Jay Bakker has an appeal to disenfranchised youth.

Lake Mary, FL -- J. Lee Grady, editor of Charisma magazine, has issued an "Apostate Alert" about Jay Bakker, son of disgraced televangelists Jim and Tammy Faye Bakker.

Many like Grady had high hopes for Jay Bakker as he sought to minister to disenfranchised youth. According to Grady, the younger Bakker came into the national spotlight in 1994 when he launched Revolution, a creative ministry outreach to youth. "With his goatee, multiple tattoos and prodigal testimony, he fit right in with the punk-rock crowd," Grady said.
 
Bakker is now being abandoned by former supporters because he has had a "revelation" about homosexuality that is the opposite of what the Bible teaches.

Grady reported that in 2005 Jay Bakker was invited to speak at a conference hosted by Exodus International, a ministry that helps people leave the gay lifestyle. Just before the conference began, Bakker was yanked from the schedule because he would not sign a form that said he agreed with Exodus’ theology and conservative values.

Jay's father, Jim Bakker, was imprisoned for defrauding people who contributed to his ministry. His mother, Tammy Faye, escaped a prison sentence.

Later Bakker explained his real position on the matter. In a interview with Radar magazine he said, “This sounds so churchy, but I felt like God spoke to my heart and said [homosexuality] is not a sin.”

Grady issued the "Apostate Alert" because Bakker has disregarded biblical teachings about homosexuality, such as those found in found in Exodus 20:4, Leviticus 18:7-23, Romans 1:20-27 and other passages, and has replaced them with is his personal feelings about the matter.

Grady said, "Before you expend all your breath gasping over Jay’s questionable “revelation,” consider that (1) he is quite popular among many 20-something Christian leaders; and (2) he has gained considerable media attention in recent weeks because of a six-week documentary on his life, One Punk Under God, which began airing in December on the Sundance Channel."

In the TV documentary and other print interviews, Bakker has made it clear that he embraces what he calls a “gay-affirming” gospel, according to Grady. Bakker told Mother Jones magazine that he came to the conclusion that homosexuality is an acceptable lifestyle by “looking deeper in the Bible” and by visiting a gay-affirming church, Grady said.

Evangelical churches are under pressure to deny the moral teachings of the Bible and accept homosexuality as a "civil right" rather than a malady.

The issue came to the forefront last year when Ted Haggard, leader of the National Association of Evangelicals, admitted he was involved in homosexual activities. Rather than try to justify his actions, however, Haggard resigned his leadership position and apologized to the Christian community. He said, “The fact is I am guilty of sexual immorality. And I take responsibility for the entire problem. I am a deceiver and a liar. There’s a part of my life that is so repulsive and dark that I have been warring against it for all of my adult life,”

This is in stark contrast to Rev. Gene Robinson, the Episcopal Church bishop in New Hampshire, who is divorced, has undergone treatment for alcoholism, is involved in an ongoing homosexual relationship and yet thinks his election to bishop is "a calling from God." His election, and the debate over Episcopal clergy conducting homosexual weddings, is creating division and strife among Episcopalians.

Homosexuals are seeking redemption without repentance, and this is a corrupting influence for all churches. 
 
Grady said, "This gay-affirming “gospel” is a toxic heresy that must be addressed boldly from our pulpits in 2007. I pray there is enough moral backbone left in the church to face the challenge."