What if Benny Hinn was Right?
As I flipped through the channels late one Friday night, I stumbled into the broadcast of a crusade in which a well-groomed tele-evangelist preached with persuasive power. He promised physical healing and financial freedom to those who would sew the seed of faith by making a generous pledge to his ministry.
In our church tradition, we balk at these images on our screens and identify this man for what he is: a false teacher, a charlatan motivated by greed, preying on the desperate for personal gain. Yet, in our eagerness to reject the prosperity gospel in its entirety, I wonder if we have thrown out a principal that is both biblical and practical: God blesses materially those who are generous materially. Does this statement rub you the wrong way? I feel almost heretical just typing it, and yet my recent meditation on 2 Corinthians 8-9 led me to just that conclusion. Before you close this window in your browser, consider with me this passage penned by Paul.
Here’s the context fr…
In our church tradition, we balk at these images on our screens and identify this man for what he is: a false teacher, a charlatan motivated by greed, preying on the desperate for personal gain. Yet, in our eagerness to reject the prosperity gospel in its entirety, I wonder if we have thrown out a principal that is both biblical and practical: God blesses materially those who are generous materially. Does this statement rub you the wrong way? I feel almost heretical just typing it, and yet my recent meditation on 2 Corinthians 8-9 led me to just that conclusion. Before you close this window in your browser, consider with me this passage penned by Paul.
Here’s the context fr…
