Calvary Chapel Chino Hills Senior Pastor Jack Hibbs, like so many leaders in the Christian conservative movement, has known and loved Charlie Kirk for years. In fact, the assassination happened just hours after he’d last talked to the young TPUSA founder, a man he calls “the son he didn’t have.” On Thursday, Hibbs sat down with Family Research Council’s Jody Hice for a special segment of “Washington Watch” and reflected on the legacy Kirk leaves behind.

JODY HICE: Right now, it’s a somber time for our country. But this is the time that the body of Christ is to stand up. And spiritual leaders such as yourself are doing so. Pastor Jack, let me start, though, with [you] just tell[ing] us about Charlie Kirk — how you met him and who he was.

PASTOR JACK HIBBS: Charlie … you mentioned how he started TPUSA at the age of 18. I met up with Charlie probably at about the age of 22. And he had come to the Lord earlier on. He said somewhere around age 15 or so, he began to understand the Lord better in Scripture. He came to what he believed was the born-again relationship at that time. But he wanted to grow more. And … Charlie was introduced to me here at the church, and it was told to Charlie, ‘You need to know this pastor. He loves politics. He loves the nation. He loves the word of God. And you need to know him.’ And so it was one of those things, where … it was love at first sight with Charlie. I saw within Charlie a son that I did not have. And so, it started a relationship. I had the wonderful honor to disciple Charlie. He was such a remarkable consumer of the Bible. I mean, he would eat up the word. I kind of feel like Gamaliel in the Book of Acts, where we know from church history that when Saul of Tarsus was learning the word … it’s recorded that he could not keep [Saul], Paul the Apostle, in books.

Charlie would consume everything that I would put his way — Charles Spurgeon, Chuck Smith, Charles Stanley. … He would say, ‘Tell me what to read. What do I need to know? And give me the books of [the] opposition of what we believe.’ He was tenacious to consume the word of God. And then Charlie naturally took to [them] like the proverb[ial] duck to the water. Charlie knew instinctively because he was a doer. He was a doer. Whatever he learned, he was going to do it. And so, we enjoyed these years together, where once a week, sometimes twice a week, we would communicate Scripture, Bible verses, phone call[s]. In fact, I talked to Charlie less than 24 hours before he was shot. I was in a conversation on the phone with Charlie together. And who Charlie was in public, it’s who he was in private. He was incredibly warm, incredibly humble.

And anyone who has ever seen him at full length, by the way, where he’s set up at his college table; [h]e’s got people there asking him questions. I’ve never seen people more hostile and angry and cussing at him and calling him all kinds of names. And Charlie would just say, ‘Okay.’ He’s nodding his head, and he would say, ‘But, but what is your question? You have a question. Please ask your question.’ They would ask the question, and he would either answer them respectfully or he would say to them, ‘Well, my answer is, I don’t know. I’ll get back to you. Can I get your number?’ But no matter how it went at the end of every questioner, Charlie would say, ‘Well, I want you to know Jesus Christ loves you. He died on the cross for your sins, and he wants you to have an amazing life through Him. Next, please step up to the mic.’ This was Charlie Kirk.

And I love the fact also that as successful as he was and such an influence that he was, none of that got in the way of him being a lover, a husband to Erika, his wife. He put his family first, as we should all. And I love this too about him — every weekend Charlie would silence his phone. He said, ‘I Sabbath from technology on the weekends.’ And he spent that time investing in the Lord. He would often attend church either here online [or somewhere else]. He would let me know that ‘I just watched the sermon. God bless you, Jack.’ But he put God first, family second, and his ministry was third, or somewhere down below that. A remarkable man for sure.

HICE: Wow. And what an amazing impact he has had. Untold hundreds of thousands of students have been transformed by that ministry that you just described. I look at what’s happening at colleges all across the country, as we saw last year, and we saw even beginning last night in several different locations with just a spiritual outbreaking of prayer and worship and hundreds, thousands being baptized [over] the last year. What describes his impact, and what do you think his legacy is going to be?

HIBBS: Well, his impact, first of all, is not only one that we can research and study and know before his death. But his impact, I believe, and think I’m already seeing evidence of this, his impact is going to increase after his passing. And I have some evidence. Last night, we had our normal Wednesday night service at church, but we departed from our study in the book of Hebrews to address Charlie in a time of prayer. And I heard reports from people. By the way, we had over 4,000 people here on a Wednesday night, and I heard from people who are atheists [and] what happened to Charlie caused them to get angry in the right way, and they want to make a change. I’ve heard people say, ‘That’s it. I’m stepping up now. If that young man preached what he preached, said what he said, created what he did, and died for it, I’m going to. I’m stepping up. I’m becoming a patriot. I’m becoming a Christian. I am going to stand.’ This is remarkable.

I believe that we are going to see a tremendous move of the Spirit of God bringing people like this, for example, those who have followed him in the TPUSA movement — they’re Gen Z. They heard their leader. They decided to become involved with their leader. And they began to do this on their own campuses and in front of the entire world. Their leader was assassinated. None of them, I’m hearing, is shrinking back from that commitment. They are saying, ‘That’s it. That just sealed the deal. He preached it, taught it, lived it out to the second he went to see Jesus. I’m going to do the same.’ I believe no one can fill Charlie’s shoes. But what Charlie did is that he produced shoes for people to step into. With the TPUSA leadership teams and campus chapters, and I think between now and the next 10 years, all along the way, we are going to see a reproduction of versions of Charlie Kirk that the enemy, quite frankly, did not consider.

HICE: Amazing. … And we were having, within the FRC community, a Bible study this morning in Acts chapter 13. That’s when they were sending out Paul and so forth. But we are praying specifically [that] there are 10 people right now who are sensing the call of God’s Spirit to step up to the plate and engage, to be salt and light like never before. There’s 100 people. There’s 1,000 people who are listening and watching right now who God is speaking to, I believe, to step up to the plate in what you’re describing right now. I really do believe it’s going to be a legacy. What the enemy meant for harm is going to be multiplied over and over and over and reproduced in leaders, young leaders stepping up because of the influence of Charlie. Let me ask you this, Pastor Jack. And I know this could be painful, and I don’t intend that, but what can you share with us about what was going through your heart and your mind yesterday when you heard the news of the shooting?

HIBBS: Well, Jody, it was very graphic. So my brother, who lives in Utah, wanted to get a ticket to the Charlie Kirk event there in Utah and [was] kind of late in requesting, but he said, ‘Can you do something for me?’ So I called Charlie, and Charlie said, ‘Here’s my number. I’ll set it up, and we’ll get a picture, [and] we’ll send it to you, Jack.’ Charlie did that, and then he put my brother right on the front seat of the event. And that was Charlie. Generous. Generous to a fault. Kind, compassionate. Everybody was important to Charlie. Many times, we would be speaking together at various events, and Charlie would whisper in my ear, ‘You have no idea, Jack, the impact you’ve had on my life. Go get ‘em.’ That kind of stuff. I’m 68 years old. He was 31 years old. He was that Paul-Timothy relationship that I just thank God for allowing me to have a little bit of an impact in that.

His ability to encourage people just at our church alone. When Charlie spoke — and he spoke here often — when Charlie spoke, he had an anointing upon him. … [T]he very thing that the leftists scream bloody murder about is ‘There’s got to be a separation of church and state.’ Charlie was so beautiful at showing you the actual real example of not only biblical leadership and civics lived out in the public square, but he also exemplified it. Please listen. He exemplified what it meant to be an actual, true American. So Charlie looked unique to us in this 21st century. But I would argue with you today that if you took Charlie up and picked him up and set him back in 1776, he would have been the norm. He would have been the norm. Free speech, loving one another, crafting policy that benefits all people for the betterment of the nation to form a more perfect union, this love of the Constitution — Charlie would have somehow been … either sweeping the floor of the Constitutional Convention or being one of the signers. He would have been normal 250 years ago today. He’s unique.

I think, Charlie, if he could speak to us today, he would say, ‘Let’s go back to the ancient pillars that made this nation great.’ And that’s where we need to go now. You know better than I do. There’s a completely different worldview that says one thing and then does the opposite. And that worldview is, you know, ‘We need to ban guns.’ And that’s their answer. ‘We need more laws.’ That’s their answer when the issue is the human heart. And when you bring up the human heart, th[e] other side doesn’t want to talk about it. They’ll condemn you for it. … Twenty-six members of Congress condemned my prayer and opening of Congress because I mentioned Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior, and I mentioned the word ‘repent,’ and they’ve hated me ever since for it.

Why? Because we live in a nation that is divided by two separate worldviews. Everybody falls into one of the two camps. And here’s the thing. When violence happens, how is it [that there are those] who say violence should not take place, but they’re often the ones perpetrating it? We’re looking at the ideology of DEI, the BLM, all of the gender issues — and notice where the violence is coming from and who is it being put upon. And … [we need to] get back to addressing the heart and soul of an individual and encouraging churches to stand in the pulpits and to preach the everlasting gospel in power and in truth. I used to think that it’s going to take years, if ever, to change America. I don’t believe that anymore. I believe that if the Holy Spirit, like you read in the book of Acts chapter 13 … could change [America] on a Sunday if the Spirit of God would be welcomed in every pulpit. If the Spirit of God and the word of God would be honored and upheld in every pulpit in America today, America could change this terrible trajectory in one Sunday, if we’re willing.

HICE: Absolutely. I remember Dr. Dennis Kinlaw used to say, ‘More can be accomplished in one divine moment when God enters into it, than what can ever happen in our lifetime.’ Pastor Jack, unfortunately, we’ve got less than a minute. What you hit on, Tony and I were talking about a little while ago: this is a spiritual problem. And so, what would your message be to the church right now? And how should we pray real quickly?

HIBBS: Return to the place of revival. Open up the word of God like King Josiah and Hezekiah and the others did. Open up the word of God and intentionally read it. Don’t glaze over it. Put down social media. Dive into the word of God and then ask God, ‘God, what would you have me to do?’ [Pauses to pray] Father God, we pray in Jesus’s name. I thank you, Lord, that FRC is on the front lines. I thank you, Lord, for what’s going on. I pray, Lord, in Jesus’s name, we agree together that you’d heal our nation. We all know that the answer for these problems is not in the White House or in the state house. It’s only going to be found in God’s house. So, Lord, we pray, send your mercy, but send a revival among the church so that there’d be an awakening among the lost. In Jesus’s name. Amen.