As Seen on TV

God is not human, that he should lie, not a human being, that he should change his mind. Does he speak and then not act? Does he promise and not fulfill?

-- Numbers 23:19

Still have a few Christmas gift purchases to cross off your list?

You're not alone. In fact, a survey from the National Retail Federation reveals that nearly 30% of shoppers are waiting because their friends and family haven't given them enough ideas about what they want. Over 20% are waiting for the best deals on holiday merchandise. Meanwhile, another 20% admit to procrastination.

If you're completely out of ideas for what to buy that special someone, how about one of those As Seen On TV products? For example, Flex Seal is the revolutionary spray that's guaranteed to make your gutters watertight. And if you're looking for more ways to add bacon to your diet, the Perfect Bacon Bowl is just the ticket.

As Seen On TV merchandise makes the perfect gift because everyone wants easy solutions to common problems. And who can blame them considering all of those late-night infomercials that promise to make their cares disappear for an amazing $19.99 (plus shipping and handling)? Of course, you tend to get what you pay for. And the reality rarely lives up to the hype.

The adage still applies: If it sounds too good to be true, it probably is. But don't get too discouraged if your Q-Ray ionized bracelet doesn't re-magnetize your nervous system and bring you back to perfect health. There really IS a life-changing solution that exceeds all human expectations. God's plan for salvation will remove the ugliest, hard-to-remove sins from anyone's soul. What's more, the price is right: It's FREE to anyone who asks in faith.

It's also the answer to a problem that's as old as mankind. The first few pages of the Bible tell us how sin and death entered the human experience when Adam and Eve disobeyed God. The first man and woman were then exiled from their perfect existence. And ever since, we've all fallen far short of our Maker's perfect standards and are unworthy of approaching him through our own good deeds. So what's the result?

"The wages of the righteous is life," we read in Proverbs, "but the earnings of the wicked are sin and death.

What's even worse is that this death isn't spiritual or symbolic. It's a literal, eternal existence in hell with no hope of escape. But the choice is ours. If we refuse to follow God during our lifetime on Earth, he won't force us. But that also means we won't be with him after we die. And then it's forever too late.

To the rescue comes perhaps the most famous passage of the Bible, John 3:16:

"For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life."

It sounds so easy--and like an As Seen On TV product--perhaps too good to be true. But these simple words summarize God's perfect solution for delivering us from an eternity in hell and replacing it with a joyful existence with him. The cost for offering it to us was more than we could ever cover on our own. But through the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ, the price was forever paid. It means salvation is just a prayer away. And for once, it's a promise that lives up to the hype.