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Jesus Christ, who is the faithful witness, and the first begotten of the dead,
and the prince of the kings of the earth. Unto him that loved us, and washed us
from our sins in his own blood, 6 And hath made us kings and priests
unto God and his Father; to him be glory and dominion for ever and ever. Amen. 7 Behold, he
cometh with clouds; and every eye shall see him, and they also which pierced
him: and all kindreds of the earth shall wail because of him. Even so, Amen. 8 I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the ending,
saith the Lord, which is, and which was,
and which is to come, the Almighty. 9 I John, who also am your
brother, and companion in tribulation, and in the kingdom and patience of Jesus
Christ, was in the isle that is called Patmos, for the word of God, and for the
testimony of Jesus Christ 10 I was in the Spirit on the Lord's day, and heard behind
me a great voice, as of a trumpet, 11 Saying, I am Alpha and Omega, the first and the last: and, What thou seest, write in a book, and send it unto the seven
churches which are in Asia; unto Ephesus, and unto Smyrna, and unto Pergamos,
and unto Thyatira, and unto Sardis, and unto Philadelphia, and unto Laodicea. (Rev 1:5-11)
At
the outset of this passage, Saint John reveals our Lord is Author of the
contents of Revelations. John ads the profound (to us) aspects of the Life of
the Lord Jesus – the faithful witness, and the first begotten of
the dead, and the prince of the kings of the earth. Of course, Christ is
all of this, but He is far more than this as well. But for John’s purposes, he
reveals Christ for the greater meaning He has in our understanding. First of
all, He is a Faithful Witness whose Word is absolute Truth and unchanging. He
is the First Begotten of the Dead, so that we who belong to Him may follow in
that resurrection. And His Sovereignty is above every earthly kingdom as the
King of Kings. He has ordained each of us with particular roles to play in His
Kingdom – some as subordinate kings to God the Father, and others as priests
under the High Priest of Faith – Jesus Christ!
John
makes the powerful point Christ is coming again in the same manner in which He
ascended – in the clouds. There have never been, nor ever will be, an eye that will
not see Him returning in the clouds, even the blind eye. Those who nailed Him
to the Cross at Cavalry will also see His return. How terrible may their sorrow
and terror be to witness His return if they have not sought forgiveness for
their terrible sin at the Throne of Grace.
The
beginning and end of all Creation is personified in our Lord Jesus Christ 8 I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the ending,
saith the Lord, which is, and which was,
and which is to come, the Almighty. Being the I AM in the scope of the
time-space-matter continuum, He is ever existent in an eternal presence – The
past and future is likewise the present in the economy of Heaven.
John
could take much pride in being the special recipient of the Words of this Book;
but He is humble in his awesome role as transcriber for the Lord. He is our
brother and companion in our sufferings and joys. He is One with us because we,
too, are One with the Father. 9 I John, who also am your brother, and companion in
tribulation, and in the kingdom and patience of Jesus Christ, was in the isle
that is called Patmos, for the word of God, and for the testimony of Jesus Christ.
John was not present in some marbled temple, or Jewish synagogue when he
received this Revelation. He was on the lonely island of Patmos to which he had
been exiled for its desolation and barren terrain. God does not always choose
the resplendent spheres and temples of man at which to begin His works – He
sometimes chooses a stable or a lonely island at which to appear.
I
wish to focus for the remainder of this devotion today in the Alpha and Omega
nature of the GREAT I AM.
When was the beginning? I suppose
it depends on your point of reference and perspective. Where does a straight
line begin - we may truncate a straight line by superficially entering on it at
a given point and call that the beginning, but it is not technically the
beginning for a straight line 'begins at infinity in one direction and 'ends'
at infinity in the opposite direction. Or, you may consider the beginning to be
the moment of your first conscious thoughts, but that simply gets back to the
principle of the straight line being artificially shortened by your sudden
entry on the space-time-matter continuum, doesn't it? It is impossible for the
human mind to grasp the fact of eternity and infinity. In the beginning, before
there was you or me; or before there was an earth upon which to stand, there was
simply a great void. And what was before the great void? When did time begin,
and what was BEFORE its beginning?
There
is not truly a beginning or an ending. Christ used those terms because it is
the only terms our finite minds can comprehend - and even those terms escape
any broad understanding on our part. The Triune God existed in eternity past -
before the creation of time and matter. Time, matter, and space are simply
created means by which our mortal lives can exist for a space of time expressed
in physical terms. Time was conceived in the Mind of God before there was time.
That which is created by Divine power is no less a product of Mind than an
airplane or automobile. Every functioning system must have a Designer and a
Creator. The worlds did not come into being by happenstance. The perfect
balance in space and time of the heavenly bodies are so completely balanced and
precise as to completely eliminate the possibility of accidental occurrence.
The earth is about 93 million miles from the sun. If it were 92, or 94, million
miles from the sun, life could not exist here. Neither could life exist if the
rotation of the earth on its axis were just a few minutes faster or slower than
what it is now. Life is fragile and demands precision balance for
survival.
The
Lord our God transcends time and space. He is not bound by consideration of
matter or mass. But He is comprehended by all matter, space, and time. He is
greater than these, but also superintends them. His dimensions are measured in
infinite terms - terms that, like light itself, we can describe but not define!
The great scientists of the past (all of the major sciences were begun by
Christian believers) accepted the fact that the Hand of God was at work at the
foundation of all science; however, the modern so-called scientists of our day
pooh-pooh the Hand of God in any science. They deny a Creator and appropriate
to themselves the mysteries of life and physical science. Yet, for all modern
science knows of life, and the constant counsel they give us of the
meaninglessness of life, they are yet unable to create a single flea - AMAZING,
is it not? O Timothy, keep that which is committed to thy trust, avoiding
profane and vain babblings, and oppositions of science falsely so
called: Which some professing have erred concerning the faith. (1 Tim 6:20-2)
There
did exist a great 'Something' before there was the world and expanse of
universe. Before there was Time, there was Being. That Being was the Triune God
- Creator of all things and even of angelic beings. That Triune God was the
First Cause! Forget the Big Bang theory and the explosion of intensely
compressed atoms into a tine particle in the remote dawn of time. Before an
explosion could occur, there had to be, even if compressed to the size of a
grain of sand, matter. And if there was matter, it had to be created. So the
circular argument always comes back to God.
1 In the beginning was the Word,
and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2 The same was in the beginning
with God. 3 All
things were made by him; and without him was not any thing made that was made. 4 In him was life; and the life
was the light of men. (John 1:1-4) Our Lord
Jesus Christ did not have a beginning, but He was IN the Beginning of all
things. He was the executive agent of all Creation! He existed from Eternity
Past in the heavenlies with His Father and the Holy GhoSaint These comprised
the Great Council of Heaven. All things were first conceived by God, then
created by Him. Though you knew it not, even YOU were in the Mind of God at the
moment of Creation. He knew you, and made account of you. He is omniscient,
omnipotent, omnipresent, and, we might add, omnibenevolent. He is the
ALMIGHTY ONE. In the Council of Heaven, before we needed a Savior, God made
provision for a Savior. The only Begotten Son (begotten not made or adopted)
assumed the responsibility to be that Savior. Though Adam had not yet sinned,
God knew that Adam would, indeed, sin. The skins with which God covered the
naked sin of Adam and Eve typified the blood of His Son which must come to
cover the sins of those whom He knew. "Unto Adam also and to his wife
did the LORD God make coats of skins, and clothed them." (Gen 3:21
KJV) Because Christ kept His promise and did, indeed, come as the only sinless
One who could be our substitute on the cross, we have the privilege of
approaching the Mercy Seat of God and find redemption for our sins.
Christ
is not simply 'a' benefit to us; He is our All in All. Christ is all,
and in all."
(Col 3:11b) We have our beginning and our ending in Christ; and that
ending is eternity. Jesus Christ is, in mystery, associated with Melchisedec
who was a priest to Abraham and called a king of peace (which Christ is). 5 So also Christ glorified not
himself to be made an high priest; but he that said unto him, Thou art my Son,
to day have I begotten thee (not spiritually, but in the flesh). 6 As he saith also in another place,
Thou art a priest for ever after the order of Melchisedec. (Heb 5:4-6) and 1 For this Melchisedec, king of
Salem, priest of the most high God, who met Abraham returning from the
slaughter of the kings, and blessed him; 2 To whom also Abraham gave a tenth part of all;
first being by interpretation King of righteousness, and after that also King
of Salem, which is, King of peace; 3 Without
father, without mother, without descent, having neither beginning of days, nor
end of life; but made like unto the Son of God; abideth a priest continually.
(Heb 7:1-3)
Christ
is the Ancient of Days, and the Ancient Landmark (Logos or WORD). Christ was
before the first light of day. He is the executive Creator of all things in
consort with the Father and Holy Ghost All three were present at the early dawn
of Creation and all three are comprehended in the first verse of Genesis - In
the beginning, GOD! The Hebrew word for God here is 'Elohim' which is a
singular/plural. (a noun-meaning we lack in English). It means more than one,
in One. The Spirit was there as a part of 'Elohim' as well. And the Spirit of God moved upon the face
of the waters. (Gen
1:2) Do not forget Christ is strongly mentioned in John 1:1-4 as being
present at Creation and the very agent of Creation as well. He labored six days
at the dawn of Creation, and rested on the Seventh Day (Sabbath). That was the
physical Creation, but what of the spiritual Creation of His Church? Did Christ
not labor all of His ministry on earth, and the six days prior to the Sabbath.
Did He not die on the cross on the sixth day (Friday) at the very time of
sacrificing of the Passover lamb - which Lamb He was - and did He not rest in
the Garden Tomb over the Sabbath Day?
Is
this Lord of Lords whom we call our Savior and Redeemer not every whit the
Alpha and Omega? Is He not the Word, and the complete Word? He is the first
Word (Alpha) and He is the last Word (Omega). And He is all words in between.
It even works for us in the English as well as the Greek, and every other human
language. Wherefore, behold, I send unto you
prophets, and wise men, and scribes: and some of them ye shall kill
and crucify; and some of them shall ye scourge in your synagogues, and
persecute them from city to city: That upon you may come all the
righteous blood shed upon the earth, from the blood of righteous Abel unto the
blood of Zacharias son of Barachias, whom ye slew between the temple and the
altar. (Matt
23:34-35) The prophets were bearers of the Word to us, and they began
with Abel and end with Zechariah (Abel/Zecharias being our 'A' to 'Z') or Alpha
Omega! Is He your beginning and ending, as well, friends?
In PART FOUR, we will begin our
study of the Seven Candlesticks and the Seven Churches of Asia.
