Website owner:  James Miller

  EVANGELICALS GUILTY OF THE SINS OF HIGH-PRESSURE SALESMANSHIP   4/00 


   What are my criticisms of evangelicalism?  One of them is that 
   I feel that evangelicals as a whole, in their enthusiasm to win 
   souls, tend to be guilty of the sins of high-pressure 
   salesmanship.  What do I mean?  What are the sins of high-
   pressure salesmanship?  Let us list them:

       exaggerated claims             deception 
       overstatement                  dishonesty
       oversimplification             lying 
       hype                            
       misrepresentation

   The Christian must, above all else, be an honest man.  He must 
   be always honest and truthful in his statements and claims, 
   never misrepresenting.  When someone makes the claim that 
   becoming a Christian is simply a matter of accepting a free 
   gift, just a matter of agreeing to accept something, that you 
   just accept Christ and God does the rest, he is oversimplifing 
   and misrepresenting. 

   The evangelical is trying to "sell" his beliefs and doctrines 
   to others, sell "the plan of salvation" to others, and in doing 
   so, he tends to use the same techniques and practices as the 
   high-pressure salesman.  That bothers me.  And when one starts 
   making exaggerated, overstated, deceptive claims the one that 
   is apt to be the most deceived and "taken in" is himself.