Buying a used, I mean pre-owned car used to be a gamble, but now with
reporting agencies like CARFAX, you can get a warm and fuzzy feeling that your
new used car is reasonably safe and worth the money. You know its history, and
feel better driving off the lot with it firm in hand. But one fallacy of such
reports are they are just that, reports. They are telling you what someone has
told them, and when was the last time you ever admitted all the faults your car
you had for sale or trade in? But dealers have a much better source, that can
give you a better piece of mind for your purchase. At Mercedes Benz we called
it a VMI, Vehicle Master Inquiry, and it was a history of the car, including
build sheet info, and all warranty work ever performed. You had true factory
info, for anything done under warranty had been reported, believe me no dealer
was going to do any work for free. It showed build date, all options, and any
work done from the time it was received at the port. It was surprising how many
things were damaged and repaired before your used car was shipped to the dealer
and put up for sale. And how many things may have been repaired because your
car sat so long before it had its first buyer, repairing lot rot. All here for
the service department to access, not the customer. And it was a game changer
more than once when a customer had been taken in by a pretty face thinking he
got a great deal.
When cars are damaged during floods, tornados, or other storms, it is noted
and the warranty can be voided. I can remember some sharp buyer coming in with
a new E320, bought in Vegas for cheap, new he thought, and needing some warranty
work. When checking the VMI we found it had been in a flood, and had no
warranty. When the customer threatened to sue, I opened up the trunk and showed
him the water line, where the flood had crested. Which helped explain his
complaint of the AC smelling moldy, and some electrical problems. Taken in by a
pretty face, and greed getting the best of him, he had bought a car from a
flood, with no warranty, and that we would only try to repair with a $2000 up
front deposit. And we were the bad guys....
Another man came in bragging about the great deal he got on a V-12 S
Class. Bought online, he had checked the CARFAX, no accidents reported, so he
bought it sight unseen, and had it trucked to him. Expecting to drive it and
show it off, its first ride was to the dealer on another flat bed because it
wouldn’t start. Again the VMI showed no warranty, even though it had very few
miles and was the current year. It had been a buy back, had no warranty, and
its history showed electrical problems. Mercedes Benz had invested thousands in
warranty repairs, the car still wouldn’t run as designed, so they had to buy it
back. And this poor guy had just bought a $100k lemon, less than a year old
with no warranty. He should have kept his Toyota. Oh what a feeling! So
floods, buy backs, rodent damage, stupidity, and other non-warranted items
brought many a new owner nothing but distress. And heartache. Only the factory
knows the real story, only the one who created the product knows its true
history. We are still in a buyer beware market, and if he deal sounds too good
to be true, it probably is. And not necessarily on CARFAX.
When shopping for God, we all make useless stops along the way. Some get
caught up in cults, who take them in when religion won’t. Some seek drugs as a
release, only to find ruin and despair. Some try to buy their way into heaven,
working hard doing good and seeking recognition. Some just go to church, while
others have a positive mental attitude. Some save the whales why aborting
babies. Some fall for a feel good theology, based on taking scripture out of
context. Some just believe the lie because of convenience. But we all seek
God, he has put a hole in our hearts that only he can see, and only he can fill,
so we seek, many times not knowing it is God we are seeking. Our seeking is for
us to be better, not to worship, but to be worshipped. And many today in and
outside of the church go on book tours telling their way, watching the
unsuspecting fall prey to their stories. They are like the used car, no one
really checks into their past, they just hear what they want to hear, and leave
filled up, but soon are hungry again. They want tangible proof, if they can see
it, touch it, or feel it, they buy into it. And then along comes Jesus, and
when the truth that can set them free confronts them, they deny his truth. Free
salvation....sounds too good. Forgiveness, you don’t know what I have done.
Besides we all know someone who was taken in by some evangelist, not me. And so
they seek, and do not find the only one who can set them free. Whose VMI is
truth. Who was perfect, and proves it. He who was without sin that became sin
for us seems too good to be true. So they buy into religion, or some other lie,
and on the day of judgment find they have no warranty. “But I joined the
church. I went to Israel. I served on the church board. I rebuked devils, fed
the poor, and even had a Jesus sticker on my car.” And yet we find Jesus
talking to those in Matthew 25 telling them to “be gone, for I never knew
you.” “But God” they will argue. In vain. They are like the great deal
someone thought they got, taken in by a pretty face of promises, never knowing
what was under the hood. Never checking out the truth only found in scripture.
They were deceived, and lost all the time. Of course this cold never happen to
you....And no CARFAX of their lives can stand up to the scrutiny of a loving
God. Who sent his son so we can be reunited with him. And our names written in
the book of life...with all sin not recorded, as if it never existed. Forgiven,
and only through Jesus is this available.
Is your name recorded in the book of life? It can only be found there when
written by the hand of God. “I think so, I once went forward at a Billy Graham
Crusade,” if any doubt, turn to Jesus today. Confess your sins, you can only
repent when you finally see them as sin, and turn to Christ. God will change
you from the inside out, not just put a Tijuana tune up on you. Your
countenance will change because the holy spirit lives in you, and even your
harshest critics will see a difference. You get a life time warranty with Jesus,
but no papers, as he writes it on your heart so you always have him with you to
be reminded. No club, cult, fraternity, social club, or church can offer you
that. Only Jesus. And while there, check out his VMI. It is pages long, and
found in chapter and verse. We call it the Bible, and it tells all about him
from the beginning into eternity. With much more to learn as your relationship
with him grows. John even wrote that if all the stories about him were written,
no library could hold them. And you can be part of that library! Starting
right now!
So like buying a used car, do not be taken in by a pretty face or false
tales when seeking God either. Go for the truth, Jesus. As fresh and new as he
was in the beginning, and is today, and will be forever. Let his love cover all
your sin, let him forgive you, so you can forgive yourself and others. And when
you stand before God some day as we all will, your VMI will be clean. Perfect.
And your entry into heaven will be worth the wait. But only in Jesus....the
only true God, the creator of you, who knows what you need when you need it.
With factory parts, and no appointment needed. Now what will it take to put you
together with this man? Only about 2000 years old, some scars....Jesus Christ,
a lot more than just a pretty face. And an empty grave to prove it. Inquire at
the master today.
love with compassion,
Mike
matthew25biker.blogspot.com