When something looks too good to be true, it is.

God is the only exception I’ve found to this statement. His goodness is way beyond our comprehension, but he is truth, and he is real.

But that’s the only exception.

Advertisers hope that consumers are gullible.

Use this product, and you’ll be happy!

Take this pill and never have to visit a doctor again.

Grow hair in your bald spot, and women will flock to meet you.

Get free, unlimited international calls by dialing this number and listening for the prompt.

We’re besieged by commercials daily that promise attainable results upon purchase. Most have learned to block out ears during these ads, tear up the mailers, and say a firm “not interested” to those pesky sales calls.

But what if it’s a Trojan Horse? What if what they’re offering you the very thing you’ve dreamed about. Have you fallen for this ploy? I’m embarrassed to admit that I have—more than once.

They have a scripted answer to the “What’s the catch?” question. And it sounds good.

They have a money answer that fits in legal loopholes of explanation. Tricky!

You don’t get something for nothing. You don’t achieve without doing the work. You don’t learn without studying. Nothing’s for free.

Except God.

“This is how much God loved the world: He gave his Son, his one and only Son. And this is why: so that no one need be destroyed; by believing in him, anyone can have a whole and lasting life. God didn’t go to all the trouble of sending his Son merely to point an accusing finger, telling the world how bad it was. He came to help, to put the world right again. Anyone who trusts in him is acquitted; anyone who refuses to trust him has long since been under the death sentence without knowing it. And why? Because of that person’s failure to believe in the one-of-a-kind Son of God when introduced to him.”

John 3:16-18 (MSG)