Should Adultery Permanently Ban Pastors From Behind the Pulpit?

Should pastors be allowed to pastor a church or preach in a church after adultery? What can we learn from Scripture?

Above Reproach

Should pastors be allowed to pastor a church or preach in a church after adultery? What can we learn from Scripture? It isn’t about, “What do I think” or “Who are we to judge?” but what does the Bible say about the qualifications for being an elder and pastor? Imagine your pastor preaching about the evils of adultery while he was having an affair with another woman in church? It’s happened all too often, so could you really take his teachings seriously on the marriage bed being undefiled anymore? Would you take his preaching seriously if he said “those who practice such things [i.e., sexual immorality] will not inherit the kingdom of God” (1 Cor 6:9-10: Gal 5:19-21; Heb 13:1; Rev 21:8) while he himself has done such a thing?

Qualifications

There are at least two places where qualifications for elders (pastors) are given and in both cases, the fidelity (faithfulness) in marriage is regarded as essential. There should not even be a hint of scandal in the pastor’s life. Of course, they’ll be gossip, but that’s to be expected. What the gossipers should lack however, is real, hard evidence in sexual immorality or misconduct in the pastor’s life. Gossip is not enough. It takes two or three witnesses to establish the truth, and that, after careful deliberation (Duet 19:15; 2 Cor 31:1). The pastor or “overseer is to be above reproach, faithful to his wife, temperate, self-controlled, respectable, hospitable, able to teach” (1 Tim 3:2). He must be faithful to his wife. If not, he is not above reproach, therefore, he is not qualified any longer to be a pastor or elder or preach from behind the pulpit or even give marriage counseling for that matter.

Marital Faithfulness

The other place where pastoral qualifications are given to us is in Titus 1 and it’s about as clear as can be. The Apostle Paul said, the pastor or “An elder must be blameless, faithful to his wife, a man whose children believe and are not open to the charge of being wild and disobedient” (Titus 1:6). Notice again that the pastor must be faithful to his wife. Please take note that these are “two witnesses” from Scripture (1 Tim 3:2; Titus 1:6) that establish the pastoral qualifications as being faithful in marriage and abstaining from sexual immorality, but in the same way, these same “two witnesses” say he must step down from the pulpit if there is marital unfaithfulness. It’s not baseball and “three strikes and you’re out.” It’s like the test of the Old Testament prophets went through; it’s one and done!

Being Disqualified

Saint Paul Writing His Epistles by Valentin de Boulogne (public domain).

The Apostle Paul knew what others have felt and there were times he must have been tempted to do certain things, but even Paul knew that he had to discipline his body. Paul said, “I discipline my body and keep it under control, lest after preaching to others I myself should be disqualified” (1 Cor 9:27). Could the Apostle Paul seriously written about abstaining from sexual immorality (1 Cor 6) if he was actually committing sexual immorality? If that were true, could they really respect his teaching on the sanctity of marriage if he himself had been unfaithful? Who would take him seriously? His former (even though forgiven) sin of adultery would always be in the back of their minds. It does seem harsh, but God holds pastors to a higher calling, just as He did the priests in the Old Testament.

Marital Counseling

How can a man preach the Word of God from behind the pulpit on the Word of God when he has violated the very Word he is preaching on? Would you really want to take premarital counseling from someone who’s been unfaithful to his wife, not to mention, perform your marriage ceremony and say to the couple in the marriage vows, “to have and to hold from this day forward, for better for worse, for richer or poorer, in sickness and in health, to love and to cherish, till death do us part?” This is a hard pill to swallow if the preacher was not faithful to love and to cherish.

Beware

I have seen many a pastor fall to sexual immorality and it makes me weep and I grieve for them and their families and the church, but I must be vigilant as all pastors must be. We can’t think it won’t happen to us, but rather, “Therefore let anyone who thinks that he stands take heed lest he fall” (1 Cor 10:12). One person said, “At least I haven’t done that,” but that reminds me of pride coming…just before the fall. We too are all tempted in many ways and are very vulnerable.

Forgiveness

Of course, those pastors, elders and deacons who fall into sexual immorality can be forgiven, and relationships restored, even to the church, but it’s never going to be the same. They aren’t lost or damned to hell since they are secure in Christ. Remember, He forgives us of all our sins (1 John 1:9), so we should do the same. This doesn’t mean they still aren’t disqualified from pastoring a church. Jesus is the Head of the Church and He intends to present as spotless of a Bride as possible at the Marriage Feast following Christ’s wedding the church.

Gossip Without Substance

“a whisperer separates close friends” (Proverbs 16:28)

You can just hear the whispers going on around the community or neighborhood after something happens or there’s some scandal around town. I remember one pastor saying, “Telephone, telegraph and tell a neighbor.” Even though it’s sin to gossip, the person who has committed adultery or sexual immorality, particularly a pastor, can never be said to be above reproach again. He will always have that haunting him…even more so in a small town where more people know one another. You simply cannot “un-think” something that’s happened. You can be forgiving, and we all should be, but the spiritual counsel this man gives, especially regarding marriage, can never respectfully received again.

Conclusion

I pray you have put your trust in our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. If that has not happened yet, my friend, you are in real danger of hell fire. And I mean, in immediate danger. You’re one breath, one heartbeat…one accident away from eternity when it will be too late to repent. Today is the best day to believe (2 Cor 6:2) since tomorrow is no guarantee. If Jesus Christ came today, here is your fate (Matt 7:21-23). This is why I plead with you as you read this, repent today…and I mean right now. Put your trust in Jesus Christ. If you do not, you will face God’s judgment after death guaranteed (Heb 9:27) or at Jesus Christ’s appearance (Rev 20:12-15), which could happen at any moment.

Here is some related reading for you: Why a Pastor is Called to Be Above Reproach

Resource – Scripture quotations are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version^® (ESV^®), Crossway Bibles. (2007). ESV: Study Bible: English standard version. Wheaton, Ill: Crossway Bibles. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Tagged as: Adultery, Elder Qualifications, pastor qualifications, pastors, sexual immorality