Right.
But do you see my point?
This shooting is startling to us because of it's heinousness- as well it should be. But the very fact that it IS startling to us speaks of the amiableness of our society as a whole.
This kind of killing would have been commonplace thousands of years ago in civilized nations.
The point is that this is NOT a fulfillment of prophecy. It is NOT evidence that mankind is getting colder or more sinful.
The evidence is to the contrary. The Church has beaten back immorality and injustice to a large degree over the past 2,000 years. The Gospel has made the world a MUCH better place in which to live than it was before the Gospel took the world by storm.
And I expect the Gospel to take over the world before the Jesus returns.
I believe that this is what the Bible teaches.
First, the gospel has never "taken the world by storm" and it never will. Certainly, there have been pockets of revival, and a great historical evidence of the spread of the gospel (the knowledge of there being a Christ). But, Christ did not promise that His return was conditioned upon the world becoming controlled by the believers. Just the opposite - the believer has no fellowship with this world - but are set at enmity.
The centuries of teaching of the world becoming better and better until the kingdom of Christ is ushered in was destroyed by WWI and obliterated by WWII.
Folks can now recognize that huge devastating work in which the world will be subjected as God pours out the bowls of wrath.
Certainly various area and continental scourges have happened in the past, but not the global wide destruction of all living creatures and people in the sea, not the annihilation of whole continents in one hour. These were but images of wild imaginations according to some preachers of the past centuries. Such was beyond their understanding. A person just didn't have their bodily form vanish before their bones hit the ground. But, now, we see the shadows of the once living in Nagasaki and Hiroshima - no body, but the shadow is left.
There is one that holds back the evil - that is as the Scriptures state - the Holy Spirit. The church, as an agent of the work of the Holy Spirit is engaged in that struggle. "For we wrestle not against..."
There is no Scriptures to state that "the gospel will take over the world before the return of Christ." Certainly, the gospel will be PREACHED to the world, but even in this modern day, it seems foolish to think that everyone is going to be converted and the world systems will be "Christian." Churches can't even get along within their own assemblies, how much less is the world going to be "ruled" by such folks as that!
There is not a single prophecy that even indicates that to be the future estate.
Rather, the Scriptures proclaim that when Christ returns (in like manner as He ascended) that He shall "rule with a rod of iron." That He will meet out punishment to any who refuse to worship and bring offerings to Him. That the believers (those who come with Him at His return) shall reign with Him.