Benny Hinn was recently interviewed by ABC's Nightline. During the interview, it was acknowledged that his ministry receives over $100 million per year in gifts. He has a mansion on the Pacific Ocean and he admitted to a salary of over a half million per year. Oh yeah, and he has a private plane. When asked to defend his lifestyle, here is what he said:
"I mean look, every man of God that I know today has a nice house...And they drive cars, and they have BlackBerrys or iPhones or whatever. It's what we need today to simply exist. ... Absolutely I need a private plane."
How far we have gone from "Silver and gold have I none!" (Acts 3:6) While the Bible, and the apostle Paul in particular, clearly defends the ministry workman receiving wages, it is also true that a pastor must be "free from the love of money" (1 Timothy 3:3). I think it's safe to say that Benny Hinn fails to meet this requirement.
I haven't heard Hinn preach in some time, but back when I had cable and would see him on tv, I always listened to hear a clear gospel presentation. I never heard one. Hinn is an example of the kind of false teachers we are warned to avoid. Titus speaks of them when he says, "They must be silenced, because they are ruining whole households by teaching things they ought not to teach—and that for the sake of dishonest gain." (emphasis mine)
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