The Alpha and The Omega!

 The Book of Revelation is a book of prophecy that God himself gave to His Son, Jesus, to show his servants (The Church) what is to come. Jesus did this by sending his angel to give the prophecy to the Apostle John, who was in exile on the Island of Patmos, and who in turn recorded it for the Church.

It is within this revelation that the God refers to himself as the Alpha and the Omega. These are two Greek words, Alpha meaning ‘the beginning’ and Omega meaning ‘the end.’

In this article I will attempt to show how significant and meaningful these phrases are to the Church, throughout the ages, within a biblical context.

Revelation 1:8 (NIV)

“I am the Alpha and the Omega,” says the Lord God, “who is, and who was, and who is to come, the Almighty.”

In the verse above we are told that the one speaking the words is the ‘Lord God’ himself. Personally, when I see these to words together I get the picture of the Holy Trinity, God referring to himself as Father, Son and holy Spirit!

So’ let’s have a look at the Greek words for ‘Lord’ and ‘God’ to gain a full picture of the greatness of God.

The Greek word for ‘Lord’ is ‘Kurios’ and its full meaning is ‘a person exercising absolute ownership rights.’

And the Greek word for ‘God’ is ‘Theos’ and its full meaning is ‘God, the Creator and owner of all things, the supreme being.’

It is also interesting to note that God also refers to Himself as “the Almighty” and when we enfold this into ‘Lord’ and ‘God’ we have a wonderful picture if the ‘Supreme Creator and Master of All. There is no one greater than our God!

Now, let’s examine the Greek word for ‘Almighty’ so that we can fully realise the full significance of Revelation 1:8.

The Greek word for ‘Almighty’ is the masculine noun ‘pantokratór’ (Strong’s 3841) and means: the almighty, ruler of the universe, ruler of all, the Omnipotent. This is our God! There is none like Him!

Isaiah 45:5-6 (NIV)

5 I am the Lord, and there is no other;

apart from me there is no God.

I will strengthen you,

though you have not acknowledged me,

6 so that from the rising of the sun

to the place of its setting

people may know there is none besides me.

I am the Lord, and there is no other.

It is interesting to note that in the verses above God refers to Himself as both Lord and God as He does in Revelation 1:8. Our God is one God and He is the same yesterday, today and forever!

Deuteronomy 6:4 (NIV)

Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one.

And these same words were echoed by Jesus Himself. He spoke these words when on of the teachers of the law asked Him what the greatest commandment was.

Mark 12:29-30 (NIV)

“The most important one,” answered Jesus, “is this: ‘Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one. 30 Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.

Now, dear readers, let’s look at the Alpha and the Omega separately, on their own!

The Alpha

For the beginning we naturally travel back to the Book of Genesis, which of course means the origin of all things, the beginning. The beginning of everything that was created, the world, the heavens, sun, moon and stars, man, and every other living thing!

Genesis 1:1-2 (AMP)

1 In the beginning God (Elohim) created [by forming from nothing] the heavens and the earth. 2 The earth was formless and void or a waste and emptiness, and darkness was upon the face of the deep [primeval ocean that covered the unformed earth]. The Spirit of God was moving (hovering, brooding) over the face of the waters.

So, in the above two verses we have God, right at the beginning forming the heavens and the earth from nothing, and the holy Spirit there also, hovering or brooding as some versions say over the waters waiting for God to speak so that He can begin to create. The Holy Spirit is the creative power of God.

From verse 3 in Genesis 1 God begins to speak and creation begins and is completed in six days. We serve an awesome God. There is no God like our God! Today we say only a whisper of His awesome power! We live in the power of God through Jesus Christ our Saviour.

Job 26:14 NLT

These are just the beginning of all that he does, merely a whisper of his power. Who, then, can comprehend the thunder of his power?

2 Corinthians 13:4 (AMP)

For even though He was crucified in weakness [yielding Himself], yet He lives [resurrected] by the power of God [His Father]. For we too are weak in Him [as He was humanly weak], yet we are alive and well [in fellowship] with Him because of the power of God directed toward you.

Our God is the beginning, the Alpha, of all things!

Jeremiah 10:12 (NIV)

But God made the earth by his power;

he founded the world by his wisdom

and stretched out the heavens by his understanding.

The Omega – The End

The Day of the Lord!

The end of Sin! The end of all things as we know it! The end of unrepentant sinners! The end of Babylon the Great – the word systems that control and manipulate society across the globe! The end of Satan and demonic influence! The end of evil! Our God is Sovereign!

The Lord will come on the day God has appointed. No one knows the day or the hour only the father knows, and He will come like a thief in the night and the old will perish in fire!

2 Peter 3:7 & 10 (AMP)

7 But by His word the present heavens and earth are being reserved for fire, being kept for the day of judgment and destruction of the ungodly people.

10But the day of the Lord will come like a thief, and then the heavens will vanish with a [mighty and thunderous] roar, and the [material] elements will be destroyed with intense heat, and the earth and the works that are on it will be burned up.

The sun turns black, and the moon becomes blood red. The sky will disappear and ever island and mountain will vanish as if they had never been!

Revelation 6:12-14 (NIV)

12 I watched as he opened the sixth seal. There was a great earthquake. The sun turned black like sackcloth made of goat hair, the whole moon turned blood red, 13 and the stars in the sky fell to earth, as figs drop from a fig tree when shaken by a strong wind. 14 The heavens receded like a scroll being rolled up, and every mountain and island was removed from its place.

Isaiah 13:9-11 (NLT)

9 For see, the day of the Lord is coming—

the terrible day of his fury and fierce anger.

The land will be made desolate,

and all the sinners destroyed with it.

10 The heavens will be black above them;

the stars will give no light.

The sun will be dark when it rises,

and the moon will provide no light.

11 “I, the Lord, will punish the world for its evil

and the wicked for their sin.

I will crush the arrogance of the proud

and humble the pride of the mighty.

Just as everything was created through and for Jesus as the Alpha (Genesis 1), the beginning, so He has been appointed to judge mankind as the Omega, the end!

Acts 10:42 (NLT)

And he ordered us to preach everywhere and to testify that Jesus is the one appointed by God to be the judge of all—the living and the dead.

2 Corinthians 5:10 (NIV)

And he ordered us to preach everywhere and to testify that Jesus is the one appointed by God to be the judge of all—the living and the dead.

Acts 17:30-31 (NIV) – brackets in text are mine

30 In the past God overlooked such ignorance, but now he commands all people everywhere to repent. 31 For he has set a day when he will judge the world with justice by the man he has appointed. He has given proof of this to everyone by raising him (Jesus) from the dead.”

John 5:22-23 (NIV)

22 Moreover, the Father judges no one, but has entrusted all judgment to the Son, 23 that all may honor the Son just as they honor the Father. Whoever does not honor the Son does not honor the Father, who sent him.

Summary Chart

Revelation 22:13 (NIV)

I am the Alpha and the Omega, the First and the Last, the Beginning and the End.

But! For the born-again Christian our hope lies after the end of this age! Eternity – eternal fellowship with God in the New Heaven and the New Earth! But that’s an article for another time!

Revelation 21: 1-4 (NIV)

Then I saw “a new heaven and a new earth,” for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and there was no longer any sea. 2 I saw the Holy City, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride beautifully dressed for her husband. 3 And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “Look! God’s dwelling place is now among the people, and he will dwell with them. They will be his people, and God himself will be with them and be their God. 4 ‘He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death’ or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away.”

“Come, Lord Jesus! Come!”

Prayer
Dear Father
In the name of Jesus, I pray that by your Holy Spirit you would strengthen me to endure and fulfil the purpose that you created me for, and remain faithful to you until the end of my life on earth. Amen!

To Jesus belongs all glory, honour and praise!

Jesus the Name above all names!

Remember: Reading this article is no substitute for reading and studying the Bible for yourself! I am flawed the Bible is not!