Michael Osterholm was director of the Center for Infectious Disease Research and Policy at the University of Minnesota during the COVID-19 pandemic. Asked when he thought Covid might become endemic, he said, “Every morning I get up I scrape five inches of crusted mud off my crystal ball. And every day, it seems cloudier and cloudier … Any modeling that looks beyond 30 …
How to crack the prophetic code
Welcome to the first week of a sermon series on the mysterious last book in the Christian Bible, the Book of Revelation. There’s a lot of ground to cover, and today I want to lay a foundation for what follows by explaining how to crack the “prophetic code," and suggesting why I think this book is …
The end of history
[This is a transcript of a sermon on Revelation 21:1-6 preached by Rod Benson at Lithgow, Australia, in May 2018] When the Apostle John recorded the fantastic visions we encounter in the Book of Revelation, I believe he fully intended the words and images to be understood by ordinary readers in his own time. There …
The return of the King
[This is a transcript of a sermon on Revelation 19:11-16 preached by Rod Benson at Lithgow, Australia, in May 2018] How will the world end? Will it be by means of a global zombie plague, a catastrophic asteroid collision, nuclear war with China, or the effects of climate change? Fortunately, the last book in the …
Light of the world
Have you ever been in a light-filled space, and suddenly you’re plunged into darkness? Or you’ve been out driving in a thunderstorm when the traffic signals fail? It can be frustrating; it can be frightening; it can quickly lead to chaos. Without light, Gerard Manley Hopkins would never have uttered those immortal words, “Glory be to …
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