Why would God allow such a horrible & evil thing to happen? We don’t know…for now. Charlie Kirk was more than an activist & outspoken commentator. He was known as a devout & decent Christian who boldly spoke out about the Gospel & biblical values often in hostile environments like university campuses. Regardless of his political views, he was a persuasive proclaimer of Jesus Christ—an effective evangelist who calmly, reasonably, & graciously spoke God’s Word.
Whatever fallout comes from this, we can be certain that God can use it ultimately for good. But what seems senseless at the time can sometimes be looked back upon with greater understanding. Like when Obi-Wan faced down Darth Vader’s murderous intent, he foretold, “You can’t win, Darth. If you strike me down, I shall become more powerful than you can possibly imagine.” That’s the story of the persecuted Church throughout history.
It’s not that God intends for such violent things to happen, but He will work them for good somehow, someday, because the cause of Christ is unstoppable (Rom. 8:28, Matt. 16:18). Last Sunday, I pointed out that the death of the first Christian martyr, Stephen, at the end of Acts 7 led to the spread of the Gospel at the start of chapter 8. The opponents of Christianity killed him for his effective witness, thinking that by silencing his voice, they had stopped the spread of the faith. So they immediately started going after others like him. “And there arose on that day a great persecution against the church in Jerusalem, and they were all scattered throughout the regions of Judea and Samaria…” (Acts 8:1).
That persecution ended up having the exact opposite effect. “Now those who were scattered went about preaching the word” (Acts 8:4). Stephen’s death created a missionary impulse that led to even more people coming to Christ. His stoning also set in motion the conversion of the greatest Christian missionary of all time—Saul, also known as Paul. At the time, Paul was a prominent & zealous Jewish leader who thought he was doing right by giving approval to Stephen’s mob-like execution. Paul was compelled to do all he could to stamp out what he considered a false cult.
He even traveled to Damascus to persecute more believers. But on the way, he was blinded by a light, & heard the voice of Jesus saying, “Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me?” (Acts 9:4). This confrontation led to conversion. He would later look back at what he did: “I persecuted this Way to the death, binding and delivering to prison both men and women…” (Acts 22:4). But then he made this claim: “Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, of whom I am the foremost” (1 Tim. 1:15).
Assassins—whether Jewish Sadducees, pagan political leftists, Communist fascists, Islamic extremists, or Hindu radicals—may think they’re doing something good & even noble by murdering Christians, like Paul did, but they’re actually persecuting the Lord. When the Jewish leaders demanded that Jesus be crucified to silence Him, it was out of jealous hatred & misguided religious fervor.
Not only was it evil, but it was futile. By putting Jesus to death, His enemies thought they had won. But they had no idea what good they were actually unleashing. Later in Acts 5, the authorities imprisoned the Apostles to stop them from testifying to the Resurrection, which had caused many to turn to Christ. But an angel freed them & told them to keep on preaching! They did, & were brought back to be put on trial.
Because they still refused to stay silent, the leaders wanted to kill them. But a teacher of the Pharisees, Gamaliel (who had previously trained Paul), warned them: “…Keep away from these men and let them alone, for if this plan or this undertaking is of man, it will fail; but if it is of God, you will not be able to overthrow them. You might even be found opposing God” (Acts 5:38-39)! That was wise counsel.
One of the early leaders of Christianity, Tertullian, wrote in AD 197: “The blood of the martyrs is the seed of the Church.” Persecution only strengthens & spreads the Christian faith, as their sacrifice inspires others to embrace the Gospel. Let’s hope that’s the case here with Charlie & others around the world who have been courageous enough to speak for Christ.
Charlie’s murder was done publicly to send a message of intimidation. While the enemies of the cross try to frighten & threaten us into silence, their end is destruction (Phil. 3:18-19). There has always been a spiritual war against the Church. Yes, Charlie was a controversial figure, but his activism was a manifestation of a spiritual mission to better have Christianity influence every aspect of life & society. Perhaps this traumatic public death will spur a true “turning point” in a way that Charlie never imagined. Our nation needs a turning to God & the principles of Scripture.
In Acts 4, when Peter & John were first arrested, they were threatened to shut up or else, & then released. The believers gathered & prayed for boldness to continue testifying. That’s when “the place in which they were gathered together was shaken, and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and continued to speak the word of God with boldness” (Acts 4:31). May we all be shaken so that we become more bold.