@@dawhite84 The idolatry of this age is not to carved by knife images, but to molded by life people that become "Heroes". We should really be aware of the damage we do to ourselves and also to these people by putting them on a pedestal rather than be their brothers.
Yes, no need to process his sin. Yet it is important not to gloss over it either... He was such a public figure and caused so much hurt and harm to his victims and countless others in the name of Jesus.
I would say that thinking about our sins collectively is a way of processing your own sin. I understand your point, but we don’t exist in individual Christian bubbles. When one part of the body is hurting we all are hurting. We shouldn’t be talking about Ravi strictly in self-righteous judgement, but in a way that should produce godly sorrow for ourselves about our own sin that leads us to repentance. Also having wise leaders with many years of ministry under their belt address this issue is helpful to many who are immature in their faith and are legitimately asking difficult questions like “what does it mean if I got saved because of Ravi?”.
I remember an old Puritan writer that said whenever you go to God in prayer, just bring all of your sins, because that’s all you have to offer Him anyways.
"Don’t let the imperfections and failures of men turn you away from the perfections and the triumphs of Christ, who will never, never fail you." -John Piper
👍 thats right. We just need to take out the rotten one and chose the good one. Hate sin not a sinner, & this was what Jesus taught and came for the sinners to saved them from their sins.
Yesterday, our pastor just announced he had a affair and is resigning. The impact of this has created feeling of betrayal, trauma, and pain. We all cried. Men in ministry, please get it together. The impact of your actions are much more than you will ever know.
While I understand what you are saying, I would urge you to not put so much faith in your pastor that finding out that he has sinned causes such a rift in your emotional state. We are ALL sinners and ALL screwups. Pastors are going to screw up, priests, bishops.. people get the idea that preachers are somehow morally above us all in the church... they aren't, and never have been. Jesus is the only one that was sinless and will be the only one to ever be sinless. Pray for Ravi and even your old pastor, for it is not flesh and blood we battle, but principalities.
I,too, was grieved by the falling of yet another high-profile member of the Body of Christ. Our Loving, Faithful Father has ALWAYS chastised those that are His to move us to repentance. Raving was, gravely, ill for a long-time. Only GOD and he knew the conversations that were had in those final days...hours....minutes. Amen? Having written that, I have reached out to the grieving family to do everything possible, in a Christlike, selfless manner to every victim that suffered from this sin. Heartfelt generosity and hospitality, privately, to each and every demoralized woman would be a VERY good first step in helping them to heal. Praying for them without ceasing and be willing to "wash" wounds as the Lord leads. What was meant for evil CAN work out for the glory of GOD if pride is cast aside and love is brought to the forefront. Amen?💟🙏
please remember one thing. Your pastor committed an affair according to the world. According to Jesus he committed adultery. We need to call sin what it is. Maybe we would be slower to commit them.
No they love to see the ministers fall instead of pray for & protect them. They disgraced a dead man & discredited his ministry for absolutely being a human. Well done people.
Yeah, they really needed our prayers, you know most times we easily think that our ministers are not in need of our prayers and we are the ones in need of theirs but that's not right at all, the same thing happened to Moses, he was constantly standing in the gap for the people but none was interceding for him, no wonder he couldn't gets to the promised land. I pray that God will help us to be different in this generation and to constantly see the need of standing in the Gap for our leaders.
Though the presence of Jesus is still here with us, He physically ascended into heaven. Have you ever seen God physically? God works through people for a reason. We just refuse to repent from our judgmental sin of attacking & disgracing ministers. God used many flawed people from Abraham (Adulterer) before Jesus to Apostle Paul (Murderer).
True that ,and by the way the Bible is full of failed ,depraved men of God who were used of God still , but the writers didn’t delete them from the Bible why ? ,that’s a sign that we have this treasure in earthen vessels so that the glory might not be on us but on God ,the Bible says whoever wants to follow me must deny himself and carry his cross daily meaning U must crucify urself daily
Yea, he was a fraud, double life. He was running a “prostitution” business in spas. He had no fear, nor did he care about the coming day. He had multiple times in his life to ask for forgiveness and come out, but instead, he payed them so they can’t say anything. He used his “philanthropy” and donations from rzim to pay for his prostitution business. A disgusting man in the cloak of the wise. Allah exposes the hypocrites. Keep your eyes on the creator of Jesus. He was but a messenger my sister. It’s in your fitrah (your natural state), and I only call you back to that.
If you know the Lord, You need nobody else, To see you through The darkest night. You can walk alone, You only need the Lord To keep you on the road Marked right. Take time to pray, every day; And when you're heading home, He'll show you the way. If you know the Lord, You need nobody else, To see the Light, God's wonderful Light.
My husband's a muslim (only by name really), but one of the few preachers he could sit a watch patiently was Ravi. One day I wondered why that it...and finally realized the Ravi never preached "repentance". Then I found out why my unbelieving husband was so comfortable hearing Ravi and his stories. Not to say at all that Ravi's messages weren't powerful at times, but if repentance of sin not preached....then how can people be convicted of their sin and be lead to call on Jesus Christ for forgiveness and Salvation.
He did and alot more. The question people need to ask is, are the accusations true? Have they been led astray? Everyone who speaks out to open our eyes ends up arrested or shamed. Why do you think that is? If god exists you must therefore acknowledge that Lucier is live and well in our society bringing people of god down. Ravi said himself we are always exposed to temptation. The lady that contacted Ravi has done this before, its not her first time.
@@freedom4life312 when you are right with god you dont need to defend yourself to others. Lucifer is the god of this world as outlined in the bible. God took Ravi cause the world is no longer worthy. So now I follow Gino Jennings.
@@Abdaaf444 in 2016 he was taken to court by one of the victims. I believe it was 2016. He had multiple people at RZIM try to call him out and he is reported as being a bully to them.
@@maranatha1118 maybe if leaders of his Christian group really knew the truth and confronted him, he might have repented. But who knows., only God knows.
I think it’s very important to remember that we have a relationship with God through Christ, not through Ravi Zacharias. Though he was a great apologist, we often forget that God is and has always been the main character of our stories - we need to look through His eyes: what does God want to teach us Christians through the downfall fo Ravi Zacharias? For King David, we’ve learned the importance of humility and keeping God’s commands. For Ravi what is it? Is it that Christians need to be reminded that pastors are not our saving grace? Is it that we are idolising pastors? We need to refer to the Scriptures to understand the lesson being made here.
Thank you so much for not being like other CZcamsrs who are saying Ravi's sin is no big deal, or that his sin was so minor compared to the great work he did. Thank you for keeping the Bible front and center of the discussion.
The same way I proceed King David’s sins. I still love the Psalm and read them. Ravi was a gifted teacher and taught God’s Word! He was a sinner saved by grace. Anyone who hasn’t sinned cast the first stone! ❤️
@@TheJpep2424 Just because he did not do it in front of you does not mean he did not repent. Everyday we woke up on his sick bed before he passed away, he prayed to God and prayed for forgiveness just the way we all do
It is so hard to hear what Ravi did. But this must be a warning to us all that none of us are above temptation. We must protect ourselves from temptation!! We must all be careful and create accountability in our lives to keep us on track with God! That we discipline our own bodies so that we may not be discounted of the prize ourselves.
But continuance not just temptation but sinning is the issue, being tempted is not a sin, but continuing to abuse women sexually for years with no sign of repentance is the biggest issue, scripture is clear, by their fruits you shall know them. Ravi, does not seem to be a brother in Christ by his fruits.
If you are a believer, you will desire nothing more than to glorify God. You won't have to worry about being a sexual predator, manipulating the faith to your own advantage. No Christian should worry about that since we don't house those wicked thoughts. We can all be sexually tempted but we all aren't absolutely possessed by our lust and passions like Ravi Zacarias was. How can you repeatedly commit these wicked acts of sexual immorality while housing the Holy Spirit of God and feel nothing? How could he commit these actions with no spiritual conviction? If he knew the word of God, he knew very well what he was doing and didn't care. I believe Romans 1: 24 aptly describes people like Ravi: "Therefore God gave them over in the sinful desires of their hearts to sexual impurity for the degrading of their bodies with one another."
It's also a reminder to care for the abused in our midst. To not just silence them when they speak up! This could have been stopped years ago, but instead those who spoke up were shamed and silenced, which then led to even more women being abused.
I appreciate how Pastor John's aim here was not to placate Ravi's fans or even to preserve his memory, but to shepherd our hearts to soberly assess where we stand before God and in our life and ministries. These are warnings I must hear regularly, for the deceit of sin and allure of the world would have us turn from the perfections of the Son of God. Thank you DG & pastor John!
I don't think we are fans. He is our brother in Christ , we love him, forgive him and have compassion because we all know how easy it is to mess up. I guess you may have the opportunity to talk to him about it in heaven. I say that because I'm not sure where you stand. God be with us all.
I think you heart is in the right place but this statement needs correction. It is not taking into account of the audience and other scriptures about "spiritual fathers". “I am writing this not to shame you but to warn you as my dear children. Even if you had ten thousand guardians in Christ, you do not have many fathers, for in Christ Jesus I became your father through the gospel” 1 Cor 4:14-15. Pauls words. He also names Timothy and Onesimus as "my sons" in 1 Timothy and Philemon. The Apostles used familial spiritual titles with great adoration and affection. Regarding Mat 23:9, which you quoted, McArthur comments, "Here Jesus condemns pride and pretense, not titles per se. . . . Christ is merely forbidding the use of such names as spiritual titles, or in an ostentatious sense that accords undue spiritual authority to a human being, as if he were the source of truth rather than God..."
Through this disaster, there’s also another thing to be remembered. “Therefore let anyone who thinks that he stands take heed lest he fall. “ 1cor 10:12 It is right to talk about what happened with Ravi. But let’s be careful to begin to judge him as if we will never, never fall like that. Why? Because everyone of us is at risk while we’re in this damned body of sin. So, talk about this difficult matter, and learn what it has to be learned. Because John Piper, John MacArthur, Paul washer, Timothy Keller, name your preacher, are not free totally from their sin nor this fallen and horrible world( the whole creation is groaning ) , not while they’re alive. So let’s take heed brothers and see you in heaven you all.
Wow! Great! That verse is so true! If we say we would never do the same as Ravi then we don't know the gravity of sin nor how much we rely on Christ to keep us from sin.
Thank you for your explanation Ptr. John. I was very sad and confused when I heard about Ravi's issues. I am one of the many, whose faith was strengthened by him. You have helped process my emotions.
"Truth is Truth," whether a godly man speaks it or an ungodly one. If a person is genuinely saved or spiritually fed through someone who later turns out to be false, the *saved/fed person need not question their own salvation or spiritual growth. The one who spoke the Truth to them was merely a planter or waterer of God's Word, and it was/is God who gives the increase. It can be sad and confusing, but ungodly (unsaved/unrepentant/hypocritical/apostate) people speak God's Word all the time, and it still accomplishes that which it is sent out to do. The Gospel saves people, not people themselves. The Word changes people, not the ministers shouting it. And we love the Truth, who is Jesus, not, necessarily, the pastors who tell us the Truth. Jesus is the Savior, not men. *Edited to clarify that being saved/fed by someone who is later proven to be a false Christian does not diminish the holy work accomplished in the people the false Christian ministered to.
No one is perfect no matter how we tried to be, we are made out of dust weak & fragile. Only God is perfect. Ravi has done well with his career it doesnot mean that he must be perfect. So just take the good ignore the wrong.
A very eloquent, thought-provoking response that was easy to understand, Biblical, truthful, but also humble at the same time. Great work Pastor, all glory to God for granting you wisdom to guide.
As soon as I get ALL the beams out of my own eye I might take a look at the speck in anothers. Thank you Father for the ministry that went forth from this brother. I pray it did and will bare fruit for your eternal kingdom. Lord Jesus come quickly.
@@christopherg.matton9610 This has already happened. He has been publicly rebuked. We don't need to continue to live with hard hearts and judgment of him to this day. For our own heart's sake we can't live in hatred toward him. We need to forgive as we have been forgiven.
I never believed that Ravi had a problem, now I heard from the one whom I need to hear with the right response. Thank you Pastor John. May God continue His abundant blessings to you!
Thank you 🙏 everyone points to David but David REPENTED and it becomes very apparent to everyone. He didn’t hide from it or blame anyone. Thank you for the clear examples of people who were not saved but have the gospel. It is painful, scary and humbling to think that we can give the truth but not be saved ourselves 😱 Jesus have mercy on us and save those who believe they’re saved 🙏
@@thereisnopandemic indeed. Thank you for adding that, crucially important. I mean, theres been lots of public cries of repent from big televangelist but they tend to cycle back which is a sign of unfruitfulness. And i get that people want to be optimistic but sin must he called out, and, as my preacher used to say, you have more than enough time to turn from sin than to cultivate it. I will remain optimistic, but only because i do believe a faulty mans ministry can still impact people. Was he a repenting man? Doesn’t seem like it, a sexually tempted man is a potentially sinning man, a secretly sinning man is likely an unsaved man.
@@koffeesaint1263 Whether or not Ravi was truly saved is more than we can know. That is ultimately between him and God. I am reluctant to say that he was not saved. 1 Corinthians 3:15. Comparison to David, however, is misplaced. David made multiple terrible mistakes and repented. Ravi did not just make a mistake. He led a double life, for years, perhaps decades, concealing this from his family and closest associates. There is no sign of repentance, although we cannot know what was in his heart on his deathbed. But it is not comparable with David.
Starting out with David as a Biblical example is excellent. We must grieve for all. We must hold out love and help for them, too. We must forgive, as God has forgiven us. We must also learn to not let such evil happen again.
"Don't let the imperfections and failures of men turn you away from the perfections and triumphs of Christ who will never, never fail you." There are clever quotes, illuminating analogies and brilliant songs that I enjoy from people like this (who were found to have no love for God) and I can keep my conscience clear by glorifying and honoring the God and scripture they are based upon and not the human author.
It is incredibly hard to see this happen but one thing I thought of was that those beautiful words of the gospel are not his words, they are beautiful because the Lord have them to us all. God bless you John piper for addressing this issue. I think it was best to wait a bit for the dust to settle for us all to truly appreciate what you had to say on the subject.
Well said 👏 Don’t focus on the man- the human- the sinner saved by Grace; focus on the one who saved you , who has you; who died fir you being PERFECT and without sin - took your place for punishment and wages to be paid That truth alone should fill You with Grace and humility and forgiveness for those who fall short
Galatians 6:1 Brethren, if a man be overtaken in a fault, ye which are spiritual, restore such an one in the spirit of meekness; considering thyself, lest thou also be tempted.
Shouldn't it also urge us to believe those who speak up? To not dismiss or trash people who speak up against someone who is powerful, knowing that it is going to cost them so much by speaking up?
I learned sooo much through Ravi's teachings! And despite his failures, he is still my brother and look forward to see him in Glory! God bless you all at RZIM and family especially!
@@LitteLoneSparrow Being a Christian doesn't mean that we will always repent of our sins. That's sanctification. We will be rewarded by our efforts at sanctification, but those efforts don't negate our initial belief for justification-salvation.
@@LitteLoneSparrow His own family, his daughter wishes Ravi would have realized how much she loved him and would have forgiven him. Paul says that when we are unfaithful God is still faithful, 2 Tim2:11-13. Ravi openly confessed that he had placed his trust in Christ for eternal life. That is what makes a Christian. Of course it's a sanctification issue, and Ravi will be judged and lose reward, yet he will be saved by fire, 1Cor3. Now if Ravi never had faith in Christ, that's another issue, but the amount of sin in our lives does not negate salvation, otherwise sin is more powerful than God.
When I first heard about the scandal, I took it as some people wanting to slam a dead man not around to defend himself. However, his own ministry team investigated the allegations and evidence was found to affirm them. My heart broke. I learned so much from Ravi and despite his secret sin life, that doesn’t erase the truth of the Gospel. I remember him sharing a story about a colleague visiting India. He saw a woman alone bathing in the lake. His conscience told him to not look and keep moving on. However, he didn’t. The man soon took off his clothes and swam out to the woman and when he got close enough he was horrified to see that the woman had leprosy. He thought, “Wow, what a hideous, ugly woman.” But then he looked inward and realized that it was his heart that was hideous and ugly. I wonder if Ravi ever thought that story was ironic or did he keep telling himself that he’s justified to do what is wrong? I hope in his final moments he truly repented :’(
A Double Life lived Contrary to the Christian Conscience is a Shipwreck about to happen. 1. Souls saving, Christ Exalting Truth may be spoken by Hypocrites. 2. Porsaking a Good Conscience is prelude to Moral Disaster. 3. The Amassing of Money & the pursuit of Lavish Lifestyles through Ministry are Alarm bells of Love of this Age. Thank you John!! 🙌💯❤️
@@FahimusAlimus What are you trying to get at? Okay, the cross isn’t important, so how does this help people who are trying to follow jesus’ teachings? What are you trying to correct? This is a legitimate question by the way.
I grieved deeply and long. I doubt I will ever understand what went wrong in him, or if it was always wrong. I had prayed often not to be deceived by false teachers, and felt let down by the Lord. I grieved and prayed for Margie, his family and RZIM staff for their total shock, trauma, and self judgement. Looking back I realized he never really spoke about sin, righteousness,or judgement. He also never humbled himself. Now I listen to a new preacher/teacher for those four things, and if I do not hear them, I do not listen to him again. I wondered how so many people all over the world could have come to Christ through such a sinful person, but then I thought about Jonah. I think Ravi was never a true disciple of Christ. He could not possibly know Him and actually pray thanking God before an adulterous union saying God blessed him with it because he had given his whole life to God’s service. He was a self deceived man. I still grieve for Margie ,his family, and the former staff of RZIM. I threw away his books. The contained “ fine sounding arguments, but lack any power in restraining sinful desires”. I wrote a poem decades ago about the idol of self. It ended this way “ Though an idol is a work of art and shows a craftsman’s tool, One day it all will crumble and leave standing just a fool” That is how I now think of Ravi.😢
To everyone saying “we’ve all sinned”, we do not all hold positions of authority and the Bible literally says people in leadership positions in the church will be judged more harshly. So it is actually more egregious if someone like a pastor commits adultery than for some random person in the congregation
Thanks so much for this p John! I'm also a pastor and listening to this really sharpened the need to be careful and alert to what is truly in my heart. The examples of Judas and Demas really struck home with me
I was brokenhearted for him at first, to think the enemy had had such influence on him, along with his own weaknesses. I see it as a cautionary tale for all of us. And I pray Ravi and Jesus are together.
@A. Catarina A. M. Right? I don't know why Christians are having such a 'soft' attitude towards this. "well we're not supposed to judge" Of course we are!! Call him out as a wolf that he was and let the world know he was no Christian. He didn't just sin every now and then, he practiced it and it was his lifestyle. The Bible is quite clear you can't serve two masters and that we are supposed to crucify the flesh on the cross.
He started his ministry with lies about where he studied and his qualifications. Then he used church funds to buy a massage parlour so that he could abuse women. At no point did he turn from his sin and repent. He used to spend half the year in Thailand by himself 'writting his book'. You can imagine the stuff he used to get up to there. He was a sinful man only looking for forfill his own desires.
A Christian leader is to be held to the very clear moral standards laid out in the Bible. This is not about judgment. We are all undeserving of grace and yet our leaders are to be above reproach, completely submitted to God and his church, unentitled to any special moral treatment. And the women he misused-are they to just deal with it because we don’t dare “judge”? God is a God of justice and mercy for the victim and calls his people to be the same. This attitude smacks of laziness rather than grace.
@@kristasaari255 ok then, so was King David perfect? He was Isreal greatest king, & he murdered & committed adultery, do you view him any less? Jesus was the ONLY sinless person period. I guarantee in the end Ravi has done more for the body of Christ than you will in your lifetime
David repented. We have clear record of that. Ravi doesn’t appear to have done so as far as anyone can tell. I believe Jesus has ready and available grace for all who repent, including David and hopefully Ravi. Jesus himself said many who call him Lord and do wonderful things in his name are wolves in sheep’s clothing and will be turned away in the end. Whether this includes Ravi is not up to me. I believe that the Almighty God will do what’s right. He gets to be the Judge, and from his own words he has dire warnings for those who do not follow him.
@@kristasaari255 Well said Krista. I think what Piper mentioned is very insightful on "untethered calls for mercy," Ravi appears to have used this approach to manipulate people to get them to feel sorry for himself to get the outcome he desired. He used working for God's kingdom as a means to indulge in sexual prevision (I did read the full report). I'm not sure how you can compare that to King David. David seems to had moments of weakness but then we would repent and come to his senses Ravi's actions must be dealt with in truth.
Let he who is without sin cast the first stone. Ravi was wonderful and his story should wake all of us up. His story /fall should make us all aware that none of us are exempt from falling into sin. Ever. Lord have mercy on Ravi.
Shame on anyone cherry-picking Scripture for selfish motives. In that same passage, Jesus also says "GO AND SIN NO MORE", which he does again in another passage and Paul mirrors that in the entire chapter of Romans 6 as well as in verses like 1 Corinthians 15:34: "Awaken to righteousness and do not sin". It's unbelief that makes people believe sin is better or that God doesn't see them. Sin is anti-love (as Romans 13 confirms) and utter selfishness. Anyone refusing to trust Jesus and die to self will keep following Satan and their own desires and sinning. That's why the apostle John says what he does in 1st John chapters 3 and 5...
When we sit back and just realize what our fatal flaws are; the sins and weaknesses that are quite unique to each of us then it will be a whole lot easier to realize that everyone sins. Was what he did wrong? Yes, without a doubt. This is the reason why I fight within to watch what I say and feel in my heart about others and their sin. I want to overflow in grace and mercy so that come judgement day the Lord will overflow in grace and mercy on me. Don't we want to be like our Father and do what He does? We as humans weigh sin which is, yes, relevant to this life but with the Lord all sin is equal. This is why we need Christ. He knew we would need Him for the very same reason as Ravi did; secret sin. So my final words: I hope he made it to Heaven. I hope the Lord was merciful and put Ravi's sins as far away as East to West is. I know that I will need one day, we all will.
Where does the Bible say all sin is equal before God? 1 John 5 says there are different sins, some leading to death some don’t Jesus talks about the sin of blaspheming against the Holy Spirit which cannot be forgiven The law of Moses (given by God, obviously) has a lot of different consequences for different sins
Pastor John, you nail it here! I hadn't thought it through to this extent, but I also will measure my own actions and thoughts to this degree to do well going forward. Thank you. Sympathy tethered to truth and righteousness.
Thank you for responding to this candidly. As a young college student I admired RZIM for their global work in apologetics and I will admit that their early ministry has bolstered my faith. But as I continued to grow in my faith and being guided by the Holy Spirit by living by God's Word and having a love for truth, I have noticed throughout the years Ravi's aberrance. It seemed as if he was more interested in grandiloquence rather than expositing biblical truth, he would quote a few of God's Word but would spend the entire sermon indulging in quotes from philosophers, poets, moralists, theologians, etc. He would also mingle with mormans, muslims, buddhists, as if they all believed in the same truth. Sad to say but I'm not surprised by his downfall and it is indeed a tragedy. But if Satan can deceive 1/3 of the angels in heaven, how much more can he decieve us mortal humans. "Therefore let him who thinks he stands take heed lest he fall." I Corinthians 10:12 NKJV
Appreciate the clarity in explanation by drawing perspectives from the Bible.. I was much shaken by the scandals as someone who grew up feeding very much on Ravi's teachings n books. Wondered to myself if someone like Ravi could fall what hope do the rest of us have...It's a humbling reminder again how by if its only by works we would never be saved..It's all only by his grace and mercy that we could be saved and participate in good works..
9:27 - "3. The amassing of money and the pursuit of lavish lifestyles in ministry are the alarm bells of the love of this age." Amen. Reminds me of a minister J.M. that was recently exposed to be owning 3 mansions with a tennis court and swimming pool... I would have never imagined that about him.. just like I would have never imaged this about Ravi. We must never have too high a view of ministers..
I can never put into words how deeply saddened I was at the news of what Ravi had done. I learned so much from his ministry and "was mightily strengthened by what he taught" and felt let. From time to time I find quotes I wrote down, remember things that he said, and even hear him speaking in my mind. Hearing Pastor Piper's message, especially his last statement (at 14:30) comforted me. I pray for Ravi's family and anyone who was blindsided by this in his ministry team (I feel confident in saying that some did know, may God forgive them). I am certain that their pain in this betrayal is greater than any of us could imagine.
I would say he was a man who at times helped me (and many others i imagine) find answers to some of the most difficult questions regarding my faith and I will always be thankful to God for that. To see the allegations that he faced the same struggles that every single Christian has faced should come as no surprise to anyone. Should we disregard the wisdom of King Soloman because of his lust? Should we diregard to Psalms because of King David's lust? Seeing the reactions at times such as this helps mke identify the goats and the sheep.
It just reiterate what the Bible says, our full trust can only be give to God through Jesus, people although we must care and love them, can always fail, so we must never give our full trust to anyone other than God.
Ravi Zacharias will always remain a defender of God and His Word. By the way, the ignorant athiest even say that Christ was just a man and his wife was Mary Magdelene. I don't know about Ravi's misfortune. But I hope for no man to deviate from the path to righteousness.
Drop the mic Pastor Piper. Wow! We should all tremble with fear of a LIFESTYLE of sin, unrepentant sin and hidden sin. God in your grace and mercy please always keep me here in such reverence of your Holiness and in such gratitude of your salvation that I would cut off the head of sin without thought, before it cuts off my head. This Ravi thing may it not happen to any of us. Lets take heed now not later not tomorrow.
As Jesus said about the Pharisees, “Do as they say, not as they do” or something to that effect. Ravi gave good advice and instruction regardless if he was a sinner.
One never knows what’s really in the heart of another. I am satisfied just allowing Jesus to finally judge Ravi and keep on trying to get myself closer to the Lord. Any and all persons are able to fall and able to stand. I would ask anyone reading this post have you, as I have, justified in your conscience something you knew was wrong and did it anyway? Be honest my friends.
He was tempted by lust. We are men at the end of the day. Remember the woman involved was no Saint. Women tease. She allowed it to happen. They got alot of money. Ravi is now dead. He didn't actually have sex with her did he? Just text messages? Who cares. Muhammad had sex with a 9 year old. Do you think Muslims care? If they did they wouldn't be Muslims. Thank goodness JESUS was Sinless. Amen Only thru JESUS CHRIST can you walk the path towards the Kingdom of Heaven. Amen
@@jiarongmusic I'd be careful with that second sentence. Consider the apologists who haven't committed such terrible sins, like William Lane Craig or John Lennox. They will both testify the true gospel, but the majority of their time is spent on demonstrating other true statements. "Half of the time, he is just trying so hard to prove that God exists." Can't the same be said of these apologists I mentioned. And isn't that a GOOD THING that Lennox and Craig are spending time to demonstrate that God exists. Heck they spend way more than half their time demonstrating theism and I think this is great because atheists reject God because they believe he doesn't exist. If we convince atheists that God does exist, they are one step-closer to accepting Christ. God calls some people to be apologists, others teachers. Some preachers and evangelists. When he calls some people to demonstrate his existence (theism) we shouldn't critique them for not spending as much time proving Christianity in particular. God may call other people to disprove Islam, Hinduism etc. and prove Christianity. What bothers me is that your second sentence seems more of a compliment than an insult.
For many years I enjoyed listening to Ravi's sermons, but something dawned on me once. I had never heard Ravi give a clear presentation of the gospel, specifically how Christ's death on the cross enables us to be reconciled to God. Yes, he mentioned Christ as the answer, he even referred to the cross occasionally, but I don't think I have ever heard him speak of how God poured out his wrath that was deserved by me against Christ on the cross. And I know that I have never heard him speak about how Christ's righteousness is imputed to the believer's account. That, my friends, is the gospel. Look up the You-tube video where Ravi is specifically asked about whether Roman Catholicism is a valid expression of Christianity. Listen to the way Ravi says he doesn't want to avoid the question and yet he dances all around it. In the end he says "You follow Christ as best you know how as revealed in the word of God and serve him and love him and honor him with your life and your heart and in your heart and that is what you preach to others as well....." I find that answer interesting, because it is essentially the same one I got from my wife's Catholic nephew (who was training to be a priest) when I ask him how he expected to get to heaven. Ravi gave an answer that was much closer to Catholic theology than historic Protestant theology. Perhaps that is why he so often held up Mother Teresa as a great Christian saint. I would also suggest that you watch Ravi Zacharias "What is Gospel?" (You-tube) Again he speaks about the importance of giving the gospel but when he comes to answering the actual question posed to him he never explains the cross. Did Ravi believe the gospel? That I do not know. Did Ravi preach the gospel? I never heard a clear presentation from him.
Yes I noticed important elements missing from his sermons. One red flag was that he continually told of stories where he spoke to one high profile person after another, said all the right words, brought said high profile person to their knees in tears who then gave their life to Christ. In all these stories Ravi was the hero. I kept listening to him though but as I did I noticed that I'd come to the table hungry, and left hungry. His sermons were crumbs. There was no depth. Like you said he talked around the gospel but never preached it. He quoted Muggeridge more than Jesus. That's what made me stop listening. It was all about philosophy. The wisdom of man. Not the Word of Life.
The Lutheran and Calvinist accounts of salvation in Christ are not the gospel the Apostles preached. A summary of the latter may be found in 1 Corinthians 15:3-4. There are four accounts of the long form of the Gospel. That’s why we call them “Gospels.”
I for years listen to Ravi Zacharias. Listens to him enjoyed his ability to break down complex issues into simplistic statements. When I first heard of this issue I truly in heart hope to get it is not true. it simply broke my heart. I didn't have a crisis of Faith or anything like that because my faith was not dependent on him. It did however grieve my soul.
Grace is the power not to sin. This new religion of continuously living in sin and thinking you are forgiven is the great falling away. Adulterers will not inherit the kingdom of God.
@A. Catarina A. M. No, but what I want to ask you is, do you think what he said about Jesus all his life is false? If you do than you're faith is way to weak, BUT if you don't than you're faith was strong enough to endure what transpired and not actually loose your faith. I'm not sure if you are a Christian and in all honesty as a Christian I couldn't care less about your choice of religion, but if you truly believe God's Word than you would forgive him even though he did what he did, because that is what Jesus requires from us. If what I said is Cringe to you than you need to seek other spiritual advice from another church if the church repulses you now. Also he is human he makes mistakes, I am just glad he was caught so that he can ask the Lord's forgiveness, because that's all I care about.
Honestly? It doesn't matter. Why? Because my focus isn't on a pastor who fail from grace (nothing new anyways) We just have to pray that people have a heart for His truth and run away from sin, just like Joseph did. We all fall short of glory. Lift each other up in love and if a pastor is doing something wrong, rebuke them for it before it can lead to Ravi's choice. Open rebuke is greater than secret love.
@@Vnm-sh1jv No one volunteers to be hurt by someone. And yes we are more than conquerors through Christ. But these things do affect people and for some cause pain. It didn’t you...great! But Please don’t be inconsiderate and insensitive for those hurt by this.
Who are we to judge him? His teachings have helped me allot in my own journey. Happy to leave the judgement to Jesus. R.I.P RZ and condolences to his family and loved ones.
Thank you for sharing your insights to us, Pastor John. It's important that this is discussed by church leaders, as it can be easily used by Christians that "It's OK to be in that situation for many years and not even try to get out from sin."
Personally, the Ravi situation drew me closer to God as it confirmed and strengthened my faith. It teaches that God's Word is always true and it says that no one is good. Not one. I feel for Margie though. I wish she would have been able to mourn the loss of her husband in peace. 😔
Good insight sister Natalie. It also reminds us that teachers "will be held to higher account," and that the enemy works overtime to sink a battleship. Lovely sentiment to the grieving wife and family. Blessings to you and yours and to all in HIM.
A reminder and call for soberness, we should take this to heart and inspect our own reasons for walking with Christ, or seeking to be in the ministry. Thanks! God bless!
From the very first time I heard about the news, I was more or less apathetic and my viewpoint of Ravi did not change one bit. Every single person has the capacity for any form of evil. Anyone that reads the bible or even understands the teachings of Jordan Peterson knows this.
Be careful about processing this man's sin. We all are of our own humanness desperately wicked. Even our speaker. Sin is sin. Make your own lives right with God.
That was my first thought when I read this headline. Is it mine to process? Men will always be infallible, only one was perfect. I’ll process & work out my own sin with my savior. I feel for his family and will pray for them. I’ll leave God to judge Ravi’s sin. While I strive to be able to answer questions half as eloquently as he was able to.
@pilanceboil thank you for sharing your thoughts, well said, and heart provoking. I suppose it is a form of processing a subject. I believe that my concern is that we are all capable of this accused sin. We all are sinners even if we are born again. Praise God one day we will be in our new glorified body to never sin again.
I believe that when pastor John Piper said "religious profession" and the issue of "conscience" he nail the situation completely. We must check our heart continuously for not live a christian double christian life by forsaking a good conscience before the Lord. We must seek our Lord in private praying honestly about our heart.
I once admired Ravi Zacharias for his apologetic ministry and how he ministered to the atheists with truth, love and respect. I learned a lot from him in answering questions to those who demanded answers and I will never regret learning from him. When did he begin to struggle with sin and fall? Probably we’ll never know and is of no importance right now. I am reminded of King David and his Psalm 51. I watched Ravis final videos in his bed with his grandchildren and his children already in his final hours. I cried because I saw him so sad and I can understand now why so much suffering. I really believe he repented from his sins. May God help his family to continue as christians and may the Lord heal their wounds. 🙏🏼🙏🏼🙏🏼
Nothing man! I just loved his teachings! I feel bad about what they did to him! I loved him and his teachings! I am just sad for his death, please pardon my rant! Sorry@@jameswhite7997
I gave up on RZIM about 3-4 years before the first hints of scandal in Ravi’s life. Why? As an accountant, I always check out the online financial statement of organizations. There were numerous red flags you could see in the RZIM financial statements. 1). The board of directors was Ravi and his family. There was no accountability. 2). The salaries of Ravi and his family were quite excessive. 3). The organization had tens of tens of tens of millions of dollars in the bank. When ever I see this sort of thing, the red flags of Jude and 2Peter immediately come to the forefront. When you have greed and the unwillingness to submit to authority, bad theology and sexual sin are almost sure to follow. So I was not surprised when, years later, a secret life of sin was revealed.
Very well said. I think what you said is appropriate and very biblical. I am agreeing with you. Thankyou for sharing your thoughts on this matter, really I wanted to hear from u.
Man is prone to temptation, the closer you are to God, the stronger the temptation. And who have not commited sin is only God. And people are quick to judge as holier than thou.
O you are so right!! We're so self-righteous!! Just like the pharisees in Jesus's time. In John 8:1-11, we are warned against such an attitude. Which one of us are guiltless?? Which one??? Not one of us are free from temptation and a fallen nature which is intent on defining us. We are to pray for each other as we exposed to sin and its vicious temptations. God help us all!
This has nothing to do with temptation. You have to understand his past. He was a loser compared to his siblings and that troubled him, never good enough for anything but he discovered he could preach well and used that to his advantage. He used fake credentials to bolster himself. He was a sophist and Christians easily fall for people who just tell them what they want to hear. Clever remarks but sophistry all the way down. He was a liar and charlatan. Apologetics is the perfect business for such people because their target audience lack the ability to see through his rhetorics.
This is so well done. Thank you Pastor John! The needy, wounded "servant of God" play is something that I have seen men use to manipulate their followers to great harm. Such men should not be in ministry, even if they have persuasive rhetorical gifts. In fact, precisely because they have persuasive rhetorical gifts, they should not be in ministry. When I have dealt with some of them, I have found them to be slippery. I've been a pastor nearly 28 years, and I tell my people that our church's ministry is not about me. I will die. The Lord will raise another to expound God's word and call people to trust Jesus through the sweet gospel. The bible remains open on the pulpit when my mouth has no more breath to speak.
Very truthful and biblical response to this question offered by Pastor Piper. It reminds me of the importance to be CONSTANTLY ROOTED IN THE WORD! Temptation bewitched and lured Ravi into a place of compromise and dishonor to the kingdom but not of the King. Nothing will stay hidden in darkness, truth is always revealed and light always shines brighter in darkness. Your salvation in Christ is yours and cannot be stolen but your legacy that lives on after you can. Walk carefully for the days are evil...
This situation has caused me much reflection and contemplation. And I've been avoiding comment but here goes. First, I recognize that as a human I'm a sinner by nature. Therefore I'll leave judgement to Jesus.And as Jesus taught "let him without sin cast the first stone". Second, Irecognize that we all have feet of clay. Most important, imho, weneed to make sure that we are worshipping Jesus and not preachers. Jesus told the people to make sure they were worshipping God and not the Pharisees. And while preachers can guide us, they are humans, and not to be worshipped.
Overall, some great insights, very helpful to me especially around untethered sympathy. I confess I have used that myself, many times in my mind. Lord, forgive me. I heard sorrow for Ravi's family in the aftermath, but how about for the many victims that were emotionally, spiritually and sexually abused? They need our prayers, they are still living with this and their faith was deeply harmed or may never want to approach Jesus again. God have mercy on each one of them!
I used to think of Ravi as my hero and look upto him. His moral failure made me realize that I was supposed to look upto Jesus, not Ravi.
This is so relevant.
Amen for breakthrough. Be blessed brother
Amen. "Cursed is the man who trusts in man' (Jer 17)
Amen to that. I felt exactly like that.
@@dawhite84 The idolatry of this age is not to carved by knife images, but to molded by life people that become "Heroes". We should really be aware of the damage we do to ourselves and also to these people by putting them on a pedestal rather than be their brothers.
I’m too busy processing my own sin......I think I’ll leave Ravi alone
Exactly! He's not my servant. He's God's servant.
Yes, no need to process his sin. Yet it is important not to gloss over it either... He was such a public figure and caused so much hurt and harm to his victims and countless others in the name of Jesus.
I would say that thinking about our sins collectively is a way of processing your own sin. I understand your point, but we don’t exist in individual Christian bubbles. When one part of the body is hurting we all are hurting. We shouldn’t be talking about Ravi strictly in self-righteous judgement, but in a way that should produce godly sorrow for ourselves about our own sin that leads us to repentance. Also having wise leaders with many years of ministry under their belt address this issue is helpful to many who are immature in their faith and are legitimately asking difficult questions like “what does it mean if I got saved because of Ravi?”.
Amen !!!
Amen
Don't let the imperfections and failures of men turn you away from the triumphs and perfections of Christ who will never fail you
Exactly!
That's not true
I remember an old Puritan writer that said whenever you go to God in prayer, just bring all of your sins, because that’s all you have to offer Him anyways.
I love the old puritan writings. They were Godly men.
Wow so true
Wow ...Yes .. True ...
May we offer up ourselves as a living sacrifice holy and acceptable unto God
Thank you Mr. King, that is so true
Amen #PreciousPuritans
"Don’t let the imperfections and failures of men turn you away from the perfections and the triumphs of Christ, who will never, never fail you."
-John Piper
👏👏👏
👍 thats right. We just need to take out the rotten one and chose the good one. Hate sin not a sinner, & this was what Jesus taught and came for the sinners to saved them from their sins.
Awesome word
Samuel Aguilar what a powerful statement! Thanks!
Neither Will it Fail Ravi,
If He Repented...God's Love Doesn't Fail Us
Some Reject His Love .
I have a hard enough time processing my own sins let alone that of RAVI...Lord Have Mercy on us all
Amen and well said. Better to point at myself than to point at others.
@@Hobbit_1023 Exactly!! Well said!
Post of the year ! Thanks
Well said buddy
Amen, Allen!
I cannot fathom the extent of my sin, and the Grace of God that saved even me.
Yup, the scale of our wicked ways against a Holy God is quite disturbing, Halleluyah for the blood shed for you and me !
But if he died unrepentant in his sin that is like an insult to God.
@@Oliveoil2345 Exactly
@@Oliveoil2345 How do you know he was unrepentant??
Yesterday, our pastor just announced he had a affair and is resigning. The impact of this has created feeling of betrayal, trauma, and pain. We all cried. Men in ministry, please get it together. The impact of your actions are much more than you will ever know.
While I understand what you are saying, I would urge you to not put so much faith in your pastor that finding out that he has sinned causes such a rift in your emotional state. We are ALL sinners and ALL screwups. Pastors are going to screw up, priests, bishops.. people get the idea that preachers are somehow morally above us all in the church... they aren't, and never have been. Jesus is the only one that was sinless and will be the only one to ever be sinless. Pray for Ravi and even your old pastor, for it is not flesh and blood we battle, but principalities.
I,too, was grieved by the falling of yet another high-profile member of the Body of Christ. Our Loving, Faithful Father has ALWAYS chastised those that are His to move us to repentance. Raving was, gravely, ill for a long-time. Only GOD and he knew the conversations that were had in those final days...hours....minutes. Amen? Having written that, I have reached out to the grieving family to do everything possible, in a Christlike, selfless manner to every victim that suffered from this sin. Heartfelt generosity and hospitality, privately, to each and every demoralized woman would be a VERY good first step in helping them to heal. Praying for them without ceasing and be willing to "wash" wounds as the Lord leads. What was meant for evil CAN work out for the glory of GOD if pride is cast aside and love is brought to the forefront. Amen?💟🙏
@@beverlygonzalez6264 YES!! AND AMEN! YOU ARE RIGHT!
please remember one thing. Your pastor committed an affair according to the world. According to Jesus he committed adultery. We need to call sin what it is. Maybe we would be slower to commit them.
@@angelritchey3421 very good points. You're right it's adultery, and it should be called that.
We need to pray for our ministers...
No they love to see the ministers fall instead of pray for & protect them. They disgraced a dead man & discredited his ministry for absolutely being a human. Well done people.
We certainly do!! They are under greater attack because they bring us truth of God. So many fall and God can forgive and restore.
Yeah, they really needed our prayers, you know most times we easily think that our ministers are not in need of our prayers and we are the ones in need of theirs but that's not right at all, the same thing happened to Moses, he was constantly standing in the gap for the people but none was interceding for him, no wonder he couldn't gets to the promised land.
I pray that God will help us to be different in this generation and to constantly see the need of standing in the Gap for our leaders.
your prayers are useless, start living in reality
@@dearmaths1687 yes very true. May the Spirit of God give us more burdens to pray for our leaders.
People are not perfect. People will always fail you, but God NEVER will. Keep your eyes upon Jesus. 🙏🏼
Though the presence of Jesus is still here with us, He physically ascended into heaven. Have you ever seen God physically? God works through people for a reason. We just refuse to repent from our judgmental sin of attacking & disgracing ministers. God used many flawed people from Abraham (Adulterer) before Jesus to Apostle Paul (Murderer).
True that ,and by the way the Bible is full of failed ,depraved men of God who were used of God still , but the writers didn’t delete them from the Bible why ? ,that’s a sign that we have this treasure in earthen vessels so that the glory might not be on us but on God ,the Bible says whoever wants to follow me must deny himself and carry his cross daily meaning U must crucify urself daily
Yea, he was a fraud, double life. He was running a “prostitution” business in spas. He had no fear, nor did he care about the coming day. He had multiple times in his life to ask for forgiveness and come out, but instead, he payed them so they can’t say anything. He used his “philanthropy” and donations from rzim to pay for his prostitution business. A disgusting man in the cloak of the wise. Allah exposes the hypocrites. Keep your eyes on the creator of Jesus. He was but a messenger my sister. It’s in your fitrah (your natural state), and I only call you back to that.
Please watch Zac poonen on CZcams, your life will change for ever, Zac poonen is one of the greatest servants of God alive on planet Earth 🙏🙏🙏
If you know the Lord,
You need nobody else,
To see you through
The darkest night.
You can walk alone,
You only need the Lord
To keep you on the road
Marked right.
Take time to pray, every day;
And when you're heading home,
He'll show you the way.
If you know the Lord,
You need nobody else,
To see the Light,
God's wonderful Light.
1 Corinthians 9:27, ESV: "But I discipline my body and keep it under control, lest after preaching to others I myself should be disqualified."
My husband's a muslim (only by name really), but one of the few preachers he could sit a watch patiently was Ravi. One day I wondered why that it...and finally realized the Ravi never preached "repentance". Then I found out why my unbelieving husband was so comfortable hearing Ravi and his stories. Not to say at all that Ravi's messages weren't powerful at times, but if repentance of sin not preached....then how can people be convicted of their sin and be lead to call on Jesus Christ for forgiveness and Salvation.
Amen.
He did and alot more. The question people need to ask is, are the accusations true? Have they been led astray? Everyone who speaks out to open our eyes ends up arrested or shamed. Why do you think that is?
If god exists you must therefore acknowledge that Lucier is live and well in our society bringing people of god down. Ravi said himself we are always exposed to temptation. The lady that contacted Ravi has done this before, its not her first time.
@@valherustinger7848 …I hear you my friend, but why did his family not speak up if they had any doubts?
If Ravi didn't preach.repentance then what were you doing staying together only on the basis of lust?
@@freedom4life312 when you are right with god you dont need to defend yourself to others. Lucifer is the god of this world as outlined in the bible. God took Ravi cause the world is no longer worthy. So now I follow Gino Jennings.
David repented. He said, "Against You, Lord have I sinned." We overlook David's sin because he changed his pattern.
I agree. I also don’t think we can compare Ravi and David because he clearly continued in sin for decades as the official report says.
@@maranatha1118 yes. Ongoing & premeditated sin, & zero repentance on his deathbed according to those who were there
Only when Nathan confronted did David confess and repented. Maybe Ravi had no Nathan.
@@Abdaaf444 in 2016 he was taken to court by one of the victims. I believe it was 2016. He had multiple people at RZIM try to call him out and he is reported as being a bully to them.
@@maranatha1118 maybe if leaders of his Christian group really knew the truth and confronted him, he might have repented. But who knows., only God knows.
I think it’s very important to remember that we have a relationship with God through Christ, not through Ravi Zacharias. Though he was a great apologist, we often forget that God is and has always been the main character of our stories - we need to look through His eyes: what does God want to teach us Christians through the downfall fo Ravi Zacharias? For King David, we’ve learned the importance of humility and keeping God’s commands. For Ravi what is it? Is it that Christians need to be reminded that pastors are not our saving grace? Is it that we are idolising pastors? We need to refer to the Scriptures to understand the lesson being made here.
But we should also not judge any other man other than oneself correct?
Thank you so much for not being like other CZcamsrs who are saying Ravi's sin is no big deal, or that his sin was so minor compared to the great work he did. Thank you for keeping the Bible front and center of the discussion.
Strawman
The same way I proceed King David’s sins. I still love the Psalm and read them. Ravi was a gifted teacher and taught God’s Word! He was a sinner saved by grace. Anyone who hasn’t sinned cast the first stone! ❤️
excellent, biblical, Christian, humane, grace-filled response. I admire and love the bit , " anyone who hasn’t sinned cast the first stone! " ❤
David repented. Ravi was living a double life and there is no evidence he repented.
@@samsonsugunakumar917 Read the rest of the verse. Jesus said go and sin no more. He called for repentance and there is no evidence he repented.
@@TheJpep2424 Just because he did not do it in front of you does not mean he did not repent.
Everyday we woke up on his sick bed before he passed away, he prayed to God and prayed for forgiveness just the way we all do
Amen
This is one of the clearest explanations ive ever heard on this difficult issue. Thank you brother John and team. Bless you.
Well said... Very clear...
It is so hard to hear what Ravi did. But this must be a warning to us all that none of us are above temptation. We must protect ourselves from temptation!! We must all be careful and create accountability in our lives to keep us on track with God! That we discipline our own bodies so that we may not be discounted of the prize ourselves.
Amen. "Cursed is the man who trusts in man' (Jer 17)
But continuance not just temptation but sinning is the issue, being tempted is not a sin, but continuing to abuse women sexually for years with no sign of repentance is the biggest issue, scripture is clear, by their fruits you shall know them. Ravi, does not seem to be a brother in Christ by his fruits.
If you are a believer, you will desire nothing more than to glorify God. You won't have to worry about being a sexual predator, manipulating the faith to your own advantage. No Christian should worry about that since we don't house those wicked thoughts. We can all be sexually tempted but we all aren't absolutely possessed by our lust and passions like Ravi Zacarias was. How can you repeatedly commit these wicked acts of sexual immorality while housing the Holy Spirit of God and feel nothing? How could he commit these actions with no spiritual conviction? If he knew the word of God, he knew very well what he was doing and didn't care. I believe Romans 1: 24 aptly describes people like Ravi: "Therefore God gave them over in the sinful desires of their hearts to sexual impurity for the degrading of their bodies with one another."
It's also a reminder to care for the abused in our midst. To not just silence them when they speak up! This could have been stopped years ago, but instead those who spoke up were shamed and silenced, which then led to even more women being abused.
Apparently, Zach was never even saved.
I appreciate how Pastor John's aim here was not to placate Ravi's fans or even to preserve his memory, but to shepherd our hearts to soberly assess where we stand before God and in our life and ministries. These are warnings I must hear regularly, for the deceit of sin and allure of the world would have us turn from the perfections of the Son of God. Thank you DG & pastor John!
I don't think we are fans. He is our brother in Christ , we love him, forgive him and have compassion because we all know how easy it is to mess up. I guess you may have the opportunity to talk to him about it in heaven. I say that because I'm not sure where you stand. God be with us all.
I respect how the ministry doesn't monetize ads in their videos
okay?
????
Why's that important? They can use the money for charity or spreading the word of God even if they do decide to monetise it in the future.
Never call any man your “spiritual father”. You have one Father and he is in heaven.
Amen. "Cursed is the man who trusts in man' (Jer 17)
False. Call every priest father.
Please stop misquoting the Bible.
I think you heart is in the right place but this statement needs correction. It is not taking into account of the audience and other scriptures about "spiritual fathers".
“I am writing this not to shame you but to warn you as my dear children. Even if you had ten thousand guardians in Christ, you do not have many fathers, for in Christ Jesus I became your father through the gospel” 1 Cor 4:14-15.
Pauls words. He also names Timothy and Onesimus as "my sons" in 1 Timothy and Philemon. The Apostles used familial spiritual titles with great adoration and affection.
Regarding Mat 23:9, which you quoted, McArthur comments, "Here Jesus condemns pride and pretense, not titles per se. . . . Christ is merely forbidding the use of such names as spiritual titles, or in an ostentatious sense that accords undue spiritual authority to a human being, as if he were the source of truth rather than God..."
The bible says what it says. "You must be born again" (John 3). Have you been born again?
Yes. Don't let the imperfections of men to distract you from the perfection of Christ.
Thank you Pastor Piper for reminding us to fix our eyes on Jesus 🙏🏾
What an incredibly wisdom filled non condemning instruction. Wow. thank you Pastor John
Through this disaster, there’s also another thing to be remembered.
“Therefore let anyone who thinks that he stands take heed lest he fall. “ 1cor 10:12
It is right to talk about what happened with Ravi. But let’s be careful to begin to judge him as if we will never, never fall like that. Why? Because everyone of us is at risk while we’re in this damned body of sin.
So, talk about this difficult matter, and learn what it has to be learned.
Because John Piper, John MacArthur, Paul washer, Timothy Keller, name your preacher, are not free totally from their sin nor this fallen and horrible world( the whole creation is groaning ) , not while they’re alive.
So let’s take heed brothers and see you in heaven you all.
Wow! Great! That verse is so true! If we say we would never do the same as Ravi then we don't know the gravity of sin nor how much we rely on Christ to keep us from sin.
Amen!! Amen!! Truth
Thank you for your explanation Ptr. John. I was very sad and confused when I heard about Ravi's issues. I am one of the many, whose faith was strengthened by him. You have helped process my emotions.
"Truth is Truth," whether a godly man speaks it or an ungodly one. If a person is genuinely saved or spiritually fed through someone who later turns out to be false, the *saved/fed person need not question their own salvation or spiritual growth. The one who spoke the Truth to them was merely a planter or waterer of God's Word, and it was/is God who gives the increase.
It can be sad and confusing, but ungodly (unsaved/unrepentant/hypocritical/apostate) people speak God's Word all the time, and it still accomplishes that which it is sent out to do. The Gospel saves people, not people themselves. The Word changes people, not the ministers shouting it. And we love the Truth, who is Jesus, not, necessarily, the pastors who tell us the Truth. Jesus is the Savior, not men.
*Edited to clarify that being saved/fed by someone who is later proven to be a false Christian does not diminish the holy work accomplished in the people the false Christian ministered to.
No one is perfect no matter how we tried to be, we are made out of dust weak & fragile. Only God is perfect. Ravi has done well with his career it doesnot mean that he must be perfect. So just take the good ignore the wrong.
A very eloquent, thought-provoking response that was easy to understand, Biblical, truthful, but also humble at the same time. Great work Pastor, all glory to God for granting you wisdom to guide.
As soon as I get ALL the beams out of my own eye I might take a look at the speck in anothers. Thank you Father for the ministry that went forth from this brother. I pray it did and will bare fruit for your eternal kingdom. Lord Jesus come quickly.
1 Timothy 5:19-25 commands us to publicly rebuke the sins of spiritual leaders
What about the victims? As Christians are we too leave them to suffer alone? What would Jesus do? Would appreciate your opinions
@@christopherg.matton9610 This has already happened. He has been publicly rebuked. We don't need to continue to live with hard hearts and judgment of him to this day. For our own heart's sake we can't live in hatred toward him. We need to forgive as we have been forgiven.
@@David-ys1dt Definitely not, now is a time for grieving and healing with all victims of abuse, everywhere.
Whatever, Ravi had a beam in his eye and it may sound like you want to keep a beam comparatively hidden in your own eye.
I never believed that Ravi had a problem, now I heard from the one whom I need to hear with the right response. Thank you Pastor John. May God continue His abundant blessings to you!
"Don't let the imperfections and failures of men turn you away from the perfections and the triumphs of Christ who will never never fail you."
Absolutely LOVED this. Thank you Pastor John.
“Our sympathy is NOT for sale. It’s tethered to the TRUTH and to RIGHTEOUSNESS.”
FANTASTIC!
Not mincing words!!! Pastor John is insightful.
Thank you 🙏 everyone points to David but David REPENTED and it becomes very apparent to everyone. He didn’t hide from it or blame anyone. Thank you for the clear examples of people who were not saved but have the gospel. It is painful, scary and humbling to think that we can give the truth but not be saved ourselves 😱 Jesus have mercy on us and save those who believe they’re saved 🙏
“Never judge a philosophy by its abuse.” - Ravi Zacharias
I think its C. S. Lewis..
@@supersmart671 I think it was Saint Augustine originally
Brilliant, whoever said it first. It bears repetition. Thanks for that comment, wise brother Bilbro.
“Augustine said it”
Never abuse only 1 woman if more can be abused…
Ravi Zacharias
I think its important to note that, King David, saw his sin and it destroyed him in depression and he clung to Gods undeserving forgiveness
And repented publicly.
@@thereisnopandemic indeed. Thank you for adding that, crucially important. I mean, theres been lots of public cries of repent from big televangelist but they tend to cycle back which is a sign of unfruitfulness.
And i get that people want to be optimistic but sin must he called out, and, as my preacher used to say, you have more than enough time to turn from sin than to cultivate it.
I will remain optimistic, but only because i do believe a faulty mans ministry can still impact people. Was he a repenting man? Doesn’t seem like it, a sexually tempted man is a potentially sinning man, a secretly sinning man is likely an unsaved man.
@@koffeesaint1263 Whether or not Ravi was truly saved is more than we can know. That is ultimately between him and God. I am reluctant to say that he was not saved. 1 Corinthians 3:15. Comparison to David, however, is misplaced. David made multiple terrible mistakes and repented. Ravi did not just make a mistake. He led a double life, for years, perhaps decades, concealing this from his family and closest associates. There is no sign of repentance, although we cannot know what was in his heart on his deathbed. But it is not comparable with David.
@B K dude! Read the official report. It’s definitely not “baseless”.
@@76JStucki king david clearly had discretionary time (2sam 11:2).
Starting out with David as a Biblical example is excellent. We must grieve for all. We must hold out love and help for them, too. We must forgive, as God has forgiven us. We must also learn to not let such evil happen again.
1 Timothy 5:20 - "But those elders who are sinning you are to reprove before everyone, so that the others may take warning."
"Don't let the imperfections and failures of men turn you away from the perfections and triumphs of Christ who will never, never fail you." There are clever quotes, illuminating analogies and brilliant songs that I enjoy from people like this (who were found to have no love for God) and I can keep my conscience clear by glorifying and honoring the God and scripture they are based upon and not the human author.
Than you for the teaching, Lord, from the word. That will be my guide. Lord, please save the souls of the surviving members of Ravi's family.
It is incredibly hard to see this happen but one thing I thought of was that those beautiful words of the gospel are not his words, they are beautiful because the Lord have them to us all. God bless you John piper for addressing this issue. I think it was best to wait a bit for the dust to settle for us all to truly appreciate what you had to say on the subject.
Well said 👏
Don’t focus on the man- the human- the sinner saved by Grace; focus on the one who saved you , who has you; who died fir you being PERFECT and without sin - took your place for punishment and wages to be paid
That truth alone should fill
You with Grace and humility and forgiveness for those who fall short
Galatians 6:1 Brethren, if a man be overtaken in a fault, ye which are spiritual, restore such an one in the spirit of meekness; considering thyself, lest thou also be tempted.
If this incident spurs us to do anything, it is to make sure that all of us are being held accountable by other believers - no matter the position.
Shouldn't it also urge us to believe those who speak up? To not dismiss or trash people who speak up against someone who is powerful, knowing that it is going to cost them so much by speaking up?
@@erinjames5776 Yes, anytime allegations are made it is important to investigate before making assumptions one way or the other.
I learned sooo much through Ravi's teachings! And despite his failures, he is still my brother and look forward to see him in Glory! God bless you all at RZIM and family especially!
@@LitteLoneSparrow We are all in need of mercy. Ravi testified to his belief in Christ for eternal life, that's all anyone needs.
@@LitteLoneSparrow Being a Christian doesn't mean that we will always repent of our sins. That's sanctification. We will be rewarded by our efforts at sanctification, but those efforts don't negate our initial belief for justification-salvation.
@@LitteLoneSparrow His own family, his daughter wishes Ravi would have realized how much she loved him and would have forgiven him. Paul says that when we are unfaithful God is still faithful, 2 Tim2:11-13. Ravi openly confessed that he had placed his trust in Christ for eternal life. That is what makes a Christian. Of course it's a sanctification issue, and Ravi will be judged and lose reward, yet he will be saved by fire, 1Cor3. Now if Ravi never had faith in Christ, that's another issue, but the amount of sin in our lives does not negate salvation, otherwise sin is more powerful than God.
@@LitteLoneSparrow Nice obfuscation. It's an old tactic, but having had dialogue which you've responded to don't go backwards now.
@@LitteLoneSparrow u love Satan and it’s obvious
When I first heard about the scandal, I took it as some people wanting to slam a dead man not around to defend himself. However, his own ministry team investigated the allegations and evidence was found to affirm them.
My heart broke. I learned so much from Ravi and despite his secret sin life, that doesn’t erase the truth of the Gospel. I remember him sharing a story about a colleague visiting India. He saw a woman alone bathing in the lake. His conscience told him to not look and keep moving on. However, he didn’t.
The man soon took off his clothes and swam out to the woman and when he got close enough he was horrified to see that the woman had leprosy. He thought, “Wow, what a hideous, ugly woman.” But then he looked inward and realized that it was his heart that was hideous and ugly.
I wonder if Ravi ever thought that story was ironic or did he keep telling himself that he’s justified to do what is wrong? I hope in his final moments he truly repented :’(
A Double Life lived Contrary to the Christian Conscience is a Shipwreck about to happen.
1. Souls saving, Christ Exalting Truth may be spoken by Hypocrites.
2. Porsaking a Good Conscience is prelude to Moral Disaster.
3. The Amassing of Money & the pursuit of Lavish Lifestyles through Ministry are Alarm bells of Love of this Age.
Thank you John!! 🙌💯❤️
We all fall short. That's why the cross is soooo important!!
No it’s not.
@@FahimusAlimus Yeah it is. It’s the whole basis of the gospel!
@@markreese4991 the gospels weren’t from God
@@FahimusAlimus What are you trying to get at? Okay, the cross isn’t important, so how does this help people who are trying to follow jesus’ teachings? What are you trying to correct? This is a legitimate question by the way.
@@uchiha453 he’s trolling probably a Muslim
Listened to a lot of these. This is one of your best pastor John. Thank you.
I grieved deeply and long. I doubt I will ever understand what went wrong in him, or if it was always wrong. I had prayed often not to be deceived by false teachers, and felt let down by the Lord. I grieved and prayed for Margie, his family and RZIM staff for their total shock, trauma, and self judgement. Looking back I realized he never really spoke about sin, righteousness,or judgement. He also never humbled himself. Now I listen to a new preacher/teacher for those four things, and if I do not hear them, I do not listen to him again. I wondered how so many people all over the world could have come to Christ through such a sinful person, but then I thought about Jonah. I think Ravi was never a true disciple of Christ. He could not possibly know Him and actually pray thanking God before an adulterous union saying God blessed him with it because he had given his whole life to God’s service. He was a self deceived man. I still grieve for Margie ,his family, and the former staff of RZIM. I threw away his books. The contained “ fine sounding arguments, but lack any power in restraining sinful desires”. I wrote a poem decades ago about the idol of self. It ended this way
“ Though an idol is a work of art and shows a craftsman’s tool,
One day it all will crumble and leave standing just a fool” That is how I now think of Ravi.😢
To everyone saying “we’ve all sinned”, we do not all hold positions of authority and the Bible literally says people in leadership positions in the church will be judged more harshly. So it is actually more egregious if someone like a pastor commits adultery than for some random person in the congregation
Sin is sin. So it’s okay for you to deliberately commit adultery and God is just going to wink, pat you’re back and say it’s okay?
@@rosemaryndiaye6084 No He Would Do the Same As The Woman Caught in Adultery
He Would Say Neither Do I Condemn You
Go and Sin No More.
Thanks so much for this p John!
I'm also a pastor and listening to this really sharpened the need to be careful and alert to what is truly in my heart. The examples of Judas and Demas really struck home with me
Let us encourage each other and pray for our pastors and leaders. The devil usually strike our leaders first.
Lead by Paul David Tripp is a great book for this
I was brokenhearted for him at first, to think the enemy had had such influence on him, along with his own weaknesses. I see it as a cautionary tale for all of us. And I pray Ravi and Jesus are together.
Anyone can fall, especially when we are in the limelight and treated like a celebrity.
@A. Catarina A. M. Right? I don't know why Christians are having such a 'soft' attitude towards this. "well we're not supposed to judge" Of course we are!! Call him out as a wolf that he was and let the world know he was no Christian. He didn't just sin every now and then, he practiced it and it was his lifestyle. The Bible is quite clear you can't serve two masters and that we are supposed to crucify the flesh on the cross.
He started his ministry with lies about where he studied and his qualifications. Then he used church funds to buy a massage parlour so that he could abuse women. At no point did he turn from his sin and repent. He used to spend half the year in Thailand by himself 'writting his book'. You can imagine the stuff he used to get up to there. He was a sinful man only looking for forfill his own desires.
Victor, I agree here. When any human is glorified to the title of Celebrity. Temptation becomes hard to fight off. Glory is God's alone.
He assaulted women. He wasn't tempted.
He who is without sin, cast the first stone...
A Christian leader is to be held to the very clear moral standards laid out in the Bible. This is not about judgment. We are all undeserving of grace and yet our leaders are to be above reproach, completely submitted to God and his church, unentitled to any special moral treatment.
And the women he misused-are they to just deal with it because we don’t dare “judge”? God is a God of justice and mercy for the victim and calls his people to be the same.
This attitude smacks of laziness rather than grace.
@@kristasaari255 ok then, so was King David perfect? He was Isreal greatest king, & he murdered & committed adultery, do you view him any less?
Jesus was the ONLY sinless person period.
I guarantee in the end Ravi has done more for the body of Christ than you will in your lifetime
David repented. We have clear record of that. Ravi doesn’t appear to have done so as far as anyone can tell. I believe Jesus has ready and available grace for all who repent, including David and hopefully Ravi. Jesus himself said many who call him Lord and do wonderful things in his name are wolves in sheep’s clothing and will be turned away in the end. Whether this includes Ravi is not up to me. I believe that the Almighty God will do what’s right. He gets to be the Judge, and from his own words he has dire warnings for those who do not follow him.
@@kristasaari255 Well said Krista. I think what Piper mentioned is very insightful on "untethered calls for mercy," Ravi appears to have used this approach to manipulate people to get them to feel sorry for himself to get the outcome he desired. He used working for God's kingdom as a means to indulge in sexual prevision (I did read the full report). I'm not sure how you can compare that to King David. David seems to had moments of weakness but then we would repent and come to his senses Ravi's actions must be dealt with in truth.
@@kristasaari255 no grace without repentance.
Let he who is without sin cast the first stone. Ravi was wonderful and his story should wake all of us up. His story /fall should make us all aware that none of us are exempt from falling into sin. Ever. Lord have mercy on Ravi.
Well said.
We're all prone to falling
These kind should be held to a higher account! What harm & injury he has done and where are those who knew what was happening and kept shut! Cree
Shame on anyone cherry-picking Scripture for selfish motives.
In that same passage, Jesus also says "GO AND SIN NO MORE", which he does again in another passage
and Paul mirrors that in the entire chapter of Romans 6 as well as in verses like 1 Corinthians 15:34: "Awaken to righteousness and do not sin".
It's unbelief that makes people believe sin is better or that God doesn't see them.
Sin is anti-love (as Romans 13 confirms) and utter selfishness. Anyone refusing to trust Jesus and die to self will keep following Satan and their own desires and sinning.
That's why the apostle John says what he does in 1st John chapters 3 and 5...
When we sit back and just realize what our fatal flaws are; the sins and weaknesses that are quite unique to each of us then it will be a whole lot easier to realize that everyone sins. Was what he did wrong? Yes, without a doubt. This is the reason why I fight within to watch what I say and feel in my heart about others and their sin. I want to overflow in grace and mercy so that come judgement day the Lord will overflow in grace and mercy on me. Don't we want to be like our Father and do what He does? We as humans weigh sin which is, yes, relevant to this life but with the Lord all sin is equal. This is why we need Christ. He knew we would need Him for the very same reason as Ravi did; secret sin. So my final words: I hope he made it to Heaven. I hope the Lord was merciful and put Ravi's sins as far away as East to West is. I know that I will need one day, we all will.
So true, we all need mercy and Grace.
Where does the Bible say all sin is equal before God?
1 John 5 says there are different sins, some leading to death some don’t
Jesus talks about the sin of blaspheming against the Holy Spirit which cannot be forgiven
The law of Moses (given by God, obviously) has a lot of different consequences for different sins
Only if he repented and sinned no more. Jesus said go and SIN NO MORE.
Pastor John, you nail it here! I hadn't thought it through to this extent, but I also will measure my own actions and thoughts to this degree to do well going forward. Thank you. Sympathy tethered to truth and righteousness.
Thank you for responding to this candidly. As a young college student I admired RZIM for their global work in apologetics and I will admit that their early ministry has bolstered my faith. But as I continued to grow in my faith and being guided by the Holy Spirit by living by God's Word and having a love for truth, I have noticed throughout the years Ravi's aberrance. It seemed as if he was more interested in grandiloquence rather than expositing biblical truth, he would quote a few of God's Word but would spend the entire sermon indulging in quotes from philosophers, poets, moralists, theologians, etc. He would also mingle with mormans, muslims, buddhists, as if they all believed in the same truth. Sad to say but I'm not surprised by his downfall and it is indeed a tragedy. But if Satan can deceive 1/3 of the angels in heaven, how much more can he decieve us mortal humans. "Therefore let him who thinks he stands take heed lest he fall." I Corinthians 10:12 NKJV
Appreciate the clarity in explanation by drawing perspectives from the Bible.. I was much shaken by the scandals as someone who grew up feeding very much on Ravi's teachings n books. Wondered to myself if someone like Ravi could fall what hope do the rest of us have...It's a humbling reminder again how by if its only by works we would never be saved..It's all only by his grace and mercy that we could be saved and participate in good works..
9:27 - "3. The amassing of money and the pursuit of lavish lifestyles in ministry are the alarm bells of the love of this age." Amen.
Reminds me of a minister J.M. that was recently exposed to be owning 3 mansions with a tennis court and swimming pool... I would have never imagined that about him.. just like I would have never imaged this about Ravi. We must never have too high a view of ministers..
I can never put into words how deeply saddened I was at the news of what Ravi had done. I learned so much from his ministry and "was mightily strengthened by what he taught" and felt let. From time to time I find quotes I wrote down, remember things that he said, and even hear him speaking in my mind. Hearing Pastor Piper's message, especially his last statement (at 14:30) comforted me. I pray for Ravi's family and anyone who was blindsided by this in his ministry team (I feel confident in saying that some did know, may God forgive them). I am certain that their pain in this betrayal is greater than any of us could imagine.
I would say he was a man who at times helped me (and many others i imagine) find answers to some of the most difficult questions regarding my faith and I will always be thankful to God for that. To see the allegations that he faced the same struggles that every single Christian has faced should come as no surprise to anyone. Should we disregard the wisdom of King Soloman because of his lust? Should we diregard to Psalms because of King David's lust? Seeing the reactions at times such as this helps mke identify the goats and the sheep.
Thank you for this important word Pastor Piper. So many people are abused in just this way. May God bless you and your family.
It just reiterate what the Bible says, our full trust can only be give to God through Jesus, people although we must care and love them, can always fail, so we must never give our full trust to anyone other than God.
Ravi Zacharias will always remain a defender of God and His Word.
By the way, the ignorant athiest even say that Christ was just a man and his wife was Mary Magdelene.
I don't know about Ravi's misfortune. But I hope for no man to deviate from the path to righteousness.
Drop the mic Pastor Piper. Wow! We should all tremble with fear of a LIFESTYLE of sin, unrepentant sin and hidden sin. God in your grace and mercy please always keep me here in such reverence of your Holiness and in such gratitude of your salvation that I would cut off the head of sin without thought, before it cuts off my head. This Ravi thing may it not happen to any of us. Lets take heed now not later not tomorrow.
As Jesus said about the Pharisees, “Do as they say, not as they do” or something to that effect.
Ravi gave good advice and instruction regardless if he was a sinner.
Wow, one of the best APJ's I've heard. Thank you for your thorough answers and correct dissecting of alike situations we find in SCRIPTURE.
Thanks pastor John Pipper. May continue to strengthen you and make you more effective in preaching the gospel of Christ! To God be the glory!!!
One never knows what’s really in the heart of another. I am satisfied just allowing Jesus to finally judge Ravi and keep on trying to get myself closer to the Lord. Any and all persons are able to fall and able to stand. I would ask anyone reading this post have you, as I have, justified in your conscience something you knew was wrong and did it anyway? Be honest my friends.
I also found some of Ravi's messages difficult to listen to, but I couldn't put my finger on why. Thanks Pastor John for clarifying
Think Ravi rarely preaches the right gospel. Half of the time, he is just trying so hard to prove that God exists.
He was tempted by lust.
We are men at the end of the day.
Remember the woman involved was no Saint.
Women tease.
She allowed it to happen.
They got alot of money.
Ravi is now dead.
He didn't actually have sex with her did he?
Just text messages?
Who cares.
Muhammad had sex with a 9 year old.
Do you think Muslims care?
If they did they wouldn't be Muslims.
Thank goodness JESUS was Sinless.
Amen
Only thru JESUS CHRIST can you walk the path towards the Kingdom of Heaven.
Amen
@@jiarongmusic I'd be careful with that second sentence.
Consider the apologists who haven't committed such terrible sins, like William Lane Craig or John Lennox. They will both testify the true gospel, but the majority of their time is spent on demonstrating other true statements. "Half of the time, he is just trying so hard to prove that God exists." Can't the same be said of these apologists I mentioned. And isn't that a GOOD THING that Lennox and Craig are spending time to demonstrate that God exists. Heck they spend way more than half their time demonstrating theism and I think this is great because atheists reject God because they believe he doesn't exist. If we convince atheists that God does exist, they are one step-closer to accepting Christ.
God calls some people to be apologists, others teachers. Some preachers and evangelists. When he calls some people to demonstrate his existence (theism) we shouldn't critique them for not spending as much time proving Christianity in particular. God may call other people to disprove Islam, Hinduism etc. and prove Christianity.
What bothers me is that your second sentence seems more of a compliment than an insult.
@@thepilgrim1581 careful at what you speak about the victims
@@smcs
Don't tell me to care idiot.
The victim?....
How rich are they now?
From what?
Hard work?
Or from lust and deceit.
Puh .............
For many years I enjoyed listening to Ravi's sermons, but something dawned on me once. I had never heard Ravi give a clear presentation of the gospel, specifically how Christ's death on the cross enables us to be reconciled to God. Yes, he mentioned Christ as the answer, he even referred to the cross occasionally, but I don't think I have ever heard him speak of how God poured out his wrath that was deserved by me against Christ on the cross. And I know that I have never heard him speak about how Christ's righteousness is imputed to the believer's account. That, my friends, is the gospel.
Look up the You-tube video where Ravi is specifically asked about whether Roman Catholicism is a valid expression of Christianity. Listen to the way Ravi says he doesn't want to avoid the question and yet he dances all around it. In the end he says "You follow Christ as best you know how as revealed in the word of God and serve him and love him and honor him with your life and your heart and in your heart and that is what you preach to others as well....." I find that answer interesting, because it is essentially the same one I got from my wife's Catholic nephew (who was training to be a priest) when I ask him how he expected to get to heaven. Ravi gave an answer that was much closer to Catholic theology than historic Protestant theology. Perhaps that is why he so often held up Mother Teresa as a great Christian saint.
I would also suggest that you watch Ravi Zacharias "What is Gospel?" (You-tube) Again he speaks about the importance of giving the gospel but when he comes to answering the actual question posed to him he never explains the cross.
Did Ravi believe the gospel? That I do not know. Did Ravi preach the gospel? I never heard a clear presentation from him.
Yes I noticed important elements missing from his sermons. One red flag was that he continually told of stories where he spoke to one high profile person after another, said all the right words, brought said high profile person to their knees in tears who then gave their life to Christ. In all these stories Ravi was the hero. I kept listening to him though but as I did I noticed that I'd come to the table hungry, and left hungry. His sermons were crumbs. There was no depth. Like you said he talked around the gospel but never preached it. He quoted Muggeridge more than Jesus. That's what made me stop listening. It was all about philosophy. The wisdom of man. Not the Word of Life.
Agreed
@@sunshinegirl1967 Totally agree with this! I enjoyed his sermons but enjoyment alone is not enough not being fed with the WORD is the real problem.
The Lutheran and Calvinist accounts of salvation in Christ are not the gospel the Apostles preached. A summary of the latter may be found in 1 Corinthians 15:3-4. There are four accounts of the long form of the Gospel. That’s why we call them “Gospels.”
I for years listen to Ravi Zacharias. Listens to him enjoyed his ability to break down complex issues into simplistic statements. When I first heard of this issue I truly in heart hope to get it is not true. it simply broke my heart. I didn't have a crisis of Faith or anything like that because my faith was not dependent on him. It did however grieve my soul.
Those were some really good encouragements to take away from it. Thank you!
What's to process? "As it is written, There is none righteous, no, not one". Pretty much sums it up. Stay in God's word.
You wrong WE ARE RIGHTEOUSNESS IN THE EYES OF GOD Jesus tooked ALL OUR SINS ON THE CRUCE!
It is the same grace that will save Ravi, that will save you and me. That is all.
Grace is the power not to sin. This new religion of continuously living in sin and thinking you are forgiven is the great falling away. Adulterers will not inherit the kingdom of God.
@@esthertschetter9544where does Jesus mention the word grace?
Just because he sinned doesn't make his beliefs false. That's how I processed it...
@A. Catarina A. M. No, but what I want to ask you is, do you think what he said about Jesus all his life is false?
If you do than you're faith is way to weak, BUT if you don't than you're faith was strong enough to endure what transpired and not actually loose your faith. I'm not sure if you are a Christian and in all honesty as a Christian I couldn't care less about your choice of religion, but if you truly believe God's Word than you would forgive him even though he did what he did, because that is what Jesus requires from us.
If what I said is Cringe to you than you need to seek other spiritual advice from another church if the church repulses you now.
Also he is human he makes mistakes, I am just glad he was caught so that he can ask the Lord's forgiveness, because that's all I care about.
@Faisal Siraj Seek Help before it's too late.
Honestly? It doesn't matter. Why? Because my focus isn't on a pastor who fail from grace (nothing new anyways)
We just have to pray that people have a heart for His truth and run away from sin, just like Joseph did. We all fall short of glory. Lift each other up in love and if a pastor is doing something wrong, rebuke them for it before it can lead to Ravi's choice.
Open rebuke is greater than secret love.
It matters to victims. Don't wait until you become one. You'd regret what you said if someone says that to you
@@smcs there are no such thing as victims, only volunteers. We are more than conquerors if we actually abide by Him and His word.
@@Vnm-sh1jv No one volunteers to be hurt by someone. And yes we are more than conquerors through Christ. But these things do affect people and for some cause pain. It didn’t you...great! But Please don’t be inconsiderate and insensitive for those hurt by this.
@@db2888 yeah, that's true. Sorry. I'm working on that right now.
Who are we to judge him? His teachings have helped me allot in my own journey. Happy to leave the judgement to Jesus. R.I.P RZ and condolences to his family and loved ones.
Thank you for sharing your insights to us, Pastor John. It's important that this is discussed by church leaders, as it can be easily used by Christians that "It's OK to be in that situation for many years and not even try to get out from sin."
Please watch Zac poonen on CZcams, one of the greatest servants of God alive on planet Earth 🙏🙏🙏, Zac poonen only preaches what he practices.
Personally, the Ravi situation drew me closer to God as it confirmed and strengthened my faith. It teaches that God's Word is always true and it says that no one is good. Not one. I feel for Margie though. I wish she would have been able to mourn the loss of her husband in peace. 😔
I also mourn for the MANY women abused by Ravi...some whose lives were almost destroyed for speaking up.
@@erinjames5776 you're absolutely right. Them too!
Good insight sister Natalie. It also reminds us that teachers "will be held to higher account," and that the enemy works overtime to sink a battleship. Lovely sentiment to the grieving wife and family. Blessings to you and yours and to all in HIM.
Truly appreciate you sharing your perspective on this very challenging topic, Pastor John!
A reminder and call for soberness, we should take this to heart and inspect our own reasons for walking with Christ, or seeking to be in the ministry.
Thanks! God bless!
From the very first time I heard about the news, I was more or less apathetic and my viewpoint of Ravi did not change one bit.
Every single person has the capacity for any form of evil.
Anyone that reads the bible or even understands the teachings of Jordan Peterson knows this.
Be careful about processing this man's sin. We all are of our own humanness desperately wicked. Even our speaker. Sin is sin. Make your own lives right with God.
That was my first thought when I read this headline. Is it mine to process? Men will always be infallible, only one was perfect. I’ll process & work out my own sin with my savior. I feel for his family and will pray for them. I’ll leave God to judge Ravi’s sin. While I strive to be able to answer questions half as eloquently as he was able to.
@@LBforTRUTH well said 👏
@pilanceboil thank you for sharing your thoughts, well said, and heart provoking. I suppose it is a form of processing a subject.
I believe that my concern is that we are all capable of this accused sin. We all are sinners even if we are born again.
Praise God one day we will be in our new glorified body to never sin again.
Well said. Being a sinner qualifies us for the prize. It does not disqualify. As we signed on for "forgiveness of sins." Christians, we are!!
I believe that when pastor John Piper said "religious profession" and the issue of "conscience" he nail the situation completely.
We must check our heart continuously for not live a christian double christian life by forsaking a good conscience before the Lord. We must seek our Lord in private praying honestly about our heart.
I once admired Ravi Zacharias for his apologetic ministry and how he ministered to the atheists with truth, love and respect. I learned a lot from him in answering questions to those who demanded answers and I will never regret learning from him. When did he begin to struggle with sin and fall? Probably we’ll never know and is of no importance right now. I am reminded of King David and his Psalm 51.
I watched Ravis final videos in his bed with his grandchildren and his children already in his final hours. I cried because I saw him so sad and I can understand now why so much suffering. I really believe he repented from his sins. May God help his family to continue as christians and may the Lord heal their wounds. 🙏🏼🙏🏼🙏🏼
These are great videos, Thank you. Supporting channel from New Zealand 🇳🇿
Let he who is without sin cast the first stone.
Comparing myself with that douchebag, I think I am more than qualified to fking shoot up, let alone cast a stone lol
Wow. Nice reply. I thank God for it
Yessss!!!!
@@KuldeepSharma-rk2pbGenuine question: what did he talk about that threatened Christian leaders? What specifically are you referring to?
Nothing man! I just loved his teachings! I feel bad about what they did to him! I loved him and his teachings! I am just sad for his death, please pardon my rant! Sorry@@jameswhite7997
But let us stay Focused. On Forgiveness to be Forgiven. Recalling The Lord's Prayer.
Beautiful and thoroughly biblical Pastor John. Thank you🙏
I gave up on RZIM about 3-4 years before the first hints of scandal in Ravi’s life. Why? As an accountant, I always check out the online financial statement of organizations. There were numerous red flags you could see in the RZIM financial statements. 1). The board of directors was Ravi and his family. There was no accountability. 2). The salaries of Ravi and his family were quite excessive. 3). The organization had tens of tens of tens of millions of dollars in the bank. When ever I see this sort of thing, the red flags of Jude and 2Peter immediately come to the forefront. When you have greed and the unwillingness to submit to authority, bad theology and sexual sin are almost sure to follow. So I was not surprised when, years later, a secret life of sin was revealed.
Very well said. I think what you said is appropriate and very biblical. I am agreeing with you. Thankyou for sharing your thoughts on this matter, really I wanted to hear from u.
Man is prone to temptation, the closer you are to God, the stronger the temptation. And who have not commited sin is only God. And people are quick to judge as holier than thou.
O you are so right!! We're so self-righteous!! Just like the pharisees in Jesus's time. In John 8:1-11, we are warned against such an attitude. Which one of us are guiltless?? Which one??? Not one of us are free from temptation and a fallen nature which is intent on defining us.
We are to pray for each other as we exposed to sin and its vicious temptations. God help us all!
@@SvJ-xv2jv you're the one who said that self righteous thing, not me.
@@luckyloki9638 😒
This has nothing to do with temptation. You have to understand his past. He was a loser compared to his siblings and that troubled him, never good enough for anything but he discovered he could preach well and used that to his advantage. He used fake credentials to bolster himself. He was a sophist and Christians easily fall for people who just tell them what they want to hear. Clever remarks but sophistry all the way down. He was a liar and charlatan. Apologetics is the perfect business for such people because their target audience lack the ability to see through his rhetorics.
This is so well done. Thank you Pastor John! The needy, wounded "servant of God" play is something that I have seen men use to manipulate their followers to great harm. Such men should not be in ministry, even if they have persuasive rhetorical gifts. In fact, precisely because they have persuasive rhetorical gifts, they should not be in ministry. When I have dealt with some of them, I have found them to be slippery.
I've been a pastor nearly 28 years, and I tell my people that our church's ministry is not about me. I will die. The Lord will raise another to expound God's word and call people to trust Jesus through the sweet gospel. The bible remains open on the pulpit when my mouth has no more breath to speak.
Very truthful and biblical response to this question offered by Pastor Piper.
It reminds me of the importance to be CONSTANTLY ROOTED IN THE WORD!
Temptation bewitched and lured Ravi into a place of compromise and dishonor to the kingdom but not of the King. Nothing will stay hidden in darkness, truth is always revealed and light always shines brighter in darkness. Your salvation in Christ is yours and cannot be stolen but your legacy that lives on after you can.
Walk carefully for the days are evil...
This situation has caused me much reflection and contemplation. And I've been avoiding comment but here goes.
First, I recognize that as a human I'm a sinner by nature. Therefore I'll leave judgement to Jesus.And as Jesus taught "let him without sin cast the first stone".
Second, Irecognize that we all have feet of clay.
Most important, imho, weneed to make sure that we are worshipping Jesus and not preachers. Jesus told the people to make sure they were worshipping God and not the Pharisees. And while preachers can guide us, they are humans, and not to be worshipped.
Love that Pastor John brought it back to the problem of having a victim-mentality.
..the root of so many issues, “woe is me”
Like you never do it LMAO
I just came upon this and I know God is in this through this channel.
I’m thankful for this message. God Bless you!
Thank you Pastor John!
Overall, some great insights, very helpful to me especially around untethered sympathy. I confess I have used that myself, many times in my mind. Lord, forgive me.
I heard sorrow for Ravi's family in the aftermath, but how about for the many victims that were emotionally, spiritually and sexually abused? They need our prayers, they are still living with this and their faith was deeply harmed or may never want to approach Jesus again. God have mercy on each one of them!