Doesn’t matter, philosophically.
Fortunately some of us are not so religious as to be afraid to call people like that out on their obvious bullshit and chicanery on the miniscule chance that this is something your particular deity actually approves of. A good shepherd recognizes the wolves for what they are.
Kirk: Why does God need a biz-jet?
As others have noted, it works. I know of another guy who set himself up as a local minister with a congregation including a foolish but rich old lady. He romanced her and got the money for a plane with which to Spread The Word, and later upgraded to a twin to reach more of God’s Children.
Theologically speaking, we can learn what God wants and doesn’t want by what prayers he answers, right? Well, God answers prayers for airplanes. Ergo, God wants us to have airplanes. We must follow His will.
When it comes to fleecing the “sheep”, I’m pretty sure you can get the same results whether you pray or not…as long as the “sheep” believe you when you say you did.
WWJD? And what are we called to do? Jesus made this clear, when he talks about judging. You seem to be taking a incomplete view of Jesus’ words. There is judgment in oneness with the Father.
But you are correct we should never judge actions, but the heart, as the Father does, and that is why we need the Holy Spirit.
God will make a net good of everything, God’s plan is perfect and no one can upset that. Even Satan’s evil works will be made to the good and glory of God. That does not mean that Satan is willingly doing the work of God.
And in my other post I exactly hit on yoru subject, God can use Pharisees (today this can be read pastors or other church leaders), to help people by gathering them together, but it is God that helps in other ways, and wants to break the person out of the OT system and work through who God wants to work through.
Actually I’d be more impressed if he got around like Sister Bertrille (the character played by Sally Field in the old show The Flying Nun). If fact, if he could do so I’d be more inclined to believe in the sincerity of his relationship with Jesus and might even send a dollar his way.
I would think God would have insisted that 54 million would be better spend feeding starving kids in Africa than on a new bizjet. But then, what status is there in feeding starving kids.
Sounds like “Redshirt Religion” to me, “redshirts” being a reference to the unnamed security crew that accompanied the Star Trek officers on their missions on various planets…and died, still unnamed and usually unremembered for the remainder of the episode, just to advance the plotline of the main characters. The main characters in this situation are the religious conmen, the plotline is whether or not the slim chance of a vague “greater good” is the outcome of their actions…and the “redshirts” are all those forgotten who were conned into giving up hard-earned money. Saying that doing that much damage to innocent people is o.k. because something good might happen is the exact same thing as saying the ends justify the means no matter how slim the odds are.
Whatever floats you boat, bro. I don’t care to minimize any part of your post except to clarify I am for all practical purposes an atheist.
On the news last night, they said this guy lives in a $3 million, 35,000 sq ft house. Granted, there was no mention of whether he used his home to shelter the homeless… Still, while I’m not a Biblical scholar by any means, I seem to recall something about selling all you own, giving the money to the poor, then “follow me.”
Maybe that verse isn’t in his Bible.
I’m afraid it isn’t as complicated as you’re making it out to be. The amount of twisted “logic” that’s required to make this airplane dude look like an (unwitting, accidental, backhanded) agent of God, is tantamount to proof that he’s no such thing.
Doing evil in God’s name and then saying “Oh well, God will fix it all in the end” is, from any sane perspective, missing the point.
I wonder how the sermon went. Just after telling the congregation about the many miracles Jesus performed, including turning water to wine, he explained that Jesus wanted them to BUY a plane?
Beat me to it.
O Lord, won’t you buy me a [del]Mercedes-Benz[/del] Dassault Falcon? 
“Indeed, I tell you again that it is easier for a bizjet to fly through the eye of a needle than it is for a Rich Man to enter into the Kingdom of Heaven.”
“So show me where it says how big a needle.” – Al Jaffee, The MAD Book of Magic and other Dirty Tricks.
I’m all for them buying him a jet if it crashes on the first flight he takes.
Conmen using the name of God deserve scorn and abuse, not praise.
No, but I sure have a problem with assuming that the same Jesus who said that the worker is worthy of his hire and for his apostles to go out with no money, depending on the kindness of strangers would endorse Lear jets and contract riders regarding towel color and expensive drinking water. No, I see Jesus lined up at Jet Blue and Southwest followed by Greyhound rides and hitching it to the hinterlands. I don’t see Jesus even taking Uber to the helipad.
I think Jesus would buy American.
That’s only $85 a square foot. What is this, a double decker quadruple wide?