Charlie Kirk’s Assassination: A Two Kingdom Call to Action
This October, stand firm in the faith handed down from the Reformation. Help support our efforts to contend for the freedom to proclaim the faith in this generation too.
As I’ve shared online, for the last few days I’ve been laboring to write a response to the political assassination of Charlie Kirk, trying to put words together that express a proper response to the shock and horror of the evil violence perpetrated against a Christian believer who understood the limitations of politics and the beautiful salvation message that only God could accomplish in Jesus. A person who was willing to dialogue and debate all comers in the hope of demonstrating the truth of what he said and believed. He was proud of the foundational principles of individual liberty, religious freedom, limited government, educational freedom/choice, and the importance of faith, family, freedom to live self-governed lives . . . and for that he was executed. That should truly shock us all to our core.
But even if that “shock” occurs, I believe that we are at a moment in time where also lack the critical thinking skills to determine how to move forward on this.[1] The cries are already ringing out for “tolerance, tolerance, tolerance,” but that is how we got here in the first place. I wrote back in 2018 about a disturbing trend to identify conservative, confessional Christians as “intolerant,” those who are the same as the Taliban or the radical Jihadists. Listen to these words again, spoken not by some obscure “youtuber” or “social media influencer” but from Robert Reich, former Labor Secretary for President Bill Clinton. He said,
The true battle (of the 21st Century) will be between the modern society and the anti-modernists; between those who believe in the primacy of the individual and those who believe that human beings owe their allegiance and identity to a higher authority; between those who give priority to life in this world and those who believe that human life is a mere preparation for existence beyond life; between those who believe in science, reason, and logic and those who believe that truth is revealed through Scripture and religious dogma; Terrorism will disrupt and destroy lives. But it is not the greatest danger that we face.”[2]
Did you hear what he said? Did you hear any “tolerance” in Reich’s words? Of course not. But many don’t hear the horror of his words either because the propaganda is already doing its work. In his book Christianity in an Age of Terrorism, Gene Veith warned of this false labeling already in 2002:
Nevertheless, like interfaith theologians, militant secularists lump together conservative Christians with the Muslim terrorists as “fundamentalists,” as the enemy who deserves to be eradicated.
Those who flew the planes into the buildings on 9/11 are the same as those who believe confidently, courageously that—the Bible is God’s Word, that marriage is between a man and a woman, that innocent human life in the womb should be protected/not killed, that parents have the right and the responsibility to educate their children, that law and order is the main work of government . . . namely the protecting of innocent citizen’s lives and property.
Yes, those who believe that humans are “created in the image of God,” [3]who think that there are universal, moral principles that are reflected in the lives, cultures, and even religions of virtually every human being on earth, yes, they are the same as the Taliban, the terrorists.
And what do you do with terrorists?
You demonize them, ostracize them, deplatform them, and if that doesn’t work, you arrest them and kill them if they continue to believe as they believe. Presently, our public institutions are even laying the groundwork to justify violence against such “intolerant” views (not actions, views) because violence against such people is deemed legitimate as “their silence is violence,” their words are “hate speech,” and those certain words or views they espouse are “microaggressions” not just legitimate differences of opinions.[4] And Bible believing, Law/Gospel confessing, liturgical Christians are clearly labeled as the “they.”
Never mind that that Christian world view is foundational to the very freedoms that ALL Americans enjoy. Never mind that the proper differentiation of state and church, the proper limitation of the role of the State is a New Testament teaching, not a secular one and surely not an Islamic one. Never mind that the Bible’s message is that ALL humans are sinful, that every human heart must repent, and that changed lives can even begin to love one’s enemies not just one’s friends. Never mind, as Veith rightly says:
A Christian does not have some unique brand of morality; rather, what makes a Christian is the Gospel. Morality is for everyone. Protecting innocent life should be a foundational principle for all societies, of whatever religion or culture…. It is not our “morality” that defines Christians. This we share with other religions and many secularists. What defines Christians is our “faith.”[5]
Hey, that Charlie Kirk guy actually believed what I just said . . . and they executed him for it.
The violence will stop when we all as American citizens reject its root cause, the secular-statist-left’s demonization of law-abiding, God-fearing people, especially Christians “in the name of tolerance.” Otherwise, we’ll have to endure more of the same. Notice how even the clear motive for Kirk’s killing is now being explained away as “mental illness” or an “extreme but understandable” response to Kirk’s supposed intolerance when in reality it is clearly a motivation from a hatred that has been fomented by those who see the Christian worldview in general as a threat to their secular political intentions. The violence will stop when those who hold the secular-statist-political views (whether socialist or fascist) actually have to deal with the violence and death that their ideology has wrought.[6]
Reich stated the secularist “call to battle” plainly. Should Christians “fight back?” Isn’t this a “turn the other cheek moment” which may be necessary for sharing the Gospel? Isn’t our humility our greatest asset in these debates? Yes . . . and no. It is true that our proclamation of the truth is from the position of humility, not arrogance. It is true that our sharing of the faith is willing to endure all kinds of false caricatures and abuse. But, when it comes to the moral and ethical fundamentals of the society in which one lives, one should never abandon the battle for what that actual truth is. A two-kingdom (2KG) perspective helps us here. We can “fight” for the foundational, moral truths of God for the sake of the culture (God’s preserving work), even as we differentiate it from God’s saving work in Christ. So, when Reich speaks of those who owe their identity and allegiance to some higher authority we can “fight that back,” politically, ideologically because he is not just demeaning Christianity, but all who see the very moral structure of the world as a gift of God. We can even argue that the biblical worldview of humanity helped birth some of the greatest documents of freedom ever produced, the Declaration of Independence and the United States Constitution, without politicizing the Gospel. We can fight for the right to proclaim the whole counsel of God freely (religious liberty), all the while proclaiming the very unique message of the Church, the Gospel, good news of “grace alone through faith alone in Christ alone” as the supra-cultural, “beyond politics” good news that it is.
Pray for Charlie Kirk’s family, bring Charlie Kirk’s murderer to justice, establish just, temporal peace for all people, and let there be a free exchange of ideas in our culture so that freedom, both temporal and eternal, may endure. We have to fight for that, even as we serve others in Christ’s name. Two kingdom citizens know when and how to fight . . . and when and how to serve to be the blessing that God intends us to be in Christ for others.
The Rev. Dr. Gregory Seltz is the executive director of the Lutheran Center for Religious Liberty.
Be Informed
Complaints have been filed against a late-term abortionist. Learn more about this case with Dr. Michael New of the Charlotte Lozier Institute.
Be Equipped
LCMS member, The Federalist editor, and Fox News contributor Mollie Hemingway reflects on the faith and life of Charlie Kirk.
Be Encouraged
“You and I are made for life, abundant and everlasting. And this Gospel is made for all our neighbors, every genetic member of humanity.” –Rev. Michael Salemink, Lutherans For Life
[1] When October 7 happened almost two years ago, I thought that people would see the evil for what it was. Women were raped and beheaded, babies crushed to death, elderly people beaten and burden—all “live-streamed” back to homes in Gaza. Then 251 mostly civilians were taken captive. Surely all would see this as the evil it was, right? Many didn’t, as protests for Hamas started happening all around our country with Jewish students being harassed on elite campuses throughout the Northeast.
[2] Ramesh Ponnuru, “Robert Reich’s Religion Problem,” National Review Online, July 6, 2004.
[3] Those of us who are Christian would add that God’s love even compelled Him to redeem us as well. But for our temporal, common dignity, freedom, and civility, it is sufficient to acknowledge our allegiance to the higher authority who created us as His own.
[4] Presently, in Finland, Lutheran Bishop Johanna Pohjola and former political leader, Paivi Raisanen are being tried by the state for the Church’s views on Marriage and sexual practice. Though biblical, it is now seen as “hate speech.” Similar things are already happening here with people like Jack Phillips, Barronelle Stutzman, Coach Joe Kennedy, Lorie Smith—7 years fighting for her right to work?, Mark Houck – raided by the FBI at 6:45am for a crime he didn’t do . . . and many more.
[5] Veith, p. 101-102
[6] In an article in “Reason” magazine, “Data on Mass Murder by Government in the 20th Century,” David Kopel estimates the total deaths/murders to be 212 million. He says, “Communists killed the most, followed by Fascists.” https://reason.com/volokh/2022/11/09/data-on-mass-murder-by-government-in-the-20th-century/ And I would add that they are both “Statists” and the anti-dote to “leftwing or rightwing STATISM” is the constitutional limitation of government, the freedom of religion, and the freedom of the “Faith motivated, morally directed, self-governing” citizen.