Ray Boltz

[Ilovebigcats]

Has this been posted?
I am flab-ber-gas-ted!

link

Ray Boltz was tired of living a lie.

[Poimen]

I am heartbroken. His ministry was of great impact on my life. I even feel a bit betrayed. What I feel is not so important though -- His soul is what matters.

He has bought into the lie, and yielded his body and being to sin. I pray for his restoration. What a shame that someone who has been instrumental in so many lives coming to Christ will loose out on eternal life, and never receive their "Thank You" unless they repent and turn from their sins to God.

[INLOVE]

Wow!

[Shellie]

[Tracy]

What breaks my heart is not that he has sinful inclinations. We all do, in one way or another--some with pride, some with anger, some with homosexual leanings, some with the love of money; the list goes on and on and on. And we all struggle with our individual temptations. We all have to fight and fight hard, by the Spirit, to resist sinning, regardless of our bent to particular sins.

What breaks my heart is that he has stopped fighting. That is deadly. The mark of a Christian isn't that we never fall, but that when we fall, we get up fighting.

I feel so sad.

[stevenson]

Wow! I am shocked!

[one love]

very sad indeed. I noticed this quote and with this thinking it will be hard for him to see its wrong...

Hogue, who worked with Boltz on his 1991 album “Another Child to Hold” and has helped him record a few new songs for a still-evolving possible new project, says he hopes for a day when Christians will see homosexuality as no more a perceived sin than it used to be for women to be ministers or for divorced Christians to hold leadership positions in churches.

[Jennifer Smith]

But, there is still hope. He has been deceived but I pray the blinders will be removed and he will be restored. It is sad, but it's not the end of the story...

Wanted to add a verse to that thought, Deuteronomy 4:9:

Only take heed to thyself, and keep thy soul diligently, lest thou forget the things which thine eyes have seen, and lest they depart from thy heart all the days of thy life:

I think there is a warning in this verse; it sounds as though Boltz failed to keep his soul diligently...and eventually forgot what he knew to be true when he was first saved and first fell in love with Jesus.

Lord, help us to keep you as the center of our lives.

[pastorables]

“This is what it really comes down to,” he says. “If this is the way God made me, then this is the way I’m going to live. It’s not like God made me this way and he’ll send me to hell if I am who he created me to be … I really feel closer to God because I no longer hate myself.” - Ray Boltz

The above quote is the saddest part to me. The Bible says that God will send strong delusion in 2 Thessalonians 2:11 And for this cause God shall send them strong delusion, that they should believe a lie: The church response to these things will be interesting as we approach the Lord's coming. It's not always easy to love the sinner, without appearing to uphold sin.

pa

[Jennifer Smith]

The church response to these things will be interesting as we approach the Lord's coming. It's not always easy to love the sinner, without appearing to uphold sin.

pa

Yes, and I think I hear a plea for grace in the article...not that we should legitimize or accept the sin, but I think the grace and love part is so important. I was wondering what group Boltz' wife is involved in, the article said it was called "Soulforce." Does anyone know anything about this group?

[pastorables]

Yes, and I think I hear a plea for grace in the article...not that we should legitimize or accept the sin, but I think the grace and love part is so important.

Jennifer,

It is such a fine line. The church (universal) has been almost too good at preaching "grace and love" over the past several years that the lines are now blurred at times. Could this be why individuals such as Boltz can still claim relationship with God while practicing those things which are abomination to the Lord? God's love is not meant to be a shelter for sin to abound. The burden is upon the church to find the correct balance.

[pastorables]

I was wondering what group Boltz' wife is involved in, the article said it was called "Soulforce." Does anyone know anything about this group?

http://www.soulforce.org/

It does not appear to be Christian. They are strong supporters for the gay agenda to marry.

pa

[dolfan]

What breaks my heart is not that he has sinful inclinations. We all do, in one way or another--some with pride, some with anger, some with homosexual leanings, some with the love of money; the list goes on and on and on. And we all struggle with our individual temptations. We all have to fight and fight hard, by the Spirit, to resist sinning, regardless of our bent to particular sins.

What breaks my heart is that he has stopped fighting. That is deadly. The mark of a Christian isn't that we never fall, but that when we fall, we get up fighting.

I feel so sad.

That's exactly what I was thinking as I read the article. I sang Thank You, with a few lyrics rewritten, at a tribute service to my mother in law. Bawled so hard I could hardly sing it. I'm really just feeling a loss by this news. But, the loss is not mine as much as it is his own. He quit. I hope he somehow finds a way to get up and fight again. But, he just decided that his quality of this life was more important than eternal life; it is the age-old story that Jesus explained in the parable of the sower. It just took him a long time to make that choice.

[dolfan]

“This is what it really comes down to,” he says. “If this is the way God made me, then this is the way I’m going to live. It’s not like God made me this way and he’ll send me to hell if I am who he created me to be … I really feel closer to God because I no longer hate myself.” - Ray Boltz

The above quote is the saddest part to me. The Bible says that God will send strong delusion in 2 Thessalonians 2:11 And for this cause God shall send them strong delusion, that they should believe a lie: The church response to these things will be interesting as we approach the Lord's coming. It's not always easy to love the sinner, without appearing to uphold sin.

pa

I know it's important to not hate yourself. It is important not to hate who God loves, and He loves us. But, it is not true that we are closer to God because we do not hate ourselves (although, it may be that our self-hatred hinders fellowship). It is true that we tend to have a better perspective on ourselves as we are closer to God, and that entails life-long difficulties and living with contradictions about our own predilections and foibles. It means being able to say, "You know, I feel gay, but I'm not going to BE gay. God has given me a family with kids, a successful way to make money praising His goodness and being a witness for Him, and the chance to meet people who need Him. So, today, in spite of the hell within me, I am going to chase the heaven ahead of me and God help me to make it through, although bruised and wounded by my own self, God help me."

[Jennifer Smith]

Yes, and I think I hear a plea for grace in the article...not that we should legitimize or accept the sin, but I think the grace and love part is so important.

Jennifer,

It is such a fine line. The church (universal) has been almost too good at preaching "grace and love" over the past several years that the lines are now blurred at times. Could this be why individuals such as Boltz can still claim relationship with God while practicing those things which are abomination to the Lord? God's love is not meant to be a shelter for sin to abound. The burden is upon the church to find the correct balance.

Pastorables, I think you are right. Still, I think it is one thing to preach this and another to show it in a way that ministers life to the recipient. But, I see a bigger problem in the church that is partly what you have said; the church is lacking in power. In our services and in our daily lives, as Oral Roberts said, not much is happening.
When the Word is preached with power and anointing through the Holy Spirit, the hearers will be convicted of sin and there will be an impartation of power and strength through the truth that is taught. The lines should not be blurred, especially in the times we live in. But the Bible says that "where sin abounds grace also much more abounds." We as the church must abound in grace more now than ever...we must love the sinner while we hate the sin. You're right, that is a fine line...that's why we must stay close to God, and the Bible also warns that we should be careful also when helping to restore a brother.

Boltz acknowledged he never truly accepted this was a sin, so there was a stronghold in his life for the enemy to exploit. If the teaching he received had been given with the power and authority that Jesus taught with, who knows? But I know we will all be praying for him.