"Bleeding" Jesus for a New Jet [Updated]

(CNN)A prosperity gospel televangelist from Louisiana says Jesus has asked him to buy a new private jet. And wouldn't you know it, Jesus has real nice taste in planes. 

Jesse Duplantis, leader of Jesse Duplantis Ministries and the owner of three other private jets, is asking his followers to chip in so his ministry can purchase a brand new Dassault Falcon 7X, which runs about $54 million. 

In a video recently published on his website, Duplantis says the planes get him closer to the Lord -- both literally and figuratively -- and he had a divine conversation in which Jesus asked for the new aircraft by name. 

"It was one of the greatest statements the Lord ever told me, he said, 'Jesse do you want to come up where I'm at?'" the minister says. "'I want you to bleed me for a Falcon 7X.'"

By "bleed," Duplantis -- er, Jesus -- apparently meant "ask for donations." This televangelist is asking his followers to buy him a $54 million private jet

What is with the need for preachers that feel they need jets to whisk them around the world in laps of luxury that none of their followers could ever imagine? From it's Gulfstream's to a BAC 1-11, the Worldwide Church of God also "bled" its members in order for the "apostle" to fly around the world in the lap of luxury.

[Joseph Tkach, Sr. said,] “As I have often explained, we are continually looking for ways to make the various operations of the work more streamlined and efficient. It appears that there may be a significant financial advantage to selling the g-iii and buying a used, but well-maintained Boeing 727.”

Later in 1988, unsuccessful in locating a 727 he liked, Mr. Tkach settled for the British-made bac 1-11. It was only $3.4 million, a price tag he said would immediately “benefit” God’s work. He wrote, “Also, the bac 1-11 has room for all our necessary tv equipment and personnel, as well as any additional necessary personnel. The g-iii, as many of you know, was extremely limited in seating and storage capacity.” says Gerald Flurry

FAA Records Show Evangelists Flying High During Fund Pleas

March 23, 1987|United Press International

DALLAS -- Shortly before TV evangelist Oral Roberts launched his life-or- death plea for $8 million in new donations his ministry got back an $850,000 private jet it had loaned to a fellow evangelist.

A review of Federal Aviation Administration records by the Dallas Times Herald Sunday showed Roberts and several other evangelists are flying in luxury while they plead for donations from their followers.

The most expensive jet on record is a $13 million Gulfstream III purchased new in 1984 by Joseph Tkach`s Worldwide Church of God in Pasadena, Calif.

Others with expensive planes include Jimmy Swaggart Ministries in Baton Rouge, La.; Jerry Falwell`s group, the Lynchburg Christian Academy in Virginia; and Trinity Broadcasting of Florida.

FAA records show Swaggart owns a Gulfstream II jet valued at $3.75 million, Falwell`s group owns a $2 million Israel Westwind II, and Trinity Broadcasting has a Gates Learjet 36 with a book value of $3.75 million.

Roberts` association in Tulsa acquired its jet in December from Fort Worth evangelist Kenneth Copeland, whose International Church of the Word of Faith also owns a $1.2 million dollar Learjet.

``The main reason to have the airplane is for security for himself and anybody around him, and also getting in and out of the places he needs to be,`` said Jan Dargatz, a spokesman for the Oral Roberts Association. 

COG members love to mock men like Duplantis for his tactic in conning his followers to dish out the money he is looking for, yet they turn right around and give HWA and Flurry all the money they want for their private jets.   COG members never batted an eye when HWA had gold plated faucets and doorknobs installed on his jet as well as decorating it with the finest decorations available at the time.

1. Yes the church wasted money. Yes the big-boppers showered comfort on themselves. When I was a student at AC-PAS I asked the art dept. for some help with a project and was astonished to find several full-time employees working on (c.a.d) an elaborate project to emblazon designs in GOLD onto several mirrors which was part of the G3 redecorating. I think there were 6 guys working on the project. Who knows how much the remodeling project cost. I used to work at the San Jose Jet Center as a Limo driver and one wealthy businessman told me he spent over 2 million just remodeling the interior of his G3!!! Painful Truth

Also see:  G-III Serves As Key Thrust Of End-time Commission

To what benefit did Herbert Armstrong's many flights around the world ever accomplish? What good did the multi-millions of dollars spent and Steuben crystal handed out ever accomplish? Other than ongoing work in Thailand by the Sexton's, there is not a single proof that any of the trips ever had a lasting legacy on the leadership or the nations he visited.

Of course, preaching about a "strong hand from someplace" is not a gospel message or the message of a mighty "work." HWA created the Ambassador International Cultural Foundation because he was too ashamed to say he represented a church when he travelled.  He claimed more doors opened for him as a Foundation member than as a preacher.  Imagine leading a church that claimed to be Christ's hand-picked church that was protected through centuries from persecution to end up being too embarrassed to mention Jesus' name.

If there is no lasting legacy to Armstrong's international visits, then why did Gerald Flurry need to buy his own jet, other than for his own personal benefit and for his immediate family?

Church of God leaders have bled church members for decades for their pet projects and silly prophetic threats. From Malm and Theil to Kubik and Pack, these men milk church members dry as they claim to be spreading a gospel message. In the end, they still have not produced anything worthwhile.  

They are all still too ashamed of Jesus to care any more.

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Judah's Scepter and the Sacred Stone

Neil Godfrey has an entry on his blog (Vridar) about a relatively new book of fiction out about that great Church of God legend about Jeremiah taking Jacob's pillar stone to the British Isles.  The entire basis of the Church of God movement is based upon this unsubstantiated legend.

Who would have believed it! Someone (namely D. A. Brittain) has actually written a novel about Jeremiah taking the stone of destiny, Jacob’s “pillow stone”, from Jerusalem along with a surviving daughter (Teia Tephi) of the wicked king Zedekiah to Ireland to marry up with another descendant of Judah in order to preserve the Davidic dynasty from extinction after the Babylonians captured the biblical kingdom of Judah in 587 BC. The novel is Judah’s Scepter and the Sacred Stone.

How could I resist! Belief in all of that stuff was once the focus of my life as a member of the Worldwide Church of God for so many years. One of our most exciting books was The United States and British Commonwealth in Prophecy (later changed to The United States and Britain in Prophecy as the decades took their toll on the unity and white racial dominance of the Commonwealth nations). Britain includes a bibliography that warms old memories with titles I also ferreted out from a dingy old room that housed the local British Israel society at the time. A Novel for Ex-Worldwide Church of God members and others once (or still) in love with British Israelism

“Many biblical scholars believe we will soon see what is called the ‘end of days,’” Jerome said. “Some say the promised Messiah will come on what is known as a ‘Jubilee year,’ in the fall of 2033, after the blood moons appears during Rosh Hashanah.”

“Well, it is not certain,” Timothy interjected. “What I mean is, no one is certain of the time of the next Jubilee year. Some rabbis believe the Jubilee year is somewhere between the years 2029 and 2036.” 

“Well, we do know that the next series of blood moons will appear in the years 2032 and 2033,” Jerome said. “All will see the red moon in the sky on the Feast of Passover, and then again during Rosh Hashanah, on the Feast of Tabernacles, in the year 2033.” 

“It sounds like you are talking about a tetrad,” David said. “I’ve studied astronomy, so I’m familiar with the two-year string of four total lunar eclipses. A series of four together is rare. After the sixteenth century, none even occurred until the twentieth century. However, the frequency of these events has accelerated, especially since 1949.” 

“Yes, very good— once Israel again became a nation in 1948,” Timothy said. “Israel has seen war come to their land during every tetrad that has occurred since then.

Brittain, D. A.. Judah’s Scepter and the Sacred Stone (Kindle Locations 4529-4540). First Edition Design Publishing. Kindle Edition.

Oh my god. In “my day” the year was 1975. Will they never learn. 

He was a good man.

For those who can get past the heaven comment, can you ever imagine a Church of God minister EVER being this gracious?  The inherent need of the ministry to condemn has extended to many in the church today, which has been exhibited in many of the comments directed towards those who are atheists on this blog.