Disaster

This is what happens when programs become more important than people; when running a ministry becomes more important than actually ministering.

I don't know much about this Pastor Haggard; I never heard of him before the scandal broke. But I know he doesn't deserve this - he doesn't deserve to be abandoned in his moment of shame. The evangelical leadership in America is an absolute disaster. There's not one of those guys I'd trust with my morning coffee, let alone the stuff of my soul.

But I'll tell you the truth, the absolute truth. Broken, bleeding and dying, his mortal life ebbing away in unbearable agony, our Lord and Saviour raised his eyes to the heavens and cried, "My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?" I will never have the opportunity to talk to Pastor Haggard, will never meet the man, but I wish I could tell him that in these dark and painful days he is closer to Christ than he ever was in any of those praise and worship shout-fests, that being a rock-star pastor is nothing compared to being a broken lover of Christ, that in his brokenness and shame he is, in fact, at one with Christ upon the cross, and he is about to feel the redemptive power of the blood, about to know the Lamb of God and he is about to be born again.

And James Dobson is irrelevant.

Comments

[Tiffany (Mrs. Bush League Theologian)]

Preach on sister! Though I am dreaming of the day when I become as perfect as James Dobson and his wife :)

[Paul Connors]

OK, granted, I am not the biggest James Dobson fan in the world, but this has got to be the biggest lamewad stunt he has ever pulled. This is what his whole ministry is supposed to be about and he can't find time to help Haggard out?

I can't wait until evangelicalism as we know it crashes and burns so we can start over again.

[Barbara]

I am fuming mad after reading this. I have been fuming mad for days about this whole thing. I am going to link to this post, you said so eloquently what I have been thinking.

P.S.
Um, RWK - on another note, I noticed Tiffany thinks you are of the feminine persuasion - someone else referred to you as a "she" to me once too. I have no idea why.

[Tiffany (Mrs. Bush League Theologian)]

I totally know he's a dude. It's from Jerry Springer, along with "I take care of my kids" and "Talk to the hand." :)

[~m2~]

you rock, rwk. plain & simple.

[Urbanmonk]

Top post RWK. When will the Church stop pretending that it is anything more than a bleeding patient. In need of healing oil.

Interesting from the Godless Australian perspective that many American voices say they had never heard of poor old ted until he was labelled "gay" by being caught out engaging in homosexual sex.

Christians love to make distinctions between things. They dont like to admit that things are not black and white. ie: sexuality. because that would thrust them into the uncertainty of faith,o its easier to demonise. But what does this shock and distancing say about our attitudes to sexuality?

Porobably, most have never even thought about it.

Well, if there si anything that will get the masses interested, it is a "righteous man" being abased and humiliated. Australians love that sort of thing..and your right, being abased and humiliated, ted might be closer to Jesus than he ever was.

We have failed again to understand and properly contextualise the Gospel for our own times. Jesus loved the reprobates, not the religious and pious and righteous church goers. How many times do we have to hear it before it seeps into our wooden skulls, and wooden hearts?

[lorna]

Amen!

[Kelly]

I don't get the picture.

[[rhymes with kerouac]]

Tiffany - An old rock anthem comes to mind - "Dude Looks Like a Lady". :) But who sang that?

Paul - Thankfully, this is strictly an Amercian phenomenom.

Barbara - I know how you feel.

~m2~ - Oh no, it is thou who doth truly rocketh!

Urbanmonk - I don't think the evangelical view fails to contextualize the gospel for our times. I rather think it doesn't understand the gospel at all.

lorna - Indeed!

Kelly - A bunch of people standing around looking at a crashed car seemed to me like all of us standing around gawking at Haggard's crashed life. Sometimes my mind goes off on its own tangents and I guess this was one of those times!

[ken]

I have never understood this tendency to hold our Pastors up as "perfect" people, than when they turn out to be sinners, just like the rest of us, we turn on them, and throw them out. Pastors are human, just like all of us, and face the same urges and temptations as the rest of us. Perhaps we need to start showing the same grace that Christ showed us. Just a thought. God bless you, Ken

[[rhymes with kerouac]]

Ken - I agree, whole-heartedly.

[Brian Buriff]

I once chaired a credentials committee where we had to deal with situations like this. Most who had fallen were arrogant and proud and there was very little to work with in terms of redemption and restoration. But one fellow was very very broken, humble and I thought there was definite hope. My colleagues on the committee disagreed with me and insisted on the full surrender of his credentials. Privately I met with this minister and shephereded him along a path of healing. Eventually he "re-applied" and eventually was fully restored.

Gal 6:1-2 - "Brethren, if a man is overtaken in any trespass, you who are spiritual restore such a one in a spirit of gentleness, considering yourself lest you also be tempted. Bear one another's burdens, and so fulfill the law of Christ."

[David]

Word!

[J]

So much for bearing your brother's burden, loving your neighbor (literally - they're both in Colorado) and all that jive. This abandonment is worse than the scandal itself.

[[rhymes with kerouac]]

Brian - You know, I'm wondering about the phrase, "lest you also be tempted" in that verse. Everyone seems to think it means 'lest you be tempted by the same sin,' but I wonder now if it doesn't mean, 'lest you be tempted by pride'. I mean, don't all of our sins begin when we put ourselves above all else?

David - Peace Out! (Oh yeah, I'm hip...)

J. - Dobson's leadership is a long way from inspiring, isn't it?

[Matt]

I agree with you whole heartedly.
Not to defend any of the superstars in their superstardom, but in the case of Dr Dobson it may be that he was named to do a task he didn't commit to doing. Working with Pastor Ted was something he was asked to consider, but hadn't committed to it before it went public.
That being said, I still don't know why you wouldn't commit to it no matter what your work load.
I think it says that if we are spiritual, we should restore those who have fallen, unless we want to get caught up in the same sin.
It also says that we will be judged the way we judge.
Small potatoes and close to Christ is the way to go!

[John Lunt]

I was afraid something like this would happen. A lot of folks will abandon Ted Haggard to protect "their" ministries.

What has the church become when "we're too busy and the ministry" become more important than a brother or sister.

I believe though the other two men, Jack Hayford and Tommy Barnett will see this through. Both are Godly men, humble and seem to have a real love for people.

My prayer is for Ted Haggard and his family. I believe fully in the redemptive power of Jesus and that he having begun a good work is faithful to complete it. I know this will be painful for him and his family, but I agree fully with RWK that Ted is closer to Jesus now in brokenness than ever before. I don't know what God has planned for this family, but I believe that the end will be much better for them than what they've experienced.

I believe RWK's perspective is vital for us in the Kingdom, as he is constantly involved with broken people. Keep us honest RWK. Keep us honest.

[Howard]

Thank you for speaking the truth.

[reesta]

I have noticed over the years, but never understood, the Christian world's obsession with sex. To many - these kinds of sins are the most reprehensible acts a Christian can commit, illiciting comments which start with "no Christian should..."

Well "hello!" Christians do everything that the world does and to think otherwise is not to understand fully the fallen state of mankind or human nature. They just hide it more because they know the price of being honest comes with a huge cost.

What about lying? gossiping? slandering? What about letting the poor go hungry? Hiding in one's church to avoid the stain of sin from the world? Judging others? Not loving others?

I just don't get it at all......I truly don't.

I don't care what goes on behind closed doors and because I am not the Holy Spirit I do not feel that it is my job to correct everyone I meet and show them the "right way" to be a Christian. Yes I know what the bible says about these things and I believe the bible and I am not advocating sin on any level - but my point is that we place way too much emphasis on externals and in the past have put alot of people off of Jesus because we made the rules too hard for people to meet where they are at that moment. He wants their hearts. And ours. He wants us to be genuine and real, not a bunch of people who look good on the outside. He can't work with fake.

I want people to meet Jesus where they are at now - to feel His love and forgiveness now - and then begin to submit to the Holy Spirit themselves - in God's time and when they are ready because anything else just doesn't last because it's only being done to please others, not a heart-felt repentence before God.

God's grace gets way more attention in the bible than the few sections on sex and we need to extend that grace to everyone so that they can begin to see the face of God.

I bet alot of people will be surprised at who they see and don't see in heaven.........

[wilsonian]

Interesting juxtapostion between this post and the one following, and the situation with the verbally abusive woman harassing the OC man to get help. His response "I'm just trying to ignore you".

Seems like we bounce between these two responses to sin/perceived sin... either pretend we don't see it and then be the first to light the funeral pyre when everything crashes, or be the public accuser shaming and belittling (not saying that circumstance had anything to do with sin, just using it for illustrative purposes).

Surely there is a wide margin between where love can be demonstrated. Love that redeems and heals.