This post by Voddie’s daughter, Jasmine, is both heartbreaking and precious!
(Here come the tears again!)
It’s one of the most important testimonies about Voddie or any father.
More important than being a great preacher, Voddie was a great “daddy.”
Pray for this sweet family!
So I preached yesterday morning. In light of the Sermon Police who took over X this morning, I downloaded the audio and transcribed it. Nope, I did not mention Charlie Kirk or the events of this week specifically. I thought I had at one point made a general remark about recent events or something but I cannot find that in the transcript. Fact is, had the event fit in with the text, I would not have hesitated to mention it. But, it didn't (or, I would have had to have made a very artificial connection), so I didn't.
Now, we literally have men that I have sat and talked with and even attempted to be an encouragement to in the past saying that if your pastor did not speak about Charlie Kirk yesterday in the Lord's day services, you should immediately leave your church. Yes, I've seen it repeated over and over again this morning. You know, when you tell someone to leave a church, that is a VERY serious thing. You had better be ready to answer for such exhortation in the day of judgment, let me tell you, since that is, ultimately, the role of the Holy Spirit. And I really wonder how many people a month, or six months from now, will be saying the same thing? You know, once the emotional fervor has passed?
I honestly do not think that right now a serious conversation about "martyrdom" or where the line is to be drawn between political assassination and Christian persecution can and should be drawn can be had. The irony is, that is what Charlie Kirk was all about: the conversation, the facts, the debate.
But this I do know: the "get out of your church if they don't share our very emotionally determined priorities right now, this day" folks really need to take a few deep breaths and realize that many of them, in their more honest moments, will be truly embarrassed by their comments in a relatively short period of time. Or, they should be, anyway.