The world is shaken. Charlie Kirk is gone. And now, every believer must face the question: Where is God when evil triumphs? This is not just about Charlie—it’s about YOU. When suffering strikes your life, will you stand in faith or collapse in fear?In this urgent message, we dive deep into Scripture to uncover what the Bible really says about suffering, tragedy, and the great controversy between Christ and Satan. From the story of Job to the fiery furnace in Babylon, you’ll see that pain doesn’t mean God is absent—it means the battle is real. But take heart: Jesus walks with His people through the fire.If you’ve ever cried out, “God, why didn’t You stop it?”—this is for you.

The world is shaken. Charlie Kirk is gone. And now, every believer must face the question: Where is God when evil triumphs? This is not just about Charlie—it’s about YOU. When suffering strikes your life, will you stand in faith or collapse in fear?In this urgent message, we dive deep into Scripture to uncover what the Bible really says about suffering, tragedy, and the great controversy between Christ and Satan. From the story of Job to the fiery furnace in Babylon, you’ll see that pain doesn’t mean God is absent—it means the battle is real. But take heart: Jesus walks with His people through the fire.If you’ve ever cried out, “God, why didn’t You stop it?”—this is for you.

Free sharing permitted under the Creative Commons <a rel="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/3.0/us/">BY-NC-ND 3.0 (US)</a> license.

HopeLives365

Mark Finley

Why Did God Let Charlie Kirk Die?


The world froze. News broke. Charlie Kirk had been shot. And in that moment, 2 questions gripped the hearts of Christians everywhere. Why would God allow this?

And how do we keep living with courage when the world feels so unsafe? They aren't academic questions. They're personal. Maybe you've asked them yourself after a diagnosis, a tragedy, a loss you never saw coming. God, if you love me, if you're powerful enough to stop this, Why didn't you?

The Bible doesn't hide from these questions. It faces them head on. And today we're going to wrestle with them too. Not just to understand why suffering happens, but to discover what now. Because what we do in the face of pain and fear matters.

First, suffering does not mean that God has left us. Let's start with a man called Job. The Bible calls him a man after God's own heart. He loved God. He avoided evil.

And he lost everything. House, family, possessions, body, head to toe with boils. Was it because God had left him? Behind the scenes, a cosmic conflict was unfolding. Behind the scenes, there was a great controversy between Christ and Satan.

Job couldn't see it. But his story is 1 that's been fulfilled through the centuries. Job trusted God in suffering. Job trusted God in trial. Job trusted God in difficulty.

And he says in scripture, Though he slay me yet I will trust him. Suffering doesn't mean that God has left you. Let's look at John 16, verse 33. Suffering doesn't mean God has left us at all. John 16, and we're looking there at verse 33.

Notice how the scripture puts it very, very clearly regarding God's presence in suffering. The scripture says, These things I have spoken to you, that in me you might have peace, in the world you will have tribulation, but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world." Did you catch that? Jesus doesn't say in the world you might have tribulation. In the world, maybe you'll have tribulation. In the world, statistically, it's possible you'll have tribulation.

Jesus doesn't say that. He says, in the world, you will have tribulation. But, he says, be of good cheer. Be of good cheer in tribulation. Why?

Because Jesus says, I have overcome the world. See, the Bible reveals that trouble will not have the last word. There's something very unique about Christianity and it's this, the Bible reveals that there's a God that suffers with us. And here's what makes Christianity unique. We don't worship a God who watches suffering on the sidelines from some safe place in eternity.

Look at what it says in Isaiah chapter 53. No, God doesn't leave us in suffering. He doesn't leave us in heartache. Doesn't leave us when we go through trial or difficulty or suffering. Isaiah 53, notice what the scripture says about Jesus.

It says, he's a man of sorrows and acquainted with grief. So Jesus understands the heartache of life. He understands the suffering that we go through in life. When the journey is long, when the mountain is high, when the road is rough, when darkness engulfs us, Jesus is there in our suffering. He's a man of sorrows.

At Lazarus tomb, Jesus wept, even though he knew the resurrection was just minutes away. In fact, on the cross, God himself bore our pain, bore our suffering, bore our shame, and even bore death for us on the cross. In Hebrews 4, verse 15, it says, we have a high priest who sympathizes with our weaknesses. He does. When you go through suffering, you don't go through it alone.

Charlie Kirk's widow, as she has gone through this horrible experience, I'm sure with tears in her eyes. Yet, I'd like to assure her today, and sure every woman that's going through suffering, Every man that is going through heartache, God has not left you. When you cry out in the night, God isn't just listening, He understands. Because He has scars too. The nails that were driven through his hands, the crown of thorns that was placed upon his head, dying alone in agony on that cross, bearing the sins of humanity.

Jesus Christ suffers with us. Faithful people of God have suffered down through the ages. You see this throughout scripture. John the Baptist preached the truth and he was beheaded. Herod's soldiers took off his head.

Stephen preached Christ and the crowd took his life. Daniel's friends refused to bow and the furnace flames rose higher and higher. Saul sang hymns in prison after beatings and shipwrecks. Yes, John the Baptist, Stephen, Daniel, Paul, all were faithful to God and all faced suffering. There are times that God delivers us from suffering and heartache.

But there are other times that God lets us go through it. God didn't always stop the suffering, but God never wasted the suffering. I don't want you to miss that. God does not waste our pain. Tertullian, the church father, once said, "'The blood of the martyrs is the seed of the gospel.'" Could it be that in the controversy between good and evil, between Christ and Satan, the devil, the evil 1, Lucifer, Satan, wanted to take Charlie Kirk's life, wanted to silence his voice.

Could it be that in this controversy between good and evil, God doesn't always step in and stop the evil based on the free will of human beings in this sense, a crazed assassin? But could it be that God will take the broken pieces of this the sorrow of this and spread his message of love and grace further spread the message of his word further spread the message of his Holy Sabbath further you see every time the enemy tries to crush the gospel, it only spreads faster. That's why Tertullian said, the blood of the martyrs is the seed of the gospel. Now, if you're facing suffering, heartache, or sorrow, God wants you to move from the why to the what now. You know we love to ask, why me Lord?

Why now? Why this? Why did this happen to me? Why, why, why? And sometimes there are no good answers.

There are times that God gives us answers, but sometimes he doesn't. But maybe the question is not why, but what now? What does God want to do in me through this? How can my courage in suffering point others to Jesus? What would it look like to trust him even here in the agony, the pain, the suffering, the sickness, the sorrow, the death of life.

Because why might leave us in confusion? But what now leads us to faith? God's presence is with you in the fiery flames of life. Remember Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego? They wouldn't bow down to the idol, wouldn't bow down to King Nebuchadnezzar's golden image.

They wouldn't violate the commandments of God. In the future, the Bible says, Again, God will have a people who will not violate his commandments. Once again, like in the days of Babylon, church and state will unite. Once again, God's people will be facing a test, but they're Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego went into the flames. And King Nebuchadnezzar says, Look, I see 4 men loose.

They're not bound any longer. And they're in the midst of the flames. And the, but there's a fourth man in with those 3. And the form of the fourth is like the Son of God. Christ leaps in to the flames of life with us.

You remember what it says in Psalm 23 verse 4. Psalm 23 verse 4. This passage is a passage that God gives to you right now. Somebody going through heartache or suffering, Psalm 23, verse 4. Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil.

Why? For you are with me, your rod and your staff, they comfort me. David says, I walk through the valley of the shadow of death he says doesn't say I'm gonna stay in the shed valley of the shadow of death I'm gonna camp in the valley of the shadow of death I'm gonna be there but David says what though I walked through the valley of the shadow of death. I walk through it. You're gonna get through this, my brother.

You're gonna get through this, my sister. God is gonna do something special in your life. I walk through the valley of shadow of death. Why? Because thou art with me.

You see, you either live in fear or you live by faith. Faith always whispers, go on, trust me. Faith Whispers, you can believe my promises. Faith whispers, you can have confidence in me. Faith whispers, whatever you're going through, I will be with you.

Fear whispers, hide, stop, be quiet, be bitter, be angry. Play it safe, but faith says stand. Live boldly, trust God with the outcome. Peter walked on water until fear made him sink. Paul sat in prison singing hymns at midnight.

Fear shrinks life down. It shrinks life down to our capacities to handle the trials, the difficulties that we face. Faith enlarges life. The question isn't, Will suffering come? It will.

The question is, will we live by fear or will we live by faith? The question is not will suffering come? The question is, will we trust God in suffering? The question is not whether will suffering come? The question is, will we trust God so much that we believe even in that heartache and suffering, although it is not good, God will in some way that we may not fully understand bring good out of it.

We can live without fear because we live with the eternal perspective. Here's how the Bible answers that. God's perspective comes in the words of Christ in Matthew chapter 10, verse 28. Matthew chapter 10, verse 28. And notice what Jesus says.

Why is it that we can live without fear in the midst of life's sufferings? Matthew 10 you're going to look there at verse 28. Do not fear him who can kill the body, but cannot kill the soul, but rather fear him who is able to destroy both soul and body in hell. God's promise is this, Revelation 2.10, "'Be faithful unto death, and I will give you the crown of life.'" In other words, as Christians, we recognize that there's something beyond. There's something more than this life.

We may go through suffering. We may experience heartache. We may experience sorrow. But beyond it all, there is an eternity. That's what Charlie Kirk looked forward to.

An eternity with Christ. You know, the Bible says in 1 Thessalonians 4, verse 16, the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel and the trumpet of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first and we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together to meet our Lord in the air. Yes my friend there is something beyond. Yes my friend we can look for the eternal perspective in the coming of Christ, where there'll be sin and sickness no more, where there'll be disease and death no more, where there will be crime and corruption no more, where there'll be poverty and pollution no more, where there'll be war and worry No more. We can live with faith and not with fear because we believe that Jesus Christ is coming again.

Paul called our troubles Light and momentary in 2nd Corinthians 4, verse 17. Light momentary compared to eternity in this life where all there is, is fear at times. And where only fear would seem to make sense, but it doesn't make sense. To live in fear is to have a stranglehold around your neck and not experience God's joy. We live not in fear, but we live with faith.

This is a call to be courageous in the time that we're living in. You know, Romans chapter 8, verse 18, puts it this way. Romans chapter 8, verse 18, puts it this way. The scripture says, the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to compare with the glory to be revealed in us. So Here's the call.

Here's the call. Live today in the light of tomorrow. Live now in the light of eternity. Live at this moment with heaven in view. Live boldly when life feels uncertain.

Here's the call, stand for Christ even when the world pushes back. Trust God, even when you don't have all the answers because the worst the world can do to you is temporary, and the best God offers is eternal." God wins in the end. Yes, evil may mar our lives at times. Evil may roar, tragedy may strike, but the story isn't over. God walks through the fire with his people.

Jesus says, Matthew 28, verse 20, lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the world. The devil may try to destroy those who speak based on the principles of God's Word. The devil may try to destroy those who walk with Jesus. The devil may bring tragedy, difficulty, heartache, suffering upon the average Christian. For some, they may live their lives in poverty.

For some, it may be a tragic disease that strikes them. For some, it may be a car wreck that leaves them immobile and paralyzed. For some, it may be the death of a loved 1. But look, my friend, in the cosmic conflict between Christ and Satan, although we go through temporary heartache and suffering here, there's an eternal perspective. Jesus will come 1 day and all the tragedies of life, all the sorrows of life, all the heartache of life, all the disappointments of life will soon be over.

In the end, Christ wins. So live courageously, not because life is safe, but because our future is secure in the Christ whose promises never ever fail. I want to pray for somebody right now that may be like the widow of Charlie Kirk, is going through suffering. Somebody right now whose heart is broken. I also want to pray for Charlie Kirk's widow and his children.

But in this prayer I want to pray for you that God will strengthen you, that God will give you the courage to face whatever you have to face, and that God will enable you to stand for the truth of his word. Let's pray. Father in heaven, thank you that you're with us in suffering, that you're there in our trials, that you've said, oh I'm with you always even to the end of the world. Thank you that you understand suffering, that it is said of Jesus in all their affliction, he was afflicted. Thank you that the pain we experience also is a sword that pierces your heart and thank you you're not going to let us face anything that we cannot bear in your strength and by your grace.

I pray now for any human being, any person that's listening to this program who's going through suffering, strengthen them, give them a sense of your presence, help them look beyond what he is to what will be, help them look to eternity. And Father, I pray too for the widow of Charlie Kirk, for his children. I pray that in ways that we cannot understand, that you would put your arms around them, that you would encourage them and comfort them. Oh Lord, please be with them, I pray thee. Now Lord, we open our hearts to you.

Come into our lives, fill us with your spirit. Encourage us, I pray, by your presence. In Jesus name, Amen. Or if you

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Why Did God Let Charlie Kirk Die?

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