Was Charlie Kirk a Martyr for Christ?

My VIP for this week is Charlie in a contrast-and-comparison to Jesus Christ. Both Charlie and Jesus Christ became larger after death than while they lived because each is a martyr for a cause. Charlie is a martyr for “the religion of social justice,” while Jesus Christ was killed because He claimed to be the Son of God. Charlie was a follower of Jesus Christ who interested many people in the gospel of Jesus Christ, while Jesus Christ has the power to change the eternal life of every mortal man, woman, and child.

Virgil Walker says that “America now stands at a crossroads.” Americans can choose “the broad path that leads to chaos and destruction, or the narrow path that leads to peace and life?” He calls the situation an obvious choice: “Christ or chaos?” 

Walker compared the situations surrounding the deaths of George Floyd, Michael Brown (Ferguson, Missouri), and Jacob Blake (Kenosha, Wisconsin) with that of Charlie Kirk. The deaths of the first group of men led to nationwide protests, riots, student walkouts, cities burned, businesses ransacked, stores looted, and calls to defund the police.

Now, set that against what followed the assassination of Charlie Kirk.

He was murdered for daring to give the biggest microphone … to those who opposed him. He welcomed debate. He confronted hostile ideas head on. He refused to be silenced by intimidation. And for that, he paid with his life.

But look at the fruit that followed his death.

No buildings burned. No businesses looted. No cities reduced to ash.

Instead, only candles burned – vigil candles, lifted high in memory of a man who gave his life for truth. People gathered in churches. Prayers rose instead of Molotov cocktails. Instead of mobs demanding blood, thousands made decisions to follow Christ. Politicians who would never publicly declare the name of Jesus suddenly spoke openly about the need for the gospel. Instead of excuses for lawlessness, there were testimonies of salvation….

What explains this radical difference?

On one hand, you have a spirit of rage. A spirit that justifies destruction as expression. A spirit that sees justice as vengeance. That spirit has turned too many American cities into ruins.

On the other hand, you have the Spirit of God. A Spirit that produces repentance instead of riots. Worship instead of war. Candles instead of chaos. When the world lost Charlie Kirk, a true martyr, the response revealed something deeper – something eternal.

The battle lines of our culture are not political but spiritual. The evidence could not be more clear.

The apostle Paul reminds us that “we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness” (Ephesians 6:12). What we are seeing is not merely two different sets of political responses but two different kingdoms on display….

History teaches us that rage consumes itself….

But the fruits of the Spirit endure. Out of Charlie Kirk’s death, lives are being changed forever. The gospel is advancing. The church is awakening.

The contrast forces every Christian to make a choice….

The choice is clear: Riots or revival? Chaos or Christ?

Lest anyone get the wrong idea, I know that Charlie was a mere mortal, while Jesus Christ is the Son of God who atoned for the sins of mankind, who died and was resurrected on the third day, and who will return to earth in glory soon. Charlie himself would be the first to deny that he was worthy to be compared to Christ. However, they are both martyrs, whose lives and deaths have impacted vast numbers of people. Charlie testified and witnessed for Christ, while Christ makes it possible for all of us to return to the presence of our Heavenly Father.