Headlines
such as this are a far too frequent occurrence: “Pastor resigns after sex scandal”,
“Pastor resigns amid financial scandal”.
There was another high-profile mega-church pastor who resigned this week
after admitting to at least two affairs.
This was obviously a newsworthy story, especially with the 20,000
members attending this church and the satellite campuses far and wide, not to
mention the book and TV efforts this church was engaged in with this pastor as
its public face. That failures such as
this are sad is evident, but something about the comments that are inevitable
bothers me. Those who belong to the
church rocked by such failures of leadership often say something like, “he’s a
sinner, just like all of us, we all need to be forgiven.” On the surface of it, that statement is
entirely true. Any and every church
pastor is a sinner saved by grace. There
isn’t anyone who avoided needed God’s forgiveness and grace, and there isn’t
anyone entering the kingdom of Heaven on their own merit. There is a big piece of this puzzle missing,
however. That the pastor was a sinner saved by grace, when he
became a follower of Jesus Christ, is entirely true, but he cannot continue to
be someone who walks in darkness if he is to shepherd the church of Jesus
Christ.
Like it
or not, the standard by which a pastor is judged is not the same as that for
his congregation. Not everyone is capable
of being a church pastor; not everyone has the gifts or talents necessary, and
not everyone has the temperament needed to do the job. Lastly, but just as importantly, not everyone
is capable of the high moral standard that must
be followed by someone willing to take on both the privilege and the burden of
leading a church. A church pastor is not
allowed to continue in his position if he cannot keep his marriage vows (or his
celibacy if he is single). A church
pastor is not allowed to continue in his position if he uses drugs, abuses
alcohol, is violent, greedy, power hungry, or unforgiving. The list is a long one, and could go on, but
the point is clear. To be called to the
ministry as a shepherd is no small thing.
It has higher entrance requirements, and a high standard to continue.
Is a
pastor who breaks his promise to God capable of being forgiven? Of course he is; we all are capable of being
forgiven. Should he be allowed to
continue in his ministry if he confesses his sins and shows contrition? No, that ship has sailed. As I said, it’s no small thing to serve the
Church of God. This is, according to the
Word of God, a business where no major mistakes, and let’s call them what they
are, sins, are allowed. It is one thing
for your senator to cheat on his wife, its far worse for your pastor to do so.
Does it
worry me to write such things, knowing that my wife and I are dependent upon
this job to provide for our needs? No,
it doesn’t, because I wouldn’t have sought ordination if I didn’t know my own
heart. I wouldn’t have accepted a call
to shepherd this church if I was tempted to cheat on my wife, use drugs, or
steal from the collection plate. The
Marines call themselves, “the few, the proud”; the Church needs to have similar
high standards about those we allow to lead us.
That may not sound like an attitude devoid of second chances, but in the
case of betraying the sacred trust of administering the Word of God, there
really isn’t one.
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