In the aftermath, our country (and many parts of the world) finds itself divided over how to think about or respond to this morally heinous, evil, and repulsive act. Two main reactions are most apparent. Many are outraged, recognizing this as an atrocity, and are calling for government authorities to execute justice to the fullest extent of the law. Their cry is filled with a deep sense of mourning over Charlie’s death and grief for his widow and two children. 

However, there are others whose responses are extremely alarming. Many political (even some evangelical) “leaders” are shamefully interpreting this incident through the lens of moral equivocation (comparing the killing of Charlie to the death of others such as George Floyd, Michael Brown, I have even seen Saddam Hussein). They insinuate (and even level outright accusations) that those who are so outraged over Charlie’s murder are hypocrites for not showing the same outrage when these others died. Any person evaluating these situations with a clear mind will discern immediately that this is comparing “apples and oranges.” The circumstances do not equate in the slightest. 

Others are so bold as to rationalize Charlie’s murder, as is apparent in the coverage of some news anchors and journalist who attribute Kirk’s assassination to his “inciting” or “hateful” rhetoric. Horrendously, some (many more than you might realize) are simply responding with mockery, rejoicing that one with such Christian and historically American convictions has been silenced. For over 20,000 (and counting) illustrations of this claim, see charliesmurderers.com. 

This week’s tragic events (including the brutal stabbing of Iryna Zarutska) and the responses to them magnify a stark reality about the nation in which we live. Whatever else the response of the American populace might reveal, this fact certainly is made plain: we are not one united people, but a people deeply divided over (at least) two mutually exclusive worldviews. And one of these worldviews will never accept living peaceably with the other. In light of what we see playing out in society around us, more and more Christians are coming to a concerning realization: if there is such a large segment of people in our country who can justify and celebrate Charlie’s murder on the basis of his beliefs, what would keep them from rejoicing over the killing of any one (or all) of the rest who believe the same things? Christians in America cannot ignore what this tragic event reveals concerning the state of the society in which we live. How should we process what we are seeing? How should we interpret what happened to Charlie, and how should we respond in its aftermath? I'll try to give a biblical answer along a couple lines of thought.

1.     How should we interpret what happened to Charlie Kirk? 

A.      We should realize that Charlie is a martyr.

He is a political martyr, yes. Proof of this is scratched onto one of the bullet casings in the rifle that was used to kill him: “Hey fascists! Catch”.  However, Charlie is more than a political martyr. He is a martyr for Christ. Not to recognize this does injustice to his memory, and also shows deep ignorance of the nature of the warfare in which he was engaging. Ephesians 6:12 reminds us that our struggle is not a physical or fleshly struggle, but an intensely spiritual one. The political opposition Charlie faced was nothing less than the unbelieving world’s response to his God-centered worldview (as this reaction to his death from charliesmurderers.com illustrates). His faith in Jesus Christ was the underpinning of all his convictions—including those which were political. As I think of what happened to Charlie, I am reminded of Jesus’ promises and encouragement to His disciple, 

Blessed are those who have been persecuted for the sake of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are you when people insult you and persecute you, and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of Me. Rejoice and be glad, for your reward in heaven is great; for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you. (Matthew 5:10–12 NAS95) 

Charlie was persecuted and murdered for the same reasons the prophets of God who have gone before us were—for speaking the truth to a society of people who did not want to hear it. We should honor his memory by remembering the reason he ultimately died. 

B.       we should see Charlie as an example to follow.

“Follow me as I follow Christ,” Paul said (1 Cor. 11:1). In a similar way, we ought to follow the example that Charlie left behind as an unashamed follower of Christ. I am not saying we should all start a political-action movement, or do “prove me wrong” open mic debates on college campuses. But when it comes to courageously engaging people who are enslaved to a deluded, godless mindset, there is a lot we can learn from Charlie. He sought to reach people with truth, but always with care, compassion, logic, wisdom and reason. He was prepared to “give a defense for the hope” that was in him (1 Peter 3:15), no matter who he was speaking to. Disciples cannot be ashamed of Christ and His words, even in the midst of an “adulterous and sinful generation” (Mark 8:38). Charlie gave us an example of what it looks like to do this with a courageous faith in Christ, an example that all Christians should emulate. 

C.      We should also understand something about God’s will to bring Charlie to glory at such a time as this.

When the LORD removes spiritually strong and clear minded people like Charlie from this world, it is something worth taking note of. Whatever else it may be, it is surely an act of the Lord's mercy toward the individual, and a sign of judgment upon the world out of which that person has been taken. Isaiah 57:1-2 speaks for itself:

The righteous man perishes, and no man takes it to heart; And devout men are taken away, while no one understands. For the righteous man is taken away from evil, He enters into peace; They rest in their beds, Each one who walked in his upright way. (Isaiah 57:1–2 NASB)

2. How should we respond moving forward? 

 
A.    First, as Ephesians 4:26 encourages us, we should be angry, but we should not sin in our anger.

It is right to be angry when such an evil act is committed. Be outraged, Christian! It is absolutely proper to demonstrate a conviction that this reprehensible act will never be acceptable or passively tolerated by the people of Christ! But let this outrage be expressed with self-control and in appropriate ways. Cry out to the God of heaven, that He would do justice in this situation (the imprecatory Psalms are appropriate aids for prayer here). Appeal to civil magistrates to do their God-appointed job— to uphold good and punish evil (Romans 13:4). But, remember Romans 12:17-21: we must leave room for the wrath of God; and even in the midst of such a heart-wrenching, repulsive display of evil, we are to seek to overcome evil by doing good. 

B.     Pray for Charlie’s wife and children.

There is no more tangible way for most of us to fulfill the instructions of James 1:27 than to do this. We may not be able to weep with these who are weeping or to visit this new widow and these now fatherless children in the midst of their affliction in person. But in prayer, before the presence of God, we can intercede for them in the name of Christ, and in the power of the Holy Spirit. We can appeal to the God of all comfort (2 Cor. 1:3-5) to give comfort and support to their hearts through Christ in the midst of their terrible loss as only He can. 

C.     Pray earnestly and sincerely to God for the salvation of Tyler Robinson (and all his sympathizers).

As those who “are what we are” only by the grace of God (1 Cor. 15:10), we must remember that “there, but for the grace of God, go I.” The only difference between ourselves and Tyler and those who rejoice at the murder of Charlie is that the saving power of God in Christ has delivered us from the domain of darkness in which we once were enslaved (Col. 1:13-14). Do not become arrogant against those who are still lost in darkness, as if you did something to distinguish yourself from them. YOU didn’t; GOD did (Ephesians 2:1-10). What a joy and comfort it is to remember that this horrific situation and the evil man responsible for it are not beyond the saving power Christ’s redeeming blood! Christ has saved the worst of sinners! The most rage-filled and hostile murderers of His people have been “conquered” by His saving-grace in the past (Paul! 1 Timothy 1:12-17). And He did so in order to prove His ability and willingness to do so even now in the present. Don’t doubt, Christian, whether Christ can save Tyler Robinson. His heinous sin against God and man is not a hindrance to the saving power revealed in the “word of the cross”. Yes, right now, he is an enemy of the people of God and of His saving gospel. But, how are you and I to respond to our enemies? Jesus says, “love your enemies, and pray for those who persecute you” (Matt. 5:44-48). Let’s guard against any prideful disdain that would keep us from desiring his salvation. Let’s be like our Father who is in heaven and pray even for those who are “unjust”. What a joy it would be one day to behold Charlie and Tyler embracing one another in sorrow and forgiveness, in repentance and grace, in the glorious kingdom of our great Redeemer.

D.     We must Be unashamed and unafraid to live Like this world is not our home and this age is not the age that is coming.

We should seek for justice to be done with every opportunity we have (Micah 6:8)—and justice to the full. But, we should also remember that this age will always leave us longing for societal righteousness that will only be realized in the age to come. 2 Peter 3:13, “according to His promise we are looking for new heavens and a new earth, a place where righteousness dwells.” Until Christ returns, and that new heavens and earth arrive, we will have to live with the dissatisfaction and bitterness of injustice in the world that is now. Even as we seek justice in this situation, we must be setting our hope fully on the grace that is to be revealed on the day of Christ’s appearing (1 Peter 1:13) when justice will be perfectly administered, and all wrongs will be made right. 

D.   Finally, we should respond to this display of wickedness with a renewed resolve to confront it.

We must take up our own crosses and follow Christ into the fray. Our Shepherd will not abandon us to the wolves, or suffer one hair of our heads to perish (Luke 21:12-19). Oh, we will be called (and privileged) to suffer! No one who strives to live a godly life for Christ’s sake gets out of being persecuted for it (2 Tim. 3:12). But in our suffering, we will find the greater joy of knowing an incomparable fellowship with the Christ who suffered for us. We will know in greater measure the unconquerable power His resurrection from the dead at work within us (Phil. 3:10)! So, as our brother Charlie has exemplified, let us embrace that call. Let us be dead to the world and to all the world has to offer. Let us not labor for their smiles, or be afraid of their frowns (or bullets). Let us with labor courageously for Christ our King and for His Kingdom, unafraid of what the kingdom of darkness might do. Now is not a time to be intimidated by evil into inaction or silence. Now is the time to meet the darkness of evil head-on with the light of the Gospel! Encourage your hearts in the greatness of your Savior and in the fullness of your salvation, beloved. No amount of persecution, suffering, or maligning that the world can throw at you can separate you from His love (Rom. 8:35-39). Though it may often mean greater experiences of suffering at the hands of godless people, the promise of Christ remains, “Whoever wishes to save his life will lose it; but whoever loses his life for My sake and the gospel’s shall save it” (Mark 8:35). Let’s be unafraid to lose our lives in service of so great a King! As Charlie knows now more than any of us here do, those who embrace Christ's call, and follow Him in faith, will never be put to shame!

The core tenet of CH is summarized with the phrase, “God is most glorified in us when we are most satisfied in Him.” And just to be clear, with these articles I don’t intend to minimize the need to be satisfied in and to rejoice in God. Rejoicing in God is a clear command of Scripture (e.g., Philippians 4:4, “Rejoice in the Lord always, and again I say, rejoice!”). Experiencing joy int he Lord has also been the heart-cry of every true saint down through the ages (see Psalm 90:14 and Psalm 70:4). It is what has provided strength for believers to continue walking by faith even through times of difficulty, hardship, and suffering (Nehemiah 8:10). I am very thankful for all the ways that Dr. John Piper has reintroduced this emphasis in our day.

As R. C. Sproul wrote:

“Serving God with joy is not an option or added luxury—it is a duty and obligation.”[1]

I whole-heartedly agree.

However, I do have concerns with the way CH defines the genuine Christian life in terms of joy. And to be clear, that is all these articles are designed to communicate—my concerns (it might be better to call them “cautions”). As I wrote last month, I am labeling all of these as potential problems. This is partly because I want to acknowledge that these concerns may simply be the result of misunderstanding on my part. You, dear reader, do not have to agree with my evaluations of CH. I’m simply writing these articles as an attempt to communicate why I do not claim to be a Christian Hedonist— at least, not yet.

With that said, let’s jump back into it. In the last article, I expressed one of my concerns with CH, which is a conflation of faith and joy. Faith and joy are often found together, both in God’s Word and Christian experience (c.f., 1 Peter 1:8). However, as Romans 15:13 says, faith and joy are not the same thing— one (joy) is granted by God as a result of the other (faith). As we exercise faith (“in believing”), God grants the blessing of joy and peace [2]. It seems to me that conflating the two is not only unwise (because Scripture does not do that), but also can cause believers to be unsettled in their faith. Which leads me to two other concerns I have with CH.

2. Exalting the fruit of joy above the other fruits of the Spirit leads to imbalance in the Christian life.

Another potential problem seems to be created when CH exalts the fruit of joy above the other fruits of the Spirit. Galatians 5:22-23 lists various spiritual fruits that the Holy Spirit produces in the lives of true believers. “The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control.” From the testimony of those verses, it is clear that joy is just one among nine fruits of the Spirit mentioned. If we make joy the supreme and definitional fruit of true Christianity, it seems to me that our understanding of what it means for “God to be most glorified” in our lives will necessarily be imbalanced. If, for example, I am not gentle with my children, or patient with my wife or Christian brothers and sisters, or if I exhibit a lack of self-control (etc.), then no matter how much joy I experience in the Lord, the reflection of God’s glory in my life will be lob-sided. We ought to pursue joy in the Lord (Psalm 43:4).

However, should we not equally pursue the other fruits of the Spirit as well? Galatians 5:24 calls believers to “keep in step with the Spirit”. At the very least, wouldn’t that mean walking in all of the fruits of the Spirit mentioned in the previous verses? I agree with brother John that all true worship of God must involve the affections of the heart. “Without the engagement of the heart, we do not really worship.”[3] However, joy is not the only affection of the heart that makes our worship genuine. If we exalt one fruit of the Spirit and do not have equal concern for the others, then it necessarily follows that God is not being most glorified in us.

3. Christian Hedonism minimizes (negates?) the reality and acceptability of joyless worship.

In the chapter on worship in Desiring God, brother John writes, “Worship is a way of gladly reflecting back to God the radiance of His worth.” He says it more specifically: “[I]t is necessary to define worship not simply as a way of reflecting back to God the radiance of His worth, but, more precisely, as a way of doing it gladly.”[4] So, gladness is definitional to true worship according to CH. Well, I agree that gladness in God is what we aim to reflect in our worship, but I feel the urge to guard against the necessary conclusion of these statements: that the only true way to worship God acceptably is with gladness. Christian experience and the Scriptures themselves seem not to be so dogmatic.

What about when I am not experiencing gladness or joy in the Lord? What about when I am feeling deep, soul-crushing sorrow, or extended spiritual weariness, or even lethargy? Is it possible to “reflect back to God the radiance of His worth” in those moments, apart from an experience of gladness or any perceivable presence of joy? I believe so.

In the Bible, we find examples of believers who have learned to worship God, even during difficult, joyless times. And what’s most important for our discussion is that their worship was still acceptable to God. One example is Job. Anyone who has read the book of Job knows that as he walked through his time of testing, joy in God was noticeably absent. The hand of God’s providence had come upon him bitterly, and he was unable to account for it. As a result, he could not find any rest for his soul in God (Job 10:1-2)—that is, he was not experiencing satisfaction in God during this time. Job was left broken, crushed, conflicted, and confused. And yet, in the midst of that spiritual distress, he continued to wrestle with God by faith. I would argue that even these joyless wrestlings were themselves acts of worship. At the end of the book, though God brings correction to Job, He does not condemn or rebuke him for a lack of joy. Job is rebuked for his lack of faith, and for his ignorant, even accusatory, speculations about God’s dealings with him (Job 40:1-2; 42:1-6); but in the end, Job remained pleasing in God’s sight (Job 42:8-9). I cite this example just to prove that there is a time when joyless, yet faith-filled worship is all that we have to give, and Christians need to be confident in the fact that in those times, that worship is still acceptable and pleasing to God.

We see another example of this with David in Psalm 51. Most know that this Psalm was expressed from the heart of David by the pressure of deep conviction over his sins in the incident with Bathsheba. In this Psalm we find a man who, in spite of his sins, is still yearning after God’s own heart. His prayer stands as a tremendous example of a soul “reflecting back to God the radiance of His worth” in the midst of brokenness and godly contrition. And to our point, as Psalm 51:12 proves, this worship was offered apart from experiencing joy in the Lord. The absence of joy did not make his affectionate worship of God through sorrow and repentance less acceptable.

If we negate the reality and acceptability of joyless worship, I believe we will fail to worship God appropriately in those moments when we have no joy to offer. “The LORD is near to the broken hearted, and saves those who are crushed in spirit” (Psalm 34:18). There is not much joy in being broken-hearted, or in experiencing the crushing of the spirit; but even there we can worship God acceptably (Job 1:21).

Maybe the emphasis of these two points of concern simply comes down to this: I agree that worship of God must be affectionate worship in order to be acceptable. But, there are more affections to be expressed to God in our worship than joy. Joy is important, but it does not exhaust the ways that worship is offered to God from the human heart.

1. R. C. Sproul, “Willful Joy” in Right Now Counts Forever, vol. II (Sanford, FL: Ligonier Ministries, 2021), 272.
2. Dr. Piper seems to acknowledge this in some places in his writings, including this statement from chapter 3 of When I Don’t Desire God: “[Joy] is a fruit of the Spirit that grows on the tree of faith.” Comparing statements like these with statements in chapter 2 of Desiring God: Meditations of a Christian Hedonist leaves me thinking that there is an inconsistency in the way the teaching of Christian Hedonism is presented in these works.
3. See chapter 3 titled, “Worship: The Feast of Christian Hedonism,” in Desiring God: Meditations of a Christian Hedonist. The quote is from page 87 in the edition printed in 2003 by Multnomah Books.
4. Brother John does acknowledge, “The word gladly is liable to misunderstanding because…worship at times involves contrition and brokenness, which we do not usually associate with gladness.” But, he writes, “I think… that in genuine biblical contrition there is at least a seed of gladness that comes from the awakening hope that God will ‘revive the heart of the contrite’ (Isaiah 57:15).” I appreciate these statements because they touch on my concern. However, I believe it is important to remember that hoping in God for joy is not the same thing as experiencing joy in God. Therefore, worshiping God in hope of being revived is not the same thing as worshiping God with the experience of gladness. This would contradict the sentiment that makes the experience of gladness definitional of worship. Piper also offers what he calls, “Three Stages of Worship” in this chapter. This section is intended to address the concern I have raised. I agree and am thankful for what he writes here. However, this section serves as an acknowledgement that seems to contradict his absolute, definitional statements about the nature of true worship—that true worship must be defined with gladness. Brother John acknowledges that these three stages are steps toward the “ideal” of worship. He also writes that in each of these stages, God is still glorified in the worship being offered, though it may not be the ideal that is desired. In my opinion, stating that there is an ideal of worship that we do not always experience or live up to in our worship concedes to my point: it proves that joyful worship ought to be seen as a right ambition in our worship rather than definitional of true worship.

It is best to start by understanding what Christian Hedonism is. Many of you may know that this phrase was coined by Dr. John Piper. Brother Piper pastored at Bethlehem Baptist Church in Minneapolis for 33 years, and is the founder of the ministry known as Desiring God. He has sought to explain Christian Hedonism most fully in his three books, Desiring God, The Pleasures of God, and Future Grace. Central to his teaching is the conviction that “The pursuit of pleasure is a necessary part of all worship and virtue. That is, The chief end of man is to glorify God by enjoying Him forever.”[¹] Therefore, Christians ought to be devoted to pursuing maximum joy, delight, happiness, and satisfaction in God; for only when they are most satisfied in God will He be most glorified in them.

I want to confess freely (and even joyfully) that I have been so helped and encouraged in my Christian walk by John Piper’s books, and I have no desire to condemn these works, nor to condemn brother John for writing them. On many (most?) points, I find myself agreeing with brother Piper’s convictions and analysis of Scripture. And, the more I read in the history of Reformed thinking, the more evidence I see that many Puritans and Reformers would as well. However, my main concern with Christian Hedonism is pastoral. If our understanding of the biblical call to be joyful in the Lord is not carefully governed by Scripture itself, we can lose a well-rounded, biblical perspective on what it means to live a life in which “God is most glorified in us.” Losing clarity in this area comes with a whole host of problems (legalism, lawlessness, presumption, unhealthy self-analysis and introspection, unrealistic expectations), and I don’t want that. I don’t want any of Christ’s sheep being hindered from enjoying a full, rich life of faith and assurance in the God of our salvation. But, in my opinion (and experience), ironically, Christian Hedonism can become a hindrance, rather than a help, in this pursuit.

I believe there are some potential problems with Christian Hedonism. I use potential for two reasons: 1) I know enough about myself by now to recognize that on any one of these issues, I could simply be misunderstanding what brother John is saying. I am not perfect in my ability to grasp concepts and ideas, and I may just need someone to come alongside and “explain to [me] the way of [Christian Hedonism] more accurately.” So I use potential to admit that my analysis could be wrong. 2) I am also using potential because on some points, I am not sure that the problem is a necessary result of Christian Hedonism, rather than something that might become an issue. With that in mind, so far, I have 5 potential problems with Christian Hedonism, and I am thinking through two others. This month, we will look at just one.

1. An Unhealthy Conflation of Faith and Joy:

Christian Hedonists conflate the concepts of faith and joy. This comes from Christian Hedonism’s teaching about what it means to have genuine faith in Christ. In chapter 2 of Desiring God, brother John seeks to explain this connection. Due to the shallow understanding of what it means to have “faith” in Christ that is so prominent in our day, brother John thinks it is better to speak in terms of treasuring Christ rather than believing in Christ. He believes using “different words” helps to “unpack what believe means” in a time like ours (pg. 55). As is argued in this chapter, joy is one of those words that “unpacks” what it means to believe.

As a pastor, I can understand and appreciate the concern expressed here. But I think it is dangerous to start using words interchangeably that are not used that way in the Bible. In my experience, this conflation of faith and joy has led many believers to be unnecessarily unsettled over whether or not they possess true faith. And it is not hard to understand why. If saving faith is defined as joy in the Lord, then joy automatically becomes the measure by which one discerns the presence of faith. So long as I am experiencing joy, that’s no problem. But, what about in those dark nights of the soul that the Lord will often shepherd His people through (Isaiah 50:10)? Is it really helpful or re-assuring in those moments to evaluate the reality of our faith based upon the presence of joy? I believe this is an unbiblical and unhealthy way to think about the nature of faith.

Now, I do acknowledge that in Scripture we often see joy and faith paired together (in fact, it is healthy to see them closely associated in our Christian experience, as we see in Philippians 1:25). However, we should not define faith as joy because the Bible does not do that.[²] Rather, the Bible presents joy as the result of growing and maturing in our faith. To give one example, we can look at Romans 15:13. Paul prays,

“Now, may the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that you will abound in hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.”

Romans 15:13

Not only do we see here a distinction between joy and faith, but we also see a priority of one over the other. Joy (alongside peace) is something Paul is praying for God to grant to the His people in greater abundance. However, he prays that God will do this as believers continue exercising faith in Christ! There is a logical priority here: one precedes the other.  One is the means (or cause?) of the other.[³] One is primary, the other is secondary. One is the root, and the other is the fruit. As believers increasingly exercise faith, Paul prays that God will increase their joy and peace as well. So according to this verse, greater experiences of joy in the Christian life are granted as believers continue to walk with God believingly. Therefore, the exercise of faith and the experience of joy are not the same thing. Yes, they are often complementary, but they are also distinct. Because of this, it does not seem to me that we should see joy as definitional of, or interchangeable with, faith.

We will return soon to consider some other thoughts about Christian Hedonism.

1. John Piper, Desiring God: Meditations of a Christian Hedonist, (Colorado Springs, CO: Multnomah Books, 2003), 28.
2. One text Christian Hedonism uses to equate faith and joy is 2 Corinthians 1:24, “Not that we lord it over your faith, but we are workers with you for your joy; for in your faith you are standing firm” (emphasis added). Lenski offers a helpful comment: “The fact that the Corinthians are standing as regards the faith completes the thought that Paul and his assistants are co-workers with them in producing joy for them. Only with regard to those standing [in the faith] can they be co-workers in any sense, in particular also fellow producers of joy” (2 Corinthians, 865). In other words, standing firm in faith is a necessary prerequisite to experiencing increased joy. Yes, faith and joy are closely associated in this text. However, if faith is indeed a “prerequisite,” then faith is distinguishable from joy, which is my point.
3. Leon Morris in The Epistle to the Romans (The Pillar New Testament Commentary) writes about this verse in footnote 62, “ἐν τῷ πιστεύειν. For the construction see the note on 3:4. It is not common in the New Testament outside Luke; it occurs four times in Paul (M, III, p. 145, where the meaning here is seen as causal, “because you believe”). The words are viewed by Michel as a gloss (they are lacking in a small group of MSS headed by D F G), but Black dissents strongly: “so far from these words being a gloss … they recall the central theme of the Epistle. Faith is the way into the kingdom of joy and peace.”