The sin of disagreeing with sacred values

Over the last week, I’ve watched the online conversation about Charlie Kirk’s murder.  It’s been interesting, to say the least.  Many are grieving while others celebrate.  Many are hurting, but others seem to lack sympathy.  There are debates about his life, his faith, his legacy, and a ton more.  The polarized conversations rage on.  On top of that, there are heated debates about who is/is not posting, and why.  The opinions and unnecessary loyalty tests are alive and well.

I’ve been grieving.  I really liked Charlie Kirk.  He empowered a generation of young people to speak up, reason better, and stand for their convictions free of shame. 

Many have asked, “Why did his killer do this?”  I may not have the correct answers, because who really knows what is in the heart of another individual?  That has always been reserved for Jesus.  However, I do have a few thoughts about how this whole thing relates to a culture that is feeding us an intense mixture of truth and dangerous lies.

As I’ve reflected more on Charlie Kirk’s assassination, it has become clear to me that, perhaps, the biggest reason he was killed was that he committed the sin of disagreeing with sacred values.  He was killed for, among other things, treading on a sacred religion.

Let me explain.

A Hindu spiritual teacher named Sri Chimnoy was a person of significant influence, especially among secular university professors.  He taught that dismissing or criticizing other religions is dangerous and divisive, and could in fact escalate into violence:

“If you say that your religion is right and another’s is wrong, then immediately you create division. Division eventually leads to quarrelling, fighting, and even wars. Today you say that others are wrong; tomorrow you will feel that you are justified in punishing them. That is how violence begins.”

He essentially says that declaring another religion to be wrong is the first step toward atrocity and violence.  This aligns with his overall goal, which was to foster a society where all religions are regarded as equal and coexist in peace.  I don’t think he wanted any disagreement to descend into violence, but subtly suggested that could happen when criticizing another’s sacred religion.

So what religion did Charlie Kirk disagree with?  The religion of sexual identity. We have learned, just today, that his killer was transgender, and an exchange of texts between he and his lover revealed that he saw no other alternative than to end Kirk's life. He took Kirk's disagreements so personally that he felt justified to take another's life. He had been trained by our society to see sexual identity as important enough to fight for, literally. I'm certainly not saying most will kill over these kinds of issues. But we're naive if we think our secular society hasn't taken these cultural idols to an insane level.

In the Western world today, it is pretty clear society has elevated sexual identity to the level of deity and worship.  If you look closely, you can even see all the elements of a full-blown religion:

• Sacred Values – It holds to dogmatic claims about identity and human flourishing, such as “gender is self-defined,” even claiming that the LGBTQ+ lifestyle must be affirmed. If you fail to affirm someone's lifestyle, you seem to not acknowledge their being or worth.

• Symbols and Rituals – The rainbow flag has become a test of loyalty in many businesses, government institutions, and even families.  And we all know there are rituals such as pride month and pronoun posting, all seen as expressions of inclusion and belonging.

• Moral Framework – There is clearly a lens through which right and wrong are determined: affirmation = right, disagreement = wrong. 

• Evangelistic Zeal – There is a deep-seated cultural mandate that LGBTQ+ ideology needs to be embedded in schools, workplaces, and media.  It almost feels like there is a quota.  Is this what Chip and Joanna bought into?  It is definitely why my favorite British baking show feels it is mandatory to include at least 1 or 2 gay people per season.

• Orthodoxy and Apostasy – When you affirm and live the lifestyle, you become a part of a sacred community with a shared mission – to advance equal rights, restore dignity, and further the cause.  Anyone residing outside of that community is seen as someone in need of a conversion.

Too many people today claim that the LGBTQ+ agenda is about civil rights, but I would argue that civil rights, being about equal treatment under the law, does not go far enough for people who hold fast to a radical sexual ethic in the Western world.  Religion is about a faith that touches all of life, demands your whole heart, and seeks to change the meaning of salvation and liberation. That is where these values have ascended to.

We all know people have been killed in the name of civil rights and religion, and it's sad.  The bigger question for all of us, especially Christians, is this – why can’t it be OK to disagree in peace?

The short answer today?  It’s simply not allowed.

My Own Experience

A couple of conversations I’ve had recently have confirmed something I have known for a long time: speaking out for truth today is risky.  First, they need some context.

Back in 2020, I was a church leader in the Northwest, which meant I and others were presented with the opportunity and responsibility to help Christians navigate the world of COVID and unprecedented social unrest.  To say it was not an easy thing to do is a tremendous understatement.  Considering I am a part of a beautifully diverse and missionally active family of churches, I felt emotion and pressure from all sides.  That made sense to me.  However, it felt that if ministers or members questioned values around identity or vaccines, we had committed a big sin.  Healthy disagreement, the kind that respects each other’s viewpoints as equally valid, seemed lost.

When I wrote my first book, Wildfire, I knew it would be controversial. Still, I felt that the message about the dangers of certain progressive ideas infiltrating the church was an important one.  I spoke out about how Satan manipulates these types of passionate conversations to further his sinful self-interest and divide Christians.  I was told by many that my book offers a fair and respectful treatment of the subject, serving as a much-needed conversation starter in a family of churches that were somewhat behind the broader evangelical world in addressing this crucial issue.  We are told very clearly not to conform to the patterns of a fallen world (Romans 12:2).

I did receive critical feedback, which is to be expected.  I also received some harsh criticisms. I guess I should have expected that, too. What I didn’t expect was that much of it would be borrowed from a secular narrative that is infecting our society like a deadly virus:  I got in trouble because I disagreed with values society had deemed sacred.  I violated a core value, one that calls me to be quiet and follow the prescribed societal expectation of showing full support for ideas that claim to address or solve issues of inequity.

Was everything I wrote said perfectly or correctly?  Of course not.  The only person who can say that about their book is the Holy Spirit!

When I talked about homosexuality and the subtle normalizing of the pro LGBTQ+ agenda in our society, I was called an insensitive homophobe.  One person actually threatened to call the authorities on me for pushing conversion therapy, something I do not advocate.  When I used the phrase biblically conservative to describe my preferred way of reading scripture, I was called a Christian Nationalist. Really?  When I co-wrote a chapter on race relations with my friend Alex Whitaker, I was called an alarmist and compared by one person to a white supremacist.  Another person accused me of being too “Bible-focused” when addressing these issues.  One leader whom I respect even went so far as to tell another person in our fellowship that my book is “garbage.” 

As much as I can, I have tried to work out all of these criticisms over conversations with my critics (Rom. 12:18).  It’s the right thing to do.  And just so you know, there were also some very friendly and helpful critiques, which every author needs to grow from.  I separate those from the others I mentioned.

As I think about it, the comments themselves have not been the most curious thing. Instead, it is where they have generally come from – from within my fellowship, from other Christians.  I am concerned that Christians are often borrowing a terrible narrative being peddled in our society. If you disagree about something that isn’t considered acceptable, you will be silenced.  It’s risky to go against the acceptable cultural status quo.

The assassination of Charlie Kirk was a sobering reminder of this.  At 31 years old, he was without a doubt the most influential speaker on college campuses.  He confessed faith in Jesus, was a devout husband and father, and activated the political and cultural voices of thousands of young people who had felt silenced or forgotten.  Yes, he was controversial, but if that alone excludes his voice from being legitimate, there is really nobody these days qualified to express opinions.  He was silenced by somebody who felt he violated the sin of speaking out and disagreeing with societal assumptions about sexual ethics.

I am learning that many people are growing weary of this.

Recently, I’ve had a couple of conversations with people who thanked me for my book and website, which meant a lot to me.  One of them expressed regret that my message “didn’t appeal to young people.”  I immediately corrected them, letting them know that MANY young people agree with the message (they have told me, quietly, of course), and several of them are on the Biblically Resilient team.  The problem is that they, like many other young people today, are unsure whether it is safe to speak out.  They are being told things like “speaking out about someone else’s sin or lifestyle is unloving.”  Who wants to step into that fray?  My good friend Guy Hammond, who himself is consistently in danger of being cancelled, says it is an intentional strategy: “If you disagree with secular ideas, you need to be destroyed.”  I no longer think that is an overstatement. 

Christians, we need to interrupt this dangerous narrative.  In fact, we must learn to disagree more biblically. We must set an example that is a light to a polarized and angry world.   None of us has cornered the market on truth, so respectful debate and a variety of opinions are paramount.  Now is the time to resist society telling us what we can and cannot talk about.  Be kind, compassionate, and respectful, but now is the time to be brave and call out sin in a culture that is calling good evil and evil good (Isaiah 5:20, Eph. 4:25).

We Must Be Counter-Cultural Christians

Moments before Charlie Kirk was murdered, he was dialoging with a young person about transgenderism, one of the most distorted views of God’s reality there is.  But today it is being normalized, and to call it a sin is itself considered a sin.  It literally could cost you your life.

My friend David Young from Renew.org has an excellent book called Resilient.  It was written a couple of years ago, and now it seems prophetic.  We recently had him on a webinar, where he discussed the origins of many of these cultural dynamics and warned Christians that the beautiful message of Christianity will be increasingly seen as harmful as we move into the future.  

Are we prepared to live life as a hated cultural minority?

I am currently writing a parenting book that addresses how we can equip our kids to stand firm for God’s truth when society tells Christians to be quiet and conform.  I know it will be popular and helpful to many. Still, I also understand some will be upset again that I spoke out about resisting dangerous cultural “norms.”  My calling is to be faithful to the word of God and to do my best to engage those who see things differently in a loving manner.  That should not be controversial today, but it is. 

Will you join me?  Just know, moving forward, it will require all of us to have the courage to disagree with unbiblical and insidious sacred values.

Daren

Daren Overstreet is a Senior Leader at

Anchor Point Church in Tampa, Florida.  He has been in ministry for nearly 30 years, and holds a Master’s Degree in Missional Theology

You can contact him at

daren@anchorpointtampa.org