When I grew up in the 50’s, soft drinks came in glass bottles. You may be surprised to hear this, but even back then, environmentalism was an issue: a national “bottle bill” law required a minimum refundable deposit on beverage containers in order to insure a high rate of recycling and reuse. The deposit-refund system was created to guarantee the return of glass bottles to be washed, refilled, and resold.
As the post-World War II society became more convenience-oriented, there was a shift from refillable “deposit” bottles to “throw-away” bottles and cans. Without making a deposit, you could not expect a return. When this concept was first introduced, the bottles were marked “No Deposit; No Return.”
As a writer, I love to find relevant, contemporary language to illustrate spiritual principles. “No Deposit; No Return” is a great way to express the spiritual law of reciprocity. David said “Your word have I hid [deposited] in my heart, that I might not sin against you” (Ps. 119:11). Depositing God’s truth in your mind is imperative if you are to recognize a lie when you hear one. How else will you discern the “false teachers among you, who will secretly bring in destructive heresies” (2 Peter 2:1)? Or how will you be able to "resist [the devil] in the evil day" (Eph. 6:13) as Jesus did when He said: it is written? (Matt. 4:4, 7, 10)
Paul exhorts: “be diligent to study the word of truth” (2 Tim. 2:15); thus building a large depository in your mind and spirit. If you don’t make the deposits, you won’t have anything there when you need it! No Deposit; No Return.
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