Do Not Fear Man

By Pastor Jeff Hanson

Matthew 10:28, “And fear not them which kill the body, but are not able to kill the soul: but rather fear him which is able to destroy both soul and body in hell.”

No doubt everyone in here is aware of the senseless killing of Charlie Kirk last week. I have had read and seen so many comments both positive and negative about his life and death. Today they are having his service to celebrate his life.

I don’t know what the ultimate story will become because of this; will we see a revival among the younger generation? Let’s pray it does, this I do know for sure because the word tells us of this generation, evil is still out there and evil hates God and thus it hates us.

John 15:18-19, “If the world hate you, ye know that it hated me before it hated you. If ye were of the world, the world would love his own: but because ye are not of the world, but I have chosen you out of the world, therefore the world hateth you.” 

Charlie Kirk unfortunately is not the first Christian murdered for speaking the truth, Jesus was, all the Apostles suffered for Christ sake and all but John endured horrible deaths, Matthew was killed by a sword in Ethiopia, Mark was dragged in the streets of Alexandria by horses, Luke was hanged in Greece, Peter was crucified upside down as he said he was not worthy of suffering the same death as Jesus, James was thrown from the temples pinnacle, survived and then was beaten to death, James the son Of Zebedee was beheaded in Jerusalem, Bartholomew was flayed alive in Armenia, Andrew was crucified on X shaped cross, Thomas was stabbed to death in India, Jude was killed with arrows, Matthias was stoned and beheaded, and Paul was beheaded after being tortured by Nero.

They were all killed for preaching about our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ!

Matthew 10:16-24, “Behold, I send you forth as sheep in the midst of wolves: be ye therefore wise as serpents, and harmless as doves. But beware of men: for they will deliver you up to the councils, and they will scourge you in their synagogues; And ye shall be brought before governors and kings for my sake, for a testimony against them and the Gentiles. But when they deliver you up, take no thought how or what ye shall speak: for it shall be given you in that same hour what ye shall speak. For it is not ye that speak, but the Spirit of your Father which speaketh in you. And the brother shall deliver up the brother to death, and the father the child: and the children shall rise up against their parents, and cause them to be put to death. And ye shall be hated of all men for my name’s sake: but he that endureth to the end shall be saved. But when they persecute you in this city, flee ye into another: for verily I say unto you, Ye shall not have gone over the cities of Israel, till the Son of man be come. The disciple is not above his master, nor the servant above his lord.”

None of their deaths as well as Charlie’s death were in vain!

John 12:24-26, “ Verily, verily, I say unto you, Except a corn of wheat fall into the ground and die, it abideth alone: but if it die, it bringeth forth much fruit. He that loveth his life shall lose it; and he that hateth his life in this world shall keep it unto life eternal.  If any man serve me, let him follow me; and where I am, there shall also my servant be: if any man serve me, him will my Father honour.”

Only the Lord knows how many Christians were tortured and killed for the testimony they held unto, it was not until Constantine in 300AD did the killing ease.

According to the Historian David B Barrett, puts the number of Christians martyred since the time of Jesus at 70 million. The number of Orthodox Christians and others murdered in Russia between 1917 and 1950 at 15 million.

In China, at least 200,000 Christians and foreigners were killed in the Boxer Rebellion of 1898 to 1900. Another 700,000 were killed in communist China between 1950 and 1980.

Estimates of the number of Christians killed annually for their faith today differ massively. Todd Johnson, of the Center for the Study of Global Christianity, puts the number of Christians martyred annually at 100,000. By stark contrast, Christof Saure, of the International Institute for Religious Freedom, puts the figure far lower at 8,000 to 9,000 a year.

We mourn the death of Mr. Kirk and our prayers are with his loving wife Erika and two small children who will grow without their husband and father, but we must mourn for all the others that are martyred such as California pastor Felipe Ascencio murdered September 7^th in his home leaving behind a wife and two children, a priest who was crucified in April in New River Arizona, we are aware of the two children killed in Minnesota, in June at Crosspointe Community church in June a heavily armed man was shot and killed by two members of the Church Security team.

We unfortunately in these trouble days never know what person filled with hate and in poor mental health is capable in doing, every imagination of the thoughts of his (mans) heart was only evil continually. 

But we must never lose sight of the reason we been saved, to tell others about sin and how it will destroy you and to share the message of God’s love and hope for every man. We cannot let fear overtake our commission!

If in this tragedy God uses it to bring people to us and if it is this younger generation, we as a body need to be ready to give them the answers that may have. Remember many of those probably under thirty have very little experience with church and even less knowledge of Jesus and the bible other than what they have seen in movies or what the educational system has given them.

Heb 13:6, “So that we may boldly say, The Lord is my helper, and I will not fear what man shall do unto me.” 

Psalms 23:4, “Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me.”

Matthew 10:28, “And fear not them which kill the body, but are not able to kill the soul: but rather fear him which is able to destroy both soul and body in hell.”