Luke 5: 12-16 12 While Jesus was in one of the towns, a man came along who was covered with leprosy. When he saw Jesus, he fell with his face to the ground and begged him, “Lord, if you are willing, you can make me clean.” 13 Jesus reached out his hand and touched the man. “I am willing,” he said. “Be clean!” And immediately the leprosy left him. 14 Then Jesus ordered him, “Don’t tell anyone, but go, show yourself to the priest and offer the sacrifices that Moses commanded for your cleansing, as a testimony to them.” 15 Yet the news about him spread all the more, so that crowds of people came to hear him and to be healed of their sicknesses. 16 But Jesus often withdrew to lonely places and prayed.
Jesus clearly knew nothing about marketing or promotion. Look at the evidence. He obviously had a dynamite product (healing of sickness) an active and fervent following and a growing reputation but what does he do?
He tells the healed to go to the religious leaders of the day, pay the money that you’re supposed to pay for healing (Wow! What a racket, huh?! And we thought our healthcare system was wacky) and then lie to them that the system, their system, made him well. I’ve heard of reverse psychology and law of scarcity but this is ridiculous. I mean this guy says he knows Jesus has the power to make him clean if Jesus is only willing. You just don’t see that kind of faith in a process every day; in anything. If you think about it, Jesus’s product could have been something like salt.
Let’s say Jesus found/discovered salt and he gave some of it to someone and they said “Boy, this makes my fries taste fantastic! Thanks for being willing to give me some of this stuff!” Clearly a happy customer. But instead of telling him to tell all his friends or putting this customer on the commercial Jesus tells him to go to the pepper salesman and tell him thanks for making his fries taste so wonderful. Then, pay the pepper salesman for the pepper he didn’t give you and you didn’t use and don’t tell anyone about the salt. Crazy, right?
Also, in your spare time as the CEO of salt, (if you’re Jesus) you don’t plan your IPO for your company; strategize with your disciples how to build your brand or anything like that. No, you go away by yourself and pray.
This is obviously a recipe to kill any momentum you ever had for salt. In no time at all the memory, the benefits, the usefulness of salt will fade into oblivion and no one will remember what a fantastic thing it was or who you were, right?
Yep!
Obviously I’m being facetious with my little marketing story above. What has God been asking you to do that runs counter to what you think you should be doing though? Are you listening? I’m curious to hear your story if you would like to comment below.
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