I am the Alpha and the Omega—the beginning and the end,” says the Lord God. “I am the one who is, who always was, and who is still to come—the Almighty One.” [Revelation 1:8 (NLT)]
In the book of Revelation, when Jesus says He is the Alpha (the beginning), He also says He is the Omega (the end). He’s not talking of alphabets but rather the absolute beginning, revealed in Genesis, and the absolute end, revealed in Revelation. God had the first word when He spoke the universe into existence and He will have the last word when the world as we know it ends.
Much of the prophecy in the Bible is frightening and it was meant to be. Jeremiah’s warnings to Judah were as urgent as the weather alerts on our phones that tell us to take cover because of an approaching tornado. That kind of warning, while frightening, is meant to save lives. On the other hand, there are other prophecies in the Bible that give us hope. Consider Isaiah’s prophecies of a Messiah, the many prophecies that the people of Judah would return from their captivity in Babylon, and Revelation’s hopeful words that describe a time when death is gone, evil disappears, there are no more tears and sorrow, and all things are made new.
Hidden in Revelation’s joyful news, however, is the prophecy that there will be a final judgment which, depending on the person, can be good or bad news. For those who put their faith in Christ—who thirst of His water—there is nothing to fear; Jesus is forever. For those who ignored previous warnings and failed to put their faith in Christ, however, the eternality of hell awaits.
That Jesus is both the Alpha and Omega is a reminder to all of us: be ready! There will be a time when everyone will give an account to God of his or her life. Jesus is not the omega the way Z ends the alphabet. He’s not like the last page of a book with a finite number of pages. Jesus is the end of an eternal and everlasting book. Whether that never-ending book is set in the New Jerusalem, where God lives among his people, is entirely up to us.
