Flying High with Two Religious Carnival Pitchmen (Ugh)

Kenneth Copeland and Jesse Duplantis are two heretics who espouse a false message referred to as the "prosperity gospel." Like people such as Creflo Dollar and Joel Osteen, they tell people that if they give enough (especially to them) and pray enough and believe enough, they'll have riches and be happy and problem-free. (Clearly, they must not have noticed how the early apostles, like Jesus, had no wealth and were martyred for their faith in Christ.)

From this clip, I guess that they also never noticed that Jesus, even though He was intent on going to Jerusalem to fulfill His mission of dying and rising for us, always moved among the crowds and made Himself interruptible. When people asked for help--blind people, the parents of sick children, those suffering from some other affliction, those who had questions, He took the time to be with them and help them. Jesus had an agenda; but He knew that He could best pursue it by being interruptible, underscoring His identity as the long-awaited Messiah (the Christ) and helping people to see that He was the way to life with God.

The fact is that it's when we Christians move among people and allow ourselves and our agendas to be interrupted by the needs of other people that we do God's will.

Copeland and Duplantis seem to forget the whole point of God's incarnation, His taking on human flesh in Jesus. He came to move among the evil, the demon-possessed, the druggies, and everyone else. If God isn't too good to do that, then I'm surely not! Neither are Copeland or Duplantis.

I've had some of my most amazing opportunities to share Christ's love and to pray with and for people while flying on commercial jets.

The crap peddled her is nothing more than a rationalization for materialistic impulses. Duplantis and Copeland aren't seeking to help people or to glorify God, but to help and glorify themselves. Their private jets are no different than gold-plated coffins. Jesus' question applies here: "What good is it for someone to gain the whole world, yet forfeit their soul?" (Mark 8:36)

(Hat Tip to Ann Althouse for posting this video.)



[I'm the pastor of Living Water Lutheran Church in Centerville, Ohio.]