We usually refer to Jesus as the Alpha and Omega. This devotional reading looks at how God is also considered the alpha and omega.
Nuggets
- We generally think of Jesus as the alpha and omega.
- We tend to think of this only in the spiritual realm.
- God is King of kings.
- Because God and Jesus are the first and last, They live eternally and will never change.
God is first to last, beginning to end.
We talked about Revelation coming from God to Jesus to the angel to John to us. These words are attributed to God Himself and directed personally to John.
We may think this is talking about Jesus, but it is really talking about God.
Let's Put It into Context
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A to Z
“‘I am the Alpha and the Omega,’ says the Lord God, ‘who is and who was and who is to come, the Almighty’” (Rev. 1: 8 ESV)
I am the Alpha and the Omega
We generally think of Jesus as the alpha and omega.
This verse says God is, too. That is understandable. Isaiah had a lot to say about that.
- “Thus says the Lord, the King of Israel and his Redeemer, the Lord of hosts: ‘I am the first and I am the last; besides me there is no god’” (Isa. 44: 6 ESV).
- “Who has performed and done this, calling the generations from the beginning? I, the Lord, the first, and with the last; I am he” (Isa. 41. 4 ESV).
- “Listen to me, O Jacob, and Israel, whom I called! I am he; I am the first, and I am the last” (Isa. 48: 12 ESV).
But what does that mean?
We know that alpha and omega are the first and last letters of the Greek alphabet, respectively.
Well, that is something common that we can use to begin our understanding. These are the polar ends of the continuum.
Another way to say it is God is the beginning and the end of all things good.
Look at it this way. God and Jesus are the A to Z of the Bible. He goes from “In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth” (Gen. 1: 1 ESV) to “The grace of the Lord Jesus be with all. Amen” (Rev. 22: 21 ESV).
God is the Creator of Genesis to Revelation. Jesus is the message from Genesis to Revelation.
Talmage stated that this way. He wrote, “A sermon that has no Christ in it is a dead failure.”
Resource
We can say the same thing as a life. We are nothing if we do not have Christ as our center.
God and Jesus are the first and last because They have no beginning or end.
Who Is and Who Was and Who Is to Come
We tend to think of this only in the spiritual realm.
That, too, is understandable. Eternity is in the spiritual world.
Talmage reminded us that He is also the beginning and end in the physical universe. He created heaven and earth. We have to story in Genesis 1 and 2.
Resource
But this is talking about God being eternal.
- “Have you not known? Have you not heard? The Lord is the everlasting God, the Creator of the ends of the earth. He does not faint or grow weary; his understanding is unsearchable” (Isa. 40: 28 ESV).
- “Before the mountains were brought forth, or ever you had formed the earth and the world, from everlasting to everlasting you are God” (Ps. 90: 2 ESV).
- “Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever” (Heb. 13: 8 ESV).
- “To the King of the ages, immortal, invisible, the only God, be honor and glory forever and ever. Amen” (I Tim. 1: 17 ESV).
- “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God” (Jn. 1: 1 ESV).
- “He is without father or mother or genealogy, having neither beginning of days nor end of life, but resembling the Son of God he continues a priest forever” (Heb. 7: 3 ESV).
The Trinity
This brings up a point that we should probably look at right off. Is there a Trinity or isn’t there?
The Trinity isn’t labeled as such in God’s Word. But it is alluded to a couple of times.
- “Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit” (Mt. 28: 19 ESV).
- “But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, he will teach you all things and bring to your remembrance all that I have said to you” (Jn. 14: 26 ESV).
So, we set up this hierarchy. Father is top dog, Son in the middle, and Spirit on the bottom.
Jesus and the Father are the same. Jesus is the manifestation of God.
That means God’s omnipotence is Jesus’ omnipotence. His omniscience is Jesus’ omniscience. His omnipresence is His omnipresence.
But Jesus never once came out and said He was equal to God. He always deferred to God’s authority.
Look how Hamilton described Jesus. He wrote,
“He is the articulation of Jehovah’s mind. He is the Word of God. He is the visible embodiment of all that is in the invisible Three-One. Whatever the mind of the Lord Jesus is, the same is the mind of God; whatever the dispositions of the Lord Jesus are known to be, the same are the dispositions of Him whom no man can see; and whatever perfections were seen in the person of Christ, the same perfections reside in the great I AM.”
Resource
Jesus and the Holy Spirit are the same. “And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Helper, to be with you forever” (Jn. 14: 16 ESV). Basically, Jesus was saying that He was asking God to send another One – just like the other One – Him.
I think what we can say of the Trinity is that God, Jesus, and the Holy Spirit, while They are the same, are separate. Since Jesus always gave God deference, so should we. But we are never going to totally understand it – so into the UNR book (understanding not relevant) it goes.
No Other God
“Thus says the Lord, the King of Israel and his Redeemer, the Lord of hosts: “I am the first and I am the last; besides me there is no god” (Isa. 44: 6 ESV)
God is King of kings.
In Old Testament times, many people believe in polytheism – that there were many Gods. We see this in mythology.
In truth, God is above any other gods that exist.
- “You shall have no other gods before me” (Ex. 20: 3 ESV).
- “Thus says the Lord, the King of Israel and his Redeemer, the Lord of hosts: ‘I am the first and I am the last; besides me there is no god’” (Isa. 44: 6 ESV).
- “I am the Lord, and there is no other, besides me there is no God; I equip you, though you do not know me” (Isa. 45: 5 ESV).
- “Pay attention to all that I have said to you, and make no mention of the names of other gods, nor let it be heard on your lips” (Ex. 23: 13 ESV).
- “Fear not, nor be afraid; have I not told you from of old and declared it? And you are my witnesses! Is there a God besides me? There is no Rock; I know not any” (Isa. 44: 8 ESV).
- “’You are my witnesses,’ declares the Lord, ‘and my servant whom I have chosen, that you may know and believe me and understand that I am he. Before me no god was formed, nor shall there be any after me’” (Isa. 43: 10 ESV).
- “Therefore, as to the eating of food offered to idols, we know that ‘an idol has no real existence,’ and that ‘there is no God but one’” (I Cor. 8: 4 ESV).
Utilizing the characters of the Greek alphabet, John acknowledged that God always was. He is self-existent.
He was present in the eternity past and will be present in the eternity future. He knows no beginning or end.
We know Jesus was present before the world was created. We know Jesus was not only present at creation but also instrumental in creation.
- “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places, even as he chose us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and blameless before him …” (Eph. 1: 3-4 ESV emphasis added).
- “Then God said, ‘Let us make man in our image, after our likeness …” (Genesis 1: 26 emphasis added).
- “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things were made through him, and without him was not any thing made that was made” (Jn. 1: 1-3 ESV emphasis added)
Jesus is the foundation. He is also the cornerstone.
- “The stone that the builders rejected has become the cornerstone” (Ps. 118: 22 ESV).
- “Built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Christ Jesus himself being the cornerstone” (Eph. 2: 20 ESV).
- “For no one can lay a foundation other than that which is laid, which is Jesus Christ” (I Cor. 3: 11 ESV).
- “This Jesus is the stone that was rejected by you, the builders, which has become the cornerstone” (Ac. 4: 11 ESV).
- “But he looked directly at them and said, ‘What then is this that is written: “The stone that the builders rejected has become the cornerstone”?’” (Lk. 20: 17 ESV).
- “Therefore thus says the Lord God, ‘Behold, I am the one who has laid as a foundation in Zion, a stone, a tested stone, a precious cornerstone, of a sure foundation: ‘Whoever believes will not be in haste’” (Isa. 28: 16 ESV).
- “Jesus said to them, ‘Have you never read in the Scriptures: “The stone that the builders rejected has become the cornerstone; this was the Lord’s doing, and it is marvelous in our eyes”?’” (Mt. 21: 42 ESV).
- “Have you not read this Scripture: ‘The stone that the builders rejected has become the cornerstone’” (Mk. 12: 10 ESV).
- “So the honor is for you who believe, but for those who do not believe, ‘The stone that the builders rejected has become the cornerstone’” (I Pet. 2: 7 ESV).
God is still sitting on His throne waiting to judge us. He never abdicated, although He has given the authority to Jesus.
Isn’t it wonderful that we can depend on God? He won’t change, so we can be positive every time we interact with Him that He will act the same way every time.
Unchangeable
“Listen to me, O Jacob, and Israel, whom I called! I am he; I am the first, and I am the last” (Isa. 48: 12 ESV)
Because God and Jesus are the first and last, They live eternally and will never change.
God and Jesus live eternally and never change.
- “For I the Lord do not change; therefore you, O children of Jacob, are not consumed” (Mal. 3: 6 ESV).
- “God is not man, that he should lie, or a son of man, that he should change his mind. Has he said, and will he not do it? Or has he spoken, and will he not fulfill it?” (Num. 23: 19 ESV).
- “Of old you laid the foundation of the earth, and the heavens are the work of your hands. They will perish, but you will remain; they will all wear out like a garment. You will change them like a robe, and they will pass away, but you are the same, and your years have no end” (Ps. 102: 25-27 ESV).
- “Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow due to change” (Jas. 1: 17 ESV).
- “The grass withers, the flower fades, but the word of our God will stand forever” (Isa. 40: 8 ESV).
- “Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever” (Heb. 13: 8 ESV).
- “but you are the same, and your years have no end” (Ps. 102: 27 ESV).
God’s character doesn’t and won’t change. He is perfect – He is totally pure.
To recap, God doesn’t change. We can trust His goodness to never change Him. We can trust His promises.
But it can change – and must – change us. We need to be more like God.
Thomas told us that we have to become what we love. He wrote,
“The soul’s happiness is determined by the character of the object most loved. All experience shows that most of our happiness and misery comes out of our supreme love. All, in every age, who have loved the one God supremely have felt with the psalmist who said, ‘Whom have I in heaven but Thee?’”
Resource
When we love Someone, we try to emulate Him.
How Do We Apply This?
- Know Christ is divine.
- Believe in God’s promises.
- Seek constancy in character.
Father God. You have always been. You were not created or born. You have always existed. You will always exist. You are eternity. Amen.
What do you think?
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