I genuinely believe you cannot walk with Jesus for longer than a decade without experiencing disappointment in spiritual leaders. They might not be leaders in a church but could be in your home, a father, mentor, or coach. Whether you discover facets of their life by accident, or God exposes it, or it becomes a public scandal, your personal faith can get shaken to the core because you looked up to these people. What this does to most people is throw them into a whirlwind of confusion.

We will not follow signs and wonders but signs and wonders will follow after us. Share on X

I want to share something that I believe will be instrumental in helping you grow through these unpleasant experiences and come out of them a better Christian, not a bitter Christian. We need to find a healthy balance so that we do not demonize everybody that God uses and we do not idolize everybody that God uses.

Miracles are not a show and they are not for applause. Miracles change somebody from sickness to good health. They change lives. However, we need to appreciate miracles without developing a flawed framework of operation, otherwise when disappointments come concerning ministers or ministries, it can ruin your faith.

Miracles Show God Is Good

Miracles are a sign that God is good but they are not a confirmation of a minister’s integrity. Perhaps your dad was a successful businessman or your coach was incredible. That alone does not mean they are from God. Do not rush to connect a miracle, blessing, or breakthrough as a validation and stamp of approval of God on a person’s life, integrity, or character. The first healing miracle in the Bible confirmed God’s goodness, not Abraham’s integrity. Never mistake God’s goodness for someone else’s character.

Have you noticed in the New Testament, Jesus never declared to anyone He healed that they were healed because of their fasting or moral upstanding but their faith? God lets His sun, rain, and miracles fall on both the good and the bad because the goodness of God leads men to repentance. We must not mistake God’s breakthrough in our lives as His approval of our lives. God’s goodness is an invitation to know Him more, to repent and draw closer to God.

Miracles are a sign that God is good but they are not a confirmation of a minister’s integrity. Share on X

The Effect Of Hidden Sin

One of the Scriptures that gives people a hard time is where Jesus says many who did miracles, healed, and prophesied in His name will be told He never knew them. It’s hard to comprehend. How can someone do miracles and not love Jesus. Often, they started loving Jesus but the deceitfulness of sin, previous trauma, sinful influences creep in and because they were getting away with it, and things were growing and going well, they misinterpret it as God’s approval instead of His call to repentance. This leads people to becoming better at covering their sin than confessing their sin. They yield to the lie that they are in control and can manage their sin. But sin is a snake, no matter how you pet it. Sin grows in the dark.

It’s the devil’s goal to allow the minister to rise as high as possible because the higher he gets the bigger the fall. Share on X

How can someone be powerfully used by God and not please Him? We see it in the Bible where Paul wrote to the church at Corinth. They lacked no spiritual gift. But if you read the book of Corinthians, you would think Paul wrote to the church in Las Vegas. They were sleeping around, fighting and were the most immature, perverted, twisted churches. This was the bad church of the New Testament. How could the gifts of the Holy Spirit flow so freely and powerfully there? This is what the church has been teaching wrong.

Fruit And Gifts

The church has been teaching that we need to get righteous and holy and then, the power of God will move through us. It is not 100% wrong but it is an incomplete statement. That tells me that God’s power doesn’t move through character, it moves through faith. Some people have a lot of faith and very little character. Others have good character but very little faith. We need the gifts of the Holy Spirit and the fruit of the Spirit to function at the same time to be healthy Christians. Then we will walk in power and walk in purity. We want to see miracles but we want to live in a way that is pleasing to God and glorifies Him.

Respect is given, trust is earned. Share on X

High Places Are Dangerous

“However, because by this deed you have given great occasion to the enemies of the LORD to blaspheme, the child also who is born to you shall surely die.”

2 Samuel 12:14

David had a very high level of influence and committed sin. The Lord’s judgment was because he had given opportunity for the name of God to be dishonored by their enemies, there would be consequences. This means the higher you go, the windier it becomes. The windier it gets, the easier it is to fall and when you fall, you can damage more people on your way down than you helped on your way up. This is why the devil waits to attack people with character flaws.

God Waits To Give Time To Repent

God is the one who brings what is hidden into the light. He loves His children and grieves over their sins. However, the scriptures say our God is holy and He rewards the things done in private publicly. He rewards prayer, fasting, and giving publicly. God also rewards consistent private compromises publicly even if they are done by His children and will hurt His kingdom. God’s holiness is more important than people’s opinion about a minister. We choose what we do in private and God exposes it, brings it out into the light. The bigger you are, the bigger the exposure will be. Give God something good to expose. That is the fear of God.

Our Responsibility

When we notice unrepented sin – sexual immorality, dishonesty, deception, denial of core doctrines, bitterness, divisiveness, abuse of power, neglect of responsibilities, lack of self-control, or neglect of spiritual duties – we cannot bury our heads in the sand and pretend that it is okay. We need to speak up and confront the person privately in humility, hoping for their restoration if they change. If they don’t, we report to others who have more authority to bring correction and discipline. Most importantly, we have to distance ourselves or remove ourselves from that environment.

We don’t say that God didn’t work there but human flesh and the devil also worked there. When King Saul started attacking David and assassinating his character, David didn’t disrespect Saul but he distanced himself. Don’t stay in a toxic, abusive environment just because they are successful. God doesn’t want us to lose a part of ourselves from being in abusive, toxic, immoral environments.

You can receive a blessing from a minister or ministry and that blessing is not contaminated because that minister or ministry is later found out not to be what they claimed to be. We don’t look to men; we look to God. God sometimes uses donkeys, fools and pharaohs. It doesn’t mean that they are good or what God did was bad.

Time will not heal you but it takes time with Jesus to heal from disappointments and deep hurts. Share on X

How To Process When Somebody Crashes

• Don’t gloat, grieve.
• Heal with time.
• Forgive quickly but trust slowly.
• Drop the stone and pick up a mirror.
• Be hopeful.
• Shake off the dust and move forward.

Do this, and you will leave a better legacy than the one that was passed on to you. You will be a better leader than your leader was. You might not be as powerful or famous as they were but you will leave a better legacy. I speak that over your life in the name of Jesus Christ!

Watch The Full Sermon Here