No one should be surprised that Mike Bickel and Misty Edwards are coming back to "ministry."
It's a common practice among professed fallen in sin believers and ministers to return to the pulpit or music ministry after a sexual scandal took place after just a few months of hiding until the heat is off. It happens in every denomination, non denominations, and cults.
Just in case you didn't know, Misty Edwards was caught in her own sexual scandal with Kevin Prosch which could be read about here.
But what does true repentance look like?
It doesn't look like making excuses and laying low until the heat is off.
When a tree is rotten at the core, the fruit is rotten.
This is the Lord's teaching about fruit.
Matthew 7:15-20 (NKJV) “Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ravenous wolves. You will know them by their fruits. Do men gather grapes from thornbushes or figs from thistles?
Even so, every good tree bears good fruit, but a bad tree bears bad fruit.
A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, nor can a bad tree bear good fruit. Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire.
Therefore by their fruits you will know them."
When David sinned before the Lord, David kept his sin hidden for 9 months+.
It was only when the baby, conceived in sin and then alive for a couple of months, that Nathan the prophet was sent to expose David's plot of committing adultery and conspired to cover it up by killing Urriah the Hittite. It's only when the sinner believes that the coast is clear that the Lord exposes sin. David was so far from the Lord that he deceived himself into thinking that he'd gotten away with it. He thought that his sin was "safe." It's a false sense of security.
With Mike Bickel and Misty Edwards, there's no question that they've conspired to return to "ministry" after the coast was clear.
Getting back to the core of the root of the tree.
For years, Mike Bickel has been teaching false doctrine. You see, when you teach false doctrine at the start of the ministry, you can't be in Christ. Mike's sole plan was to attract women for sexual immorality.
Mike Bickel's plan was accomplished.
One of the things that you have to understand is that when there's no true repentance, you're going to return to ministry very quickly. You want to return to the place where everything was pre-sexual scandal.
Why?
Money and fame is always at the root.
Remember what Paul said in 1 Timothy 6:10.
"For the love of money is the root of all kinds of evil."
So what does true repentance look like?
2 Corinthians 7:10 (NKJV)
"For godly sorrow produces repentance leading to salvation, not to be regretted; but the sorrow of the world produces death."
What's the sorrow of the world?
The sorrow of the world is when a person isn't grieved over his sin before God.
You see. On paper, Mike said some common Biblical key words and phrases that gives the appearance the God had forgiven him and all is well. It's very easy to feel better after just taking a portion of the medicine but not the full required dosage.
It's easy to self proclaim or make a self declaration of healing, restoration, contrition, remorseful, and clean bill of health and not be independently examined over a sufficient period of time.
Being grieved may include tears and common phrases and words but an outward display of emotions is a poor display of true contrition from the heart.
David only showed contrition when he was confronted with his sins.
Mike Bickel and Misty Edwards, and possibly others, were confronted but not by anyone that had Biblical teeth. With Mike, he may have committed a crime of having sex with an underaged individual over 26 years ago. Perhaps, they may have been confronted but only with co-conspirators that were unwilling to put Biblical pressure on them.
This is a common practice that when confronted, the ministry workers and board circle the wagons to protect their leader's reputation, ministry, and money.
At first, separating from IHOPKC seemed permanent but you have to understand something about the art of the comeback. You will find a way to return. Sometimes they return from whence they came from and others start something new.
Like the Potter's House in Denver Colorado where pastor Chris Hill, under TD Jakes of the Potters House in Texas, was caught in a sexual scandal with his god daughter in 2017.
Jakes prayed for this pastor and all was well. He was restored to ministry and started another work with the woman that he committed adultery with. You see. The Bible is clear that adulterers and fornicators will be judged by God (see 1 Corinthians 6:9-10, Hebrews 13:4, and Revelation 21:8)
With Mike Bickel, just months after his exposure of sexual immorality, a disqualification from ministry is warranted. Restoration as brothers and sister in Christ to the Body of Christ is always in the best interests of the believers (see Galatians 6:1), but restoration to ministry? No way.
Like Michael Cohen who worked as a lawyer for Donald Trump, he was disbarred for lying. As a convicted felon that spent time in jail, he's lost his law license. Which means that he will never practice law again because he can't be trusted to tell the truth. The standard for ministry is much higher, yet, we allow them to come back into the ministry, Like Ted Haggard.
Each person's situation is different but to be trusted to minister to people after taking advantage of women for sex? Especially after you've used a professional position of confidence, a return to ministry must not be even thought of.
But we keep letting them return.
The qualifications of ministry that Paul laid out is "blameless."
It's a high standard.
Now remember. Paul persecuted the church of Christ before he became a believer in Christ and a minister, and he consented to the killing of Stephen. Which makes Paul a co-conspirator to murder. Yet, the Lord still saved him and used him mightily. Paul took an extraordinary amount of time (14 years, see Galatians 2) before he was released by the Holy Spirit to minister abroad.
As far as Mike Bickel is concerned, he needs to be genuinely born again and then not even consider the pulpit. But when you're about "you" when it comes to restoration, you'll make all of the rules and break all of the rules to resume "ministry."
Besides. You can't be restored to something that you were never legitimately in.
You'll refuse wisdom and reason to resume "ministry."
It's a sham and a game.
The seriousness of eternity is no where to be found in them.
He and Misty Edwards are not serious about the Lord and they risk entering into a burning hell. The authentic, genuine fear of God is completely absent in their lives.
There must be a complete renouncing of all false teaching and a refusal to return to any pulpit. Then there must be a long process to develop a genuine relationship in righteousness and true holiness in the fear of God, beginning with being truly born again.
Repentance (turn from sin) and placing faith on Christ alone.
Let's take a look at true contrition.
Luke 18:11-14 (NKJV) "The Pharisee stood and prayed thus with himself, ‘God, I thank You that I am not like other men—extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even as this tax collector. I fast twice a week; I give tithes of all that I possess.’ And the tax collector, standing afar off, would not so much as raise his eyes to heaven, but beat his breast, saying, ‘God, be merciful to me a sinner!’ I tell you, this man went down to his house justified rather than the other; for everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted.”
Did you see the difference?
Pride, arrogance, and humility is the difference.
So when they repent of sin and place faith on Christ, and never seek to minister, whether in the pulpit or in the music ministry, only then can we see that they're contrite of heart.
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