Thoughts on the Assassination of Charlie Kirk: Part Four (Kirk’s Money and Memorial; Trump’s Speech and the Gospel; Bible Verses)

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Thoughts on the Assassination of Charlie Kirk

Part Four

(Kirk’s Money and Memorial; Trump’s Speech and the Gospel; Bible Verses)

This multi-part article is continued from Thoughts on the Assassination of Charlie Kirk: Part Three (Leftists Misrepresent Kirk’s Views; The Alleged Assassin’s Motives; What Free Speech Entails).

Self-Made Millionaire

Charlie Kirk was a self-made millionaire. He started the idea for Turning Point USA in his parents’ basement, where he also got inspired to delve into politics by listening to Rush Limbagh’s radio show.

I saw a post on Facebook that claimed Kirk was worth $11 million. I am not sure if that is correct, but reporting by The Independent confirms he was rich.

Kirk’s ability to stir up controversy and gain attention made him a wealthy man. By 2023 he was living in a $4.75m Spanish-style property in a gated Arizona country club that boasts a guest casita, a “resort-style” pool and views of the Sonoran Desert. TPUSA tax records showed that Kirk’s salary rose from $27,000 in 2016 to more than $407,000 by 2021, and his income was bolstered further by the success of his podcast and public speaking fees (Independent. Charlie).

Many on the left criticize Charlie for being rich, just as they criticize Trump and anyone else on the right who are rich. But they seem to ignore that their heroes, Obama, Pelosi, Sanders, even AOC, are all also rich. The difference is, those on the left seem to get rich as a result of being elected to public office, while Trump earned his billions before he ever ran for office, and Charlie never did so. How people get rich while only making low six-figures in Congress or even $400k as President is the scandal.

As for Charlie, I am not exactly how he and Turning Point USA make their money. The above quote indicates he earned income from his podcast and from speaking fees. I assume a lot of it also comes from the sale of merchandise.

The left can complain about such and say Charlie should be giving everything away. I know, as I’ve had leftists say the same to me. For some strange reason, because I write books not only about politics and fitness issues but also about Christian issues, including translating the Bible, I should just do all of that work for free. But the Bible tells a different story (Matt 9:10-11; Luke 10:7; 1Cor 9:14; 1Tim 5:17-18).

Personally, I think complaints about Kirk’s wealth are just jealousy. But there’s no reason for it. If you’re a leftist, set up your own organization similar to Turning Point USA, except from the left. Set up booths on college campuses and debate with conservative students, proving them wrong. Sign up thousands of high school and college affiliates across the country. Start a podcast, travel the country giving speeches, sell merchandise, and you can become rich yourself. It’s a free country, so you can do it. If you don’t have Kirk’s ambition and work ethic to do so, then that’s on you.

Charlie Kirk’s Memorial

A memorial was held for Charlie Kirk on Sunday, September 21, 2025, in Glendale AZ, at the stadium for the Arizona Cardinals. It was attended by President Trump, VP Vance, many members of Trump’s cabinet, members of Congress, and many other notables.

In addition to Mr. Trump and Mr. Vance, government officials at the service included Marco Rubio, the secretary of state; Pete Hegseth, the secretary of defense [war!]; Robert F. Kennedy Jr., who leads the Health and Human Services Department; and Kash Patel, the F.B.I. director, who has led the investigation into Mr. Kirk’s death.

Several current and former Republican lawmakers were also there, including the House speaker, Mike Johnson, Senator Ted Cruz of Texas and Matt Gaetz, the former Florida congressman (NYT. 4 Takeaways).

To be honest, it made me quote uncomfortable having the top five in the presidential succession all in the same place at the same time (President, Vice-President, Speaker of the House, Secretary of State, Secretary of War). But security was incredibly tight, even greater than for a Super Bowl, and nothing adverse happened, thank God.

In any case, the service lasted over five hours, from 2:00 pm to after 7:00 pm EDT (11 to 4 pm MST). But starting two hours before the service itself was a worship service, with many notable CCM artists performing, such as Brandon Lake and Chris Tomlin.

FNC showed bits and pieces of it, in-between interviews with its own personalities, guests, and regular people outside the stadium hoping to get inside. Sadly, many of them did not make it, as the stadium was filled to its capacity of 65,000 well before the start of the memorial service.

Most of those who did not make it in said they were going to the overflow arena across the street, which seats 30,000. But others went to Phoenix to the location of TPUSA’s headquarters to pay their respects there. Altogether, there were at least 100,000 in attendance in Glendale and hundreds or thousands more in Phoenix.

Saldy, but predictably, news reports on my CBS radio affiliate KDKA said that “thousands” would be attending the service. NPR News Now said the same. But “tens of thousands” would have been more accurate, though KDKA did correct itself alter when it said 90,000 attended the service.

But most of all, all of the regular people interviewed said there was love in the air and a spirit of unity, with no pushing and shoving in the line and no one cutting the line. One person even pointed out that all of the garbage was piled up neatly rather than scattered about.

In any case, it was a touching memorial service with many notable moments. Near the beginning, Charlie’s pastor spoke and said, “Jesus and Charlie are trending on the Internet.” He also indicated that churches are seeing great attendance numbers since Charlie’s death. Then he gave an altar call, with many standing to give their lives to Jesus.

Members of the crowd at Charlie Kirk’s memorial can be seen standing up as a show that they are accepting Jesus as their Lord and Savior — an incredible moment that occurred during remarks from his pastor, Rob McCoy (Breitbart. Members).

To be honest, that made me a bit uncomfortable, as I wondered how genuine those commitments were. Pastor McCoy only spoke for ten minutes when he gave the invitation. That is not much material to base a life-changing decision on. But they did put the URL for TPUSA Faith and a SR code on the screen for those new converts to go to for more information. Fully one-third of my book Trusting Genesis and the Gospels is devoted to explaining all aspects of salvation, so that would be another source for such information.

But still, that invitation struck the tone of the event being more of an evangelical revival meeting than a simple memorial. That tone stayed through much of the memorial, with many of the speakers quoting various Bible verses and referring to Charlie’s Christian faith. I will quote all of the mentioned Bible verses later.

But here, the most referenced passage was the martyrdom of Stephen, the first Christian martyr, record in chapters six to eight of the Book of Acts. As a result of Stephen’s martyrdom, the Christian faith spread beyond Judea where it had begun throughout the entire Roman Empire. Many were saying that in similar fashion the Christian faith and conservative political ideals Charlie proclaimed and defended would spread throughout the USA as a result of his martyrdom.

Marco Rubio's speech was especially notable. In two minutes, he summarized the Christian worldview and Gospel: God created us, but we sinned against Him and are fallen. Christ died for us, so that we can be forgiven and reconciled to God. We need to repent of our sins and accept Christ as our Lord and Savior. If we do, God will forgive and redeem us. Christ will come again to renew the entire world. But the line of the night before Erika spoke was, “Charlie is in heaven not because he died for Christ, but because Christ died for him.”

Apologist Frank Turek, one of Charlie’s mentors who was with him at his death, related that Charlie is in Heaven not because of his many accomplishments but “because his Savior sacrificed Himself for him. … The purpose of his life was to know Jesus Christ and make Him known—to make Heaven crowded.” He boldly asked the audience, “Where have your eyes been fixed?” (Calvary … Remembering).

Ericka Kirk spoke next to last. She is an incredibly beautiful, strong, courageous, intelligent, spiritual, and thoughtful woman with a forgiving spirit that most of us would find hard to emulate. During her speech, she said Christ forgave those who crucified Him, so she would forgive the young man who assassinated her husband, saying, “That young man; I forgive him.”

“He [Charlie] wanted to save young men just like the one who took his life.” Then she gently whispered, “That young man. … On the cross, our Savior said, ‘Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do.” Full tears then flowed as she looked up at a giant photo of her husband. “I forgive him [the shooter]. I forgive him because it was what Christ did and is what Charlie would do. The answer to hate is not hate. The answer, we know from the Gospel, is love and always love—love for our enemies and love for those who persecute us.” Her healing words were rewarded with long applause and a standing ovation (Calvary … Remembering).

Trump’s Speech and the Gospel

Trump spoke last, and his speech was quite controversial, at least according to the media.

President Trump remembered Charlie Kirk as a “martyr” in remarks at the conservative activist’s memorial in Arizona on Sunday, but he pivoted swiftly to blunt politics by saying that he hated his political opponents and that they “cheated like dogs.”

Striking a far different tone from that of Mr. Kirk’s widow, Erika, who spoke immediately before him, Mr. Trump said he disagreed with Mr. Kirk’s view of wanting the best for one’s opponent.

“I hate my opponent and I don’t want the best for them,” he said.

He added: “I am sorry, Erika” ...

The president, in his remarks, oscillated between honoring Mr. Kirk’s life and promoting his political agenda. Mr. Trump teased an announcement on Monday [9/22/25] about autism, discussed sending in federal agents to Chicago to reduce crime and boasted about the tariffs he has slapped on foreign countries….

The president also took aim at Mr. Kirk’s critics and once again blamed liberal politics for his death. Mr. Kirk spent much of his time engaging with those who disagreed with him, as he sought to win them over (NYT. Trump Remembers)

Since I was recording the service on C-Span and FNC, as soon as it was over I switched to CNN to see what they were saying. I was dismayed but not surprised they were criticizing and “fact checking” Trump and his speech. It was the same later on NPR News Now. The media just cannot help itself. It always has to say something negative about Trump anytime and every time they mention his name.

After two minutes of that I turned back to FNC, which was talking about the entirety of the service and not just Trump’s speech.

Now, I will be the first to admit Trump and his speech did seem somewhat out of place at this service. Though he said much about Charlie and his influence, he also said much that did not concern Charlie or was contrary to how Charlie conducted himself, such as his “hate my opponents” comment.

The mention of autism seemed especially strange, since, as far as I know, Charlie never spoke about such, though he did support the MAHA (Make America Healthy Again) movement.

But most of all, Trump just does not understand the Christian Gospel. I discuss his misunderstanding of the Christian message in my article Trump is Working “to get to heaven” (A Monumental Mistake).

However, most all of the rest of the speakers did seem to understand the Gospel of salvation by grace through faith in Jesus Christ and His death on the cross for our sins, and that message was loudly and clearly proclaimed throughout the service. But of course, getting the Gospel wrong is not why CNN and NPR were criticizing Trump, as most likely, few at those networks understand it either.

But Ericka Kirk clearly does understand it. That is how she could forgive her husband’s assassin and love those who are opposed to her husband’s and now her mission.

The most touching moment of all was at the end of Trump’s speech, Trump asked Ericka to come on to the stage with him. They hugged each other, with her in tears, then they began walking off the stage holding hands, then hugged once more, before Erika exited, with Trump staying on stage. At least Trump does know how to comfort someone in mourning. Adding to the drama of the moment was America the Beautiful was playing loudly as they hugged then exited the stage.

Trump also understood the importance of Charlie Kirk, which CNN and NPR took little notice of:

“He was taking over college campuses, colleges that had, in theory, only very liberal or, as they like to say, ‘progressive.’ I call them liberal, but they like to call themselves such a beautiful word, ‘progressive.’ They’re the opposite of progressive, if you think about it. But they were really nasty,” Trump stated.

And he would go into these colleges, all of a sudden, within two years, three years, they turned into bastions of conservatism. It was really quite amazing to see. They lied about him because they did not want you to listen to him or to learn from him, because what he was talking about and even preaching made so much sense.”

“Everywhere he went. He won the debates. He won the hearts, he won the minds, and yes, he won the elections for people. He helped us. He helped other people. We won the biggest election in the history of our country, I believe. Charlie Kirk was, without a doubt, among the most influential figures in the most important election in the history of our country” (Breitbart. Trump: ‘They).

Finally, it must be noted, forgiving someone does not mean forgetting what the person did. And it does not mean the person still will not suffer consequences for what he did. The alleged assassin will have his day in court. And if found guilty, he will pay for what he did, either with life in person or execution by firing squad, which is still a thing in Arizona. That will be fitting given that he committed his crime with a rifle.

In a way, it was also fitting that Trump was not so forgiving, since he is the head of the executive branch, and it is that branch of government that will be prosecuting the case against the alleged assassin. It is the government’s job to punish wrongdoing, even if the person has been forgiven and repents of his crimes (Romans 13:1-5).

Bible Verses Quoted at the Memorial

I am presenting these verses in biblical order not the order in which they were referenced at the memorial. Also, sometimes the speaker only quoted part of a verse, but I am presenting the entire verse and sometimes surrounding verses for context. In most cases, the reader should be able to figure out the purpose for which the verse was being quoted.

²⁰You* intended for evil against me, but God intended for good concerning me, that it shall become as [it is] today, that many people should be sustained continually (Genesis 50:20; ALT Torah).

⁸And I heard the voice of the Lord, saying, “Whom shall I send, and who will go to this people {Heb., go for Us}?” And I said, “Look! “I am [here]; send me!” (Isa 6:8; ALT: Prophetic Books).

⁴Fortunate [or, Blessed] [are] the ones mourning, because they will be comforted (Matthew 5:4).

⁴³“You* heard that it was said, ‘You will love your neighbor,’ [Lev 19:18] and you will hate your enemy, ⁴⁴but I say to you*, be loving your* enemies; be blessing the ones cursing you*; be doing good to the ones hating you*, and be praying on behalf of the ones mistreating you* and persecuting you* (Matthew 5:43-44).

¹²And forgive us our debts [fig., sins], in the same way as we also forgive our debtors [fig., the ones having sinned against us] (Matthew 6:12).

²⁴Then Jesus said to His disciples, “If anyone desires to come after Me, he must deny [or, disown] himself and take up his cross and be following Me. ²⁵For whoever shall be desiring to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake will find it (Matt 16:24-25).

²³His lord said to him, ‘Well done good and faithful bondservant! You were faithful over a few things, I will put you in charge over many things; enter into the joy of your lord’ (Matthew 25:23).

⁴²Again a second time having gone away, He prayed, saying, “My Father! If this cup cannot pass away from Me unless I drink it, Your will be done” (Matthew 26:42).

³⁴But Jesus was saying, “Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing.” Then dividing His garments, they cast a lot (Luke 23:34).

²⁴Most positively, I say to you*, unless the grain of wheat, having fallen to the earth, dies, it remains alone. But if it dies, it brings forth much fruit (John 12:24).

²⁷”Peace I leave to you*. My peace I give to you*; not as the world gives, I give to you*. Stop letting your* heart be troubled, and stop letting it be timid (John 14:27).

¹³Greater love has no one than this, that someone lays down his life on behalf of his friends (John 15:13).

⁸Now Stephen, full of faith and of power, was performing wonders and great signs among the people. ⁹But [there] rose up some of the [Hellenistic Jews] from the synagogue, the ones being called Freed Slaves, both of [the] Cyrenians and of [the] Alexandrians, and of the [Hellenistic Jews] from Cilicia and Asia, disputing with Stephen. ¹⁰And they were not being able to resist the wisdom and the Spirit with which he was speaking….

⁵⁴Now hearing these [things], they were cut through to their hearts [fig., they were infuriated], and they began gnashing their teeth at him. ⁵⁵But being full of [the] Holy Spirit, having looked intently into heaven, he saw [the] glory of God, and Jesus having stood at [the] right [parts] [fig., on the right side] of God. ⁵⁶And he said, “Look! I see the heavens having been opened and the Son of Humanity having stood at [the] right [parts] [fig., on the right side] of God!” ⁵⁷But they, having cried out with a loud voice, covered their ears and rushed on him with one mind.

⁵⁸And having driven [him] outside of the city, they began stoning [him]. And the witnesses laid their cloaks down at the feet of a young man being called Saul. ⁵⁹And they kept on stoning Stephen as he [was] calling on [the Lord] and saying, “Lord Jesus, receive my spirit!” ⁶⁰Then having placed the knees [fig., having knelt down], he cried out with a loud voice, “Lord, do not hold this sin against them!” And having said this, he fell asleep [fig., died]. [cp. Luke 23:34,46]

¹Now Saul was giving approval to his murder. Then in that day a great persecution took place on the assembly, the one in Jerusalem, and all were scattered throughout the regions of Judea and Samaria, except the apostles…

⁴So indeed, the ones having been scattered went about proclaiming the Gospel [of] the word (Acts 6:8-10; 7:54-60; 8:1,4).

⁸But what does it say? “The word is near you, in your mouth and in your heart” [Deut 30:14]—that is, the word of the faith which we are preaching, ⁹that if you confess with your mouth [the] Lord Jesus [or, [that] Jesus [is] Lord], and believe in your heart that God raised Him from [the] dead, you will be saved! [cp. 1Cor 12:3] ¹⁰For with the heart it is believed to righteousness, and with the mouth it is confessed to salvation (Romans 10:8-10).

¹³For every[one], “who himself shall call on the name of [the] Lord will be saved!” [Joel 2:32] … ⁴How then will they call on [Him] in whom they did not believe? But how will they believe [on Him] of whom they did not hear? But how will they hear apart from one preaching? ¹⁵But how will they preach unless they be sent? …

¹⁷So, consequently, faith [is] by hearing, but hearing through [the] word of God (Romans 10:13-15a,17).

⁵³For it is necessary [for] this corruptible to put on incorruption, and this mortal to put on immortality. ⁵⁴Now when this corruptible shall put on incorruption, and this mortal shall put on immortality, then will happen the word, the one having been written, “Death was swallowed up into victory.” [Isaiah 25:8, LXX] ⁵⁵“O Death, where [is] your sting? O realm of the dead [Gr., hades], where [is] your victory?” [Hosea 13:14] (1 Corinthians 15:53-55).

⁶Therefore, being confident at all times and knowing that being at home in the body we are away from the Lord—⁷for by faith we walk about [fig., conduct ourselves], not by sight—⁸but we are confident and prefer rather to be away from the body and to be at home with the Lord! (2Corinthians 5:6-8)).

¹³But we do not want you* to continue being unaware, brothers [and sisters], concerning the ones having fallen asleep [fig., who have died], so that you* shall not be grieved just as also the rest, the ones not having hope [or, confident expectation]. ¹⁴For since we believe that Jesus died and rose again, so also God will bring the ones having fallen asleep through [fig., having died in] Jesus with Him (1Thessalonians 4:13-14).

⁶For I am already being poured out as a drink offering, and the time of my departure has arrived. ⁷I have fought the good fight; I have finished the course [or, race]; I have kept the faith. ⁸Finally, [there] is laid up for me the victor’s wreath [or, crown] of righteousness which the Lord, the Righteous Judge, will give to me in that Day, but not only to me, but also to all the ones having loved His appearing (2Tim 4:6-8).

¹And I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth went away [fig., had disappeared]. [cp. Isaiah 65:17; 2Peter 3:13] And the sea is not [any]more [fig., the sea no longer exists]. ²And I saw the holy city, New Jerusalem, descending out of heaven from God, having been prepared like a bride having been adorned [for] her husband. [cp. Isaiah 61:10; Zech 14:7f]

³And I heard a loud voice out of heaven, saying, “Look! The tabernacle of God [is] with the people, and He will tabernacle [or, dwell] with them! And they will be His people, and God Himself will be with them. ⁴And He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death will not be [any]more [fig., death will no longer exist], nor sorrow, nor crying, nor will pain be [any]more [fig., pain will no longer exist], because the first [things] passed away” (Revelation 21:1-4; ALT3c).

This multi-part article is continued at
Thoughts on the Assassination of Charlie Kirk: Part Five
(Kirk’s Legacy and the Gospel; Two Very Different Jimmys)

References:

See Thoughts on the Assassination of Charlie Kirk: References.

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The above article was posted on this website September 24, 2025.

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