Texas school shooting: death toll has risen to 21, including 18 children

A high-level political leader in Texas questioned the shooting, asking, "How did we get here," and further stating "how can we prevent it from happening again."

The reality of how we got here can be traced back to a 1962 Supreme Court decision handed down 

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In light of the Uvalde, Texas school shooting, have you wondered, “How Did We Get Here?” as a nation and as a people…

God is sovereign over all of creation, yet evil exists in the world, even the worse kind like the recent Texas school shooting taking the lives of 19 young children and two teachers. 

Where does such evil come from? Angels were created perfect in every way and resided in a perfect place called heaven. Yet, of their own free will, 1/3 sinned against their Creator, and were driven out by Michael the Archangel and his angels. Therefore, it should not surprise us that evil exists. 

In his letter to the Ephesians, Paul explains the extent of evil prevailing in the powers of this dark world, and the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms—Satan’s demons. As we get closer to the End Times in Revelation, the extent and intensity of evil will increase steadily. 

 

The Texas tragedy is considered the second deadliest school shooting ever, when an 18-year-old, fatally shot and killed 19 young children and two teachers, before he was killed by a law enforcement officer. Is the issue guns as professed by some, or is it a lack of God in our culture and diminishing respect for human life, all of which has given Satan and his demons a correspondingly increasing foothold?  The shooter was described as a troubled youth. Where does such evil originate? 

Some may wonder, what is the eternal state of those children whose lives were cut short at such a young age?  I certainly pondered it, as I’m sure many others have. Did they go to heaven? Our only answer is to turn to Jesus’ own words in the Gospels (next slide). 

The only solace for those parents, and anyone who loses a young child, is Jesus’ own words here in Luke18, also in Mark 18:14 and Matthew 19:14.

While being interviewed in regard to the shooting, after expressing his faith as a Christian, Texas Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick pondered the shooting with a question, “How did we get here?” Something that most Americans would undoubtably ask and wonder.  

The human race is born with Adam’s DNA, and fallen nature, as such, people are prone to certain types of evil, some with greater propensity than others. Many things influence and stir up evil in today’s culture. When looking at the world from a biblical perspective, watch the evening news and it becomes readily apparent, that behavioral norms are descending. What was once considered sinful, appalling and immoral has become increasingly acceptable. 

On April 20, 1999, Columbine H.S. in Littleton, Colorado, was the first major school shooting by students. It wasn’t the last. Estimates show that more than 311,000 have suffered gun violence in schools since Columbine.

Images taken of the Columbine shooters while in the school. Many have asked, and many more have wondered, why does God allow such evil? Evil is inspired by Satan and his demons, as we are told in Ephesians 6:12, but like Satan’s rebellion against God, the evil in man comes from within. Yet, we are to be mindful that in spite of man’s evil deeds, God is ultimately sovereign over all things, even history itself. Something we will look at next week.

The following link provides a list of school gun shootings in the U.S. since 2000. All of which raises that same question: “How did we get here?”

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_school_shootings_in_the_United_States

Congress and the President are demanding stricter gun laws. Some believe stricter gun laws will make everyone safer. The difficulty is that criminals do not obey laws, only law-abiding people do, who are not the cause of shootings. Is the problem guns? Will elimination of the 2nd Amendment as demanded, prevent future shootings? Chicago has some of the strictest gun laws anywhere in the country, and yet it has some of the highest gun crimes in the nation. All of which turns us back to the original question: “How did we get here?”

Chicago has some of the strictest gun laws in the country, but has one of the highest rates of homicides from illegally obtained guns. 

Food for thought: If all law-abiding citizens are forced to surrender their guns, as is being proposed in Canada, only criminals will own guns. Combine that with current efforts to disarm police, and we can be certain that it will open the door for a crime wave against unarmed and defenseless residents, especially with limited police availability to prevent it. Truly a wave of evil will be turned loose.

Published in BREITBART: Younger Americans are reshaping the country with a philosophy of life that rejects faith in God and organized worship at the same time defining success and morality in terms of personal happiness and economic social justice—which is based on a survey from the Cultural Research Center (CRC) at Arizona Christian University. All of which raises the question noted on the following slide…

The first thing tyrants do is make the people defenseless, thus easily controlled, which of course was Hitler’s goal. The German Jews were disarmed by the police state, the Gestapo, beginning in 1933. We know where that led, because they were easily rounded up and shipped off to concentration camps with no means of defense for themselves or their children. We can be certain that the Antichrist will use similar tactics to rise to power and control the people. 

The noteworthy answer to “How did we get here?” began in 1962, as shown on the following slides…

In a 1962 decision, the United States Supreme Court ruled that daily recital of prayers in public schools, even though non-compulsory, was unconstitutional. The court held that the recital of such prayers in schools financed through public taxation violated the religious freedom guarantees in the Constitution. The decision was handed down in a New York case. It has since affected all public schools throughout America.

In the decision of Engel v. Vitale handed down on June 25, 1962 , the US Supreme Court ruled that state-sponsored prayer in schools was unconstitutional. The court did not outlaw prayer in school entirely - only school-sponsored prayer. Sadly, many schools have even rejected student led prayers or allowed Bibles in school. Perhaps another Supreme Court case is needed. 

President Ronald Reagan’s 1984 message to the Nation rings just as true today, and after viewing a night of evening news, even more so today. But the root causes then and now, are closely related. 

Shootings v. years is relevant in response to, “How did we get here?” Is it a gun problem or a morality problem? 

For many decades, guns were readily available in the Sears Roebuck & Co. catalog delivered by the U.S. Postal Service, bought by many average young Americans, none of which were used in school shootings. Why is that? Because we were a Nation that believed in God, a belief that infused the very fabric of our culture. Once all reference to God was removed from the schools, evil filled that void with many other teachings and ideologies, none of which were based on biblical standards. 

Does America still cling to the value of life that we profess in our Declaration of Independence and Bill of Rights? Or in the Bible?

Our independence as a Nation and as a people, began with these words. Are they still as relevant in today’s United States of America? Is this something that today’s children are still learning in school or not?

“Pro-choice” is a politically correct term for “pro-abortion”, which is the killing of an unborn child. What message does it send regarding the sanctity of life? 

What does the Bible tell us about the unborn child? Psalm 139 describes the yet to be born “child”, not as a thing or extension of the mother’s body. But as a unique individual with a individual soul created by God. 

The pregnant woman is the host for the unborn child, who is a totally separate individual with the same right to life as its mother. 

This was posted before, but in light of the value of life debate, definitely worth repeating. It shows three individuals, one yet unborn. 

The sign states that it is the woman’s decision “to kill” or “not to kill” the unborn child. Sadly, it is the unborn child’s fate they are deciding. 

America’s Holocaust? Sixty-three million unborn lives were taken in America. Where then is the sanctity of life, or even respect for life in general? What message does it send to our youth, when even the President and members of Congress are strong advocates? Abortions are the consequences of careless sexual encounters—for convenience. Thank God for the young ladies in the photo. I call it a ray of hope! 

In 2 Chron 7:14 the Lord God tells us, if my people , who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then will I hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and will heal their land. 

End of this week's posting
Part 2 next week

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Topics of future posts will be prompted by world and current events. Are we moving toward a one world government? We can only imagine what it would be like.

This blog was created in March 2020, in response to Covid-19 shutdown. If you haven't seen the postings since then, you can access all the earlier postings via the Blog Archive in upper right-hand corner. The topics vary. 

You can visit an earlier blog I created dealing with theological/religious questions I had been asked at an earlier time, just click on the link below or copy and paste it into your web browser: https://johnatcpc.blogspot.com/  

Let me close with these words, is Jesus Christ your Lord and Savior? All of life is finite for everyone. What is your eternal destination? Without Christ it is a dark place, filled with regret and torment. But with Christ it is eternal joy. A dark world is coming. Perhaps not in this generation, but we never know, maybe it isn't that far away. Turn you heart over the Jesus Christ and you will never regret it. 

The intensity of evil v. good will vary from generation to generation. When the Christian Church is strong, evil is weak. When the Church is weak, evil gains strength and influence. It would normally read, “Good v. Evil”, why then does it state “Evil v. Good”?  Evil is on the attack, Good is the protective barrier for God’s people. In today’s world, it seems that good may be drawing back, thus allowing evil to prevail in certain areas and under certain conditions. 

Note: This will be our last posting for a while: TBD.

As we are told in Isaiah 14 (next slide), Satan was referred to as the “morning star”, who rebelled against God, along with one third of the angels who followed him, all of whom were cast out of heaven, only to become demons as noted in the Four Gospels. 

Satan was one of the highest-ranking angels. He allowed his heart to be filled with pride and lust for power, which led to his fall. His hatred of God and lust for power go unabated, working through man along with is demonic angels. 

The rebellion of Satan is noted both in Isaiah and here in Revelation. His lust for power and hatred of God continues working here on earth, influencing man just as he influenced Eve and then Adam in the Garden. 

Satan’s attempt to destroy God’s creation began in the Garden of Eden, first with the temptation of Eve, and then Adam. Both succumbed to his lies and turned from God. Consequently, the fallen human race has continued to follow suit, putting self before God at all levels of wealth, position and power. Demonic influence is real and will intensify at certain times just as we saw with Adolf Hitler and Nazi Germany. But like Satan, they too fell and were destroyed by “Good” empowered by God with strength and guidance, just as we saw in the Old Testament history of the Israelites, as God’s Chosen People. 

Throughout history and the Bible, the degree of evil intensified when people turn away from God. The struggle Paul writes about in Ephesians 6:12 has varied from generation to generation depending on their relationship with God. Something each generation must ponder and pray about. The powers of this dark world and the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms, though invisible, are very real, so are God’s angels who restrain evil. 

The dark powers and spiritual forces are fallen angels of every level, influencing the world and many of its leaders, just as Satan influenced Adam and Eve to break their bond with God, and Judas to betray Jesus, and Pontius Pilate to crucify Jesus, and Adolf Hitler to kill six million Jews. 

The victory over evil was won by Jesus Christ, who paid for our sins on the cross, and through all the trials and anguish that preceded it. 

The existence of evil is always a call to prayer. God has a legion of angels restraining demonic angels from unleashing their full furry on mankind. As we are told in 2 Chronicles 7:14, if God’s people will pray and seek His face and turn from their wicked ways, He will hear us and heal out land; even from the evil that exists in today’s world. 

Which brings us here and raises the question: Is evil increasing? If so, is the world moving further and further away from God and toward the End Times, laying the path for the rise of the Antichrist and time of Tribulation? 

Fallen angels are active in this world. As we are told in 1 John 3:8-10 – 8 He who does what is sinful is of the devil, because the devil has been sinning from the beginning. The reason the Son of God appeared was to destroy the devil's work. 9 No one who is born of God will continue to sin, because God's seed remains in him; he cannot go on sinning, because he has been born of God. 10 This is how we know who the children of God are and who the children of the devil are: Anyone who does not do what is right is not a child of God; nor is anyone who does not love his brother. 

Russian President Vladimir Putin delivers a speech during a military parade on Victory Day, celebrating victory over Nazi Germany in WWII. Yet, Russia’s attack on the Ukraine followed the same types of atrocities the Nazis used, murdering civilians and bombing residential areas. This celebration took place as Russian forces fight Ukrainians in one of the deadliest European conflicts since the end of World War Two, 77 years ago, with civilian deaths in the thousands. An antichrist? There are many antichrists as John tells in 2 John 7 who also wrote Revelation as a direct revelation from Jesus Christ. 

Russia’s invasion is leaving the Ukraine in ruins with thousands killed, dying and displaced, both civilians and children. We can definitely see the “powers of this dark world” at work, just as they were with Nazi Germany, leading to an estimated 70 to 85 million who perished during that war. 

There are many forms of evil in the world, both on a group and individual level. I think it’s a valid question for pro-abortion advocates to ponder: Jeremiah 1:5 "Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, before you were born I set you apart; I appointed you as a prophet to the nations." 

We’ll let God’s Word speak on behalf of the unborn child. 

Under Roe v. Wade, either one or both babies could have been aborted at that moment. Is this a political issue as some claim, or a moral one? Whose life will be snuffed out? What potential blessings to the world around them will also be snuffed out with them? The baby Mary carried was Jesus. The baby Elizabeth carried was John the Baptist, Jesus’ cousin. 

Both Jesus and John came forth out of the womb. Jesus as Savior, and John to announce His coming as the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world, without whom there would be no salvation!

Pro-abortion protests in front of the U.S. Supreme Court. The 1973 Supreme Court decision known as Roe v. Wade legalized abortion across the entire United States, overriding State laws that put restrictions on abortion-on-demand. See description on the next slide. It was “leaked” that the current Supreme Court may set that decision aside leaving it, one again, up to each state to decide. The “fury of hell” broke out in response to that leaked pending formal Supreme Court decision. The “powers of this dark world” at work. 

Looking back on Roe v. Wade. What’s all the uproar about? Why is there such a demand for taking the life of an unborn child? I think the answer lies in Ephesians 6:12. 

The spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms are the fallen angels who rebelled with Satan against God. They prompt every evil thought and deed for those who deny God. They also attempt to influence Christians, if we let them. Who are the powers of this dark world? They are evil spirits that hold the physical world under the grip of darkness by an assault on the mind. It’s believed that Satan has given these spirits charge over belief systems that tie men’s minds to religious works, false gods, and systems of thought that are opposed to the worship of the Creator God, the Lord; and oppose the very Word of God, concerning the meaning of life. We are seeing this force in response to that leak that they Supreme Court may overturn the 1973 Supreme Court decision in Roe vs. Wade, in that it would allow each state to decide. Anyone witnessing the TV news reports, will readily recognize that the forces of hell have been released. 

Those who hold positions of power, who are influenced by Satan or his demons, will bring grief to the world by their decrees, just as we see in the following slides. Is this a political battle or a spiritual one? Yes! It is a spiritual battle in the political arena. What better way to sway the Nation? One weapon Christians have in this spiritual battle, is to vote for those who support life at every stage, even in the womb. 

How quickly we forget history. When Christians do not engage in the public square for good, evil will prevail and fill critical, influential, political, and legal offices with those who oppose God’s Word. It gives Satan and his demons a basis for swaying the world for evil. 

A baby in the womb is a "yet to be born person" with a soul, and not part of the woman’s body. He or she is a totally different, individual person with an eternal soul created by God, who if aborted is being denied life, never to know his/her mother or experience an awareness of God, through His Son, Jesus Christ. 

How much is a human life worth? How much is an unborn baby worth? The current Treasury Secretary, Janet Yellen, believes letting them be born will have a negative impact on the economy. They will all be accountable before a Holy God. 

Is abortion an economic or a moral issue? In some cases, abortion even up until the very moment of birth is deemed acceptable. Read Yellen’s rationale and see if it’s political or moral? They will all be held accountable for every discarded life, before a Holy God at the Great White Throne Judgment (Rev. 20:11). Oh my! 

These are the standards Secretary Yellen is comparing, being in favor of the economy at the expense of yet to be born children. How do you put a dollar value on an unborn child? We’ll let Jesus tell us in Matt 19:13-14 – 13 Then little children were brought to Jesus for him to place his hands on them and pray for them. But the disciples rebuked those who brought them. 14 Jesus said, "Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these." 

The those that engage in sex, the way to avoid abortion is to use birth control. Abortion is not a form of birth control. It is killing of a yet to be born infant, who has a soul and right to life.

America was built on individual freedoms—not to be confused with license to do anything one pleases even killing an unborn child. Nor does any agency of government have the right to restrict those freedoms protected under the Constitution, including voicing opposition to evil in the public square or stating biblical opposition to immoral government decrees. 

Yet, this is exactly what is happening with the recently created "Disinformation Governance Board", as noted on the slide, as a department within the Department of Homeland Securing, who is doing nothing to secure our southern border. Freedom of speech gives Americans the right to express themselves without having to worry about government interference. It’s the most basic component of freedom of expression protected by the Constitution. Elimination of such freedoms will pave the way for the rise of the Antichrist. Those who lust for power will gladly welcome him. 

Here’s a similar, and yet important lesson from history. Hitler’s rise to power began with Joseph Goebbels as his propaganda czar. The Antichrist will have such a czar, perhaps multiple czars in all countries with those seeking to gain or retain their own power at any cost. If we don't learn from history, we are doomed to repeat it. We are seeing it in the Ukraine since all the warning signs were ignored by NATO. 

Do we as a Nation and as a people still put our trust in God? Or was that just a passing phase of history? 

Is “In God We Trust” only words on our currency? "In God We Trust" first appeared on American currency in 1864 and was placed on all currency in 1955. The 8th Circuit Court of Appeals affirmed that the motto does not violate the First Amendment's protection from government endorsing a religion or a person's right under the Religious Freedom Restoral Act.

We are reminded in Psalm 56 of the importance of those words, not just on our money, but in our mind and heart. Pray for America and for the upcoming November elections, that men and women of good will, will be elected to hold office at both the federal and state levels, and yes, even the School Boards. 

Amen!

End of this week's posting.