I read this article on MSN News today about an apparent bribery attempt by Cash4Gold. I have no opinion either way about whether Cash4Gold tried to bribe this guy not to say bad things about them but it got me thinking….
Let’s lay out the scenario.
As I’m writing this, the cost of gold is $917 per ounce. NINE HUNDRED AND SEVENTEEN DOLLARS PER OUNCE!!!!
What Cash4Gold and many other such companies do is wave the high price of gold in front of people like a carrot and seduce them into parting with their old jewelery.
Think about it. That solid gold chain you never wear must weigh an ounce or two – and at $900+ per ounce, that’s a lot of money you’ve got sitting in a drawer.
Here’s the catch though. The $917 is only the price for pure gold (24Karat, I believe). For lower quality gold, as your jewelery almost certainly is, the price is a lot less. You’d also be surprised how little your jewelery weighs!
So you send your jewelery off and they contact you and offer, you let’s say, $100 for the lot. Your heart sinks but they already have your gold and, hey, it’s a hundred dollars that you didn’t have previously so you reluctantly accept.
In general it’s not a good deal. Part of the value in your gold is in the craftsmanship and the design that it is in. Cash4Gold don’t take that into account, they just pay you for the cost of the raw material, minus a little bit to allow them to make a profit. Very often they will sell it without melting it down because they recognise that it has more value than just a lump of gold.
So what does this all have to do with a ‘religious’ blog? Well, let’s see what they are doing:
Cash4Gold and their competitors know you have something of value – your jewelery. They want what you have and so they try to buy it from you cheaply.
They want something of value – but don’t want to pay the full price.
How much does that sound like what people do with salvation?
People want something of value. They want entrance to heaven. A place in heaven is valuable. VERY valuable. Eternal peace, security, happiness, connection with God…. what more valuable thing is there?
So people try to buy themselves a place in heaven – cheaply.
Just like Cash4Gold don’t want to pay the full price for your gold, most people don’t want to pay the full price for eternal peace. So they look to any religion which offers them what they want at a price they are willing to pay, or they come to Christ for salvation but don’t want to pay the full price to him.
You know what I’m talking about. They want fire insurance but they don’t want the ‘burden’ of a relationship with God. They are willing to ‘say a prayer of salvation’ but they are not willing for their lives to be changed.
Cash4Gold may be able to buy gold cheaply from unsuspecting people but God will not be fooled.
I believe we need to wake up and start telling people that there is no cheap way into heaven.
Jesus paid the price, so the only way is through Him and he will not be fooled by words which are not backed up by repentant hearts that are willing to be refined, changed and purified.
What do you think? Have you seen people trying to get into heaven cheaply? Is anyone telling them that there is more to salvation than just a prayer? Is anyone teaching them that they must repent? Or are we allowing them to think that saying a few words is all it takes? Are we letting people think they can get into heaven cheaply?
The true gold of a relationship with Christ will not burn up in the flames like the cash of worldly living.
Good point, Peter. Well said, and an interesting comparison.
And lest we forget – the majority of churches today “sell” a gospel that promotes this notion of cheapness.
The path really is narrow, and few find it.
As much as I love evangelism and seeing a soul saved, I must confess I have difficulty with the easy “drive up to the window and just say cheese, bum-de-bah,” you are saved’ CHRISTIANITY.
The missing ingredient is the deep regret and conviction for our sins, THAT PLACE OF GENUINE TRAVAIL OF EXPOSED WICKED SOUL BEFORE THE POWERFUL ILLUMINATION OF THE HOLY SPIRIT!
I worked at the state fair in Montana for many summers where we had a booth set up to have the basic salvation message preached. To our credit, we made sure of several points before we who lead anyone through the “sinners prayer.”
The point where we had people so often stop at was that of turning away from there sin! Almost all wanted to believe on Jesus Christ and almost none were wiling to turn away from what the Bible calls sin.
So a church full of people who believe in Jesus Christ and do not want to turn from sin is what? Answer that question and I think we have just defined a major reason why a large section of the American Church is compromised, materialistic, shallow, and inept.
Did they mention how much they’re offering for a gold tooth grill? Just wondering…
I read a quote in one of Keller’s books from a woman that was a new Christian. She stated that she was hesitant to be saved because once she truly understood the sacrifice Jesus made for her, she knew that she could not reasonably refuse to do whatever God asked of her. May we never become so wrapped up in the community of the church that we forget our personal relationship with the Savior, and all that entails.
I was totally into the reading of this one. I read it a few times letting it really sink in. Very well written.
Thanks for all the comments thus far guys.
You guys are awesome.
It is important that we remember the true cost, the full cost, of the price that was paid for us and that we don’t ever try to cheapen that by giving anything but our all to Him!
I go back and forth on this issue. On the one hand salvation is the FREE GIFT of God (Rom 6:23). And it isn’t something that we earn or deserve (Eph. 2:8,9). But all we need to do to get it is to believe (Rom. 10:9). So I can see how people could get the impression that it is easy, or trivial. I mean really, all I have to do to go to heaven is believe. But unlike things of this world, I don’t think that because it is free that it is devalued. What Jesus did to earn it for us builds the value into it. He did the work. He took what was required of us by God, and did it Himself. So when you say that people want something of value but don’t want to pay full price, that is exactly how God set the system up. Because for us to pay the full price of our sin would be eternal seperation from God. I do agree whole heartedly though that there is no cheap way to heaven. What Christ did on the cross was the direct opposite of cheap.
You’re right John, the price was very high and was paid by Christ, it was a price higher than we could ever pay.
When I say that people want salvation but don’t want to pay the full price, I believe that they are prepared to read Romans 10:9 and stop where you did. What I believe is the issue here is that they miss the part about “in your heart”. They are happy to believe on some mental level but don’t want to let it affect their heart. They want salvation without life change.
What thinkest thou?
We may actually be arguing the same point, but our words are muddying things up.
I guess my point is that we need Christianity to be free, because that is what is unique about it. All other religions require you to clean up your act, and make yourself holy enough to get to God. In essence they requrie us to reach up to God, but in Christianity God is reaching down to us to restore us. I think the point you were getting at is that, our response to this restoration, should be a life lived with gratitued, thankfuly willing to do whatever God wants of us. Sadly we don’t always live this way. If this was your point then I fully agree.
Have you heard that song Kindess by Chris Tomlin?
Kind of sums it up for me…
Free salvation is the beginning, and a wonderful beginning I might add. Jesus said though to go and make disciples of all nations, that involves relationship, discipline, and surrender. The Church has to present lives in the process of change and offer to walk with everyone to this new life.
The sad reality though is that some will never want to walk out any more than a superficial Christianity because the “wheat and the tares” are growing together. All we can do is be faithful with what we have, showing the power of a transformed life and the beauty of relationship with our King. We do need to spend a little more time stirring the pot and challenging one another so that we can’t live by the same old easy answers anymore.
Okay, I’m writing too much! Good post though, Peter.
As I re-read my comment, I just wanted to be clear that I don’t believe “once a superficial, always a superficial.” We can pray, give, love, and support these and allow God to break down the walls and we are responsible to do just that because we are to love as Jesus loved (loves) us. okay, feel better now…
Knew that it was too good to be true this whole cash4gold thing.
But enjoyed reading this one, guess I can relate to this at times.