Laments and Lessons from the Fall of Ravi Zacharias

The opening sentence of the Christianity Today article released February 11 read “A four-month investigation found the late Ravi Zacharias leveraged his reputation as a world-famous Christian apologist to abuse massage therapists in the United States and abroad over more than a decade while the ministry led by his family members and loyal allies failed to hold him accountable.”

The more I read of the article the more shocked, sad, disillusioned and angry I became. Ravi Zacharias was one of my top five heroes of the faith. He made an indelible impact on my faith. I have long pointed people to Ravi as an example and a voice we need to hear today. To read this article felt like a punch to the stomach.

Since then, I have reflected on this question, “What do we do when Christian leaders and heroes fall?” Here are five takeaways from my own reflection that I’d like to share with you.

#1 LAMENT and INTERCEDE. 1 Corinthians 12:25-28 If one part suffers, every part suffers with it… It is right to grieve and express our grief to God and others. The devastation of Ravi’s sin is shared by all of us because he was one of us. We grieve for those he abused. We grieve for his family and ministry partners left picking up the pieces. We lament that the name of Jesus is besmirched among many, especially enemies of Christianity. We lament all the undoing of his legacy. We bring our griefs to the Lord who is our great comforter and sympathetic High Priest. We also intercede and ask that God would somehow bring good out of what is evil. We ask that God would restore and reconcile the abused, hurting and broken.

#2 HUMBLE YOURSELF. James 5:6-10 Humble yourselves before the Lord… Don’t be deceived. Every one of us, great and small, is capable of train-wrecking our lives because of sin’s strongholds. We are capable of living double lives and hiding who we truly are from our spouses, families, friends and our church, but for the grace of God. So, let’s humble ourselves, keep short accounts with God and others, and rely on the grace of God each day. This is an opportunity to bring what is hidden into the light. There is grace upon grace waiting for all who repent.

#3 PURSUE ONE ANOTHER. Hebrews 3:12-13 See to it, brothers and sisters, that none of you has a sinful, unbelieving heart that turns away from the living God. But encourage one another daily, as long as it is called “Today,” so that none of you may be hardened by sin’s deceitfulness. We are indeed “our brother’s keeper.” We have a spiritual responsibility to one another. We must pursue each other's spiritual wellbeing. This needs to be modeled from the top down. Our congregation is counting on our Deacons and Staff to develop a culture of transparency and integrity. We must maintain the guardrails and systems of accountability that we have worked hard to establish.

One of the signs that a leader might go off the rails is when his or her accountability and authority structures are compromised. Often this happens subtly. Out of fear, success or ignorance, the senior leader can be running the show with little to no checks and balances. I have been diligent to maintain boundaries and I am thankful for the accountability structures in place at BVBC.

What can you do to help support the accountability structures at BVBC? Ask leaders how they are doing spiritually. Become a member and voice concerns you may have. Talk to leadership about how they are doing at maintaining accountability of one another and our staff, especially the Lead Pastor.

#4 TAKE ACCUSATIONS SERIOUSLY. Isaiah 1:17 Learn to do right; seek justice and correct the oppressor. Defend the fatherless and plead the case of the widow. Scripture instructs the church to never brush sin under the rug, especially the abusive sin of those in power. While there is a process to follow, we must take accusations seriously. Sometimes organizations become so protective of their leaders or the reputation of their institution that they may silence anyone that doesn't toe the line or questions doctrine, character or decisions. We must be humble and willing to receive correction. We must take seriously any accusation. We must defend victims and seek the truth even when it hurts.

#5 LOOK TO CHRIST. Hebrews 12:2 Fix our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith. Jesus is the only perfect leader that will never fail us. The only faith leader that belongs on a pedestal is Jesus Christ. Leaders come and go but Christ is eternal. Our tendency as humans is toward the idolatry of man (ie: politicians, pastors, or famed speakers). When we place too much of an emphasis on a leader, pastor or program we can mistakenly believe that the person or thing is the basis of your spiritual growth and wrap our identity around the wrong source. When we do this, we are bound to be tossed around when leadership changes, fails or disappoints. But Paul emphatically corrects this in 1 Corinthians 3:5-9. In verse 6-7 he says, “I planted, Apollos watered, but God gave the growth. So neither he who plants nor he who waters is anything, but only God who gives the growth.” If there is any spiritual growth in your life you can ultimately attribute it to only one source- God’s work through the Holy Spirit.

Ultimately, I am unshakingly optimistic about the future of the church because it does not depend on Ravi Zacharias or any other leader that might become an influencer. Jesus told his disciples in Matthew 16:17-18 that the church belongs to Him and He will make sure that it is an unstoppable movement throughout history. He will accomplish His mission. Let’s join Him in the work.

May God keep us in his grace.

Your Brother in Christ, Nate