Listen to sermons at FreeGraceRadio.com

Sermon #2392 — Miscellaneous Sermons

Title:                           “Alpha and Omega”

Text:                            Revelation 22:13

Subject:                     The Preeminence of Christ

Date:                          Sunday Morning — February 11, 2018

Reading:       Revelation 1:1-20

“(1) The Revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave unto him, to shew unto his servants things which must shortly come to pass; and he sent and signified it by his angel unto his servant John: (2) Who bare record of the word of God, and of the testimony of Jesus Christ, and of all things that he saw. (3) Blessed is he that readeth, and they that hear the words of this prophecy, and keep those things which are written therein: for the time is at hand. (4) John to the seven churches which are in Asia: Grace be unto you, and peace, from him which is, and which was, and which is to come; and from the seven Spirits which are before his throne; (5) And from 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. (12) And I turned to see the voice that spake with me. And being turned, I saw seven golden candlesticks; (13) And in the midst of the seven candlesticks one like unto the Son of man, clothed with a garment down to the foot, and girt about the paps with a golden girdle. (14) His head and his hairs were white like wool, as white as snow; and his eyes were as a flame of fire; (15) And his feet like unto fine brass, as if they burned in a furnace; and his voice as the sound of many waters. (16) And he had in his right hand seven stars: and out of his mouth went a sharp twoedged sword: and his countenance was as the sun shineth in his strength. (17) And when I saw him, I fell at his feet as dead. And he laid his right hand upon me, saying unto me, Fear not; I am the first and the last: (18)  I am he that liveth, and was dead; and, behold, I am alive for evermore, Amen; and have the keys of hell and of death. (19) Write the things which thou hast seen, and the things which are, and the things which shall be hereafter; (20) The mystery of the seven stars which thou sawest in my right hand, and the seven golden candlesticks. The seven stars are the angels of the seven churches: and the seven candlesticks which thou sawest are the seven churches.”

Introduction

Four times in the book of Revelation our Lord Jesus Christ appeared to John and identified himself with these words — “I am Alpha and Omega” (1:8, 11; 21:6; 22:13).

(Revelation 1:8) “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.”

(Revelation 1:11) “I am Alpha and Omega, the first and the last.”

(Revelation 21:6) “And he said unto me, It is done. I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end. I will give unto him that is athirst of the fountain of the water of life freely.”

(Revelation 22:13) “I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end, the first and the last.”

There is no great, hidden mystery hidden in these words. They are simply the first and last letters of the Greek alphabet. In our language, the words would be, “I am A and Z”. That is, “I am the beginning and the ending, the first and the last.” And as John Gill points out — “These letters, ‘Alpha and Omega,’ being the first and the last of the alphabet, may stand for the whole.” So, that the meaning is: “I am the beginning of all things and the end of all things, and everything between the beginning and the end.”

Our Eternal God

With these words, “I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the ending...the first and the last,” our Savior identifies himself as Jehovah our eternal, immutable, saving, covenant keeping God. (Isaiah 41:4; 44:6; 48:10-12). Indeed, this is what he says by way of explanation: I am “the Lord, which is, which was, and which is to come, the Almighty.” That is one of the ways by which the Lord God identifies himself as the only true God.

(Isaiah 41:4) “Who hath wrought and done it, calling the generations from the beginning? I the LORD, the first, and with the last; I am he.”

(Isaiah 44:6) “Thus saith the LORD the King of Israel, and his Redeemer the LORD of hosts; I am the first, and I am the last; and beside me there is no God.”

(Isaiah 48:10-12) “Behold, I have refined thee, but not with silver; I have chosen thee in the furnace of affliction. (11) For mine own sake, even for mine own sake, will I do it: for how should my name be polluted? And I will not give my glory unto another. (12) Hearken unto me, O Jacob and Israel, my called; I am he; I am the first, I also am the last.”

The Lord Jesus Christ, our Redeemer, is God over all, was God from eternity, and is to come as God to judge the world. He is now the Savior of all who come to God by him, was the Savior of all his saints in the Old Testament, being the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world, and is to come as the Savior of God’s elect, without sin unto salvation.

Our text speaks of the eternality of Christ, who is, who was, and who ever shall be. It also describes of our Savior’s immutability. He is always the same, unchanging and unchangeable. What he is, he always was and shall forever be. He is the same, yesterday, today, and forever. His person, his love, his virtue, and his purpose are all immutable.

And this text sets forth the glorious preeminence of Christ. As it has pleased the Father to give his Son preeminence in all things (Colossians 1:18), it is so. Christ is the Beginning of all things, the Substance of all things, and the End of all things.

Our Savior is himself God, “the Almighty!” He is the Creator of all things, the Sustainer of all things, and Ruler of all things. The One whose blood and righteousness we trust, to whose dominion we gladly submit, into whose hands we have committed our souls, is himself God, the Almighty. We have nothing to fear. Our Savior is God. We are safe in his hands (John 10:27-30).

(John 10:27-30) “My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me: (28) And I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand. (29) My Father, which gave them me, is greater than all; and no man is able to pluck them out of my Father's hand. (30) I and my Father are one.”

I call your attention particularly to these words, “I am Alpha and Omega.” That is the title of my message — “Alpha and Omega.” — I cannot begin to expound the fulness of those words. I want to just scratch the surface a little, so that we might get a glimpse of our Savior’s glorious preeminence in all things.

Glory and Humiliation

1^st — When our Savior says, “I am Alpha and Omega,” he is describing both his glory and his humiliation. — “Ye know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that, though he was rich, yet for your sakes he became poor, that ye through his poverty might be rich” (1 Corinthians 8:9). Without question, the words “Alpha and Omega” have reference to the glorious dignity of our Savior’s Person and the depths of his willing humiliation to save us.

Christ Jesus is Alpha, the First, the chief, the preeminent One, the Firstborn of every creature. Though as a man his human body was created in time in the womb of the virgin by God the Holy Ghost, yet he is the One who created all things. Therefore, he is before all things and above all things (Hebrews 1:1-14).

(Hebrews 1:1-14) “God, who at sundry times and in divers manners spake in time past unto the fathers by the prophets, (2) Hath in these last days spoken unto us by his Son, whom he hath appointed heir of all things, by whom also he made the worlds; (3) Who being the brightness of his glory, and the express image of his person, and upholding all things by the word of his power, when he had by himself purged our sins, sat down on the right hand of the Majesty on high; (4) Being made so much better than the angels, as he hath by inheritance obtained a more excellent name than they. (5) For unto which of the angels said he at any time, Thou art my Son, this day have I begotten thee? And again, I will be to him a Father, and he shall be to me a Son? (6) And again, when he bringeth in the Firstbegotten into the world, he saith, And let all the angels of God worship him. (7) And of the angels he saith, Who maketh his angels spirits, and his ministers a flame of fire. (8) But unto the Son he saith, Thy throne, O God, is for ever and ever: a sceptre of righteousness is the sceptre of thy kingdom. (9) Thou hast loved righteousness, and hated iniquity; therefore God, even thy God, hath anointed thee with the oil of gladness above thy fellows. (10) And, Thou, Lord, in the beginning hast laid the foundation of the earth; and the heavens are the works of thine hands: (11) They shall perish; but thou remainest; and they all shall wax old as doth a garment; (12) And as a vesture shalt thou fold them up, and they shall be changed: but thou art the same, and thy years shall not fail. (13) But to which of the angels said he at any time, Sit on my right hand, until I make thine enemies thy footstool? (14) Are they not all ministering spirits, sent forth to minister for them who shall be heirs of salvation?”

Christ the Best

The word “Alpha” suggests that Christ is the best. He is better than all who come before him. And if you put them all together, Christ stands head and shoulders above them all as the best. We use the same kind of language today. (We say of a car, “It is A-1.”) “Alpha” refers to the one who is at the head, the leader, the best. And our Lord Jesus Christ says of himself, “I am Alpha, I am A-1, the best of all.”

·      Is he a Son? He is the firstborn Son, the only begotten Son, the only eternal Son, the only perfectly obedient Son. All other sons are made sons by this Son.

·      Is he a Prophet? All the other prophets stand behind him by a great, infinite distance, and point to him, bearing witness of him.

·      Is he a Priest? All the other priests of the Aaronic and Levitical orders were only types of him. Their only purpose was to represent him until he came. He is the fulfillment of them all. He is the great High Priest of our profession. Christ is our Melchizedek!

·      Is he a King? Yes, he is King like no other. He is the King of kings and Lord of lords. — “His dominion is an everlasting dominion, and his kingdom from generation to generation, and all the inhabitants of the earth are reputed as nothing: and he doeth according to his will in the army of heaven, and among the inhabitants of the earth: and none can stay his hand, or say unto him, what doest thou?” He is “the King of heaven all whose works are truth, and his ways judgment” (Daniel. 4:34, 35, 37).

·      Is he the Builder of his Church? Then he is the wise Master builder.

·      Is he a Shepherd? Then he is the good Shepherd, the chief Shepherd, the great Shepherd.

·      Is he a Foundation? Then he is a tried and proven Foundation, the only sure Foundation.

·      Is he a Corner-stone? Then he is the chief Corner-stone.

·      Is he a Rock? Then he is the Rock of Safety, the Rock of Salvation, and the Rock of Refuge.

·      Is he Water? Then he is the Water of Life.

·      Is he Bread? Then he is the Bread of Heaven.

·      Is he Light? Then he is the Light of the World.

·      Is he a Refuge? Then he is a sure Refuge for our souls.

·      Is he an Angel? Then he is Michael the Archangel, the Angel of the Covenant, the Angel of God who is God.

It matters not what title our Lord takes to himself, or what character he assumes, he is in all respects Alpha, A-1. He infinitely surpasses all that may be compared to him, as the sun excels the stars. When the sun rises, all stars fade in its light. And when Christ appears, all others fade away into insignificance.

He who is best is preeminent, and well deserves the praise and glory of all. Christ is Alpha. Let no flesh glory in his presence. All who know him glory only in him and give glory only to him (Jeremiah 9:23-24).

(Jeremiah 9:23-24) “Thus saith the LORD, Let not the wise man glory in his wisdom, neither let the mighty man glory in his might, let not the rich man glory in his riches: (24) But let him that glorieth glory in this, that he understandeth and knoweth me, that I am the LORD which exercise lovingkindness, judgment, and righteousness, in the earth: for in these things I delight, saith the LORD.”

To glory in him is to…

·      Believe Him!

·      Praise Him!

·      Point to Him!

·      Proclaim His Excellence! — His Attributes! — His Feats!

Omega

We rejoice to declare that Christ is “Alpha,” the First and the best. But he is also “Omega,” the Lowest and the Last in his voluntary condescension and humiliation. — He made himself “He that is least in the Kingdom of heaven!”

How shall I describe the depths of our Lord’s humiliation. He who is God stooped to become a man! He “made himself of no reputation, and took upon him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men: and being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross” (Philippians 2:7-8). In order to save us, Christ became one of us! He became what we are that he might make us what he is.

·      He stooped to become a man.

·      He stooped again to become the lowest of men.

·      He stooped again to become the servant of men.

·      He stooped again to be made sin for men!

·      He stooped again to die as a man for men!

Behold the depths of his humiliation! When he was made sin for us, he who is God was forsaken by God, as the just object of God’s furious, infinite wrath! He cried, “My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me? Why art thou so far from helping me, and from the words of my roaring?” Then he answered his own cry. — “Thou art holy!” And a holy God cannot look upon sin. “But I am a worm, and no man; a reproach of men, and despised of the people. All they that see me laugh me to scorn: they shoot out the lip, they shake the head, saying, He trusted on the Lord that he would deliver him: let him deliver him, (if) he delighted in him” (Psalm 22:1-8).

Our Lord Jesus, the Christ, is the Omega, the Last, the least in the kingdom of heaven! He stooped to death, death under the infinite wrath and inflexible justice of God, for us! Remember, the Son of God did all of this to satisfy the justice of God for us, and to put away our sins, that we might live by him. Because he is God, Christ is Alpha. Because he is our Substitute, Christ became Omega!

The Book of God

2^nd — In the Book of Holy Scripture, the Book of God, Christ is Alpha and Omega (Luke 24:27, 44-47; John 5:39).

(Luke 24:27) “And beginning at Moses and all the prophets, he expounded unto them in all the Scriptures the things concerning himself.”

(Luke 24:44-47 “And he said unto them, These are the words which I spake unto you, while I was yet with you, that all things must be fulfilled, which were written in the law of Moses, and in the prophets, and in the psalms, concerning me. (45) Then opened he their understanding, that they might understand the scriptures, (46) And said unto them, Thus it is written, and thus it behoved Christ to suffer, and to rise from the dead the third day: (47) And that repentance and remission of sins should be preached in his name among all nations, beginning at Jerusalem.”

(John 5:39) “Search the scriptures; for in them ye think ye have eternal life: and they are they which testify of me.”

Christ is Alpha, the Beginning, for the first line of Genesis speaks of him. — “In the beginning God.” And he is Omega, the Ending, for the last line of Revelation speaks of him. — “The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you all.” And he is everything between. I repeat what I have said so often before. Every book of the Bible, every chapter, every verse, every word speaks of Christ. If you could squeeze the whole Bible down to its very essence and substance, you would find Christ, only Christ, and nothing but Christ in the Scriptures. He is the living Word of whom the written Word speaks.

I cannot find better language to express what I want to say than the words of C. H. Spurgeon…

“Brethren, we should always read Scripture in this light; we should consider the Word to be as a mirror into which Christ looks down from heaven; and, then, we looking into it see his face reflected as in a glass-darkly, it is true, but still in such a way as to be a blessed preparation for seeing him as we shall see him face to face. This volume contains Jesus Christ’s letters to us, performed by his love. These pages are the garments of our King, and they all smell of myrrh, and aloes, and cassia. Scripture is the golden chariot in which Jesus rides, and it is paved with love for the daughters of Jerusalem. The Scriptures are the swaddling bands of the holy child, Jesus; unroll them, and you find your Savior. Talk not to us of bodies of divinity — the only body of divinity is the Person of Christ. As for theology, Christ is the true theology — the incarnate Word of God; and if you can comprehend him you have grasped all the truth. He is made unto us Wisdom; getting him you have the wisdom of the Scriptures.”

The whole message of the Bible is Jesus Christ and him crucified. The Word of God is an alabaster box full of spikenard very precious. Break it open, and you smell nothing but the sweet aroma of Jesus Christ, our Redeemer, crucified.

The Old Testament, from Genesis to Malachi, proclaims one message. — The Redeemer is coming!

·      The Woman’s Promised Seed

·      Abel’s Sacrifice

·      Noah’s Ark

·      Shiloh who Shall Come

·      The Passover

·      The Mercy-Seat

In the Old Testament, the prophets and the kings, the priests and the prophets all look one way. They all stand like cherubs over the ark, desiring to see God’s great Propitiation.

The four Gospels and the Book of Acts all proclaim one message. — The Redeemer has come! Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John record in meticulous detail the incarnation, earthly life, ministry, death, and resurrection of Christ as the sinner’s Substitute. They speak of nothing else. And, in the book of Acts, Luke records the works of Christ the ascended King. The writer of Holy Scripture had nothing else to say but, — “Christ, the Redeemer has come!”

The Epistles and the Book of Revelation declare one message. — The Redeemer is coming again. From Romans through Revelation the apostles of Christ expound to us the meaning of our Lord’s doctrine and call upon us to watch for his coming with expectant hearts. Soon he shall appear to gather his redeemed ones to himself.

In the Book of God Christ is Alpha and Omega. Remove Christ from the pages of this Book and nothing is left, but processed wood in leather covers.

God’s Holy Law

3^rd — It gives me great delight to tell you that, with regard to the holy law of God, Christ is Alpha and Omega. Christ is the Lawgiver, and so he is the Alpha, the Beginning of the law. And Christ is the fulfillment of the law, and so he is the Omega. — “Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to everyone that believeth” (Romans 10:4).

You and I are neither Alpha nor Omega to the law. We have broken it altogether. We have not met, and cannot meet, its demands. Who among the sons of men dares to claim that he has met the first letter of the law? — “Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart.” What fallen son of Adam shows any real fulfilment of the law’s second letter? — “Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself!”

If you would see the law fulfilled, look to Christ. He alone honors God’s law. He alone has kept the law. He alone has fulfilled the law. The Lord Jesus Christ fulfilled the law’s requirements perfectly. He loved God with all his heart. He loved his neighbor as himself. Christ satisfied the law’s justice. Christ removed the law’s curse and penalty from us. Christ put an end to the law’s covenant.

Our dear Savior obeyed the law and satisfied the law as our Representative and Substitute. And his obedience is our righteousness. We are not under the law, but under grace (Romans 6:14; 7:4; 8:1; Galatians 3:13, 24, 24; 1 Timothy 1:8-10; Colossians 2:10-23).

We look to Christ alone for holiness and righteousness. We have no righteousness of our own with which to commend ourselves to God. We trust Christ, who is “the Lord our Righteousness.” Christ is our holiness. He is our righteousness. We do not claim to have attained righteousness. We do not look to our virtue for merit with God. Our only saving, sanctifying righteousness and holiness is the Lord Jesus Christ. We trust Christ alone for acceptance with God. With his righteousness, we are complete, perfect, holy, and forever accepted in the Beloved!

In the words of our text, Christ is the “Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the ending” of God’s holy law. There is not one precept he has not perfectly fulfilled for us in its widest possible sense. The spirit of the law breathes through his whole life of obedience to God. And the letter of the law was satisfied in its infinite extremity by his death.

·      The law demands perfection. But it cannot demand, nor can it have, greater perfection than we have in Christ, by Christ, from Christ, and with Christ!

·      The law demands satisfaction. But it cannot require, nor can it find, greater satisfaction than we offer in the blood of our dear Substitute. Christ is Alpha and Omega to the law.

God’s Creation

4^th — It is delightful to see that in the whole of God’s creation Christ is Alpha and Omega. He is the Beginning of all things, the Ending of all things, and the Ruler and Sustainer of all things between the Beginning and the Ending.

Christ is the Alpha of creation. For all things were created by him (John 1:1-3). Christ is the Omega of creation. For all things were created for him (Revelation 4:11). In the end, it shall be plainly revealed that every creature in God’s universe has served him and been used by him for the glory of Christ, both the righteous and the wicked, either willingly or unwillingly (Revelation 5:11-14).

(Revelation 5:11-14) “And I beheld, and I heard the voice of many angels round about the throne and the beasts and the elders: and the number of them was ten thousand times ten thousand, and thousands of thousands; (12) Saying with a loud voice, Worthy is the Lamb that was slain to receive power, and riches, and wisdom, and strength, and honour, and glory, and blessing. (13) And every creature which is in heaven, and on the earth, and under the earth, and such as are in the sea, and all that are in them, heard I saying, Blessing, and honour, and glory, and power, be unto him that sitteth upon the throne, and unto the Lamb for ever and ever. (14) And the four beasts said, Amen. And the four and twenty elders fell down and worshipped him that liveth for ever and ever.”

From the beginning to the ending of creation Christ rules and sustains all things for the glory of his own great being (Revelation. 4:11-14). With the eye of a scientist, study God’s vast creation from beginning to end. With the eye of a historian, read all the pages of His-story. And with the eye of a prophet scan the whole future. If you had the ability to do so, you would say, with regard to all God’s creation, “Christ is Alpha and Omega.”

Covenant Transactions

5^th — Let me briefly remind you that in all the purposes and covenant transactions of the Triune God Christ is Alpha and Omega. This is a subject which the most gifted preacher could never exhaust, though he perpetually preached upon it. Many books could be written about it, and still we could, at best, barely scratch the surface. The thoughts of God, his eternal purposes, his sovereign decrees, his everlasting covenant, are all things about which we see only a little. But of this we are sure — Christ is the Beginning of all and the Ending of All, the Alpha and the Omega of all the purpose of the Triune Jehovah (Isaiah 45:5-25).

·      Election is God’s choice of some and his determination to save them in Christ (Ephesians 1:4).

·      Predestination is God’s eternal decree to make all his elect like his Son, Jesus Christ (Romans 8:29-30).

·      The Covenant of Grace is God’s eternal purpose to save a people by the merits of his Son and for the glory of his Son (Hebrews 10:5-7, 10-14, 15-17).

If you could be permitted to read the book of God’s eternal purpose, you would see that it is a book written from eternity, sealed with immutably, bound together by the blood of the sin-atoning Lamb slain from the foundation of the world, written from beginning to end with one object in mind — and that object is the eternal glory of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Son of God. The book of God’s purpose begins by exalting Christ as the sinner’s Substitute, with the glory, which he had with the Father before the world was made. In the purposes of God Christ is Alpha and Omega.

Salvation

6^th — My very soul rejoices to tell you that in the whole business of salvation the Lord Jesus Christ is Alpha and Omega. I am sure that this is included in our text, because in the words preceding that declaration John had just described the works of salvation and ascribed them all to the Lord Jesus Christ.

·      He loved us in the beginning.

·      He redeemed us in time.

·      And he is coming for us in the end.

Yes, in the whole work of salvation, Christ is Alpha and Omega, the Beginning and the Ending, the First and the Last, and everything between. — “Thy Salvation!”

·      Christ is the Alpha of salvation, for he called us from death to life by the power of his Spirit (John 5:25).

·      Christ shall present us holy, unblameable, and unreproveable to his Father by the merits of his blood and righteousness in the end, so he is the Omega of salvation (Colossians 1:22).

·      And Christ is everything between, because, from beginning to end, he holds us in life by the power of his grace. He says, “Those that thou gavest me I have kept, and none of them is lost” (John 17:12).

Child of God, lean upon Christ with all the weight of your soul. Cast yourself entirely upon him. He will not fail. He who began will finish. He who called you will keep you. He never was Alpha yet without being Omega too.

Christ, Who chose us in love,

And bought us with His blood,

Reigns as our Surety above,

And He will do us good:

He will not leave His own,

Nor let His own leave Him:

Our Lord will bring us to His throne,

To ever be with Him!

Heaven’s Glory

7^th — Once more, in heaven’s eternal glory Christ shall be both Alpha and Omega. In Revelation 22:13, our Lord Jesus announces his glorious appearance with these very words, “I am Alpha and Omega, the Beginning and the End, the First and the Last.” When all the promises and prophecies of Holy Scripture are fulfilled, when the mystery of God’s eternal purpose has been completed, when the judgment is over, when the damned are forever cast into hell and the righteous are forever with the Lord, when the new heavens and the new earth have been created, when time shall be no more, when the eternal glory has begun, Christ shall be Alpha and Omega!

·      Christ shall be the Door of entrance, by whose merit we enter into heaven, and the first and foremost object of our vision, and so he is the Alpha.

·      And Christ is the Fulness, the consummation, and the glory of heaven’s eternal, unending joy and reward, and so he is the Omega.

From eternity to eternity, forever and ever, Christ is Alpha and Omega, our eternal, unchanging God and Savior!

In those cruel days when deaf mutes were institutionalized in one of the institutions in Paris, France, a man was asked to write on a piece of slate what his idea of Christ’s eternity was. This is what he wrote…

“It is duration without beginning or end; existence without bounds or dimensions; present without past or future. His eternity is youth without infancy or old age; life without birth or death; today without yesterday or tomorrow.”

That, my friend, is Christ, the eternal Alpha and Omega, the eternal Beginning and Ending, the eternal First and Last. In eternity, heaven, earth, and hell shall adore the Lord Jesus Christ as Alpha and Omega. Hallelujah! Hallelujah! Jesus Christ reigns forever “Alpha and Omega, the Beginning and the Ending…. the Lord, which is, and which was and which is to come, the Almighty!”

Application

·      Make the Lord Jesus Christ the Alpha and the Omega of your heart’s trust. Begin with him now and you shall end with him in glory.

·      Child of God, make Christ the Alpha and the Omega of your heart’s love.

·      Make Christ the Alpha and the Omega of your life’s work.

·      Pray for your pastor, that I may make Christ the Alpha and the Omega of all my preaching, all our worship, and all our praise.

As through this world of time I move,

In hope of heav’n and life above,

Thinking of God’s creation vast,

My Savior is the First and Last.

His name with sweet delight I view,

He’s Alpha and Omega, too!

He drew creation’s wondrous plan,

And finished what He first began.

When on His Word my eye is cast,

Christ Jesus is the First and Last;

And all the mercies there made known,

Their Alpha and Omega crown.

His work of grace within reveals

He’s Alpha and Omega, still;

From first to last His glories show,

And lay this wretched sinner low.

O Holy Ghost, make Christ to be,

Alpha and Omega to me!

Oh, consecrate my life to Him,

Who died for me, God’s Son, the Lamb!

Then, when the toils of life are past,

Jesus shall be the First and Last;

And when I bow before my King,

I’ll Alpha and Omega sing!

Amen.

Don Fortner

Pastor Fortner’s

Audio Sermons

Video Sermons

Books

Itinerary