Are Mass Shootings Predicted in the Bible As a Sign the World Is Coming to an End?

Does the recent mass shooting in Las Vegas indicate a sign of the end times?

The Days of Noah

With the horrible mass shooting at Las Vegas, the United States has just seen the worst mass shooting in modern history. What does this meaningless violence mean? Will it get worse and worse as the time of Christ’s return draws near? Jesus once spoke about His second coming and referred to Noah’s day, saying, “For as were the days of Noah, so will be the coming of the Son of Man. For as in those days before the flood they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day when Noah entered the ark and they were unaware until the flood came and swept them all away, so will be the coming of the Son of Man” (Matt 24:37-39), so what were the days of Noah like? The Bible says “The Lord saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every intention of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually. And the Lord regretted that he had made man on the earth, and it grieved him to his heart” (Gen 6:5-6), and “the earth was corrupt in God’s sight, and the earth was filled with violence. And God saw the earth, and behold, it was corrupt, for all flesh had corrupted their way on the earth. And God said to Noah, “I have determined to make an end of all flesh, for the earth is filled with violence through them. Behold, I will destroy them with the earth” (Gen 6:11-13). Noah’s day doesn’t seem that different than the days in which we live today, but is the recent violence more evidence that the time of Christ’s return draws near?

Growing Cold

In the same prophecy where Jesus spoke about His second coming, He also mentions that “because lawlessness will be increased, the love of many will grow cold” (Matt 24:12), and it’s not hard to see that the natural love that humans have is growing colder and colder as violent episodes increase all the more. The Apostle Paul, in writing about the last days, wrote “that in the last days there will come times of difficulty. For people will be lovers of self, lovers of money, proud, arrogant, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy, heartless, unappeasable, slanderous, without self-control, brutal, not loving good” (2nd Tim 3:1-3). I can’t see that the love of mankind is increasing right now, but rather, it seems to be decreasing as opposing ideologies clash with one another and these groups are “proud, arrogant, abusive…unholy, heartless”… and they are not “loving good.” Paul also spoke of the human condition apart from the Holy Spirit, saying they “were filled with all manner of unrighteousness, evil, covetousness, malice. They are full of envy, murder, strife, deceit, maliciousness. They are gossips, slanderers, haters of God, insolent, haughty, boastful, inventors of evil, disobedient to parents, foolish, faithless, heartless, ruthless” (Rom 1:29-31). Of course, I don’t mean to insinuate that all unbelievers are this way, but it doesn’t take very many in a society with these characteristics to disrupt and divide a society.

A Short Time?

If we think that things are getting better, and that they will continue to get better, as mankind spirals every upward toward a tendency for less violence and a humanity that unites in peace, we are fooling ourselves. The Bible indicates otherwise, and even though nobody knows when the end of this age will be (Matt 24:36), Jesus did tell us to watch for the signs leading up to His return, saying, “From the fig tree learn its lesson: as soon as its branch becomes tender and puts out its leaves, you know that summer is near. So also, when you see all these things, you know that he is near, at the very gates. Truly, I say to you, this generation will not pass away until all these things take place” (Matt 24:32-34), “And if those days had not been cut short, no human being would be saved. But for the sake of the elect those days will be cut short” (Matt 24:22), indicating that if Jesus does not physically return to the earth to intervene “cut short” those days, “no human being would be saved,” but it is “for the sake of the elect those days will be cut short,” because God will not allow humanity to completely destroy itself. Do the Devil and his demons know their time is short? It’s very possible because I believe Satan knows the Bible better than most of us, and he can see the signs of the times too. The Apostle John wrote in the Book of Revelation that we should “rejoice, O heavens and you who dwell in them! But woe to you, O earth and sea, for the devil has come down to you in great wrath, because he knows that his time is short” (Rev 12:12)? Satan’s time being short means his time is coming too, so he would love nothing more than to take as many to hell with him as possible.

Conclusion

Does the recent mass shooting in Las Vegas indicate a sign of the end times?  It could well be, and although the Bible doesn’t expressly say mass killings are a sign of the end times, it does appear that the fig tree is bearing the fruit of Jesus’ return (Matt 24:32-34), so if this article or the escalating violence on the earth makes you think about Jesus’ Christ, then it has been more than worth it.  All believers should be more passionate about reaching the lost before Christ returns, because then, it will be too late (Dan 12:2-3; Rev 20:12-25). We do know the day of Jesus’ return will, but we do know it come suddenly, like “the lightning comes from the east and shines as far as the west, so will be the coming of the Son of Man” (Matt 24:27), so at any given moment, there “will appear in heaven the sign of the Son of Man, and then all the tribes of the earth will mourn, and they will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven with power and great glory. And he will send out his angels with a loud trumpet call, and they will gather his elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other” (Matt 24:30-31). Those who have rejected Christ will mourn, for then they will know (too late) that Jesus Christ does exist and He is coming to judge the world in righteousness, so I plead with you who disbelieve, to repent and put your trust in Christ. Today is the day of salvation (2nd Cor 6:2). Tomorrow may be too late.

Article by Jack Wellman

Jack Wellman is Pastor of the Mulvane Brethren Church in Mulvane Kansas. Jack is a writer at Christian Quotes and also the Senior Writer at What Christians Want To Know whose mission is to equip, encourage, and energize Christians and to address questions about the believer’s daily walk with God and the Bible. You can follow Jack on Google Plus or check out his book Teaching Children the Gospel available on Amazon.