm in doing it. It implies that since everybody is doing it and nobody seems to be suffering then we can get away with it. It boldly says that sin is just a word the church uses to try to control you or to keep you from having fun. All those are lies straight from Satan's mouth. The trouble is Christians allow those lies to enter into their ears and to float around in their mind long enough to believe them. This is true not only for sins of commission (sins we commit) but also for sins of omission (As James puts it, to know to do good and not is a sin.) and even something that has developed more and more lately sins of permission (giving support or permission to others to sin).
Now many of you believe I am talking about homosexuality because it is the hot topic at the moment and I am but not exclusively. The list of sins that Satan has convinced Christians to accept and to participate in is a much bigger list and the list was around for many years before homosexuality became the hot topic. Sins such as lies, cheating, skipping church, not reading the Bible, not witnessing and using language that would make grandma blush have been on that list for many, many years. I could continue to name sins but you get the picture. We as Christians have come to accept sin in general after all we are forgiven. That's not how it works and deep down we know it. Just because we don't see immediate punishment doesn't mean it isn't coming.
7 Do not be deceived: God is not mocked, for whatever one sows, that will he also reap. 8 For the one who sows to his own flesh will from the flesh reap corruption, but the one who sows to the Spirit will from the Spirit reap eternal life.
Galatians 6:7-8 (ESV)
It is like when I first got my driver's license I was supposed to put money in my savings account each week so that I would have enough to pay my insurance every three months. One week I was low on money so I went to the bank just to see if I could get money out with the intention of
putting it back the next week. My mom's name was on the account also so I didn't know if I could do it without her knowing. I didn't want her to know because I knew I would get in trouble if she did. So I nervously tried it once. I got out $20 and she didn't find out. I was nervous for a few days but she never found out so I thought I had gotten away with it. I was so convinced that I had gotten away with it I didn't put the money back into the savings account. After all she didn't know it was missing. So a few weeks later I needed money for something I wanted to buy but I didn't have it. Can you guess what I did? Yep, it was back to the back with a little less nerves this time. In fact after a few more times I wasn't nervous at all anymore. That changed one afternoon. It was time for my parents to pay their car insurance. So Mom went to the bank to get my part out. There was a problem. There wasn't that much in it. In fact when they pulled up the balance there was very little in it. Mom inquired about how that could happen. They pulled up all of my withdrawals to show her how it happened. I tried to blame the bank. I told my parents they shouldn't have let me have the money without Mom knowing it. That didn't fly. My sins had found me out and it was time to face the consequences.
Christians, we will face the consequences of our sin. It doesn't matter if we label it as a small sin or a life style we will face the consequences. It doesn't matter if it is so accepted by society that nobody considers it a sin anymore. God still does and we will face consequences. We may not face them immediately but they will come. So instead of believing Satan's lie that we got away with it we need to believe God's promise that we will face the consequences. Yes, we have forgiveness but that doesn't take away the consequences. My parents forgave me but I still had to pay them back. It was easier than I thought though. I guess since I was grounded and couldn't go anywhere I didn't spend as much money so I had extra to pay them back with. So Christians remember sin is still sin even if the world says it isn't or there is no instance consequence.
Parting Thought: If your doing a good job of being in the Secret Service division of God's Army then you are not doing a good job of being in God's Army.
This is where the rest of the story was found. You know, the small print. There was a disclaimer on the online application that stated not every who applied would receive the $5000 credit limit and some may not qualify for any. So being "qualified" to submit my information didn't mean I was guaranteed to get a credit card from this outstanding company. It took a while but I finally found the terms of this credit card. I am sorry I didn't write down the company name because I am sure everyone will want one of these cards when I reveal the terms. Don't worry I am sure they will send another application to the whole United States soon. Here are the terms. If approved and before you could use the card there was a $95.00 application fee. Don't worry (that was the exact words they used) this was a one time only fee. The annual fee was $100 and would be conveniently (again their word) charged to your card so that you could pay for it by making their low monthly minimal payments. In order to show their appreciation for you opening a card they would give you 30 days interest free.
Now I am no math wizard and I had the grades to prove it. I am also not a financial master mind and I have a wife that reminds me of that. But I can plug in some numbers and figure a few things out. That is when I found out how good of an offer this company was offering. If you paid the minimal payment of $20 on the $100 annual fee the first month that would leave you a balance of $80 to which the interest would be applied to the next month. At 37% interest on the balance you would have $29.60 added to your account. The next month's minimal payment of $20 wouldn't even cover the interest. So your new balance after making a payment would be $89.60 to which the interest would be applied to the next month. So the next month you will add $33.15 to your balance. If you continue to make the minimal payments you could actually max out the card without ever making a purchase. This is a great offer, for the company. So with a smile on my face I ripped the application to shreds and put it into the trash. Once again a too good to be true offer was too good to be true.
We live in a world of too good to be true offers. It is not just true with credit cards, slashed below dealer cost car sales, limited time offers and 10 minute exercise programs but it is also true with sin. The world tells us that because sin is accepted there is no harm in doing it. It implies that since everybody is doing it and nobody seems to be suffering then we can get away with it. It boldly says that sin is just a word the church uses to try to control you or to keep you from having fun. All those are lies straight from Satan's mouth. The trouble is Christians allow those lies to enter into their ears and to float around in their mind long enough to believe them. This is true not only for sins of commission (sins we commit) but also for sins of omission (As James puts it, to know to do good and not is a sin.) and even something that has developed more and more lately sins of permission (giving support or permission to others to sin).
Now many of you believe I am talking about homosexuality because it is the hot topic at the moment and I am but not exclusively. The list of sins that Satan has convinced Christians to accept and to participate in is a much bigger list and the list was around for many years before homosexuality became the hot topic. Sins such as lies, cheating, skipping church, not reading the Bible, not witnessing and using language that would make grandma blush have been on that list for many, many years. I could continue to name sins but you get the picture. We as Christians have come to accept sin in general after all we are forgiven. That's not how it works and deep down we know it. Just because we don't see immediate punishment doesn't mean it isn't coming.
7 Do not be deceived: God is not mocked, for whatever one sows, that will he also reap. 8 For the one who sows to his own flesh will from the flesh reap corruption, but the one who sows to the Spirit will from the Spirit reap eternal life.
Galatians 6:7-8 (ESV)
It is like when I first got my driver's license I was supposed to put money in my savings account each week so that I would have enough to pay my insurance every three months. One week I was low on money so I went to the bank just to see if I could get money out with the intention of
Christians, we will face the consequences of our sin. It doesn't matter if we label it as a small sin or a life style we will face the consequences. It doesn't matter if it is so accepted by society that nobody considers it a sin anymore. God still does and we will face consequences. We may not face them immediately but they will come. So instead of believing Satan's lie that we got away with it we need to believe God's promise that we will face the consequences. Yes, we have forgiveness but that doesn't take away the consequences. My parents forgave me but I still had to pay them back. It was easier than I thought though. I guess since I was grounded and couldn't go anywhere I didn't spend as much money so I had extra to pay them back with. So Christians remember sin is still sin even if the world says it isn't or there is no instance consequence.
Parting Thought: If your doing a good job of being in the Secret Service division of God's Army then you are not doing a good job of being in God's Army.
Comments
Post a Comment