The Apostles and Us

 

 

CSB17 1 Corinthians 4:⁹ For I think God has displayed us, the apostles, in last place, like men condemned to die: We have become a spectacle to the world, both to angels and to people.

 ¹⁰ We are fools for Christ, but you are wise in Christ! We are weak, but you are strong! You are distinguished, but we are dishonored!

 ¹¹ Up to the present hour we are both hungry and thirsty; we are poorly clothed, roughly treated, homeless;

 ¹² we labor, working with our own hands. When we are reviled, we bless; when we are persecuted, we endure it;

 ¹³ when we are slandered, we respond graciously. Even now, we are like the scum of the earth, like everyone's garbage.

 ¹⁴ I'm not writing this to shame you, but to warn you as my dear children.

 ¹⁵ For you may have countless instructors in Christ, but you don't have many fathers. For I became your father in Christ Jesus through the gospel.

 ¹⁶ Therefore I urge you to imitate me.

 

As I read this passage as part of a daily Bible reading group I am in, the Lord convicted me.

Often a part of me, a sinful part, wants to have the first place, to seek honor and respect and praise from people. But the apostles were treated like people in last place.

I often crave comfort, safety, ease, and worldly security. But the apostles faced constant danger. They suffered in many ways – even to the point of sometimes lacking food, water, shelter, and clothing.

We often seek ease and prosperity, they accepted hardship and poverty.

And yet, Paul was not writing this to shame us nor to complain about his own difficulties. He was writing to warn us against the temptation of shrinking back from God’s work for the sake of seeking comfort and safety. He was concerned that we might be more worried about our temporary needs than we are focused on following Christ. He was urging us to imitate him.

Why would Paul urge us to imitate him in a life that brought so much suffering and danger? Because Jesus is worth all that. Jesus is worth suffering for. The gospel is worth sacrificing for. God’s truth is worth facing danger for. Paul has his eyes set on  heavenly rewards and eternal glory and he is concerned about so many of us who are settling for temporary comforts and short-lived pleasures instead.

Lord, help us, help me, to imitate Paul and the apostles, and to imitate you, our Lord Jesus Christ. Help us to seek treasures in Heaven, and not trinkets on earth. Strengthen us to be willing to lose our lives so that we may find them. Forgive us for wanting to join the sinners at the front of the line instead of your most faithful servants at the back. In Jesus Name. Amen.

Hebrews 13:16 And do not forget to do good and to share with others . . .

What Atheists and Clay Jones Don’t Understand about Biblical Annihilationism

 

As far as I can remember, I did not know of Clay Jones until someone shared a recent blog post of his in the Rethinking Hell Facebook Group. The Rethinking Hell Facebook Group is administered by a group of people (including myself) who believe the Bible teaches conditional immortality (which is also called annihilationism). Jones’ article is critical of conditional immortality. I read it and felt moved to respond. But before writing this response, I took a little time to learn a little about Clay Jones by reading some about him and by reading a couple of articles he has written on other topics.

My impression of Clay Jones from my quick research is that he is a man I can thank God for. He appears to be truly passionate about things like the truth of the Bible, seeking to live a holy life that is pleasing to God, and living with integrity. He seeks to equip others to understand and defend God’s truth and also to live lives consistent with the glorious gospel that we believe. So, while I disagree with Jones’ recent article on annihilationism, overall, I view him as a brother in Christ, and I thank God for his example and ministry.

You may read the article I am responding to here:  And the Atheist Shall Lie Down with the Annihilationist.

Two things in the article that I agree with

Before discussing the points in the article where I think Jones and the unbelievers whom he quotes fail to understand annihilationism, I want to point out two things Jones says that I agree with.

1. Jones wrote, “A growing number of Christians are abandoning the traditional Christian doctrine that the lost will suffer eternal torment in favor of the belief that after the Judgment, the lost will be annihilated.” Praise God! I think that is probably true. It is a difficult thing to measure, but my feeling, and the feeling of others on all sides of this debate, is that more and more Christians who used to believe that the Bible teaches eternal torment, now believe that the Bible teaches conditional immortality. Of course, Jones views this as a negative development, whereas I view it as an indication that God is working to correct a long held and widely believed error among His people. (You may view a 10 minute video where I explain briefly the Biblical reasons that I believe in Annihilationism here.)

2. Jones also wrote, “Although I hold that Scripture teaches the eternal torment of the lost, I realize that what I’m writing here isn’t a defeater of annihilationism. That can only be done by the proper exegesis of various passages pertaining to the final state of the wicked.” In other words, Jones is writing about what he views as one of the (negative) effects of believing in annihilationism, he is not writing directly about the biblical evidence for or against such a belief. I agree fully with Jones that the only way to know if something like annihilationism or eternal torment is true is through proper exegesis of the Bible. I am blessed to be part of a community of theologically conservative evangelicals who have been working hard to do and to share good, biblical evidence, based on sound exegesis, that shows that conditional immortality is taught in the Bible.

Consider the points above where Jones and I agree. More and more Christians are shifting from belief in eternal torment to belief in conditional immortality and the only way to know if we are correct to make that shift is to study the Bible. If you are a Bible teacher, preacher, or any Christian who loves to study the Bible, this should motivate you to look into this issue. Your most important resource is your Bible. Your second most important resource is standard Bible study tools (like lexicons and tools that allow you to look up words and cross references, etc.). Finally, because God uses other Christians to help us, it is helpful to look at material from Christians on both sides of this issue. You’ve likely heard from Christians who believe in eternal torment most of your life. In terms of materials explaining the evidence for conditional immortality, here are two places to find lots of resources:

 

1. The Rethinking Hell website. (If you don’t know where to begin, try this page on the website)

2. Mark’s Resources on Hell (includes links to articles and a few videos I have on this topic)

 

 

The Gist of Clay Jones’ Article

Jones gives examples of atheists and other non-Christians (Buddhists, the Sadducees, and others) who expect death to be the end of their conscious existence. They expect a type of annihilation where they will die and then have no conscious existence. They either claim to not be bothered by this (he quotes quite a few atheists who say they are not bothered by death) or even to look forward to annihilation (apparently some Buddhists see annihilation as the goal, although their view is more complicated). Based on this, Jones suggests that Christians who believe in annihilation are just offering these unbelievers “exactly what they most desire,” so why should they care about the gospel?

Two Big things Clay and the Atheists Miss

 

Jones and the unbelievers whom he quotes both seem to miss two major, really important points. Interestingly, both points that they miss can be seen in John 5:28-29.

ESV John 5:28 Do not marvel at this, for an hour is coming when all who are in the tombs will hear his voice 29 and come out, those who have done good to the resurrection of life, and those who have done evil to the resurrection of judgment.

The first thing they miss is that evangelical conditionalists believe that the unsaved will be resurrected to face judgment (in the first sentence of his article, Jones indicates he knows this, but then seems to ignore it throughout the rest of his article). This means that death on earth in this current age is not the end of the story for the unsaved. They will one day stand in resurrected bodies and face God’s judgment. The experience of judgment will result in them weeping and gnashing their teeth, as Jesus tells us. Just as different methods of execution now involve varying levels of suffering during the process of dying, at the final judgment the unsaved may suffer various degrees and types of suffering in the process of perishing. For example, being executed by lethal injection would not be as bad as being executed by crucifixion. Evangelical conditionalism allows for any finite amount of suffering that God chooses to allow or inflict prior to or as part of the process of perishing. This allows for degrees of punishment. This fact alone reveals the attitude of the atheists who claim not to fear death and what follows is foolish if annihilationism is true (just as it is foolish if eternal torment were true).

Now, it should be pointed out that near the beginning of his article, Clay Jones explains that he knows that some annihilationists believe there may be suffering before final perishing, but he says he is focusing on “straight annihilation” (his term). What he means is that he is discussing annihilation without any conscious suffering at all. He is allowed to do that, but when he chooses to do that he is no longer interacting with a large portion of the Christians he mentioned who have moved from belief in eternal torment to belief in conditional immortality. His article becomes largely irrelevant to the very situation he mentions in the first sentence of his article. I have been working with and interacting with many Christian evangelicals who are the type of people Jones mentioned in his first sentence. Namely, we are Christian who changed views from eternal torment to conditional immortality. All of us believe that the unsaved will be resurrected to face judgment. I’ve never heard anyone say that they think the process of standing before a holy God in judgment will be pleasant for those whose sins are not forgiven (that’s an understatement). And many of us conditionalists believe that there will in fact be conscious suffering before the process of annihilation is complete. We are humble about the nature and duration of this suffering and rarely attempt to give details for the simple reason that the Bible does not give details about the conscious suffering. This first major error is enough to undermine the entire article. Yet this first mistake is not nearly as large or consequential an error as the second error.

The second mistake that is made by the atheists quoted in the article, and which Jones does not seem to recognize, is that they fail to believe that some people will experience “the resurrection of life.” No evangelical conditionalist believes that all people will eternally perish. We believe that by God’s grace, through faith in Jesus Christ, some people have been forgiven and receive the gift of eternal life. We will live forever with God and with other Christians in a world without pain, suffering, or death. We will experience eternal joy. This gift of immortality is not for everyone. It is conditional. That’s why we call it conditional immortality. The condition is having true faith in Christ.

Of course, if everyone was going to utterly and permanently perish, the best we could do would be to try to muster up the attitudes reflected in the quotes from the atheists in Jones’ article. But everything changes when we realize that there is a real alternative to annihilation. That alternative is good, glorious, and wonderful beyond our imagination. In this light, conditionalism offers a very strong motivation for believing in Jesus. The promise of eternal life in Christ by God’s grace has motivated me to try (with God’s help) to live a life consistent with faith in Christ even when it has involved taking risks, facing dangers, making sacrifices, and suffering. I don’t need the threat of eternal torment to be motivated. Eternal life with Jesus is a magnificent and powerful motivation!  I’m not surprised that the atheists don’t see this because they don’t believe it is true and are blind to much of God’s truth. But I’m disappointed that Jones seems to miss this point altogether.

The claim of some atheists to not fear death should not go unquestioned

Jones quotes a number of atheists who claim they do not fear death. Perhaps at the time of the quote they did not fear death in terms of any immediate awareness of the emotion of fear. Perhaps it is even true of some atheists to the end, although I wouldn’t bet on it. First, our widespread experience confirms that people who are not confident of God’s promise of eternal life are usually terrified of dying. They will go to great lengths to avoid death. This is normal. But we don’t have to depend on our experience to confirm that  people fear death unless they have been delivered from that fear by Jesus. The Word of God teaches us that outside of Christ people are captive to fear of death:

ESV Hebrews 2:14-15 Since therefore the children share in flesh and blood, he himself likewise partook of the same things, that through death he might destroy the one who has the power of death, that is, the devil, and deliver all those who through fear of death were subject to lifelong slavery.

Outside of Christ, people do fear death. Common sense, our experience throughout life, and most importantly, the Bible, confirm that people fear death. The atheists who claim not to fear death may not be intentionally lying, but neither do I think they are being honest with themselves (or with us!).

What about People Motivated to Accept Christ by the Threat of Eternal Torment?

Jones shares his own testimony and that of another about the role that desiring to avoid eternal torment played in their salvation. I don’t doubt that many people have been partly motivated to accept Jesus because they want to avoid hell. In fact, I would say that avoiding hell is a good motivation. It’s just that what we avoid by not going to hell is the destruction of our body and soul (see Matthew 10:28), not eternal torment. Thankfully, a gospel presentation does not have to include perfect theology in all its details in order to be used by God. If God required perfect doctrinal precision, what hope would we have? It is essential to get the basics right. These includes things like Jesus being our Lord and Savior, the fact the He died for us, and the fact that He rose again. So, the fact that many have come to Christ believing that by doing so they avoided eternal torment, does not make eternal torment a correct doctrine nor does it in any way invalidate the salvation of those who believed under such teaching.

We don’t know for sure what effect it will have if more evangelists begin to frame the gospel in terms of gaining eternal life rather than framing it in terms of avoiding eternal torment. However, we do know this. There is not a single mention of eternal torment in the evangelistic preaching recorded in the book of Acts. It’s not that the preaching in Acts is completely void of warning. Consider this warning from Paul:

ESV Acts 13:40-41 Beware, therefore, lest what is said in the Prophets should come about: "'Look, you scoffers, be astounded and perish [aphanizō]; for I am doing a work in your days, a work that you will not believe, even if one tells it to you.'"

Paul warned that those who scoff at the gospel message instead of accepting it will perish. In this verse, the word “perish” translates the Greek word aphanizō. We know that aphanizō is an appropriate word in Greek to refer to what we mean by “annihilation” because one of the early church fathers, Athenagoras of Athens, used aphanizō specifically and clearly to refer to the possibility of annihilation. Athenagoras himself did not believe in annihilation but wrote about it. Josephus also used aphanizō to refer to a type of annihilationism.  (You can find the details with quotes in this blog post:  Athenagoras of Athens, a Hostile Witness for Annihilationism.)

Based on the example of apostolic evangelism in Acts, I’m confident that framing the gospel in terms of conditional immortality rather than in terms of avoiding eternal torment will not harm the spread of the gospel. In fact, I believe it will help the spread of the gospel.

Ignoring the negative impact of the doctrine of eternal torment

Jones is concerned about the possible negative impact of the doctrine of annihilationism on reaching atheists. However, he does not consider the fact that the apparent gross injustice and cruelty of tormenting people forever for sins committed in one short lifetime on earth is a reason that some atheists have cited for rejecting Christianity. For example, in his book Why I am not a Christian, Bertand Russell wrote:

 

There is one very serious defect to my mind in Christ’s moral character, and that is that He believed in hell. I do not myself feel that any person who is really profoundly humane can believe in everlasting punishment.

By everlasting punishment, it is almost certain that Russell means eternal torment, even though annihilation is also an everlasting punishment. Others who see a problem with eternal torment have not chosen atheism, but they have rejected evangelical Christianity (I discuss this problem and give examples in this blog post.)

Responses to a few very brief arguments defending eternal torment or pointing to verses that Jones thinks teach eternal torment

Although at the beginning of his article Jones said his purpose was not to give the type of evidence that would show eternal torment is true and annihilationism is false, he does briefly mention one argument and a few Bible passages often used to support belief in eternal torment. I will reply very briefly to these.

Jones argues that the occupants of hell will be eternally unrepentant. This is sometimes used to argue that God is just in tormenting them forever. This actually points to some major problems with the eternal torment view. In this view, sin continues forever. God never destroys all sin and never stops all sinning. This is inconsistent with a view of a final, perfect world where all God’s enemies have been destroyed. Further, this would mean that God’s wrath continues forever instead of being completely carried out on what the Bible calls “the day of wrath” (see: The Day of Wrath).

Jones seems to think that the mention of “eternal fire” in Matthew 18:8 and 25:41 implies eternal torment. However, the fire is eternal because the fire’s source is God Himself, who is a consuming fire towards all evil. This does not mean that those consumed and burned up and turned to ashes by the fire last forever (see this blog post: Why Eternal Fire does not Mean Eternal Torment).

Finally, Jones mentions the worms and fires in Mark 9:48 as support for eternal torment. Perhaps he does not realize that Jesus was quoting from the last verse in Isaiah where the same worms and fire are being used to consume dead bodies, not torment living people.

Conclusion

I thank God for the years of ministry and teaching through which Clay Jones has served and built up the body of Christ. I pray sincerely that God will continue to use him for much good. On the particular issue of the nature of hell, I feel that Jones has failed to understand the implications and logic of conditional immortality and has apparently so far failed to see the strong biblical case for this doctrine. I think he is right that many Christians are moving from belief in eternal torment to belief in conditional immortality. I pray that he will soon join us!

 

Hebrews 13:16 And do not forget to do good and to share with others . . .

 

A related blog post:

Does Annihilationism Make the Threat of Hell Meaningless?

 

Biblical Principles to Help us Prevent and Respond to Terrible Situations like the Ravi Zacharias Sexual Sin Case

 

 

Yesterday (February 11, 2021), Ravi Zacharias International Ministries (RZIM) released the results of an investigation into allegations of sexual sin and abuse by Ravi before he died (you can read the report here). Especially in light of how many Christians looked up to and respected Ravi, and considering the large impact of his ministry over many years, the report is gut wrenching to read and heart breaking to contemplate.

As terrible as this news is, I’m thankful that RZIM hired an independent firm to conduct the investigation and that they released the report. Evil works best in the dark. Exposing it reminds us to be on guard and begins the healing process for those who have been hurt.

My purpose in this blog post is not to evaluate Ravi’s sin or the RZIM organization. Rather, my purpose is to use this sad occasion to highlight some biblical principles that can help us stop some future cases like this one and help us to respond rightly if we are in a church or ministry where there is evidence that a leader may be involved in ongoing, serious sin. I will focus mostly on sexual sin, but the biblical principles I share also apply to other types of sin like stealing, angry outbursts, and substance abuse. But before I share the biblical principles, I want to briefly share a little of my own experience.

My Personal Experience with Helping Stop Abuse and Healing those Who have been Hurt

About twelve years ago my wife, Hope, and I discovered a case of sexual abuse by a top leader at a Christian college. The abuser was eventually fired, but the process of getting to that point was difficult and costly (I’ve shared some more of that story in a previous blog post, here.)

Hope and I have also seen God heal and transform some victims of sexual abuse. In one case our role was mainly prayer and encouragement. In another case, we had the opportunity to invest deeply in a young lady who had been a victim of childhood sexual abuse. The healing process occurred over a period of years, not months. At times she broke down and cried like a little child in Hope’s lap. In both cases the healing process was long, difficult, and required great courage and strength from those who had been hurt. The needed courage and strength came from the Lord. Both ladies have been gloriously transformed and each has since served as mature Christian leaders in incredibly challenging ministries. They are my heroes. God allowed us to see both the depth of damage done by sexual abuse as well as His amazing ability to heal and transform people who have been deeply wounded.

What Should We Do?

In this short article I want to share four biblical principles that are relevant to preventing sexual abuse by church and ministry leaders and of responding to cases that occur despite our efforts to be on guard. 

The biblical principles I will share here are mainly based on a passage written by the Apostle Paul almost 2,000 years ago:

 

17 The elders who are good leaders are to be considered worthy of double honor, especially those who work hard at preaching and teaching.

 

 18 For the Scripture says: Do not muzzle an ox while it is treading out the grain, and the worker is worthy of his wages.

 

 19 Don't accept an accusation against an elder unless it is supported by two or three witnesses.

 20 Publicly rebuke those who sin, so that the rest will be afraid.

 21 I solemnly charge you before God and Christ Jesus and the elect angels to observe these things without prejudice, doing nothing out of favoritism. 

22 Don't be too quick to appoint anyone as an elder, and don't share in the sins of others. Keep yourself pure. (1 Timothy 5:17-22 CSB17)

Paul’s Holy Spirit inspired ancient wisdom is relevant today. Here are the four principles:

1.  Be careful when appointing ministry leaders.

“Don’t be too quick to appoint anyone . . .”

Churches and Christian ministries constantly need more leaders. Whether it’s replacing a pastor who has retired or moved to a new assignment, hiring a youth pastor, or finding volunteers to work with youth and children, there is often a sense of urgency in finding new leaders. Those who are serving on search committees or in positions of authority where they hire new workers are often stretched thin themselves. Nevertheless, we must not give in to the temptation to cut corners when it comes to choosing ministry leaders.

Earlier in 1 Timothy Paul gave qualifications for elders and deacons. Most of the qualifications generally apply to all ministry leaders in the church and in Christian organizations. The qualifications focus mainly on character issues. These types of issues take time and effort to test and verify. One of the main indications of readiness to lead in the church is that a person is doing a good job and bearing good fruit leading in their own home and family. When hiring someone who is not personally known to a church or ministry, careful efforts are called for, including checking references, in evaluating the character of a potential new pastor or other ministry leader. It takes times and energy, but it’s worth it in order to protect our churches and ministries from predators.

2. Carefully seek and evaluate evidence when there are accusations.

“Don't accept an accusation against an elder unless . . .”

If there is an accusation against a church leader (or anyone else in the church) it calls for careful investigation. If the accusation involves possible abuse of minors, it should be reported to legal authorities. A church wouldn’t try to deal with a murderer on their own, neither should we do so with cases of child abuse. The law enforcement agencies have resources and legal powers that churches do not have. And child abuse is a crime which calls not only for removing a guilty person from any church position, but also for putting them in prison in order to protect others in the community.

However, there are many cases that do not involve children (as far as I know the case with Ravi did not) and yet still need to be investigated. Paul makes it clear that we are competent to judge in areas where the church needs to make decisions (1 Corinthians 4:12-5:5). For example, if an older, married pastor is accused of having sex with a 19-year-old college student, there might not be any crime in the eyes of the law to investigate. But there would certainly be an urgent need for the church to investigate and make a judgment as to whether the accusation was true. You can imagine many other cases where a law has not been broken that calls for investigation by police, yet very serious sin has been committed by a church leader which calls for investigation by other leaders in the church.

In cases of sexual immorality, how might a church apply the rule that there has to be two or three witnesses (1 Timothy 5:19)? I don’t think the requirement for two or three witnesses means that you have to have multiple witnesses to begin to quietly and carefully investigate an allegation that is credible. That would be an almost impossible standard to meet in the case of sexual sin. Rather, I think it means that we should not accept an allegation as true and should not share it publicly (or even privately except with great care with those who need to know in order to investigate the allegation) until the allegation is proven. And a high level of proof, such as two or three witnesses, is required.

In the case where a young lady at a Christian Bible college I was teaching at told my wife that a leader at the school had asked to sleep with her, we immediately asked her if she thought any of her friends might have had similar problems with this same leader. In that case we were able to find multiple witnesses in less than 24 hours after the first accusation. Other cases might not be as simple. Sexual immorality is usually carried out in secret and abusers often go to great lengths to conceal their sin and keep others from speaking. Still, there will often be corroborating witnesses in the form of other victims, people who saw inappropriate interaction, or electronic evidence like texts or photos on computers or cell phones. In some cases, the abuser may confess to some or all of their crimes.

RZIM apparently had the resources to call in professional private investigators. Many ministries and churches will not have the finances to pay for that. But it may be wise to ask for help from mature, godly, Christians with appropriate gifting and experience from outside the church or organization where the alleged problem is.

These cases can be complex and involve many people. Wisdom is needed. Thankfully, our God promises wisdom to those who ask (James 1:5).

3. Publicly rebuke church leaders who have committed sins serious enough to warrant their removal.

“Publicly rebuke those who sin . . .”

This one is tough. Sometimes churches and ministries prefer to sweep problems under the carpet and handle things quietly. I think this is why Paul went on to write, “I solemnly charge you before God and Christ Jesus and the elect angels to observe these things without prejudice, doing nothing out of favoritism.” It’s as if Paul knew we wouldn’t want to publicly rebuke fallen leaders, so he stopped to make it clear that we have to. These are the words of the Apostle Paul. This is also the Word of God. Our job is to trust and obey.

Remember that public rebuke in these verses only applies to church and ministry leaders. When your friend or neighbor sins, you are not called to rebuke them publicly. But when does this apply? How do we carry it out? Who do we tell and how much do we tell? Again, we will need Holy Spirit given wisdom to carry this out well. Based on over twenty years of ministry leadership experience, and some painful experience dealing with these types of issues, here are a few of my thoughts:

* If the sin is serious enough to cause a church leader to be fired or to resign, it should be shared with the church.

* All the ugly details do not need to be shared. Enough should be shared so that the church members will understand the basic nature and seriousness of the sin.

* If the guilty party maintains their innocence in the face of evidence that leaves no reasonable doubt of their guilt, or if they protest that they are being treated unfairly, enough additional details may need to be shared to establish their guilt and to show the justice of their removal.

* If the abuser seeks employment with another church or ministry, it is proper to share the basic facts in order to protect others from harm. In terms of exactly how to do this, in some cases it may be wise to get legal counsel.

* In sharing cases of sexual abuse, we must protect the victims. Some victims may want to come forward publicly. Most will probably want to have their privacy and identity protected as they attempt to work through a very painful experience. We should honor and protect them.

4. Honor good leaders.

“The elders who are good leaders are to be considered worthy of double honor . . .”

The sad news about Ravi Zacharias reminds us that some Christian leaders are wolves in sheeps’ clothing and so we need to be on guard. It also teaches us how not to deal with sexual abuse through negative examples and pushes us to do better (RZIM has confessed that they previously made many severe errors in responding to evidence). But we also need to remember the other side of the story.

Before he gives us instructions on how to guard against appointing bad leaders and how to deal with bad ones whose sins are discovered after they have been appointed, Paul exhorts us to honor good leaders.

I’ve known some bad Christian leaders who did a lot of harm to those they were called to serve. But I’ve known many more good Christian pastors and leaders. Most Christian leaders I’ve known are godly people who humbly serve others. They work hard. I’ve known quite a few who made significant financial sacrifices and accepted significantly more humble lifestyles in order to be faithful to God’s calling. Far from being the ones who damage souls, they are constantly ministering God’s love, truth, and grace to people in all of the most difficult situations of life. When church members lose family members, or face severe health problems, or are going through marital conflict, or dealing with depression, or find themselves trapped by a dark addiction, these Christian leaders are there loving, serving, helping, giving, and healing in Jesus’ Name. Most of these Christian leaders are excellent moral examples to follow. Of course, they are not perfect, but their character is such that by their life and teaching they encourage many others to live more godly lives.

So, let’s not throw out the baby with the bathwater.

A Closing Prayer

Heavenly Father, we ask that you will bring much good out of the heart breaking report about Ravi Zacharias. May this news strengthen victims to report abusers and to share their stories when they are ready. May ministries and churches be more vigilant in guarding against sexual abuse. When the terrible happens, and sexual abuse occurs in a Christian organization or church, please give those organizations and churches the courage, strength, and grace to not cover up it up, but to deal with it in a way that best protects others from future abuse and also best brings healing to the victims.

Heavenly Father, heal those who have been hurt by evil sexual predators. Surround them with safe people who are called and gifted to bring healing, love, and truth into their wounded hearts. Transform them and use their stories to help guard others. Protect victims from the lie that there was something wrong with them that caused their abuse. Also help them to see that while not all Christian leaders are trustworthy, Jesus Christ is trustworthy.

Lord, please also encourage those who are understandably deeply discouraged by seeing a man whom they may have learned from and respected exposed as a liar, hypocrite, and sexual abuser. Remind people that Your truth remains true even when some of those who teach it are revealed to be false.

Bless and strengthen the many good Christian leaders who are humbly serving your people. Protect them from temptation.

In Jesus Name, Amen.

 

More Resources on this topic:

(1) In another blog post I wrote about one of the reasons that sexual abuse is so common and why some Christian leaders (and others) get away with it for so long. You may read that here:

Why is there so much sexual abuse?

(2) Despite claiming to take precautions, Ravi was often in situations where he could easily carry out sinful desires with little chance of getting quickly caught. If he had really and honestly kept what some call “the Billy Graham Rule” from early in his ministry, he might not have fallen into the terrible sins he eventually committed. I write about the Billy Graham Rule here:

The Billy Graham Rule:  How Billy Graham was a good example to me.

(3) This blog post has some thoughts that are relevant to this issue:

Feelings, Thoughts and Prayers Related to the Kavanaugh Accusations

(4) Fighting the good fight against sin and being on guard against sin is important for all Christians, and especially for leaders. By fighting hard against relatively small (but still serious) sins we can avoid going down the path that it appears Ravi went down. This blog post has practical advice for fighting against temptation:

Practical Advice for Battles with Sin and Temptation

(5) This blog post you just read in response to the news about Ravi Zacharias borrows heavily from a previous blog post I wrote in response to a series of news articles about sexual abuse in Southern Baptist Churches. In fact, it is basically the same blog post reworked to make it relevant to Ravi’s case. If you want to read the one about sexual abuse in Southern Baptist Churches, which focuses more specifically on the problem of sexual abuse of children, here it is:

Sexual Abuse in Southern Baptist Churches and Ancient Wisdom from Paul

 Hebrews 13:16 And do not forget to do good and to share with others . . .