Lessons We Learn from Secret Sinful Lives

Before sharing this devotion, I want to address those who might say that it's not our place to judge Tate. I address this judge-not half-truth in detail in my book “Lies in Disguise” which comes out later this year. But let me assure you that God commands us to judge people, teachings, and situations by the truths in His Word. See How, Who, and What to Judge According to Scripture and Should We Judge Public Christian Personalities Publicly or Privately?  And for this devotion, I hope you will also read the notes at the bottom even though it will take you a few minutes more than the usual. Thanks. ~ Gail

✞✞✞ 

Michael Tate, a popular Christian singer since the 1980’s, was exposed in 2025 for over 2 decades of drug, alcohol, and sexual abuse. When he made a public confession, did that restore him to God?

Unwrapping Tate's situation can help us learn some important biblical principles. 

 

Genuine Christians may fall into sin and repent, but can they go two decades involved in criminal sexual behavior and illegal drug use?

Scriptures like 1 Corinthians 6:18-20 and Ephesians 4:17-24 describe the Christian attitude toward sin and 1 Thessalonians 4:5-8 explains “anyone who rejects this instruction does not reject a human being but God.”  

In 20+ years, Tate rejected God's instructions in some important areas, sexually abusing people, using illegal drugs, and lying. His conscience never led him to repent. His public confession in June 2025 came after he was exposed. 

 

There are different kinds of sorrow: “Godly sorrow brings repentance that leads to salvation without regret, but worldly sorrow brings death.”  2 Corinthians 7:10

We cannot know the exact state of someone’s heart, but Scripture says “No one who lives in [Jesus] keeps on sinning. No one who continues to sin has either seen him or known him.”  (See 1 John 1:6; 2:4; 3:6)
 

I've heard people praise the sincerity of Tate's confession. But Tate continued in sin for 20+ years while displaying only an outward form of godliness (2 Timothy 3:1-5). Can a true believer do this?

 

We must give people grace, but we must deal with situations according to biblical principles. God only forgives believers and these Scriptures tell us genuine Christians can't do what Tate did. I believe our prayers for him should be that he turns to the Lord for salvation.

✞✞✞

Tate's situation reminds me of the secret sinful life of Ravi Zacharias. In both cases it appears that friends and co-workers ignored warning signs. 

 

Tate's public confession (HERE) raises a number of questions: 

 

In the first paragraph of his confession, Tate said that most of the charges against him were accurate. But he described his sexual assault/abuse simply as touching “men in unwanted sensual ways.” And he said he'd “dispute certain details” of the charges against him. Does a truly repentant person soften descriptions of his sins and nit pick the details?  

 

Tate is charged with drugging men and using them for homosexual perversion against their will, and the charges against him date back to the early 2000's. He's also charged with exposing himself to a 13-year-old boy (source; source; source). And he is charged with drugging a virgin woman and watching her be raped by a friend (source). 

 

From the moment he took a break from his singing career in January to the time of his public confession in June, Tate describes himself as perfectly repentant: “By His grace, I can say that for the past six months, I have lived a singular life—one of utter brokenness and total dependence on a loving and merciful God.” 

That's high self-praise for someone who spent 20+ years covering up evil behavior and only confessing it vaguely when word got out.

We will see further proof of Tate's sincerity in how he accepts the criminal punishment he deserves.

In the final paragraph of his confession, Tate referred to King David, and a number of people have used this comparison, but there are some significant differences between the sins of David and the sins of Michael Tate. David concealed an act of adultery and murder for approximately 8-9 months. But those sins did not characterize his life. Like Tate, David didn't confess until confronted (2 Samuel 12), but as King, David could easily have silenced Nathan and covered his sin the rest of his life. But he didn't do that. His confession was without excuse and without claims of being perfectly repentant (Psalm 51).

 

While some aspects of Tate's confession seem appropriate and sincere, there are huge questions about his full understanding of his culpability. And there are strong indicators that he is not saved unless he has come to the Lord since being exposed.

I pray that Tate's victims can forgive him and find comfort in the Lord and healing from their abuse despite his failure to fully confess and nit pick the details, inferring that some of them have lied.  And I pray that Tate can honestly address his sins, accept his punishment, and realize his need for true salvation. 

Pictures of Tate attribution: Creative Commons