My favorite blogger is Justin Taylor.
Today he has this link to an article in a "gay" newspaper in which Ray Boltz describes his "coming out of the closet" as a homosexual. (be careful, if you go to the link there may be some inappropriate advertisements alongside the article)
The article quotes Boltz, “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."
Ah, he had a bunch of good songs, but the song he now sings to himself is deception. Do we toss out his music? That's an individual call, but we don't toss out the psalms etc of David? Of course David came to repentance...let us pray Ray does also.
2 comments:
I think that the issue here is that Ray Boltz is about to be ostracized by the same community that made him a star. I would like to see the Christian community embrace him and work with him on this very delicate matter, but in my experience, I don't foresee that happening.
This is a tough situation. It puts front and center the issue of homosexuality. On one hand, there is a group that believes it is choice and on the other, a group that believes it is genetic. I think the story that Ray shares is certainly evidence to the fact that a large portion of it could be genetic. He lived a holy life this entire time and even married a woman, loved her, etc. He never acted on his instincts. As I have heard time and time again from Christian leaders and speakers, homosexuality is not a sin - acting on it is.
I think it would be a severe mistake to wholly reject Ray Boltz. Here is a man who inspired millions of Christians with his music and lived a life to match. His inactive homosexuality should not be justification for banishment.
No sin should be "justification for banishment." Consider the typical Baptist position on just divorce, let alone homosexuality. Some sins seem unforgivable but God is not like us. He sees our lying tongue and wandering eyes as equally deadly than these other things we gasp at.
On the other hand, foo on the genetics argument. We are creatures cursed and prone by birth and practice to sin. There is no genetic escape clause to holy living. We all have different challenges, and it would be nice if true Christians would surround and help him with his. But genetics are simply not an excuse for disobedience, nor an excuse to be disobedient and blame God for creating it. That is very dangerous ground.
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