Pastor Steven Furtick Defends Enormous 16,000 Square Foot Home: House Cost $1.7 Million to Build [PHOTO]

North Carolina pastor Steven Furtick is in the process of building a house in Charlotte than spans 16,000 square feet and costs more than $1.7 million to build. He told his congregation at Elevation Church, "It's a big house, and it's a beautiful house, and we thank God for it... We understand everything we have comes from God."

Shane Claiborne from The Simple Way in Philadelphia shared his thoughts about the massive house with the Huffington Post. He said, "The prosperity Gospel is self centered, and narcissistic and it is very dangerous but also attractive, especially to those who have money. Everything has to be bounced off Jesus who told the rich young ruler to sell what he had and give to the poor, if we look at the early church, nobody claimed their own possessions; they shared what they had so that everyone might have their 'daily bread.' What is tragic about the situation in Charlotte is it shows how far we missed the simple commandment to love our neighbors as ourselves - a commandment that should redefine how we view our possessions."

Steven Furtick is also very secretive of his salary and earnings from his books and speaking arrangements. He has never revealed how much money he actually takes from the church, and this has been quite easy to conceal considering the salary is decided by a "Board of Overseers" instead of his own congregation.