Saturday, February 28, 2009

Way Of The Master Profiles - Ray

RAY "BANANAMAN" COMFORT

Ray Comfort is the founder of the Living Waters/Way of the Master ministries and his passion for evangelism is the heartbeat of what these ministries are all about. Originating from the South Island of New Zealand, he has brought gasoline to the smouldering ashes of American evangelism. Ray is so intense about evangelism that his attention span for all else can change direction at warp speed. In an age where ADHD is very much on the rise, he is the first diagnosed case of ADOW (Attention Deficit Ohhh Witnessing opportunity). If it speaks and moves then Ray will witness to it! He will be there in a flash charging into battle, tract in hand and urgent in voice.

This willingness to rush at every witnessing window of opportunity is probably the root cause of another field where Ray excels. If clumsiness was an Olympic sport then Ray Comfort would be a gold medal certainty. He is like a walking "ground zero" leaving a trail of debris everywhere he goes. When Ray is not witnessing it is only because he has collided with, fallen over, or broken some object within his fallout zone. New Zealand's reputation as a safe place to live only came about after Ray Comfort's relocation.

I weigh these words carefully but I do not believe it is an overstatement to say that Ray is the modern day penguin who dived through the ice barrier of engaging with the outside world through the forum of open air preaching. He is not the first nor the only, but I do believe he has breathed new life into a forum that had declined markedly since the days of Whitefield. Most open air I saw growing up was a one way street of proclamation (and I am grateful for godly people who had the courage to stand up and proclaim God's Word). But with Ray Comfort it is always a two way street engaging, contending, and pleading with sinners bound for hell.



One thing about Ray Comfort that boggles my mind is how he can write
so many books with his compulsive preaching disorder. He has written more than 800 books so far and I'm sure there are more rolling hot off the press as I write. A recent book to make waves carries the title You Can Lead An Atheist To Evidence But You Can't Make Him Think. Amazingly it is now the bestselling book in Amazon's atheist category.

He is outselling atheism guru Richard Dawkins' book "The God Delusion" which may well be the latest thing that got up his nose. Dawkins, using his gigantic intellect, denies the existence of God. But he does believe in the "Bananaman" which is his pet name for one Ray Comfort. Yes, Ray Comfort is merely the mild mannered Clark Kent persona of the legendary Bananaman - taller than Gary Coleman, faster than airport security, sharper than a bowling ball, and able to leap onto soapboxes with great difficulty! No wonder Dawkins is afraid to debate him. But maybe Dawkins knows about the skeleton in Ray Comfort's closet - yes, he literally has a skeleton in his closet and I think it is the transitional form Richard Dawkins is still looking for!

The fact of the matter is that Ray Comfort understands what Scripture teaches about the atheist. That the atheist knows there is a God but suppresses the truth in unrighteousness as Romans chapter one tells us. I am grateful for the brilliant apologists out there who pull out the big argumentative guns on the evidence of God, but Ray knows the effective battlefront with the atheist is the realm of morality rather than knowledge - which sums up my joy in meeting and knowing Ray Comfort. I have rarely met a man more generous, who cares so much for the downtrodden, and loves his Savior. It is these three things that manifest themselves so strongly by his devotion to the most generous, caring, and loving thing anyone can devote their time to doing - proclaiming the glorious Gospel of our wonderful Savior Jesus Christ.

Other Way Of The Master Profiles Can Be Read By Clicking On The Links Below:
Brainiac
Duane The Producer
EZ
Hip Hop
Kirk Cameron
Lawman
Mark Spence
Ray Comfort
Scotty
Todd Friel
Trish The Phone Fisher

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

I think you meant that he wrote 80 books, not 800. He's not that prolific.

Thanks for the cool illusion tract, by the way!

Steve