Murder Of Charlie Kirk

I spoke with a young woman in our church who rode the bus to school with Charlie Kirk every morning. She’s not the only one in our church who knew him personally.

I think all of us were shocked at the atrocity of his assassination. I was at the airport and about to board the flight home when news came that he had been shot. People all over the airport were talking about it. Someone showed me a video of him being hit, and it was something I wish I could unsee. It wasn’t until I arrived at O’Hare that I learned he did not survive.

My heart breaks for his wife, Erika, and his two little children who will grow up without their dad. Such senseless and horrible violence.

But I think we all know the killing of Charlie Kirk began a long time ago. The hateful rhetoric in our divided society planted the seeds. When accusations of “Nazi” and “Hitler” are spewed thoughtlessly, the natural result will be someone deciding to rid the world of what they are convinced is an existential threat.

There is a spiritual war raging for the hearts and minds of people. The evil one is the great divider and will cause people to despise one another. He knows that when truth and error are placed side by side, truth will win. So he creates hatred to bury healthy dialogue. He shuts down reasonable debate, convincing people that hostility and violence are the way to defeat competing ideas.

This is where our faith comes in—a faith that Charlie Kirk shared and is now enjoying its outcome. Because of our relationship with Christ, we are different. We’re not just heaven-bound, we are ambassadors of the Gospel of Christ. We are the embodiment of Jesus in this broken world, where hate is commonplace. We are the ones to be different.

And I’ve read some of the horrible posts from people who disagreed with Charlie Kirk’s political and moral views. The glee that evil people express over his death…terrible. And my initial reaction to his murder, and those terrible posts, has also been anger. Now, I’m just sad.

Jesus has reminded me that in this world we will have trouble. But He also told us to be encouraged, He has overcome the world.

So as overcomers, in the midst of this divided world with chaos and anger, we’re the steady forces for good. We are to engage with people to boldly proclaim the truth, but to do so with love and kindness. When our lost friends, family, and coworkers look at us, they should see people who are modeling humility and respect. We saw that in Charlie Kirk.

Our ultimate goal should never be to win a political debate, no matter what side you fall on. Our goal as Christians is to present Jesus Christ in our lives, conversations, and solutions.

Let’s do that!