Luke 1:16-17 “He will bring back many of the people of Israel to the Lord their God. And he will go on before the Lord, in the spirit and power of Elijah, to turn the hearts of the parents to their children and the disobedient to the wisdom of the righteous—to make ready a people prepared for the Lord.”

The ministry of John the Baptist was doubly prophesied, and then clearly fulfilled. Malachi prophesied it first, in the very last verse of the Old Testament, (Malachi 4:6) and here, Gabriel fleshes out what Malachi said. And then, many of Jesus’ first disciples, and specifically some of the apostles, were first disciples of John, having had their hearts prepared by his ministry. It was certainly a unique ministry, and he was faithful in it to the point of martyrdom. However, even with all of that, John himself had moments when he wondered if he had gotten it right, sending disciples to Jesus to ask if He were indeed the One John had been working to prepare for. (Luke 7:18-20) Even the strongest believers have moments of doubt! However, God’s plans are in His hands, and we can have assurance that He will bring them to pass.

Yesterday I was totally shocked, even in disbelief, to check my email and the top item was President Trump announcing that Charlie Kirk was dead, having been assassinated. For context, how many 31-year-old people have their death announced by the President of the United States? However, Charlie was indeed a unique individual, starting his life work fresh out of high school and quickly developing one of the largest and most important conservative organizations in the country, if not the world. Quite a few people, myself included, felt that he would someday be president, and looked forward to it. The thing is, politics were not what was most important to him, God was. He was a consummate debater, not in the formal pattern of debate contests, but in clear apologetics, and that was what he was doing at the moment he was shot. It seems significant to me that he was shot in the neck. His opponents couldn’t counter the force of his words, so they sought to eliminate his ability to speak them. The thing is, in all the reporting of his activities to this point, one word that stands out is respect. He didn’t put people down for their opinions, even when he was showing forcefully how absurd they were. He was a bit more gentle than John the Baptist! At this point, while I pray for his wife and children, I believe that what the assassin accomplished was to multiply the voices proclaiming the conservative, Biblical principles Charlie Kirk espoused. We are indeed in tumultuous, dangerous times, but God’s plans are certain. Even as we pray for Charlie’s wife and children, we should be assured that he is receiving a very great reward, and we ourselves should be bold in proclaiming the same truths he did.

Father, thank You that I know You, and for the abundant evidence that Charlie Kirk did – does – too. I do pray for his wife and children, and for the thousands of young people who were powerfully impacted by his life and ministry, so that Your rule and reign may be established as Your will is done, for Your glory. Thank You. Hallelujah!