📘 TRINITY SERIES TITLE
When Power Borrows Jesus: A Trinity of Articles on Faith, Money, and False Prophets
ARTICLE 2 OF 3
Turning Point USA: When a Political Nonprofit Uses Jesus as a Marketing Tool
Turning Point USA (TPUSA) is not a church. It is a political nonprofit. Yet its events, messaging, and branding increasingly invoke Jesus, Christian identity, and biblical language to energize supporters and donors.
This is where the biblical concern intensifies.
When a political organization uses Jesus to sanctify its mission, it risks becoming a false prophet—a voice claiming divine authority while serving a different kingdom.
And when that organization is a high‑revenue nonprofit with substantial executive compensation and luxury travel benefits, Scripture’s warnings about religious hypocrisy become unavoidable.
What TPUSA’s Latest Form 990 Reveals
TPUSA reported nearly $85 million in revenue and 458 employees. Yet its leadership structure is almost entirely hidden.
Luxury Travel
TPUSA’s Form 990 states:
“Organization provided first-class or charter travel to key employees or officers.”
This is disclosed only when compensation practices exceed normal nonprofit standards.
Narrative Summary of TPUSA Compensation
Only seven employees out of TPUSA’s 458 staff receive more than $100,000 in total compensation — and their job titles are shockingly vague.
At the top is John McGovern, listed only as a Manager, receiving $456,669.
Next is Charlie Kirk, the President and CEO, earning $390,493.
Another Manager, Daniel Flood, receives $331,050, followed by Hutz Hertzberg, also a Manager, at $264,946.
Marina Minas, again labeled simply as a Manager, receives $236,553.
Justin Olson, the Assistant Treasurer, earns $249,502.
Finally, Alexandra Clark, listed only as a Contributor, receives $167,898.
These titles reveal nothing about actual responsibilities or authority.
There is:
- No CFO
- No COO
- No Director of Operations
- No Director of Development
- No HR Director
- No Communications Director
- No General Counsel
- No senior leadership team
For an organization approaching $85 million in revenue, this level of opacity is not normal. It is a deliberate fog.
Only Four Directors
TPUSA lists only four directors:
- Tom Sodeika — a financial‑sector entrepreneur whose low‑profile public footprint mirrors TPUSA’s preference for quiet governance.
- Doug DeGroote — a wealth‑management executive known for operating behind the scenes rather than in the spotlight.
- Mike Miller — a business leader whose public biography is minimal, reflecting the organization’s broader pattern of limited disclosure.
- David Englehardt — a New York pastor and attorney whose dual roles blend ministry, law, and political engagement.
A four‑person board for an organization of this size is highly irregular and raises governance concerns.
A small board is easier to control.
A controlled board is easier to influence.
And an influenced board is less likely to challenge leadership.
This is not accountability.
It is insulation.
TPUSA’s Mission and Beliefs — And the Biblical Test of Fruit
TPUSA publicly describes its mission as empowering young Americans to champion freedom, free markets, and limited government. Its three core beliefs reinforce this message:
- Limited government
- Free markets
- Fiscal responsibility
These are framed as moral imperatives, often wrapped in Christian language and presented as if they naturally align with biblical discipleship.
But Scripture never instructs believers to evaluate institutions by their mission statements or stated values. Jesus gives a different standard:
“You will recognize them by their fruits.”
— Matthew 7:16, ESV
And this is where the contrast becomes unavoidable.
An organization that claims to champion limited government operates with an unusually concentrated internal power structure and a four‑person board.
An organization that claims to promote free markets relies on donor‑funded luxury travel and inflated executive compensation.
An organization that claims to value fiscal responsibility shields its leadership hierarchy behind vague titles and opaque reporting.
An organization that invokes Jesus in its branding speaks with rhetoric that contradicts His teachings on humility, truthfulness, and love of enemies.
The mission statement says one thing.
The belief statements say another.
The fruit says something else entirely.
And Jesus taught His disciples which one reveals the truth.
What Comes Out of the Mouth Reveals the Heart (ESV)
Jesus taught that defilement is revealed by speech:
“For out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks.”
— Matthew 12:34, ESV
“What comes out of the mouth proceeds from the heart, and this defiles a person.”
— Matthew 15:18, ESV
TPUSA’s rhetoric — its anger, contempt, division, and political branding of Jesus — reveals the heart of the movement.
When an organization:
- wraps political outrage in Christian language
- uses Jesus as a mascot for partisan identity
- platforms voices that mock enemies rather than love them
Jesus tells us exactly what we are seeing:
defilement coming out of the mouth.
Sheep and Goats — And Why “GOAT” Means the Opposite in God’s Kingdom
Modern culture uses the word “GOAT” to mean Greatest of All Time — the champion, the icon, the one who stands above the rest.
But in Scripture, Jesus uses the word goat to mean something entirely different.
In Matthew 25, Jesus describes the final judgment not as a comparison between the great and the mediocre, but between sheep and goats — between those who quietly obeyed Him and those who loudly claimed allegiance while ignoring His commands.
The sheep are not flashy.
They are not platformed.
They are not branded.
They are not “influencers.”
They simply did the will of the Father:
- fed the hungry
- welcomed the stranger
- visited the prisoner
- cared for the vulnerable
- loved their enemies
The goats, on the other hand, are shocked to be rejected.
They are stunned that Jesus does not validate their self‑image.
They are confused that their religious language and public works do not impress Him.
Jesus’ point is devastating:
In God’s kingdom, the “goats” are not the greatest — they are the ones who missed the heart of God entirely.
This is why the modern “GOAT” metaphor is spiritually dangerous.
It celebrates the very thing Jesus warns against:
- self‑exaltation
- platform‑building
- public performance
- influence without obedience
- branding without holiness
And it is why Christians must be especially discerning when political movements or nonprofits elevate charismatic personalities as “champions of the faith.”
Jesus does not measure greatness by platform, influence, or applause.
He measures it by obedience, humility, and sacrificial love.
And in His own words, the goats — the self‑assured, the self‑promoting, the self‑justifying — are the ones He sends away.
“Lord, Lord…” — Jesus’ Warning About False Prophets (ESV)
Jesus warned that the most dangerous false prophets would be those who use His name:
“Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven…
And then will I declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from me.’”
— Matthew 7:21–23, ESV
These are not people who rejected Jesus.
They are people who marketed Him.
They prophesied in His name.
They built platforms in His name.
They performed works in His name.
But they did not obey Him.
When a political nonprofit uses Jesus as a branding tool while operating with opaque finances, inflated salaries, and a tiny, easily controlled board, the warning becomes painfully relevant:
“I never knew you.”
The Call to Discernment
Jesus does not need political nonprofits to defend Him.
He needs disciples who obey Him.
And He calls His people to test every spirit, examine every fruit, and use the gift of discernment given by the Holy Spirit.
Because false prophets do not announce themselves.
They market themselves.