CLIF NOTES
Some people buy certain tennis shoes only because the shoes have a Checkmark emblem on them. Some ranchers only buy tractors that are green with a deer emblem on them. Nike and John Deere claim those emblems as their unique trademarks. However, some trademarks have become so well recognized, they are now used for every product of that type. Their unique product name has become generic.
Once upon a time, not every nose tissue was a kleenex, but they are now. Not all gelatin dessert was “Jello.” But, it is to every kid today. For some people a “coke” refers to any flavor of carbonated beverage. “Band-aid” was once a brand name. However, thanks to their success, every adhesive bandage is called a band-aid today. The Trademark Association calls this “genericide.” When a brand name, is used in a generic way, over a long period
believes and is baptized shall be saved.” In the Bible, only those who obeyed the gospel were his people (2nd Thess. 1:7-9). That trademark identity of true Christianity has been lost today in a vast array of different doctrines and gospel plans presented in denominational Christianity. Some assume, when they see someone with a cross on a neckless or wear a t-shirt that says, “Jesus is Lord,” they must be a Christian. The Lord’s trademark is more than a message on a shirt. His message must be in your heart and His word obeyed in your life.
Can we really say that anything resembling Christianity, is the authentic brand of Jesus, even when it doesn’t bear His unique trademarks? Perhaps, these are reasons for concern… the Christian trademark is in Jeopardy of becoming generic. of time, its unique identity is lost or made common and the trademark is lost.
Could that be happening to Christianity and the Church today? Jesus established certain trademarks which identify His people: One such trademark was, “By this shall all people know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another” (Jn. 13:35). Another trademark Jesus established for true Christianity was: “If you abide in my word, then you are truly my disciples” (Jn. 8:32). Today it seems, that anyone who claims to be a Christian, is considered a Christian regardless of their love or their obedience to His word. Is Christianity’s trademark in jeopardy?
Jesus specifically identified those who would bare the mark of salvation in Mark 16:16, when He said: “He who