“The Rapture is bad theology. Revelation is Good News…” Gospel and Sermon for Sunday, May 15, 2022.

The video link for today’s sermon is — https://youtu.be/qTarpws__eY

The text from today’s sermon is:

Predictions about the end of the world are one of the most common things in history. Since the time that Jesus walked the earth, there have literally been hundreds, if not thousands, of predictions about the end of the world. These apocalyptic predictions often come in the form of events that will cause the extinction of humanity, a collapse of civilization, or destruction of the planet. Death and destruction are two things that humans seem really drawn to. Maybe we’re just ultimately afraid of our own mortality and death and this is one way we try to deal with it. I don’t know.

The first known prediction of the end of the world after the resurrection of Jesus was from Simon bar Giora, from the Jewish Essenes community sometime between 66–70, right before the destruction of the temple. He said the Jewish uprising against the Romans that was going on was the final end-time battle which would bring about the arrival of the Messiah. He even authorized coins to be minted for the occasion.

And while this was the first prediction, it certainly hasn’t been the last. By the time we get to the 16 thcentury, we see each subsequent century produce an exponentially increasing number of predictions about the end of the world. By the time we get to the 20…