Televangelist Jesse Duplantis recently defended his wealth as being “blessed by God” and calling poverty a “curse.”
Televangelist Jesse Duplantis recently defended his wealth as being “blessed by God” and calling poverty a “curse.” “Let me give you a prime example why I don’t care what people think about me, about what I have. Now look at me. Look at me. I am a very blessed man,” Duplantis said during an online “Boardroom Chat” session with his wife, Cathy, earlier this month.
According to The Christian Post, Duplantis has an estimated worth of around $20 million, and wealth includes a private jet and a 40,000-square-foot mansion in Louisiana.
“Me and Cathy are very blessed. I’m spiritually, physically, and financially [blessed]. I’ve had more people criticize me over that jet. They still can’t get over it. Criticize me over my house. They didn’t pay for it. I paid for it. Do you understand what I say?” he asked.
In 2018, Duplantis received backlash for attempting to raise money from his followers to purchase a $54 million jet.
In the “Boardroom Chat” session, Duplantis contended that disobedience is the reason for most people’s troubles.
“Most people’s troubles come because people disobey. That is just simply the truth. Wars, rumors of wars, people always mad about somebody,” he said. “It’s usually someone who has enough power to change ‘people’s thinking,’ I call it. Especially in the Church, I call it Christian propaganda.”
He pointed out what he considers to be propaganda in the Church.
“You know that ‘poverty is a blessing?’ That’s a lie. Poverty is a curse. It’s not in Heaven, none whatsoever,” he said, citing common phrases some Christians use against the prosperity gospel.
“‘Jesus was poor.’ When was He poor? Did you ever hear Him say, ‘I can’t eat today [because] I don’t have anything?'”
Moreover, Duplantis implied that people are frustrated about not being blessed after giving financially to a ministry are emotionally manipulated into giving instead of giving out of obedience to the Bible.
“If you move on people emotionally to give, and you do that a lot of times with poverty … why don’t you move on people to simply obey God’s glorious word that He will do what He says,” Duplantis argued. “A lot of people raising money on people’s emotions, so they don’t get blessed.”
The televangelist attempted to use Psalm 49:16 to claim that Christians should not worry about how much another person has. The Scripture he read and the subsequent verses seem to warn against being enamored by financial wealth.
“Do not be overawed when others grow rich when the splendor of their houses increases; for they will take nothing with them when they die, their splendor will not descend with them,” the Scripture states. “Though while they live, they count themselves blessed — and people praise you when you prosper — they will join those who have gone before them, who will never again see the light of life. People who have wealth but lack understanding are like the beasts that perish.”
Duplantis also shared his thoughts on Christians turning the other cheek, according to Matthew 5:38-48. He contended that believers should not interpret that passage of Scripture as calling for Christians to be pacifists because he does not believe in that view.
“I’m just going to be honest with you. … I’ve been spit on, slapped, and everything when I’ve been preaching. But I’m not going to let somebody just come up to me and slap me if I’m not preaching and somebody just wants to slap me,” he said.
“You better believe in healing because something’s coming down. … Don’t let this small stature fool you. I get myself a baseball bat if I have to. You know what I’m saying? I don’t mean that pridefully, but … I know what I can do with a baseball bat.”
As explained by Christianity.com: “This verse is not saying that we are to let people do whatever they want to us. Rather, it is saying that God will handle it.”
“Jesus’ command to turn the other cheek is simply a command to forgo retaliation for personal offenses. He was not setting government foreign policy, and He was not throwing out the judicial system,” the ministry notes. “Crimes can still be prosecuted, and wars can still be waged, but the follower of Christ need not defend his personal ‘rights’ or avenge his honor.”
Photo Credit: ©Sparrowstock
Milton Quintanilla is a freelance writer and content creator. He is a contributing writer for CrosswalkHeadlines and the host of the For Your Soul Podcast, a podcast devoted to sound doctrine and biblical truth. He holds a Masters of Divinity from Alliance Theological Seminary.
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