Short Op-Ed: Should Christians Support Turning Point USA?
I've never been a fan of Turning Point USA (TPUSA) or its movement. I really just don't care much for the personalities involved in it, particularly, Charlie Kirk. But there are a lot of churches—so-called conservative churches—that are embracing, promoting, and platforming them.
Should we be concerned? I think so.
It appears as though TPUSA is a gateway drug to liberalism in the conservative movement and Kirk and his team appear to be dedicated to platforming and promoting homosexuals. By definition, conservatism seeks to conserve the objective moral standard set forth by God and does not embrace homosexuality; the LGBTQ movement is a decidedly progressive ideology and sexual perversion is a rejection of God's design for humanity.
So why is TPUSA platforming so many homosexuals? I could tell you what I believe about Kirk, but it isn't really that important. The bottom line is that what TPUSA is doing is destroying conservatism, turning it into a self-seeking ideology, and trying to make it more palatable to a wider base. God will not bless that, and unfortunately, many churches are still embracing it.
I don't post this video below flippantly, I post it to expose exactly who the people from TPUSA are and exactly what the movement is promoting and advocating for. Beware, while some strong language is bleeped out, the content may still be disturbing. This video, which was posted on Twitter, shows Kirk and a homosexual advocating for accepting homosexuals in the conservative culture war movement.
I could post a list of churches that are hosting Charlie Kirk and TPUSA, but it would be pointless as the list is huge. If you want, you could check out this Google search and see for yourself. The bottom line, churches are compromising the gospel in favor of self-serving politics. Movements like TPUSA aren't helping us fight the culture war—certainly not from a biblical worldview. TPUSA is a movement for conservatives who care about preserving their bank accounts and the economy—certainly good things to care about—but are willing to sacrifice morality on the altar of self-serving politics. Churches have no business embracing or platforming TPUSA, in my humble opinion.
Agreed, more concerning is their target audience... colleges, next generation.
As was already pointed out by an earlier commenter, Charlie Kirk was prominently boosted by Jack Hibbs, which I felt was a bit... problematic (to erroneously use a word that did not originally mean "a problem," but has been popularly adopted as such). I like Hibbs and have generally found his preaching to be good, although his California surfer persona is slightly off-putting for a serious student of the Bible. I admired the way he stood his ground during the Covid hysteria and continued to hold services, so I can forgive him for other minor infractions, but I am reluctant to endorse his providing a forum for Kirk, who is clearly much more of a politician than evangelist. Sometimes the "enemy of my enemy" strategy is not a good option, especially if it introduces a seriously flawed moral viewpoint into the Christian mainstream. I reject any attempt to normalize homosexuality, given the clear Biblical injunction against its practice. Glossing over that moral failing is a bit like overlooking that little dab of dog poo in the cake mix. I am similarly disposed regarding all of the "conservative homosexuals" adorning our side of the political divide; despite the fact that they may profess "conservative values" in other areas of our political discourse, the fact remains that it has largely been the influence of homosexuals that has brought about our current state of affairs. Homosexuality is antithetical to any civilization that purports to be founded on Biblical principles. Homosexuality and modern-day "feminism" are two manifestations of the same underlying philosophy of unbridled license to indulge sinful inclinations; they both espouse the overthrow of traditional Biblical standards of behavior, including but not limited to the sanctity of marriage and the family as well as the protection of childhood innocence and endorse the grossest kinds of activity in order to do so. So I can not possibly find common cause with the likes of Douglas Murray, Andrew Sullivan, Richard Grenell and the so-called "Log Cabin Republicans," and even less so the trannies like Blaire White or Bruce Jenner. I guess it's OK if they are on the "right" side of most issues and I certainly will no condemn them for that, but I will not stand around and cheer them on either, nor welcome them into my Christian fellowship unless they repent of their sins.