I would think that those in higher positions and those which do much to expand His kingdom, must face greater temptations than I could imagine. For Satan can easily afford to ignore those who count for little or nothing.
I pray for Ted Haggard, his family and congregation. That their faith will be strengthened by this, that their love will be deepened by this and that they find the hidden opportunity in this, which will bring God glory and expanded His kingdom.
Christians are not suprised. The secular left seems to think we should be. I don't know what the left hoped to gain out of hyping this--are conservatives supposed to say, "I'm so ashamed. I guess I'll just have to vote for Democrats."--?
The reports highlight a weakness in the body of the church today. It isn't the particular sin or type of sin that is as significant, IMHO, as the void of spiritual understanding to discern how a soulish person is discernible from a man waling by the Spirit.
Soulish people might interpret religion as being a system placing them closer to God. Without faith in Christ in all their thinking, though, their attempts to come closer to God are merely independent thinking or soulish living.
I was watching a national female reporter this morning interview a female minister and asking her if this wouldn't help bring the church closer to accepting homosexuals within the church. The female 'pastor' responded in a soulish fashion, well studied in theology and well read of the Bible, noting that their Bible would not allow that to happen.
Unfortunately, the interview was the blind leading the blind, contriving a worthless argument. The issue isn't outlawing sexual immorality simply for the sake of legalism and tradition. The issue speaks much more directly to the filling of the Spirit in a believer, renewing our thinking and allowing the Holy Spirit to not only change our thinking of our soul, but much more than this, our spirit is then changed. The query regarding homosexuality doesn;t grasp how sexual immorality, liars, murderers, adulterers, and any number of people who seek to satisfy bodily or mental lusts, are simply acting and thinking separately from anything of the true and living Spirit. This means they will not grow in their spirit. They might grow (scar is a better term) in their soul, i.e. their thinking processes, but they will not continue to be set apart in their spirit to the Lord.
Likewise, a pastor, who continues in sin and perhaps during his action of teaching, also fails to perform good works of the spirit as he would have been gifted in his spirit by the Holy Spirit to perform. A pastor in sin, continuing to teach simply works through the mechanics of teaching in a soulish perspective, and likely giving cause for wrong thinking in his flock. Such pastors who do not have that discernment, need others in the body to advise them and remove them from authority in the church.
All the consternation over morality or feeling sorry now that everybody knows something about one's sin is simply good for nothingness, IMHO. But I am not surprised by those who seek worldliness to find such information grounds to make a moral crusade, for or against the church or those who have a gift to witness to unbelievers, i.e. the gift from the Holy Spirit of evangelism.