a more complete response to Ted Haggard's fall (or the fall of any leader)

My good friend, Dr. David Shibley of Global Advance just sent us an email response to the tragedy of last week, and, as usual, it's such a well-reasoned, spiritually-sound, Biblical response I felt it was worth sharing with you. In fact, I plan to sit down with our pastoral staff upon returning from this trip to the Philippines and go through this line by line with them. Thank you, Dr. Shibley, for saying so well what needs to be said to all of us in ministry!

Read and heed:

• 
  Dear Pastor Jerry and Chris,
  
  Some time ago in an interview with Ministry Today magazine I was asked, “What will be a marked difference in ministering in the 21st century?” I responded, “Trust will be harder to gain and easier to lose.” The revelations of this last week have only underscored this sobering truth.
  
  I’ve waited a week since the tragic news regarding Ted Haggard to respond. Like every other believer, I needed time to pray and to process what had just happened to all of us. Almost all the pastors I’ve talked with say that this latest scandal felt much like a slug to the stomach with a baseball bat.
  
  God help us if we do not learn from this. God help us if we do not change from this.
  
  Before any further comments we should go to God’s Word, asking for His grace to process these events biblically. The following passages are from the New American Standard Version. Of course, this is not an exhaustive list of applicable verses; just several that have come to my spirit in the wake of this latest tragedy.
  
  Behold, you have sinned against the Lord, and be sure your sin will find you out (Num. 32:23).
  
  Loving kindness and truth have met together; righteousness and peace have kissed each other (Psa. 85:10).
  
  Therefore let him who thinks he stands take heed lest he fall. No temptation has overtaken you but such as is common to man; and God is faithful, who will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able; but with the temptation will provide the way of escape also, that you may be able to endure it (1 Cor. 10:12-13).
  
  Brethren, even if a man is caught in any trespass, you who are spiritual, restore such a one in a spirit of gentleness; looking to yourself, lest you too be tempted (Gal. 6:1).
  
  Abstain from every form of evil. Now may the God of peace Himself sanctify you entirely; and may your spirit and soul and body be preserved complete, without blame at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. Faithful is He who calls you, and He also will bring it to pass. Brethren, pray for us (1 Thess. 5:22-25).
  
  To this end also we pray for you always that our God may count you worthy of your calling, and fulfill every desire for goodness and the work of faith with power; in order that the name of our Lord Jesus may be glorified in you, and you in Him, according to the grace of our God and the Lord Jesus Christ (2 Thess. 1:11-12).
  
  If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness (1 John 1:9).
  
  It’s right to grieve whenever any general is wounded and removed from action. Our love and prayers are with Ted, his family, and the church family of New Life Church. I am heartbroken for what this means to the cause of Christ. Ted was a champion for evangelism and missions. This is a time to mourn, walk in humility, pray, search our own hearts, reflect and recognize our profound, constant need for the grace of God.
  
  While I do not know Ted well, I have considered him a friend for many years. I served with him on the board of directors of a highly respected missions organization headquartered in Colorado Springs. I preached at New Life Church years ago, and I can only imagine the pain that church is suffering.
  
  Of course, all of us suffer the reverberations when a high profile leader falls. Ted was one of our most capable spokesmen. My heart is burdened not only for New Life Church but also for the National Association of Evangelicals, the World Prayer Center, many Christian publications and the very future of the Christian witness in our nation. Ted had given strong leadership to all of these.
  
  His famous saying was that by cooperating with other churches, a united witness for Christ should “make it hard to go to hell” from any city. Again, I grieve for the tarnishing of the name of Christ not only in Colorado Springs but across the world.
  
  Precautions
  
  Here are some recommendations I shared with our staff to help protect us against the attacks of the enemy. These are not in any order of importance and this is not a comprehensive list.
  
  Repent immediately of all known sin.
  Bracket your day with time in God’s presence.
  Be filled with the Spirit and walk in the Spirit.
  Keep short accounts with God; have no unconfessed sin in your life.
  Develop a personal prayer team.
  Humble yourself daily before the Lord.
  Restore fallen brothers and sisters.
  Stay focused on your mission.
  Establish true accountability with a trusted accountability partner.
  Love Jesus with all your heart.
  Don’t give anger a foothold.
  Put on the whole armor of God.
  Abide in the vine (Jesus).
  Pray for grace to wear favor well.
  Hate sin and acknowledge sin.
  Be sure your spouse knows where you are when you have “free time.”
  Know who you are in Christ.
  Know who you are (what the “natural man” is capable of) outside of Christ.
  Contemplate the consequences of sin.
  
  Some Lessons and Observations
  
  God’s character is perfect and so unimpeachable that He is more interested in exposing sin than He is concerned with any supposed “need” to protect His reputation. We have been humiliated, not God. One ray of encouragement is that since this did not catch God by surprise this humiliating exposure will, by His grace, lead to deep examination by the church’s leadership and large scale repentance. This can pave the way for true revival.
  
  When a person seriously commits himself to fulfilling the Great Commission, he will be in the devil’s crosshairs. Of course, this does not mean we retreat from evangelism and missions. It does mean we realize this is a real war with real casualties. In the last few years I have witnessed how the enemy has aimed his big guns at those who have brought leadership to world missions. Among those I know personally who were wounded in spiritual combat:
  
  · Two men who led strategic, growing missions ministries committed adultery. Both are now in the process of being restored. One’s marriage was saved, the other ended in divorce.
  
  · A man who was once a major charismatic missions leader became embittered, embraced New Age ideology, participated in “channeling” and was killed after the car he was driving swerved out of control for no apparent reason.
  
  · A prominent writer with a vision and strategy to see an entire nation transformed for Christ became so disillusioned that he has taken an extended sabbatical from ministry.
  
  · Ted Haggard was a fresh, hopeful, influential – yes, “life giving” – voice for evangelical Christianity. Now, at least for several years to come, that voice and influence are silenced.
  
  We must pray more for each other and learn how to better protect our comrades from the enemy’s attacks.
  
  Even after all the emphasis on leadership, there remains a great leadership shortage in the body of Christ. Very few men can fully appreciate the emotional toll it took to pastor a church of 14,000 people, feel the weight of a multi-million dollar debt on a new worship center, serve as president of the National Association of Evangelicals, be the prime mover and visionary for the World Prayer Center and the World Prayer Team, be a consultant to heads of governments, write numerous books and articles, speak on behalf of millions of Christians, occasionally host or be the guest on international Christian television programs, speak in many conferences and serve on the boards of several strategic ministries. But our leadership shortage is such that when we see a highly gifted man like Ted, we gladly let him assume all of this. After all, it appeared that Ted was giving admirable leadership in each of these arenas.
  
  I have watched this happen twice now, in two different decades. Two men with exceptional gifts and anointing felt obliged to simultaneously lead two, three or even four large ministries. Both men experienced colossal spiritual attacks, succumbed to those attacks and lost their moral authority to lead.
  
  We now need to ask if such a high profile was all born in the heart of God. I’m sure Ted saw each of these as opportunities to advance the Gospel. But such a bright spotlight piercing the eyes so much of the time can produce temporary “blindness” – as it evidently did in Ted’s life. I am not impugning Ted’s motives in accepting all these assignments. But the lesson for us is, “Are we bearing the cross the Lord has ordained for us, or are we carrying some loads that may not be our God-given assignment?” Remember, Jesus said, “Take My yoke upon you.”
  
  When men carry unusually heavy loads, they may be deceived into thinking God has cut a special deal with them and they can indulge their flesh in ways that would be unallowable for others. Remember that godly men like Samson, Saul and David all bought into this lie. The lesson for us: What “indulgences” are we allowing as some kind of emotional “reward” for the load we are carrying?
  
  Lee Grady and Gordon McDonald have written incisive articles that will help you, as they did me, wade through the aftermath of this sad episode in American church history.
  After we have prayed, reflected and repented of any and all sin the Holy Spirit reveals, let’s move on and get back into the battle. We cannot let disappointment and discouragement derail us.
  
  Finally, let’s be comforted again by God’s unchanging Word:
  
  “If we are unfaithful, He remains faithful, for He cannot deny Himself” (2 Tim. 2:13 NLT).
  
  But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. Therefore, my beloved brethren, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that your labor is not in vain in the Lord (1 Cor. 15:57-58).
  
  Now to Him who is able to keep you from stumbling, and to make you stand in the presence of His glory blameless with great joy, to the only God our Savior, through Jesus Christ our Lord, be glory, majesty, dominion and authority, before all time and now and forever. Amen (Jude 24-25).
  
  
  
  David Shibley, President
  GLOBAL ADVANCE
  P.O. Box 742077
  Dallas, TX 75374-2077
  http://mail.clctoday.org/exchange/pj/Inbox/www.globaladvance.org