Jim Jones said:
Ask your local law enforcement agency. There is A very good reason they keep your criminal record.
But does God keep records? You quoted Mark Twain and now give an illustration of how a secular society keeps records, but ignore the possibility of progressive sanctification.
Believe me... I am VERY reluctant to see a person go back into vocational ministry. I share many of the same cautions. Yet, I have seen where it does work out. I don't have a scriptural basis for preventing the reentry of a person into the pulpit, when...
1) Their reestablished character has shown them to be a "one woman kind of man."
2) A substantial length of time has intervened and perseverance is evident.
3) I see a difference between an adulterer and one who committed the sin. Is there a continued habit of sexual problems or improprietories?
So, where I am at on this issue is: I firmly believe that God's grace is strong enough to reconcile this. I am not in the place to judge those who go back in. A lingering question (probably among most of us is) "Do these pastors go back into full-time vocational ministry because that is all they know to do?" That certainly gives me pause to wonder.