Picture from
This past week Tullian Tchividjian stepped down from his Florida megachurch after admitting he had an extramarital affair and that he had therefore disqualified himself from pastoral ministry. As with Mark Driscoll it was another sad day for the evangelical church in America.
In light of a few public statements I have spent time this week praying for Coral Ridge Church as well as asking God to mend the Tchividjian's broken marriage. I have also spent some time meditating on the sober warning in 1 Corinthians 10:12, Therefore let anyone who thinks that he stands take heed lest he fall. "But for the grace of God there go I."
As most of you know I have posted a few articles highlighting the theological trajectory of Pastor Tullian and Elyse Fitzpatrick; (If you need a quick recap on the issues surrounding the sanctification/hyper-grace controversy you can click here and here). Some people have suggested that Tullian's "Antinomian tendencies" had absolutely nothing to do with this recent adultery/affair announcement. I have responded by saying none of us know for certain how much or how little Tullian's hyper-grace sanctification paradigm impacted his recent behavior and sinful choices.
The Scriptures do teach us however that what someone believes (or does not believe) should and often does impact our everyday living. Biblical examples of this thinking/behavior connection include Platonic Dualism, Gnosticism, the hyper-realized eschatology problem in Thessalonica, and of course, heretical Libertine theology (as described in 2 Peter/Jude). Orthodoxy and orthopraxy are inseparably connected! Or you might say that unbiblical theology and sin are often partners in crime.
At the 2015 Shepherd's Conference Dr. Ligon Duncan also reminded a room full of pastors that immoral living often leads to bad theology. In other words, bad theology is often created in order to justify sinful behavior (note for example the open and affirming church movement in America). Before you write me off I would encourage you to spend some time thinking about the implications of these observations. I believe Lig Duncan made this insightful statement about 'sin and erroneous theology' during this exposition of 2 Timothy 4.
A few months ago I shared three of the main reasons why their is such a high dropout rate among ministers of the gospel today. Under reason three I noted that, "Some men are no longer in the ministry because they have disqualified themselves from the New Testament office of pastor/elder.
The Evil One works overtime trying to "DQ" qualified ministers of the gospel. We need to remind ourselves that Satan does not fight like a gentleman. He has no problem aiming for the officers of the Lord's Army, in fact, it is his standard mode of operation.
Why do you suppose the Holy Spirit included passages of Scripture like 1 Timothy 1:19 and 2 Timothy 4:10? Paul himself declared, Therefore I run in such a way, as not without aim; I box in such a way, as not beating the air; but I buffet my body and make it my slave, lest possibly, after I have preached to others, I myself should be disqualified (1 Cor. 9:27).
1 Timothy 3:4-5, A elder (pastor) must be one who manages his own household well, keeping his children under control with all dignity (but if a man does not know how to manage his own household, how will he take care of the church of God?)
The apostle also reminded his ministry protégé in 1 Timothy 4:16, Pay close attention to yourself and to your teaching; persevere in these things; for as you do this you will insure salvation both for yourself and for those who hear you. "Some men are no longer serving in vocational ministry because they did not take these somber passages to heart."
CONCLUSION: This past week I have read a few commentary pieces about Tullian and the recent news surrounding his unexpected resignation. Much of what has been written thus far has not been very helpful to me (lots and lots of heat but not very much light). The one notable exception that I found was this open letter to Tullian. This Christian author sums up many of my own thoughts and observations quite well. I have never been to his website before so I can only vouch for this one article. All of us should examine the Scriptures, guard our own hearts, and pray for one another, especially for we pastors, with greater vigilance!
