What to Do When Your Spiritual Hero Falls

A few weeks ago a well-known and loved preacher was arrested for sending inappropriate images to at least one minor. A few years ago a very famous preacher and preaching coach stepped down from ministry work because it came to light that he had an ongoing relationship with a woman who was not his wife, a woman who was quite a bit younger than him. Several years before that, I remember where I was when I found out a pastor at a ministry I was somewhat connected to had impregnated his secretary. I haven’t linked any of these stories and I’m being intentionally vague on the details, but I’m guessing that many of my readers can fill in these names. Sadly, it’s not unheard of for spiritual leaders who often become spiritual heroes to end up spiritual failures.

Nobody is perfect. I think we all realize that. Every spiritual leader sins. But not all sins are the same. Being angry with my wife is not as bad as cheating on my wife. Both are sins, but they are not equally serious. Hopefully we realize that if we get close to any of our spiritual heroes, we will begin to see cracks and flaws. But what happens when spiritual leaders fail in big ways, ways that ruin lives and bring dishonor to the name of Christ? What do you do when someone you look up to falls?

Don’t Minimize the Offender’s Sin

Sometimes when a spiritual leader or mentor fails, it can be tempting to act like they didn’t really do anything wrong. “Nobody’s perfect.” “Let him that is without sin cast the first stone.” The mindset is that any kind of a standard which would remove someone from ministry is artificial or hypocritical, because we are all sinners. While it is true that we are all sinners, God has given us passages that describe the qualifications of spiritual leadership (1 Timothy 3, Titus 1). Those standards must mean something, and they must mean that some people have sinned grievously enough that they cannot or at least should not reenter pastoral ministry.

In some cases it might be easier to excuse sin than in others. If the police are involved or marital vows are violated, it’s rarer that people will try to excuse the behavior. But if there are questions about what happened, some people seek to make the situation better by minimizing the seriousness of sin. Don’t. Sin is bad. Saying that sin isn’t that bad won’t produce the holiness that God is seeking in our lives and the lives of others.

Don’t Minimize Your Own Sin

An even bigger problem is that when we watch people we admire fall, we tend to excuse our own sin. We compare ourselves and decide that we aren’t that bad. If my spiritual hero committed adultery, then I guess my lust isn’t that bad. If my spiritual hero was found guilty of money laundering and fraud, then my covetousness must not be a problem. This line of thinking can be quite common, but it’s very dangerous. In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus teaches the important lesson that sins like adultery and murder are caused by the seeds of lust and anger. If I see someone whose sin led to death and destruction (Proverbs 14:12; James 1:13-15), I should be extra concerned about the sin in my life. No, my sin may not be as bad as the sin I see in a fallen leader. But it’s a seed, and seeds grow. If I don’t take care of the “little sins” in my life, I will go down the same path of destruction and face the same disastrous end. God wants us to see the consequences of sin in the lives of others and fear so that we don’t go down the same path (1 Timothy 5:19-21).

Don’t Despair of Holiness

Some see those they looked up to fall and wonder if there is any hope at all. Can anyone live rightly if that guy, who spoke so eloquently about the truth of the gospel, can’t even make it? The answer, of course, is yes. Many men have. Hypocrisy is easy, and someone can say the right things while living a lie, but that doesn’t invalidate the truth. Just because some men live a lie doesn’t mean that everyone is living a lie. There have been many faithful pastors, leaders, missionaries, evangelists, and committed businessmen, tradesmen, and others who have lived faithfully until the end. If a hero falls, use the time as an opportunity to examine your own heart. Allow yourself to be reminded of the seriousness of sin and take care of the problem now before it gets to be too big (Hebrews 3:12-13). Yet as you soberly consider the failures of others, don’t think that living for Christ is impossible. It’s hard, and many do fail, but not everyone. You don’t have to fail.

Remember that Truth Poured Through a Broken Vessel Is Still Truth

One problem that many are plagued by is what can and can’t be believed when a hero falls. Let’s say you go to camp and the camp speaker had a tremendous impact on your life. Then you find out he was in gross sin that had been hidden during the week of camp. What about all those great things he said? Is any of that true? Was the work that God did in your life real?

Well, ask yourself the question, “Did what he said line up with Scripture?” If it did, then it’s true whether he ignored it or not. Preachers (and by extension writers) are heralds whose job it is to share what God has said. If a town crier delivers the king’s message, but ignores it himself, that doesn’t negate the message. If a preacher preaches the Word faithfully but lives wickedly, the Word remains true and living and powerful. None of this means that there will be no consequences for someone living in wickedness while preaching the Word. What it means is that the Word works even when the vessel is particularly broken.

Commit to Praying for Your Leaders

As a Christian leader myself, allow me to share a somewhat self-interested request: please pray for us. Pastors, traveling speakers, your favorite Christian authors, all of those whose job it is to tell others what God says, these men and women stand on the front lines. Satan knows that if he can get a leader to fall, it will ripple much further than if he can get a new convert to fail. When you see a leader fail, say a word of prayer for your pastor. Remember that all spiritual leaders are humans with feet of clay. There is no secret switch that gets flipped when you enter ministry where suddenly temptation and the flesh no longer affect you. Satan doesn’t back off if you decide to serve Jesus; he leans in all the more. So commit or recommit to praying for your spiritual leaders. Your prayers just might make the difference in their lives.

Turn Your Eyes on the One Who Will Never Fail You

People will fail us and disappoint us. When that happens, the temptation is to be cynical, but the right response is to be reminded that they were never our Savior to begin with. One famous Christian leader displayed the words of John the Baptist in his office: “I am not the Christ” (John 1:20). He was right. He wasn’t the Savior. He couldn’t save anyone. In fact, no human leader will save you. Only Jesus can save you. Once you realize this, then your spiritual heroes can do the only job they are qualified to do—point you back to Jesus. And when they fall, you can turn to the one who never fell and can keep you from falling (Jude 24-25).