God, Kirk, Vance and Rowling

Standing firm in Christ without compromise:

I have noted on the social media how some Christians have not said a word about the diabolical murder of Charlie Kirk. Some have instead offered words about the need for reconciliation and the like. Let me speak to that for a moment, and then look at two well-known individuals and a better way forward.

As to reconciliation, the main biblical emphasis on this is the need of every single hell-bound sinner on the planet (which we all are) to be reconciled to God through Christ. And calls for unity and love for one another are of course found in Scripture – but overwhelmingly have to do with believers, and not with unbelievers and the world.

Indeed, the Bible often speaks about separation, not unity, in some areas. As we read in 2 Corinthians 6:14-18:

Do not be unequally yoked with unbelievers. For what partnership has righteousness with lawlessness? Or what fellowship has light with darkness? What accord has Christ with Belial? Or what portion does a believer share with an unbeliever? What agreement has the temple of God with idols? For we are the temple of the living God; as God said,

“I will make my dwelling among them and walk among them,
    and I will be their God,
    and they shall be my people.
Therefore go out from their midst,
    and be separate from them, says the Lord,
and touch no unclean thing;
    then I will welcome you,
and I will be a father to you,
    and you shall be sons and daughters to me,
says the Lord Almighty.”

Yes, we usually think about this in terms of things like a marriage partner or a close business associate. But it can apply in other areas. One does not get the impression that when Paul was being persecuted and attacked by his haters he wanted to sit around with them, have a nice meal, and sing “Kumbaya”. Instead, he insisted that they need to be reconciled to God.

Some Christians think we should just be all lovey-dovey with the demonised mobs who have cheered Kirk’s assassination. Sorry, I will not run with that sort of reconciliation. Like Kirk, I will seek to reason with folks and win them to Christ, but I will not fall for some sentimental New Age ‘we-are-all-one’ nonsense.

As one meme making the rounds says, “When a Christian is murdered on national TV in front of his wife and children and your pastor won’t speak up, hides behind ‘both sides of the story,’ or plays pacifist…you’re not following a shepherd… you’re following a coward.” I go along with that.

J. D. Vance

In this regard J. D. Vance was quite right in his remarks as he hosted a TPUSA podcast on Monday. He shared plenty of moving and powerful words about Kirk and the war that we are in, and featured commentary from a number of key guests. The full two-hour show is well worth watching. It can be seen here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qKGJYcL_Ujw

One thing he said at the end of the podcast ties in here with how we deal with the radical left. From the 1:56 mark onwards, you can hear this for yourself. Here is what he said:

Unity, real unity, can be found only after climbing the mountain of truth. And there are difficult truths we must confront in our country. One truth is that 24% of self-described ‘very liberals’ believe it is acceptable to be happy about the death of a political opponent while only 3% of self-described very conservatives agree – 3% is too many of course. Another truth is that 26% of young liberals believe political violence is sometimes justified, and only 7% of young conservatives say the same – again, too high a number…

 

The data is clear. People on the Left are much likelier to defend and celebrate political violence. This is not a ‘both sides’ problem. If both sides have a problem, one side has a much bigger and more malignant problem, and that is the truth we must be told. That problem has terrible consequences.

He goes on to speak of political violence against conservatives, including the 2 assassination attempts against Trump. And he speaks about how he and his family were abused by ugly haters while he was at Disneyland. He continues:

Many of these people are creating an environment where things like this [political violence] are inevitably going to happen. . . . While our side of the aisle certainly has its crazies, it is a statistical fact that most of the lunatics in American politics today are proud members of the far Left.

 

There is no unity with people who scream at children over their parents’ politics. There is no unity with someone who lies about what Charlie Kirk said in order to excuse his murder. There is no unity with the people who celebrate Charlie Kirk’s assassination, and there is no unity with the people who fund articles, who pay the salaries of these terrorist sympathizers who argue that Charlie Kirk, a loving husband and father, deserved a shot to the neck because he spoke words with which they disagree….

 

We don’t believe in political violence, but we do believe in civility and there is no civility in the celebration of political assassination.

And something conservative commentator Joey Mannarino just posted is worth considering here:

It honestly scares the crap out of me when I see doctors & nurses sharing the “I’m glad Charlie Kirk died” content. How would they treat me, a conservative man, if I was in need of critical care & couldn’t speak for myself? Imagine if I was unconscious and they happened read my X feed or see my Instagram posts that show my conservative values & activism. Would they just pull the plug and let me die?

Yep, it is pretty hard to have fellowship, reconciliation and unity with those sorts of folks.

J. K. Rowling

Vance is quite right: there can be no unity and reconciliation with those who hate us and think it is OK to attack us and even kill us. But those on the left who ARE open to reason and clear thinking can and should be engaged with. And that leads me to the famous Harry Potter author.

Rowling, a noted liberal, has been taking a real hammering of late for standing up for women and resisting the trans mafia. And she has been on an interesting journey it seems. Many of her previous leftist positions she is now questioning if not abandoning. Here is the full tweet she posted a few days ago:

I used to believe nurture was everything and that nature wasn’t important. My belief changed because of my own life experience and from reading studies about genetic inheritance. In my early twenties I believed the difference between the sexes was entirely due to socialisation. I no longer believe that (for the same reasons as above.) I used to believe in unilateral nuclear disarmament. I no longer do.

 

I used to believe cannabis was essentially harmless. I no longer do because I’ve witnessed it wreaking havoc on someone I care about’s mental health. I used to believe in assisted dying. I no longer do, largely because I’m married to a doctor who opened my eyes to the possibilities of coercion of sick or vulnerable people. I’ve struggled with religious faith since my mid-teens. I appear to have a God-shaped vacuum inside me but I never seem quite able to make up my mind what to do about it.

 

I could probably list at least twenty more things I’ve changed my mind about. I don’t currently have a single belief that couldn’t be altered by clear, concrete evidence and in all but one case, I know what that evidence would have to be. The exception is the God conundrum, because I don’t know what I’d have to see to make me come down firmly on either side. I suppose that’s the meaning of faith, believing without seeing proof, and that’s why I’ll probably go to my grave with that particular personal matter unresolved.

Wow. She really has come a long way. Now THAT is the sort of person we can and should spend a whole lot of time with. That is the sort of person we should seek some unity and reconciliation with.

Jesus made it clear that we need discernment here. As we read in Matthew 7:6, “Do not give dogs what is holy, and do not throw your pearls before pigs, lest they trample them underfoot and turn to attack you.” Some folks have no desire to hear you out – they only come to argue and waste your time. They are trolls.

And some are simply consumed with hatred and diabolical bitterness. One can pray for such folks, but that is about it. We certainly cannot unite with them. We cannot become one with them. We cannot share in their satanic beliefs, attitudes and acts.

The assassination of Charlie Kirk is another ‘wheat and tares’ moment. It certainly is making clear where many people are at. The haters keep on hating and showing the whole world how fully evil and demonised they are. But many others are now having a rethink of both their secularism and their leftism.

So God is using all this for his purposes. Keep praying. Keep praying for folks like Rowling. And keep speaking truth.

Postscript

I just did a 30-minute interview on Kirk, the left, and the Christian response: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y7wLIIGl8tY

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