By Peter Larson
TE, Midwest Presbytery
The assassination of Charlie Kirk has revealed a deep divide among EPC pastors and two conflicting worldviews.
The contrast could not be more stark. In the wake of Kirk’s murder, some EPC pastors honored him as a Christian martyr and evangelist, while others branded him as a racist and Christian nationalist. On one Facebook page for EPC pastors, the exchange became so heated that the administrators shut down all further comments related to Kirk.
“It has become clear that much of the conversation has become uncivil and many of the same talking points are being repeated,” explained the moderators.
While there was general agreement that the killing was wrong and tragic, some EPC pastors were quick to disparage and discredit Kirk.
“I think Charlie Kirk is a Christian based on what he’s said, but I believe the merging of his faith with the Republican Party has caused harm to the gospel,” one EPC pastor posted. “The words he has spoken about African Americans specifically are deeply offensive to me. Sadly … there is too much of the offensive to warrant the honor being given.”
Expressing contempt for Kirk, some EPC pastors even questioned his faith and salvation.
“I would say that, assuming his faith was genuine, of which only God is judge, he will be experiencing even as we speak that the grace of the life, death and resurrection of Jesus, which is more than sufficient atonement for his heartless, dehumanizing words,” one EPC pastor posted on Facebook.
Responding to the attacks, some EPC pastors defended Kirk.
“If this is helpful, I knew Charlie,” one EPC pastor posted. “I have no doubt he is with Jesus. Do Christians make strong comments in the public square that make us turn our heads? Yes. So did Calvin, Luther and the gang.”
Another EPC pastor posted, “I find it interesting, though a bit disturbing might be more accurate, that almost the whole focus of comments in this forum on Charlie Kirk’s life and ministry has little to do with his primary focus and purpose in life — to bear witness to Christ, to the saving and preservation of souls. If we were to ask the question, who in the last 20 years has brought more young people to faith in Christ than Charlie, who would be nominated?”
Committing the ‘Unforgivable Sin’
As I read some of the anti-Kirk rhetoric, I began to wonder if these pastors knew anything about Charlie Kirk and his ministry. They cited no facts, evidence, or video clips to support their claims. Instead, they seemed to be attacking a straw man and caricature created by the liberal media.
How do you explain the contempt for Charlie Kirk? Very simply: Charlie Kirk committed the unforgivable sin of supporting Donald Trump. The fact that he proclaimed the gospel, advocated marriage and family, and defended Biblical standards of gender and sexual morality made no difference. If you believe that Donald Trump is the anti-Christ and Republicans are the nexus of evil, then it becomes impossible to praise Charlie Kirk or speak a kind word about him. Of course, this is a now-familiar trope: “How could a Trump supporter possibly be a Christian?”
Some of the anti-Kirk posts contained dire warnings about Christian nationalism. Christians should not be involved in politics, or so we are told. And yet, in their disdain for Charlie Kirk these pastors reveal their own brand of Christian nationalism. Politics has become the idol they worship, to the point where it dominates their worldview; it is the lens through which they view everything. When their idol is threatened, they react hysterically.
Yes, we are citizens of heaven, and our primary allegiance belongs to Jesus and His Kingdom. And yet, we are also citizens of this world. As such, Christians should be engaged in civic life and the public square. In my personal library I have two lengthy volumes of sermons preached between 1730 and 1805 during the founding era of the American republic. In page after page, these preachers exhorted their congregations to engage in the political sphere. Were they misguided? The truth is Satan would like nothing better than for Christians to withdraw from politics and leave the world completely under his dominion.
For the critics of Charlie Kirk, the real problem was not that he engaged in politics, but that he was not on their side, the party that supports woke ideology, LGBTQ+, abortion, open borders, and DEI. It is a godless, immoral, and anti-Biblical agenda. However, to his detractors none of this matters. The fact that he supported Donald Trump was enough of a reason to despise him. It explains why, within hours of his tragic death, they could not resist the impulse to vilify him.
Following the death of George Floyd five years ago, the Stated Clerk of the EPC released a lengthy statement declaring a day of lament, prayer, and fasting. When Charlie Kirk was gunned down, the Stated Clerk and Office of the General Assembly did not acknowledge his death or issue any statement whatsoever. The silence was deafening.
I did not know Charlie Kirk personally or follow him closely. However, what I admired was his boldness. Most of us preach the gospel in safe places to a friendly audience, in church on Sunday morning. Charlie Kirk took it to college campuses where crowds were often hostile. As a Christian apologist, he was not afraid to confront the woke, leftist, atheistic mindset that pervades many of our modern universities.
And yet, he was not adversarial. He invited people who disagreed with him to come to the front of the line. He didn’t shame or shout them down; he listened to them. Most of all, he made them think — which is so sadly missing in academia today where students are so often brainwashed and indoctrinated. And he relentlessly proclaimed the gospel: that Jesus is Lord and Savior.
How many of us are as bold as Charlie Kirk? The disciples of Jesus were marked by their boldness, testifying fearlessly in the public square.
“… for God gave us a spirit not of fear but of power and love and self-control.” (2 Timothy 1:7).
“To that end, keep alert with all perseverance, making supplication for all the saints, and also for me, that words may be given to me in opening my mouth boldly to proclaim the mystery of the gospel, for which I am an ambassador in chains, that I may declare it boldly, as I ought to speak.” (Ephesians 6:18b-20).
It is this spirit of boldness that is missing in the church today. We are fearful of offending anyone, and eager to please the world and conform to its values. We call it meekness, but in truth it is cowardice. We think we can win the world to Christ by blending into the culture and being winsome and “missional.” However, this is a fallacy. I pray the death of Charlie Kirk will make us more bold in sharing our faith.
The death of Charlie Kirk has been called a watershed moment in our nation. Will it lead to spiritual revival, or perhaps a new era of political violence? What it means for the EPC is uncertain. It will be increasingly difficult to hold the EPC together when we hold such conflicting worldviews. Jesus calls us to be light in the darkness, but how is that possible when we cannot agree on what is darkness and what is light?
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