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Money Look-A-Like Gospel Tracks

25 June 2006 5 Comments

After writing the previous post about the U.S. Secret Service seizing approximately 9,000 Gospel Tracks because it was being viewed as counterfeiting money, I really starting to think in further detail about the entire idea about the money look-a-like gospel tracks.

I remember when I was in Pentecostalism how some of the people would go out to a restraunt on Sunday evening after church for desert. At the table, someone would stop and ask the waitress if they were a Christian. The response of the waitress (yes or no) would actually determine if she got a tip or not.

If she was not a Christian, she would actually get no tip from some at the table because tipping would be ’supporting the devil’s child’. I actually saw one time where someone did leave a tip because they received good service and one of the people who followed the ‘no-tip for non-Christians’ rule went back and took the tips off the table. When confronted they tried to justify it with “If you are going to give your money away wastefully and are going to give an account to God for this, then give it to the blessed one to get blessed some more” Bizarre. Justify stealing from someone in the name of ‘the wealth of the wicked are laid up for the just’.

If she was a Christian, then they would ask her denomination and if her denomination was not of likemindedness, some at the table would leave less than the standard 18% gratuity implying that if she was Pentecostal that she could have gotten more tips. A friend of mine who is also now ex-Pentecostal told me that people from his church would slightly rebuke the waitress for not standing up to the boss and stating that she needed to be in God’s (Giiiii-aaahhhhdddddd’s) house on Sunday.

Instead of giving the ‘non-Christian’ money as a tip, many of these people carried around the money look-a-like gospel track that had the church’s name, address, and phone number ink stamped on the back and leave them instead. I could imagine the heartbreak of the hard working waitress as she saw what she thought was a five dollar bill to pick it up and realize that it was fake and had the church’s name on the back. I really wonder if the first resonse was actually a rhetorical question asking:

Which is more fake, the fake money look-a-like gospel track or the fake hypocritical attitude of those ‘church folks’?

Not only are these types of Gospel tracks popular to leave in a restraunt instead of a real tip, many use these tracks while doing street evangelism. What is the real point and motive here with a fake money look-a-like gospel track? The intent is to try to “bait’ someone into stopping and talking to you by giving them something that appears to look like real money and them pull the ’switch’ by holding them via a conversation to where the Gospel could be presented.

Is this “Lying” in a poor attempt to witness about ‘The Way, The Truth, and The Life’?
Is this preying on ‘the root of all evil’ (aka flesh in human nature) in order to try to talk about ‘righetousness’?

Not once did we see Jesus nor the Apostles later on use deceptive tactics to preach the true Gospel. We never saw actions of the flesh ever used to bring forth opportunities for spiritual regeneration. We saw the repeating of testimony of how God and the Holy Spirit came down to change the flesh and how the same God could come in and change them. Never did we see bait of fake money, a drawing for Super Bowl tickets, etc. followed by the switch of the Gospel.

The Gospel call was direct, straightforward and did not have any catches, fine print, nor hidden fees. The cost was laid out in advance to where one know ahead of time what being a Christian was going to require from a person.

Do you want counterfeit money or real money? Do you want a fake imposter Jesus or do you want the real Jesus? You can not use the fake, tricked, decieved, etc. to testify of the truth, sovereign, provident, etc found in Christ. Since God is truth, truth is the testimony that stands firm on it’s own foundation and does not need any sideshows, infomercials, nor ‘get saved quick’ schemes to enhance the salvation experience.

i want a real Jesus, and the only way to win others to follow a real Jesus can only be done by testifying of the goodness, mercy, etc. of the real Jesus and also by example and action of a real Jesus living out through us in real life when real people have real problems that need real supernatural solutions.

5 Comments »

  • Ken said:

    I’ve heard for years that “the after-church crowd” on Sundays are lousy tippers. It seems to be common knowledge among waiters & waitresses that Christians don’t tip, especially on Sundays. Oh, they’ll “witness”, but actually put money where their mouth is?

    Near 30 years ago, I worked at the home office of a restaurant chain, doing payrolls among other things. Here’s the skinny: Waitresses are paid *BELOW* minimum wage, due to a “Tip Credit” expecting them to make it up in tips. They’re not making much to start with, they depend on tips to boost their income above minimum wage, and under such circumstances getting tipped a Fake-Money Gospel Tract becomes a cruel joke.

    # 27 June 2006 at 12:35 pm
  • Triple_P said:

    Funny how Jesus drew the people in by providing for their immediate needs …

    -Peter with his net-breaking fish catch
    -Peter with the gold coin in the fish’s mouth
    -Food for the five thousand
    -Wine at the Cana wedding
    -Healing for the sick

    … then after meeting their IMMEDIATE needs, Jesus proceeded to minister to their SPIRITUAL needs.

    However, the CHURCH refuses to provide immediate needs, tells people “be warmed and filled” and then thinks they’re going to get an audience after ignoring the everyday needs of everyday people.

    How dumb is THAT?

    # 28 June 2006 at 12:00 am
  • Troy said:

    I had a friend that was a waitress, and she (and most of the other wait staff at that restaraunt/bar) avoided working Sundays for that very reason; you made less money because the “church crowd” tipped poorly. How sad that the weekend drunks are a better crowd then the Christians. Ever since then I have been a very generous tipper.

    Likewise, when I worked at Taco Bell, there was a group that came in on Wednesdays, that I eventually figured out was a youth group from a local church (a bunch of teeneagers hanging out with a 20-something adult male in a suit). I don’t remember them ever cleaning up after themselves; left their trays, food wrappers, and cups all over the tables they used. Another bad witness.

    # 4 August 2006 at 1:32 pm
  • Ron said:

    not sure how someone leaves penticostalism.. one should graduate into charismatic and then become a full christian… one should never confuse a true christian with the church people of any denomination… many claim to believe in the 10 commandments, but few follow them, including keeping the sabbath holy (which isnt sunday). a real christian knows a workman is worthy of thier hire.. as for the standard tip being 18%, that is news to me, most consider it to be 10-15%.. i have never heard of it higher than that until now.

    # 4 August 2006 at 1:38 pm
  • Ty said:

    I’ve seen these “Million Dollar Bills” that are used to open a conversation about the Gospel. They are obviously phony from the start, but they are also instantly amusing to all who see them. I have also seen the folded, pretty accurate, 3/4-length $20 dollar bill gospel tracts that are purposefully placed in a matter to look like a real bill and definitely disappoint upon their discovery as fake. You can bet the $20 imposter won’t probably soften somebody’s heart for the Gospel, and will get passed on, one way or another, to discourage others.

    Some tracts are blessed by the Lord, some are probably misguided through satan.

    As far as a group of “Christians” (false converts?) denying somebody their just pay for a hard job well done, that is just a shame, and embarrassing to born-again Christians. If anything, they should give a little more than what’s expected, as well as maybe some words of encouragement to hear more of God’s Word…

    I don’t think I’ve left many messy tables after me, but from now on, maybe I’ll clean a little more than necessary, tip a little more, and then leave something regarding God’s Grace. Amen!

    # 17 August 2006 at 3:26 pm