Sermon Central
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Alpha And Omega Series
Contributed by Rick Stacy on Dec 15, 2003 (message contributor)
Summary: 7th in series. There is always a beginning and there is always an end. Jesus is both.
Slide #1
Review Names of God
Slide #2
Slide #3
There is always a beginning and there is always an end.
There is a beginning
“In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth”
For as long as I have been alive I have heard the noise of the debate between the proponents of evolution and special creation.
Both take faith because neither has been nor can they be proven. To prove something scientifically it must be both observable and repeatable. So far, no one has observed the creation of anything let alone repeat it.
I believe in God as the creator quite frankly because it is more reasonable and takes less faith.
In any case no matter whether by evolution or by creation there is a beginning.
In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2 He was with God in the beginning.
That there is a beginning is self evident. Even Voltaire, the famous atheist of the eighteenth century has been quoted to say, “The world embarrasses me, and I cannot dream that this watch exists and has no watchmaker.”
And the watchmaker is God, who is the Alpha and Omega the first and the last, the beginning an the end, who is Jesus.
There is a beginning and there is an end. The older I get the more I recognize this simple reality.
Christmas Day as a child was a day that was (and is) much anticipated. You thought it would never come – but it always did.
And then it was done. The wrapping paper was ripped off and was strewn about. The food was consumed and the football game watched. The batteries were drained, the toys were cast aside, and the children had played, fought, shared, and run through the house. Now, it was done. There is an end to Christmas Day.
There is a beginning and an end to Man’s day
Slide #4
Jesus is the Alpha and the Omega
God is called the beginning and end in the Old Testament
“Who has controlled history since the beginning?
I, the Lord, am the one. I was here at the beginning, and I will be here when all things are finished.”
He was called the Aleph and Tav
LORD is in all capital letters – this indicates the original word here is YAHWEH, the personal name of God.
He is here called the first and the last. The Alpha & Omega. Well, that is the greek first and last letters. The Hebrew letters are the Aleph & Tav. In both Hebrew and Greek the letters were used also as their numbers. First and last. Beginning and end.
God was also called the truth. Truth – Aleph-mem-tav – or the beginning, middle, and the end.
Slide #5
Jesus is called the beginning and end in the New Testament
Rev 22:12-13
12 “Listen! I am coming soon! I will bring my reward with me, and I will repay each one of you for what you have done. 13 I am the Alpha and the Omega, a the First and the Last, the Beginning and the End.
In John 1:1 Jesus was called the “word”. The original word in the greek is “logos”. It means much more than simply a “word”. It is better translated “message”. Jesus is a message from God to humankind.
John also recorded that Jesus said that he was the “truth”. In John 14:6 he said, “I am the way, the truth and the life. No man comes to the father but by me.”
Jesus is the alphabet!
And in revelations, also written by the apostle John Jesus is called the Alpha and Omega. He is the first and the Last; the beginning and the end. Jesus is not just the word. He is the alphabet. He is from A-Z and everything in between.
Slide #6
The Christmas story has a beginning and an end
The beginning is familiar
It is a story of shepherds and wise men, of God’s angels and Herod’s soldiers. The journey of Mary and Joseph from Nazareth to Bethlehem on a cold and starry night has been retold in uncountable children’s programs and Christmas pageants. It is a story that leads to a manger filled with straw and a baby swaddled in a blanket.
The end, though not joyful, is familiar too
It is also a story of common folks and uncommon rulers, of God’s angels gathered to watch in horror rather than singing in celestial joy. It is a story with Mary standing at the foot of the cross being held by John and remembering the tiny baby. It is a story of betrayal, touching moments with good friends, trials and trumped up accusations.
