Crooks for Christ
Correction: After writing this post I realized that the offending network was the INSP Network and not TBN. However, TBN has its own set of heresies.
Now on to the original post.
I watch TBN a lot. The Bible tells us to “be angry, and sin not.” TBN always leads me to obey the first part of this verse. I am constantly stunned by the heresy that oozes from this network.
Mike Murdock (I refuse to link to his site) is a crook. He’s one of the leading salesmen for TBN. There are at least three different fund-raising telethons that play on an almost weekly basis on TBN of which he is the front man. His goal is to get you to plant a “seed” into the ministry of TBN. Specifically a $58 “seed” which should be planted monthly for twelve consecutive months.
I’ve heard him explain where he got the number 58 from but I don’t remember exactly what it represents. It’s something to the effect that he has counted 58 different kinds of blessings in the Bible.
During one of these telethons he says that God told him there are 300 people in the viewing audience whom God will bless abundantly if they will pledge $58 a month. He says that he doesn’t know exactly why God chose the number 300 but he just knows in his spirit that that’s the number of viewers God has called to give money to TBN. Here’s the deal though: this same “live” telethon plays at least once a week. The exact same one. They just rebroadcast it whenever they want. Does anyone see the problem with that? So are there 300 people that God calls every time this broadcasts? Or was it just the 300 from the original broadcast?
Murdock says that he is asking God for 1,000 miracles for these 300 givers during the following year. 1,000 miracles!!! That far outnumbers the miracles recorded in scripture.
During these telethons, when he’s not asking for your money, he tells these stories of how people all throughout the years of his ministry have witnessed incredible miracles in their lives after committing to plant this magical $58 seed. People were healed, people received incredible financial blessings, and unbelieving family members came to Christ only days after the first $58 seed was planted.
Does anybody remember Martin Luther? I do. The Reformation began with Luther protesting (among other things) the selling of indulgences by the Catholic church. These indulgences were essentially a fund raising effort by the Pope where you could buy your dead loved ones out of purgatory and into heaven. Murdock’s entire act smacks of this same wickedness.
And here’s another thing: Murdock is an Arminian. That means (this is a gigantic theological issue here that I’m not going to take the time to explain – I know many of my readers know the difference between Arminianism and Calvinism so I’ll just leave it at that) he believes that man is sovereign when it comes to whether or not he chooses salvation. So if Murdock believes that for $58 God might just save your husband, then that means the choice is God’s, not the husband’s. This completely refutes the entire basis of his theology. If man is sovereign in salvation then shouldn’t we send the money to the husband instead of God (read: TBN)?
I’ve also heard him encourage viewers to put the pledge on a credit card. Good grief!
Barf.
Now, let it be said that I have absolutely no problem with ministries (TV or otherwise) asking for money. Ministry costs money. I know that. But you will never hear MacArthur, Sproul, or Begg promising you a miracle if you support their ministry. And they usually stress the fact that you should support your local church first. Then if you are financially able to support their ministry, after having given to your own church, they welcome and appreciate your support because they don’t use advertising to pay for their radio time.
Thieves like Murdock (among many, many others) have done so much damage to Christianity and it’s sad. Now, not only does the public at large think Christians are crazy and foolish, they think we’re greedy. I dispise that.
Even when I try to watch for entertainment purposes, I wind up getting mad and sad at the same time, so I try not to watch anymore. However, I have seen the particular indulgence session you’re speaking of and I think that man will have alot of explaining to do, come judgement day. The lies and venom he spews to everyone is blood curdling. Hopefully, somehow, someway, TBN will someday see the error of their ways and repent before God.
UPDATE: I think the Murdock stuff I saw may have been on the INSP Network. Maybe it says something about these networks that I can’t seem to tell the difference.
I watch Mike “MONEY” Murdock to get a few laughs but like a previous post here, I, too, get angry watching this revolting individual. If a stock broker guarantees 100 fold return, they are going to jail!Why does this not apply to these rotten, disgusting TV preachers? Anyone believing the crap that these “prosperity” preachers spew, is out of their mind.
You call this man a thief yet he doesn’t take anything. The human beings watching and listening made the conscious decision to call him and give him their credit card. Everything in life is based off money, Hospitals, churches, you name it. They all start with a good cause but without the money it won’t work.
Without people calling and giving, they wouldn’t have a tv show. Neither of us know Mike. There is no point in arguing in saying, “He’s a satanic crook”, “a liar and a scumbag”. Simply we don’t know him, and feeling this way towards someone that we don’t know is normally ignorance or jealously
I am torn between feeling sad for these people who believe Mike Murdock is the voice of God saying Pay in Full then I alternate between being angry at bible illiterates that refuse to realize what Jesus meant by his words on the cross “Paid in Full” as in It is Finished.
Nice play on words in this title by the way, I loved your article!
John, I pray you read this because you are wrong that we don’t know Murdock, we don’t know him personally but we know him by his fruits (actions). Trying to sell favors for cash so God can prosper people is bad fruit! You show me one place where Jesus asked for money in exchange for a miracle or healing!
You should read Romans 8:32 “Since God did not spare His own Son but gave Him up for us all surely he will also with him F-r-e-e-l-y give us all things”.
Mike Murdock distorted the bible when he said God never responds to your cry but your faith!!
There are many instances in the bible where God showed up and granted miracles and blessing when people did not even know him or expect Him.
Gideon asked God for proof three times to be convinced that God would give him victory over the evil Midanites in Judges 6:15. Gideon became a wealhty land owner and Judge after this.
The blind man that Jesus told to go wash in the pool of Siloam did not even know who Jesus was but thought he was a only a Prophet till he was kicked out of the Synagogue for making a case that his healing must have been from God. Jesus found him and revealed to this man that he was the Messiah but it was after the miracle not before.
Jesus also healed the man by the pool of Bethzatha and this man also did not know who Jesus was until a day later.
In Ezekiel 16:6 Jesus described the nation of Israel as a helpless baby polluted & laying in its own blood until God passed by and said “LIVE”. No baby laying helpless in it’s own blood has no faith to do anything! Murdock needs to read his bible.
People that love God and love Jesus are not opposed to giving, we are just opposed to being manipulated and lied to esp. in sowing a specific (money) seed amount to try to get a blessing when can go to God free of charge in the name of Jesus and have His grace period.
God is also not going to curse those Christ has redeemed from the curse of the law according to Galatians 3:13.
What some Evangelist do when they use the Malachi 3:8-9 curse to collect tithes when this applied to Jews before Jesus died and said Paid in full is tantamount to spiritual and emotional abuse! They should read how God was angry at the Prophet Balaam in Numbers 22:22 when he tried to curse God’s people for money from an Moabite King! God was not happy but angry!
Balaam perished with the Moabites in one of Joshua’s victorious battles.
Drew you were right the first time Mike Murdock was on TBN’s Fall Praise a thon and he makes the rounds on the other networks to. I’m sorry to say but he looks likes a con, then he opens his mouth and removes all doubt!
I was working a late shift once and when I got home I turned on TV to INSP. Mike was on with his dyed black greasey hair and cheesy goatee. I saw the scam immediately. I called the number and the poor girl that answered got an earful. I let her know it was a scam and after research before the call quoted every verse in the Bible about casting the moneychangers to do not allow your brother to stumble. I got hung up on twice and called back. Eventually they didn’t pick up my calls. Every time there is a conversation I tell everyone I dispise TV crook preachers.