The marketing of Jesus knows no bounds. I speak of that which I know.

Hear me out.

In my work history, I was employed by multiple stations that self-identified as “Christian radio.” All along, these stations SHOULD have been saying, “Christian formatted radio.” It might seem like a small distinction, but much that appears under a marketing banner of “Christian” could be easily challenged.

My jobs included a commercial Christian-formatted radio station in Dallas in the 1980s. The station owner was a forward thinking gentleman. On one occasion, he brought in a marketing “expert” who challenged our radio team to “think outside the box” to get our “brand” better known in the greater Dallas/Fort Worth Metroplex.

This marketing consultant advocated for our station to be more aggressive in getting in the face of our “target market”—the church.

In essence, he said, “we know where these people are at least once a week.”

True. It was a captive audience!

I decided to speak up. My concern was that worship spaces were not there for the purpose of selling goods, services, or radio listenership. I believe Jesus had something to say about this in referencing a “den of thieves.”

I was immediately rebuffed by the speaker. In fact, he went so far as to say that if that was the way I felt, I was not the right person to be working on the radio station marketing. I was woefully rebuked in front of my peers. My face turned red—possibly with some anger.

After the meeting, I drafted several “ideas” on how our station could do what our guest wanted. I handed these to the station owner. He grinned, but saw my sarcasm immediately.

For example, I suggested we might get the choir to sing our station jingle right after their choral piece on Sundays. Or we could have our logo and a coupon of some kind in sponsoring their weekly bulletin. I had several more such ideas.

You get the point.

Commercial “Christian radio” often is loaded with advertisements and paid programming that hardly focuses on the Kingdom of God. And many so called “not for profit” Christian formatted stations are now quite accustomed to airing what really sound like commercials—along with their fundraising appeals. Marketing to Christians helps pay the bills.

A second example of Christian marketing that often had issues was found at what was formerly known as the Christian Trade Exposition (CTE). I attended many of these annual events each summer. The CTE trade show and conference featured many vendors who hoped to sell the latest in books, music, clothing, knick knacks, paddy whacks, and anything else a “Christian bookstore” might carry.

Truth be told, MANY of the exhibitors came with good intentions. In particular, several well known publishers of Christian books, Bibles, and videos were from the Chicagoland area. Publishers like Tyndale and Moody offered excellent resources to spur a greater interest in the Christian faith.

Additionally, a lot of the products from Christian singers and musicians were encouragement to thousands. Specialized services for helping grow a children’s ministry or grief counseling were right on the money, so to speak.

Bookstore owners from across the country found CTE a “one stop shop.”

Then there was the myriad of folks who came to sell t-shirts or other clothing promoting a clever “Jesus” message. The same ones you can now find adorning your Facebook feed. Christians often like those things. And there was jewelry, greeting cards, and many products you might find at a Cracker Barrel. There were branded mints for your organization they called “Testamints”—still available on Amazon or Oriental Trading.

Maybe such gimmicks make it easier to start a faith conversation. At least your breath smells better.

I would broadcast my radio program from many of these expositions. I’d meet bestselling authors there to promote a new book. Recording artists, too. Big Idea Productions—aka Veggie Tales—was another successful Illinois venture that always had a large display. Interviewing a tomato did have its challenges.

Some of the products were seemingly so out of bounds, however, that a friend of mine would join me annually for a short segment to highlight them. We called it, “Things you never thought you’d see at a Christian Trade Exposition. And hoped you never would.”

As I recall, the all-time winner was the company that still markets the same product today: Grilled cheesus. I quote from their web site,

“The GRILLED CHEESUS® is an electronic sandwich press that unveils the face of Jesus! Create toasty miracles that are sure to make you and your people smile.”

Might we say that idea itself is in “bad taste?” I doubt Jesus would consider this in line with being the “bread of life.”

Whenever the name of Christ becomes kitsch, and we choose to “market” it, our credibility suffers. Chick Fil A founder Truett Cathy once quoted to me this Scripture,

“A good name is to be chosen rather than great riches, and favor is better than silver or gold.” Proverbs 22:1 (NRSV)

Let the Gospel be your guide.