Alpha and Omega

In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. (Genesis 1:1 NIV)

“Look, I am coming soon! My reward is with me, and I will give to each person according to what they have done. I am the Alpha and the Omega, the First and the Last, the Beginning and the End." (Revelation 22:12-13 NIV)

The God of the Bible is the Creator of all things, not a created one. This God reveals Himself as the eternal God, without beginning and without end. In the beginning God... We find this great truth again in Psalm 90, verses 1 and 2:

Lord, you have been our dwelling place throughout all generations. Before the mountains were born or you brought forth the whole world, from everlasting to everlasting you are God.

We humans measure most everything by time. We live in the present. We look back at the past and forward to the future. Everything in our world has a beginning and will have an end. Products carry a manufacture date, and we all know that "nothing lasts forever" (except God and eternal life, that is!).

When Moses stood before God at the burning bush, He asked God His name, in case the Israelites wanted to know which god sent him to deliver them. God's response reveals His nature.

Moses said to God, “Suppose I go to the Israelites and say to them, ‘The God of your fathers has sent me to you,’ and they ask me, ‘What is his name?’ Then what shall I tell them?” God said to Moses, “I AM WHO I AM. This is what you are to say to the Israelites: ‘I AM has sent me to you.’” (Exodus 3:12-13 NIV)

"I AM who I AM." I AM the God who exists. I see a couple of important theological truths in this. First, all other beings have their being in His being. We exists because He exists. If God were ever to cease to exist, so would the universe, and so would we. The second implication of our God being the God who exists is that God is the same forever. In saying, "My name is: I exist" God is also saying "I AM whom I have always been" and "I AM what I shall always be." He is the same, yesterday, today and forever.

No one created God, because God has always existed. If the one, true God had a Creator, then that Creator would really be God. The LORD is God, and there is no other.

Because God is eternal, He can guarantee us eternal life. Only an eternal God can give eternal life. And that is exactly what Jesus tells Nicodemus that God has done.

For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life. (John 3:16 NIV)

No being with a life span can grant eternal life. But the Living God has granted eternal life through the death and resurrection of His Son!

God's eternal nature means He is utterly faithful. Hebrews 13:8 makes this claim about Jesus: Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever. And any claim made about the Son is also true of the Father and the Spirit - the three Persons of our Triune God. God does not change. He is always faithful.

God's eternal nature also means that the true nature of reality is eternal, not temporal. This world is not all there is. It is a grave mistake to build our lives around this world and its stuff. Happiness in this life is not our ultimate goal or highest good. God is more interested in making us holy than making us happy. He knows that being brought to Christlikeness in holy love produces deep joy, and that living this life with an eternal perspective leads to eternal happiness. That's why Jesus directly taught this:

“Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moths and vermin destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moths and vermin do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also." (Matthew 6:19-21 NIV)

God is the Eternal One who can grant us eternity. To find freedom, fulfillment and eternal life, we must look to Jesus, surrender our lives to Him, and live our lives to honor Him. The One who is Alpha and Omega will take care of the rest.