Kenneth Copeland and Jesse Duplantis say they can’t fly commercial airlines. I’m not convinced.
By J. Lee Grady
By now most people on social media have seen the embarrassing video clip of evangelists Kenneth Copeland and Jesse Duplantis defending their need for private jets to do God’s work. They appeared together on Copeland’s “Believer’s Voice of Victory” TV program on Dec. 29, and their conversation was posted on YouTube by a viewer. It raised eyebrows for some and infuriated others.
When I saw it I wanted to pull the covers over my head and hope this was a bad dream. The last thing we need is a couple of televangelists complaining about how they can’t manage their hectic schedules without private jets.
Texas-based Copeland made the most over-the-top comments. He suggested that flying in a private jet is the best way for a man of God to “protect the anointing”—since all those ordinary folks in tourist class might touch him or ask for prayer. Then he said today’s airlines can’t possibly get him where he needs to go. And he said evangelists are better off flying in their own planes since commercial jets are full of evil people. His words: “You get in a long tube with a bunch of demons. It’s deadly.”
Duplantis, who is based in New Orleans, told Copeland he sometimes flies in his private plane to five cities a week. He said God once told him to unbuckle his seat belt in mid-flight and then stand up and pray. He and Copeland both agreed that a preacher can’t pray in such a spontaneous way in a commercial plane. I guess a preacher needs his privacy!
Permit me to dissect some of the comments made by Rev. Copeland and Rev. Duplantis:
…The airlines are in such a “mess” today that they can’t get Rev. Copeland where he needs to go. Copeland’s exact words were: “The mess that the airlines are in today! I would have to stop… 90 percent of what we’re doing. You can’t get there from here!” Really? Consider for a moment that Delta has 5,400 flights a day to 318 destinations. American Airlines has 6,700 flights a day to 339 destinations. Don’t tell me tickets aren’t available.
…A preacher really must stay away from all those people in tourist class, since they might ask for prayer. When I read the gospels, I see Jesus among the crowds. He held babies in His arms, consoled widows, prayed for beggars and even touched lepers—while everyone else was running from them. Jesus was with people because they were His priority. Any ministry that is not about people has lost the essence of the gospel message. Any preacher who prefers to hide in a backstage lounge rather than pray for people at an altar is either in ministry for the wrong reasons or he’s been spoiled by luxury treatment.
…Being around the common people can “damage the anointing.” I’m not sure who invented this whacky doctrine, but it has been repeated so often in some charismatic circles that a few ministers swear by it. But it’s bunk. You cannot “damage” the anointing of the Holy Spirit by talking to a preacher before a church service or by placing him in seat 42-F next to an atheist who uses the F-word in every sentence. (The Holy Spirit can handle sinners just fine.) God might actually want to put a Christian in seat 42-F so he can shine the light of Jesus there.
…Commercial airplanes today are “full of demons.” I’ll admit there are a few questionable characters on planes these days (I have been seated by a few), but it’s rude to stereotype the entire flying public as demonic. Even still, the Bible says Jesus actually prayed for people who were demon possessed—because He cares about sinners. It sounds like Copeland and Duplantis don’t believe casting out demons is in their job description anymore.
…A preacher can’t really pray on a commercial flight. This comment baffled me the most. Duplantis says he had to be in the spacious cabin of his Dassault Falcon 50 to have a supernatural conversation with God. That’s beyond ludicrous—especially when I consider how many persecuted Christians are praying their hearts out right now from cold, uncomfortable prison cells in places like Iran, North Korea or Libya. They will probably never see the inside of a private jet, but God hears them just fine.
I’m not going to question Rev. Copeland’s and Rev. Duplantis’ religious freedoms; they can fly however they want, as long as their contributors believe their donations are best used buying private planes. What I object to is the shameless justification of this behavior in the name of Jesus. Anybody who says he needs millions of dollars to preach the gospel, and yet he wants to stay away from people, has twisted the Christian faith into a self-serving business.
J. Lee Grady is the former editor of Charisma. You can follow him on Twitter at leegrady. He is the author of several books including 10 Lies the Church Tells Women, 10 Lies Men Believe, Fearless Daughters of the Bible and The Holy Spirit Is Not for Sale. You can learn more about his ministry, The Mordecai Project, at themordecaiproject.org. (Reproduced from HappySonship.com)
