Martyrdom, Charlie Kirk, and Us
To name Christ as our savior is not merely to make a religious statement. It is political. In Psalm two the Father assured the mediatorial Son that if He asked of Him, then surely, He would give Him the nations as an inheritance. Consequently, just before Jesus ascended into heaven, He told His disciples that all authority in heaven and on earth had been given to Him, therefore go, discipling the nations. Not surprisingly, Daniel 7:13-14 recorded hundreds of years earlier what happened next. At the ascension, the Ancient of Days bestowed upon the victorious Christ the gift of the nations.
The Apostles and disciples of Christ took Jesus at his word and so too did those who heard their message. In Philippi, Paul and Silas were accused of advocating customs that were not lawful for Romans to accept or practice (Acts 16:21). And when they reached Thessalonica, the residents complained that the Lord’s disciples were acting against the decrees of Caesar and they were even saying that there was another king, Jesus (Acts 17:7)! To be a Christian is to be a subject of King Jesus, which makes us political.
One consequence of this fact is that the world will hate Christians. They will not tolerate Christ’s exclusive claim to authority, and they will seek to eliminate those who make that claim on His behalf. In fact, the unregenerate human heart will not allow a rival. Nietzsche’s statement is their own cry of the soul, “If there is a god, how can I bear to not be that god?” In Acts 12, Herod the king dies because of that very sentiment. After his oration at the games held in Caesarea the people began to cry out, “The voice of a god, and not of a man!” Hearing those words, Herod embraced them. If there is a god, how could he bear to not be that god? But at that moment the living God struck him dead.
Now, some might say, “Well, those ancient people are not like us. How could anyone today believe that they are a god?” That’s ancient silliness. Well, it’s not as silly as you might think. The abortion advocate asserts the power of life and death in a decision. The transgender male affirms that he can recreate himself as a female. Friends, these claims are divine prerogatives. These are examples of humans declaring, “If there is a god, how can I bear to not be that god?”
But what happens when a Christian says, as Paul told the people of Lystra who tried to claim divine rights on his behalf, “We also are, of like nature with you, and we bring you good news that you should turn from these vain things to a living God… (Acts 14:15). What will people do when they are reminded that they, like us, are mere men? Furthermore, what will they do when they are told that their way of thinking is vain, empty or futile? The fickle crowds will turn to the next vain thing and turn on the people who told them the truth as the people of Lystra turned on Paul and stoned him, leaving him for dead.
This is what happened to Charlie Kirk this past week. Kirk was a simple believer who was killed for going to the modern Areopagus speaking about faith in Christ and telling transgender advocates that their king has no clothes. He told them that they are not gods and that they must turn to the true God who has revealed Himself in His Son, the king, Jesus. And the enemies of Christ at the event in Utah rejoiced over the death of this child of the Lord. There are always those willing to give their approval to the wicked (Romans 1:32). Think again of Herod in Acts twelve. Knowing the killing of James pleased the Jews Herod arrested Peter and was going to do the same to him after Passover. There will always be those who seek to bolster their god complex in the eyes of others.
But the believer needs a measured response in this circus of madness. Like Jesus in the stern of the boat during the storm, Peter slept the night before his execution. He was like David who despite being pursued by his own, “lay down, slept, and woke again” for the Lord was keeping him (Psalm 3:5). The believer knows that this life is not the end. Even the Marxist Terry Eagleton knows what every Christian ought to know. In Radical Sacrifice he writes, [for] Christianity, at least, martyrdom is a condition to which everyone is in principle summoned” (p. 76). But how is this possible?
It is only possible when we understand the majesty of God revealed in Christ. Martyrdom is a condition that demonstrates that all is not well in the world. Christ’s kingship has not been consummated. And yet, martyrdom is acceptable to the believer because witnessing is essential. And yet, this is not mere resignation. There is also a firm understanding in the martyr that “an evil person will not go unpunished” (Prov. 11:21). The Martyrs under the altar cry out even now because they understand this (Rev. 6:9-11).
Several years ago, I had someone repent to me of a sin they had committed against me. I remember thinking to myself that I could not have verbalized a better repentance for him. When I think of Proverbs 11:21 it is easy for us to think in general abstractions, but that incident from years earlier made me think that when I witness the vengeance of God upon the wicked it will be more satisfying than anything that the anger of man might otherwise have produced. In other words, the punishment will be complete and thorough. Justice will be satisfied. The martyrs will no longer cry out but will be satisfied.
But until then the Christian must face the possibility of martyrdom. In our world, words have become weaponized. The words of this article will be claimed by some to be weapons that have hurt and wounded. This sort of thinking has become commonplace among the young people of this generation. It is the culmination of years of nonsense.[1] And it is wrong. But there is no telling them that, at least at this point. Many of them can’t bear to “not be god.” So, the question for every believer is simple. If even the foundations of language are destroyed what can the righteous do (Psalm 11:3)? The same Psalm gives the answer. He can take refuge in the Lord.
That is exactly the response that the Lord wants from us. He tells us several times in the Old Testament that we are the apple of His eye. As I understand from my Hebrew colleague, the word literally rendered is the little man of the eye. In other words, if you were close enough to the person you were speaking with, then you could see your reflection in their eyes. Hence, we are the little man in God’s eye. It’s a beautiful reminder that our lives are hidden in Christ. We are in union with Him. Consequently, we should not fear martyrdom, or the one who can kill the body, but rather we should fear God who can cast body and soul into hell. So, our attitude ought to be that of Psalmist, “What can man do to me?” So, tonight let our response be that of Peter, who was in prison surrounded by guards and awaiting his martyrdom. He slept and so should we because the Lord is keeping us, the little man or woman in His eye.
[1] Read Carl Trueman’s The Rise and Triumph of the Modern Self or Strange New World if you want to read how this generation arrived at such foolish thinking. Foolishness preceded them.
Charlie Kirk in Tampa July 2025 (cropped) by Gage Skidmore, CC BY-SA 4.0 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
