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Moral Crisis in Christian Leadership

by | Wed, Dec 16 2020

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Church pastor holding Bible

2020 has been a significant year for so many reasons, and as we wait in anticipation for 2021, we may do well to reflect on what is known as, ‘A Crisis of Christian Leadership.’

Neil Johnson was joined by Karl Faase, CEO of Olive Tree Media, to discuss the ‘moral fall’ of prominent Christian leaders in the past decade.

“The problem with high-profile leaders is that you don’t actually know them,” Faase shared. “Church leaders in those roles have very curated images…I don’t think they’re being completely false, they’re just doing the best they can.”

Faase emphasised that Christian leadership must be held to a different standard, stating, “We are all made right because we have God’s unmerited favour on our lives, but that doesn’t make all behaviours right.”

Karl Faase
Karl Faase

“A lot of people go into Christian ministry and they are talented, but their talent doesn’t cover their unmet emotional needs,” Faase explained. “They want to be liked, they want to be appreciated, they want their ego soothed and smoothed…and the ministry role almost gives you an opportunity to meet those unmet emotional needs in inappropriate ways.”

“None of us live exactly how we say we should…the accusation of hypocrisy is one that is clear, but one that we shouldn’t be surprised by.”

To hear more about how we can respond to scandals surround high-profile Christian leaders, and how we can approach them with a Biblical understanding, listen to the full interview below.

Tune into 20Twenty and join the conversation with Neil Johnson, weekdays on Vision Christian Radio. Click here for your local times.

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