David,

You're right, friend. I say that I'm not sure, but part of me is. A man who has been restored and is repentant, as you say, has a long road ahead of him. He has people he has to regain trust from, a system to work through and a process within himself that is mind numbing.

However, I don't ever see God turning His back on the man. During the process, the man may find himself doing other things and he most certainly finds himself a better and different type of minister. 

It's a long road, but it's always a minute distance of between us and God when it comes to forgiveness, thanks to Christ.