Is this teaching biblical?
John Avanzini argues that because Judas was a thief, Jesus must have had significant wealth to steal. This logic is absurd. Judas betrayed Jesus for 30 pieces of silver — hardly the actions of someone with access to 'big money.' Jesus explicitly said He had 'nowhere to lay His head' (Matt 8:20). The disciples left 'everything' to follow Him (Luke 5:11). Jesus was 'poor' so we might become rich spiritually (2 Cor 8:9). Avanzini invents a wealthy Jesus to justify his own prosperity theology, but this Jesus is a fiction.
What did John Avanzini say?
"Jesus was handling big money. The Bible says that Judas was a thief. If you only have a few bucks, you don't need a treasurer and you don't need a thief."
Speaker: John Avanzini
Source: Praise the Lord, TBN, September 15, 1988
What does Scripture actually teach?
Matthew 8:20
"And Jesus said to him, 'Foxes have holes and birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay His head.'"
— NKJV
Jesus had NOWHERE TO LAY HIS HEAD. Foxes have holes. Birds have nests. Jesus had less than animals. This is not a man 'handling big money' — this is a homeless itinerant preacher who depended on the hospitality of others. Avanzini's wealthy Jesus contradicts Jesus's own words about Himself.
2 Corinthians 8:9
"For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though He was rich, yet for your sakes He became poor, that you through His poverty might become rich."
— NKJV
Jesus BECAME POOR for our sakes. Paul is clear: Jesus was rich (in heavenly glory) and became poor (in earthly circumstances). Our spiritual riches come through His poverty. Avanzini reverses this — making Jesus materially rich to justify our pursuit of material wealth. But the exchange is spiritual, not financial.
Matthew 26:14-15
"Then one of the twelve, called Judas Iscariot, went to the chief priests and said, 'What are you willing to give me if I deliver Him to you?' And they counted out to him thirty pieces of silver."
— NKJV
Judas betrayed Jesus for 30 pieces of silver — the price of a slave (Exodus 21:32). If Jesus were handling 'big money,' why would Judas need to betray Him for such a small sum? Why not just steal from the 'big money'? The paltry betrayal price reveals that there was no great wealth to steal.
Luke 9:58
"And Jesus said to him, 'Foxes have holes and birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay His head.'"
— NKJV
Luke records the same statement — Jesus had no permanent dwelling. Someone 'handling big money' would at minimum have a home. Jesus had less than wild animals. This is radical poverty, not prosperity. Avanzini must ignore these explicit statements to construct his wealthy Jesus.
John 12:6
"This he said, not that he cared for the poor, but because he was a thief, and had the money box; and he used to take what was put in it."
— NKJV
Judas 'used to take' from the money box — not 'took millions.' The text suggests petty theft from a common fund for living expenses, not embezzlement of a wealthy treasury. Avanzini's logic is backwards: having a thief doesn't prove you're rich; it proves someone is stealing what little you have.
Related False Teachings
"He needs you well, he needs you strong and he needs you rich."
— Kenneth Copeland | Prosperity Gospel
"Jesus had a nice house! You don't think Jesus had a nice house? You think he was homeless? ... Jesus..."
— John Avanzini | Prosperity Gospel
"I've never had the Lord say, 'I want you to have this, but you can't have it till you get the money...."
— Jesse Duplantis | Prosperity Gospel