Packaged sin

I happened upon this SinsTV YouTube channel last week (thanks to YouTube's algorithm).  I decided to view the video I've posted here and as a result, the content has continually reverberated through my brain during the course of the weekend.

To me, this video represents a motive that's no different than the following:  Being the proprietor of a local gas station that sells gas out front, but once you're inside the building, everything from that point points toward the ginormous "Beer Cave" (walk-in booze cooler) on the back wall.

The point here is this.  What's the most effective means to hide ugly, destructive truths?  

Package it as something else entirely.

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We have a neighbor who's a graphic designer who specializes in designing packaging for restaurants.  Back in the day, restaurants used a standardized package family across the board.  These were akin to simple grocery bags that were either white or brown in color.  

Chick-Fil-A restaurant was one of the first (like McDonald's) to go all out on food packaging.  Regarding the former, the fried chicken sandwich package is an actual AL foil bag that's designed to be neatly folded on one end (or at least it was for decades and decades).  It's a brilliantly simple solution that's a joy to unfurl prior to consuming your high carb, sugar, fat, sodium fried chicken sandwich.  

McDonald's packaging is even more over the top.  Perhaps you'll recall their McDLT hamburger package. 

And I must admit, I was one of the first in line for this very average tasting yet cleverly packaged McDonald's hamburger back in the '80s.

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So what influence exactly does packaging have on us as consumers?

First impressions mean the world to us as westerners.  Hence, we work extra hard for curb appeal all around.  In line with that is our hyper reliance on what we see with our own two eyes relative to placing value on someone or something.  The Bible dismisses this MO and instead focuses on God's deftness at measuring the worth of a man via his heart.

Of course, this is where we fall flat as consumers.  For we are sheep.  And sheep are low intelligence herding animals.  Therefore, we're ripe for being deceived time and time again.

Many people believe women are more susceptible to these packaged deceptions than men.  I don't believe that's necessarily the case, but I do believe women are more emotional than we are.  And that can drive them moreso towards groupthink especially if negative feelings are involved.

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The Old Testament details Abraham obeying God's command whilst circumcising everyone within his household as a sign of God's covenant to him and his people.  This was a visual reminder of whom they were as God's children, and it served to instantly demarcate this group of elect from everyone else on planet Earth.

Fast forward to the book of Romans where the apostle Paul divulges the internal circumcision of the heart, a New Testament revelation to those sophisticates there in Rome.  This was the bypass, so to speak, that took man's eyes out of the equation.  

You cannot rely on anyone but God through his Holy Spirit to best discern where, how, and in what capacity to invest your time and energy.  By reading his Word daily, the Holy Spirit instructs, challenges and convicts, taking where you're at into consideration along the way.  And this is our only hope as Christians relative to tuning our hearts correctly - in real time - towards our Heavenly Father and his wishes for us as men.   

For our world continues to slicken its pitches and brightens its packaging using all manner of tools at its disposal.  And it does so to seemingly homogenize its intent whilst pulling us farther and farther away from righteousness.  Therefore, be on your guard.