"Charlie Kirk has been shot. Please pray!"
That was the first message I saw from a friend. Then my Instagram was flooded with breaking news about the shooting of Charlie Kirk. I'm tempted right here to qualify who Charlie Kirk is (was). I want to say "conservative political pundit" or "president and founder of Turning Point USA." But who was Charlie? He was a son of God. He was a son of a mom and dad. He was the husband of a wife. He was the father to two beautiful little children. He was a human made in the image of God with inherent dignity and worth. And the past tense I keep having to use—"was"—is crushing me.
Once again, I feel like I have to clarify so much. I feel like I need to qualify my areas of disagreement with Charlie. I feel the pressure of the opponents of Charlie's method and message attacking me, saying, "Where was the post about innocent black brothers and sisters murdered?" Or, "Where was the post about the innocent children that were murdered in the classroom?" I feel the pressure to justify who I am and what I have been about—the dignity of all humanity. The value of life for all people.
(source)1
But the reality is, the simple fact that the comments section of my reel exposing the unseen battle waged in the spiritual realm as it breaks into our earthly context got so vitriolic and combative is even more evidence of the deep state of despair we as a society, and humanity in general, are in.
A Moment of Raw Reality
I had a friend message me a video just thirty minutes after I posted my reel. You see, I thought the video clip was a news anchor with an update. It wasn't. It was the clip of Charlie being shot in the neck. Unedited. Raw. Real. And totally devastating. I found myself in a trance. Sitting on an American Airlines plane, seat 13D, stuck. I couldn't take my eyes off of the video. I wanted to, but I couldn't. God gave me an analytical mind, and I analyzed every part of that video. I finally turned it off. I texted my wife this.
I wanted to cry. I did my best to keep it together for the rest of the flight. I literally jogged to my parked car at the airport, sat down, and started sobbing. I don't think as humans we are supposed to view murder so casually. Watch a gunshot pierce a man's body and watch his body literally fight for life before his consciousness even knew what happened. This is where things got so personal for me. He was answering a Q&A, something I've done so often. Responding like he had done countless times. No clue what was going to happen. I just sat in my car and sobbed.
As I was sharing some of this on my Instagram stories, I got an overflow of messages from friends who thanked me for my raw and honest response. I didn't want to share it. I still don't. I felt like it made me weak. It felt humiliating. And then I was reminded of the words I penned in The Hidden Peace:
"The problem is we think weakness, inability, and suffering are evidence of our lack of worth. When in reality it's the perfect place for God to show His power, strength, and provide you the stability you long for because He and only He is worthy."2
Well, let's put weakness on display and make it an invitation to experience the sustaining power of God. I've never done this. I don't think I ever will. But I ended up taking a picture of myself crying in the car. I was planning on only sharing it with my kids and family. To teach and show my boys that being a man isn't avoiding pain and emotions, but processing through it. But you know what, I think we all need that reminder. So, here it is. Humanity in all its mess.
On Divisive Comments & What They Expose
By the time I got home, my phone was blowing up. It was confirmed that Charlie died. He was assassinated. I saw a picture of him and his wife and two children, and my heart broke even more. When I got home, I made the mistake of looking at the comments. You see, my thought is that in this moment of immense tragedy, sides that were divided on policy and method and strategy could unite on the simple evil of murder. Humanity once again proved me wrong. I was devastated.
Now, this is the real issue. This is why in my video I pointed out that this is a spiritual battle. This is the unseen battle breaking through into our earthly existence. This is why I took my PhD dissertation and turned it into a popular level book to expose the evils of the enemy as they try to take the prize possession of God. Every battle has a prize, and the unseen battle of the cosmic realm is no exception. The prize—is the people. And the enemy is desperate to keep us divided. Want proof? Look at the comments (at your own risk).
Here is where I was shocked. In just under a month, I posted about respecting and honoring women. I got a comment from someone who came after my neck theologically. Then, the last comment he left was, "...And finally, see your woke Evangelical anthropology as chock full of recent readings. Following you during BLM was the icing on the cake."
So you can imagine my shock when I saw comments on my post about Charlie saying things like, "Can you repost the video you did for George Floyd?" or "Why didn't you say anything about the school shootings and innocent children that died?" And the comments go on and on. Here is the massive problem. I've been consistent. I replied to one of the comments and said, "I'm not the one." They replied, "Not the one for what?"
I'm not the one to accuse of not standing up for my black brothers and sisters during the racial injustice issues because I literally did a 9-week study through the minor prophet Amos, who I called the "social justice prophet."
I'm not the one because I've actively called for unity around race and injustice, from messages I've preached to the church we attend and are committed to.
I'm not the one because I included all that in my book, The Hidden Peace. Which, by the way, got a negative review because I dared to bring race into the conversation of the Gospel in the context of humility.
You see, I'm not the one.
But these comments expose the spiritual blindness of humanity. And sadly, not just of non-Christians, which we would expect. It exposes the spiritual blindness of Christians who are so caught up on method, strategy, political idolatry, and ideology that they are unable to see the image of God in one another, even those that they disagree with. The sad thing is these comments will turn people away and even to the "other side." They don't help; they harm. They deepen the divide and expose just how deep the chasm actually is.
The Solution
So what is the solution?
The solution to spiritual blindness is an act of the Spirit to restore our sight.
As Ephesians 6 proclaims, our fight isn't simply against flesh and blood.
"For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers of this darkness, against evil, spiritual forces in the heavens. For this reason take up the full armor of God, so that you may be able to resist in the evil day, and having prepared everything, to take your stand." (Ephesians 6:12–13, CSB, emphasis mine)
Additionally, Paul says:
"But if our gospel is veiled, it is veiled to those who are perishing. In their case, the god of this age has blinded the minds of the unbelievers to keep them from seeing the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God." (2 Corinthians 4:3–4, CSB, emphasis mine)3
Beyond Either/Or Thinking
Someone at some point convinced us of an either/or model. Either we take this approach or that approach. There is no in-between. But who said this, and why would we believe it? I'm reminded of the often misquoted saying from Augustine (he never said it), "Preach the Gospel at all times and if necessary use words." This is dumb. No, preach the gospel at all times. And ALWAYS use words. And ALWAYS match words with actions.
I've seen so many comments saying, "We don't need prayers; we need gun reform." Can I lovingly suggest why is it either/or? What about we desperately need prayer AND we need reform in our legal system?
I wonder if Daniel's friends rebuked him while he was praying, saying, "Why are you praying, Daniel! We need to take up arms and revolt!" They were probably shocked when they heard about the Angel that came to Daniel and literally said:
"Don't be afraid, Daniel," he said to me, "for from the first day that you purposed to understand and to humble yourself before your God, your prayers were heard. I have come because of your prayers." (Daniel 10:12, CSB, emphasis mine)
Now, more than ever, the people of God must equip ourselves daily with the armor of God. In fact, this very armor will equip us as we act responsibly in our world through our voting and pursuit of legislation for the safety of society.
We need unity and need to refrain from unwise rhetoric. Maybe it’s time for “meme culture” to take a hiatus along with “cancel culture”
We need the “prophetic voices” of our generation to take a moment and live in the sobriety of the Spirit of God. Not every moment has to be a viral moment that we perpetuate with antagonism and caricature of people and their positions. The thing I respected about Charlie was his willingness to talk to ANYONE about his views in a respectful debate and discussion. Civility must be regained.
The way towards this is the way of Jesus. It’s the way of cruciformity. It is the path of humility.
Practical Resources To Help Navigate The Horrors of Evil.
I probably shouldn’t be doing this. I don’t even know if it is allowed. I guess I’ll just do it and ask for forgivness later. I wrote a chapter in The Hidden Peace called, “When bad things happen to Humble People.” I’m going to include the chapter below for you for free. It may help you as you navigate some complex feelings.
When Bad Things Happen To Humble People
If you want the book, you can grab it here
If you want to learn more about The Unseen Battle based on my PhD dissertation check this out.
Horne, Charles, and Julius Bewer. The Bible and Its Story: The Law, Genesis to Leviticus. Vol. 1. New York, NY: Francis R. Niglutsch, 1908.
There is a serious tension with this statement that I wrestle with. How can believers still be blinded by dark powers? What is the role of sin and compromise in our lives? Is this possible? Or is this evidence of a lack of salvation and faith in Jesus? I don’t have the answers to this. Once again, just wrestling honestly with you all.
I am not a wordsmith but I just wanted to thank you for taking the time to post raw feelings and articulate what I can not. Abiding in Christ- audrey
I couldn’t put this tragedy into words but knew you could. Thank you for sharing everything; including the hard stuff. It’s a great reminder how evil divides and this is spiritual warfare. God bless.