We Are Not Charlie
Charlie Kirk’s passing has deeply saddened me. Though I didn’t know him – I only met him once — he has been close to my heart for the past five years. At a time when I needed a hero, he was that hero.
As Antifa shock troops burned our streets after the George Floyd incident and many Christians leaders jumped on the progressive wagon, Turning Point USA’s social media posts were among those that inspired me to expose the Left’s Marxist nature. When government forced us to shut down our churches but allowed liquor stores and strip clubs to stay open, I spoke up because there were others, like Charlie, who were more courageous than I. Last year when Christian leaders failed to offer biblical principles to guide other believers in the crucial presidential election for fear of dividing the church, Charlie’s unwavering devotion to truth moved me to openly promote the candidate whose campaign promises were closer to biblical principles than his opponent’s.
In the wake of Charlie’s assassination, some Christian leaders are presenting him as an evangelist who used his platform to tell others about Jesus. Rightly so. Charlie effectively explained the Gospel and led countless young people to Christ. But I suspect that those Christian leaders’ real motive was to prove that Charlie was like us, doing the same things we had been doing.
Intrinsically Intwined Issues
They are badly mistaken! Charlie was not like us. Otherwise, he would not have been murdered. He was killed not because he preached the Gospel, but because he lived up to his gospel conviction with courage and power by confronting the evil and injustice in our society. When he unapologetically defended life, biblical sexuality and marriage, constitutional rights, free markets, and national sovereignty, he was not “being political,” as some Christians have pejoratively accused him. Rather, he believed that those issues are nonnegotiable because they derive from biblical principles. By defending them, he made the Gospel message relevant in today’s society.
In contrast, most American churches treat Christianity merely as a ticket to the next life – “Say a prayer to accept Jesus into your heart so you can go to Heaven.” How can that appeal to our youth when becoming a Christian takes less commitment than joining a club? Charlie’s courage, coupled with wisdom and persuasion, demonstrated the power and certitude of the Gospel, making it compelling to our youth. The comments on social media that continue to pour in unequivocally testify that Charlie has transformed the lives of millions of American youth, turning their hearts to Jesus.
Many have emphasized that he was gentle and respectful, never putting down people with whom he had an ideological disagreement. However, at times, he didn’t keep his usual calm composure. Like the prophets in the Hebrew Scripture, he exercised his prophetic mandate with boldness and directness. When church leaders were outspoken about the death of George Floyd and yet silent about the cold-blooded murder of Iryna Zarutska, he wasn’t hesitant to point out their hypocrisy in bowing down to leftist ideology in exchange for popularity and acceptance from the world.
The Ministry of Politics
He didn’t lament over the divisiveness in our society. Nor did he seek syncretism for the sake of unity. Charlie keenly understood the irreconcilable nature of the two opposing forces in our society. Like the Apostle Paul, who reasoned with the Greeks for Christ, Charlie tirelessly championed for conservative values, reasoning with and persuading the youth to move toward conservatism and to abandon the progressive worldview taught at public schools. He proved that worldview is anti-reason, anti-commonsense, and ultimately destructive. Conversely, American conservatism stands diametrically against the progressive worldview, exemplifying truth, beauty, and wisdom.
His Gospel message flowed naturally alongside his defense of the American conservative tradition. As our youth began to grasp that American conservatism has made this nation great and it is the principles of the Gospel that fed them, his message started to germinate and develop in their hearts. By being political, Charlie connected the eternal truth with concrete reality, allowing his Gospel message to speak to the youth.
It was “being political” that made his ministry so effective.
A Thin, Blurry Line
Regrettably, Charlie’s approach was the exception, not the norm. I recently watched him interview a well-known Christian apologist who has engaged in evangelism on college campuses across the United States. What struck me the most was the apologist’s negative attitude toward Christian involvement in politics. Sadly, this is the dominant culture in American churches – a fact which has pained and puzzled me greatly.
In today’s society, the line between politics, morality, and theology has become increasingly obscure. Most hot political topics, such as life, sexuality, marriage, freedom, law and order, national sovereignty, DEI, and so forth are not just cultural concerns. They touch on moral issues for which the Bible has an answer. Yet, when streets were burning, when youth were being mutilated, and free speech was suppressed, church leaders were able to maintain perfect composure, as if Christianity transcends these societal obscenities. For them, being apathetic about the suicide of our society was better than “being political.”
Several passages in both the Hebrew Scriptures and the New Testament command us to live morally and seek justice and truth. They tell us how to live as people of God, because He cares about our earthly life and how we live matters to Him.
Why have American churches largely become desensitized to moral issues?
Evangelism Isn’t the Only Commandment
Perhaps in eagerness to reach the lost, we have inadvertently reduced the entire Bible to a single command – preaching the Gospel. When we exegete the Scripture through this lens, we often overlook the clear moral commands in the Bible but overly emphasize the passages on God’s grace, mercy, and longsuffering that seems to make Christianity attractive. Over the course of time, as we became oblivious to moral convictions, the culture began to have more influence on us than the Bible. Eventually, the cardinal virtue of the world, unconditional tolerance and acceptance, became our principal virtue as well.
However, in reality, tolerance is only a one-way street with the Left. Those who promote this virtue have never practiced what they preached. The result is inevitable. More and more churches began to lean toward a progressive worldview. Formerly Bible-believing and Bible-preaching denominations have been radically changed into hotbeds of progressivism. (Just look at the Presbyterian Church-USA.) Even those that still preach the Bible allow two irreconcilable beliefs to coexist. Often in these churches, progressive pastors and socially conservative pastors are shepherding the congregation side by side. This is an unprecedentedly deformed version of Christianity that’s unique to our time. If we refuse to take action to restore our moral compass the way Charlie did, soon we will be doomed to repeat the fate of PCUSA.
Charlie wasn’t silent because he understood what’s at stake when good people refuse to speak up. He understood American Christians’ obligation to keep the constitutional Republic God bestowed on us. He was fully aware of the consequences when we refuse to fight for conservative values. Without them, the American church would eventually suffer shipwreck and fall into darkness, even though God’s Kingdom will endure.
No, Charlie Kirk was not like us. His ministry was drastically different from ours. It was effective because he didn’t seek Heaven at the expense of abandoning Earth. He was not afraid to be political when so many important moral issues were on the line. His boldness and intelligence attracted American youth and made his gospel appealing and worthy of pursuit.
Ultimately, being political cost his life. His effectiveness terrified the dark forces around us. They took desperate action, making him a target by calling him a “fascist” to incite and justify his murder.
Charlie’s successful ministry teaches us that not being political in today’s society prevents us from being a powerful witness for the Kingdom. It is counterproductive to the goal we strive to achieve – leading people to Christ.
No, we are definitely not Charlie.
Chenyuan Snider was raised in Communist China and majored in Chinese language and literature in college. After immigrating to the U.S. and studying at Assemblies of God Theological Seminary and Duke Divinity School, she became a professor at Christian colleges and seminary. She and her husband live in northern California and have two grown children.