Randall Caselman
Bella Vista Church of Christ
06/14/2020 A.M.
THE I AM SAYINGS OF JESUS
“I Am The Alpha & The Omega”
Revelation 1.4-8 22.12-14 & 17 21.1-8
Today… We are going back to February… We lacked one lesson completing the Series on The I’AM Sayings Of Jesus.
We come to the end of our Series hearing Jesus say… I Am The Alpha & The Omega.
We have established the fact that… Every time Jesus said… I AM… His Jewish audience understood Him to say… I AM…GOD… JEHOVAH… YAHWEH...
He was saying...
• I am your God because The Father lives in Me and I live in Him…
• The Father and I are one...
• when you’ve seen me… You have see the father.
Understanding this... They frequently attempted to take His life for blasphemy.
So… This Morning… We come to Revelation...
Chapter 1… Look, He iscoming with the clouds, and every eye will see Him, even those who pierced Him; and all the peoples of the earth will mourn because of Him. So shall it be!... I am the Alpha and the Omega says the Lord God... Who is... Who was... Who is to come... The Almighty.
Chapter 22… Behold, I am coming soon! My reward is with Me... I will give to everyone according to what he has done. I am the Alpha and the Omega... The First... The Last... The Beginning... and The End.
What I want to do with the lesson is...
• To think about Jesus being the ALPHA... As in His pre-existent state... Jesus before His coming into our world as God in the flesh...
• Then we’ll examine what Scripture has to say about His being the Omega... His ending the present age with His Second Coming.
So... With this goal in mind...
Let’s examine two places where we see Jesus before His incarnation...
The first is Genesis… I think it interesting that Genesis makes no attempt to explain the existence of God...The Bible just assumes His existence.
In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. The earth was formless and empty, darkness was over the surface of the deep, and the Spirit of God hovered over the waters.
Note three things...
One... The word for God here is ELOHIYM...(EL-O-HEEM)
This word is plural... Meaning that there must be more than one within the God-Circle.
Two... One of the God-Circle... God-head... Is mentioned in verse two... The SPIRIT OF GOD hovers over the waters.
Three... Verse 26... God said… Let us make man... In our image... In our likeness.
Interesting that... In the first days of creation...God DOESN’T consult with anyone... God commands and it is done.
But... When it comes to humankind... God consults... Let us make Man... in our Own Image... likeness.
Who was God speaking to?...
We find the answer in John chapter one… The second place we see Jesus in His Pre-existent state… In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was with God in the beginning. Through him all things were made... without him nothing was made that has been made.
So... Let’s see what we learn about Jesus before His Incarnation…
He existed In the Beginning...
John goes BEYOND THE CREATED BEGINNING... Beyond recorded history.
John reaches back further... And plunges deeper... than Genesis chapter one.
The beginning of Jesus and HIS STORY takes us beyond our world of time and space... To the wonder and sweep of the ONE WHO INHABITS ETERNITY.
Here...We are brought to the Source… the origin… of all things.
We must know that Jesus the Son was NOT the beginning... He existed in the beginning.
Other Scriptures affirm His pre-existence...
• Peter said of Jesus... He was chosen before the creation of the world... But FOR OUR SAKE WAS revealed in these last times.
• Revelation 13.8 speaks of… The Lamb that was slain from the creation of the world.
Perhaps there’s no way for us to plumb the depths of this truth… That Jesus existed in the beginning... But it is true…
• The God we serve...
• The Jesus who saves us...
Are coexistent... co-equal... Self-EXISTENT...Self-sufficient & Eternal!... THE lord God almighty... From ever lasting to ever lasting…He is God!
Even though we may not be able to comprehend it… We must accept this faith fact.
Our God is…
• eternally self-existent...
• Without beginning or end.
Think of Him existing in a circle... Ever lasting... No beginning... No end.
Secondly... In the beginning was the… Word… LOGOS.
Technically... Logos had at least three meanings to the Hebrew mind of John’s day...
First Logos spoke of communication... The word.. In the meaning we give it today.
Secondly... Logos was used to speak of a saying that was both truth and wise.
For instance the Bible is the Logos of God... It’s an instrument of truth and wisdom.
Thirdly... The Word can be used to speak of... An affair... An event... an action.
For instance… God’s spoken… WORD… Logos… Caused… And still causes…Things to happen... His spoken word has power behind it…
• God spoke the world into existence…
• His Word made them male and female in His image...
• God’s Word caused Abraham to leave his homeland…
• It was this Word that caused Sarah to conceive a son.
• His Word broke the shackles of Egyptian bondage...
• Separated the waters of the Red Sea...
• Parted the Jordan....
• And caused the walls of Jericho to fall.
Jesus is God’s Logos… God’s Event!
Question… IS His communication… His truth and wisdom... Is HIS Jesus event… Making any difference… Making Any DifferencE… in your life and mine?
Thirdly... This Word was with God.
This uncreated Word did not exist in LONELY ISOLATION... But was with God... Coexistent with God in a unique and un-interruptive fellowship.
The Word was God.
Our word incarnation comes from the Latin… And literally means... EMBODIMENT... OR… THE ASSUMPTION… OF HUMANITY.
Incarnation is…
• GOD BEING MANIFESTED IN HUMAN TERMS...
• GOD WITH SKIN ON…
• GOD IN FLESH & BLOOD...
• The God Man.
An explanation of His pre-existence is found in Colossians 1.15-18... He is the image of the invisible God... For by Him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things were created by Him and for Him. He is before all things, and in him all things hold together. He is the head of the body, the church; He is the beginning and the firstborn from among the dead, so that in everything He might have the supremacy.
You see church… The incarnation levels the playing field... It lets us know that...
• Our God understands our frailties...
• Our shortcomings...
• Our doubts and fears...
• Our sin tendencies...
Not just because He created us... But because He came to live and die as one of us.
Isaiah predicted that He would be familiar with our suffering and grief.
The Hebrews’ Writer says... We don’t have a High Priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but one who has been tempted in every way, just as we--yet without sin.
Praise God… For the incarnation... For the Pre-existent One becoming flesh... AMEN?
Then in Revelation we hear Jesus say… I am the Alpha & the Omega…
The beginning and the end… Who… was… is… And is to come.
Go with me to a small intimate gathering... Just outside the city limits of Jerusalem... A place called Mount of Olives... Just Jesus and His Apostles.
Jesus speaks… You will be My witness... In Jerusalem... In Judea... Samaria... And to the ends of the earth.
While saying these words...
• His feet left the ground…
• He began to ascend into the heavens... Into the sky...
• Jesus slowly disappears into the clouds.
At that moment… They became aware of two angelic like beings... Two men… Dressed in white... Saying... Why do you stand gazing into the sky... This same Jesus who has been taken up from you will one day come... Just as you have seen Him go.
We must know this morning... That these Angelic Beings are telling those of us in this assembly...
• That one day...
• Any day-now...
• A day like today...
Jesus will make another appearance in human history... Coming in the clouds of the sky... In the same manner as they saw Him go.
• The Second Coming is a major Bible doctrine...
• It’s mentioned in all but four books of the New Testament.
• There are 318 references to His return in the 216 chapters from Matthew to Revelation.
Church... Jesus is coming again... We will stand in His presence...
• Every eye will see Him...
• Every knee will bow in acknowledgment of His deity...
• Every tongue will confess that He is the Son of God... The I AM THAT I AM... God in the flesh.
Let’s see what we can learn about
Jesus’ Final Appearance.. His being the omega!!
First... We need to be ready... Anticipate His Coming.
• The early church...
• The primitive church of the First Century…
Looked forward To His coming.
They lived in daily anticipation of this promised event… They…
• Wanted...
• Waited...
• Longed for...
• Prayed for...
• Expected…
Jesus to return in their lifetime.
We’ve lost this excitement… haven’t we?
Our challenge from Jesus is that we anticipate His coming!!
Maranatha was a word on their lips...
Maranatha is one of those Aramaic words never translated in our King James Bibles.
It’s found in 1 Corinthians 16.22 in our King James... Footnoted in the modern speech translations... It means… Lord Come quickly... or come O Lord.
Their anticipation of His coming impacted their lives daily...
• It changed how they lived...
• It rearranged their priorities…
• This Christian greeting became a constant reminder of their hope.
Question...
• Are we anticipating His Coming?...
• Do we want Jesus to return today?... Right now?...
• Are we ready?...
• Are we praying for His return...
• Does His coming make any difference… Any difference… In the way we live... How we treat others?
Another word for the early church was PAROUSIA... (Par-oo-see-ah).
Parousia speaks to us of…
• The imminent...
• Soon to be...
• For sure…
Coming of Jesus.
Parousia says... Jesus' coming is a guaranteed event.
Peter concludes…
• The Lord will come... His coming will be sure...
• As sure as the flood in Noah’s time.
• Like the flood it’ll be... A surprise event... Like a thief in the night.
Another interesting Greek word is EPIPHANEIA... (Ep-if-an-i-ah).
It appears six times in the Greek text of our New Testament.
Five times it is translated appearing… Once it is rendered brightness.
The idea... The connotation... Is that there will be... a WorldWide visual sighting of His coming... An event of such brightness that... Every eye shall see Him.
Outside the Bible... This Greek word is used to describe the sudden brightness of the stars at night.
It’s like sitting on the deck at dusk… We spot the first evening star… And while we’re looking at it… suddenly… There are bright stars all around.
They were unseen...Then all of a sudden their brightness is visible to all.
We’re all familiar with the word apocaypse...
In the New Testament… The Greek is always translated reveal.
The word literally means... To take the cover off... To expose.
The idea is this...
• Jesus has been here all along...
• Here is here in the assembly…
• He is living in us by the Spirit He gave us…
But when He comes again... He will be completely known... Both Visually and INTELLECTUALLY.
Yes…Jesus is here this morning... But we don’t see Him… Except by faith.
• Just like the stars... Jesus is always here...
• But... At the second coming... His presence will be... revealed... Uncovered…
Today…We may choose to ignore Jesus... But on that day... All will bow before Him.
What will His Coming look like... The sights... Sounds... Timing...
There are six Scriptures telling us what the Second Coming is going to look and sound like.
Listen… I hope you will take this outline home and write these Scriptures in your Bible and refer to them when you want to think about the Second Coming of Jesus…
• First Thessalonians 4.13-18
• First Thessalonians 5.1-4…
• Second Thessalonians 1.5-12
• First Corinthians 15.50-58
• Second Peter 3.1-13
• Revelation 21.1-8.
Generally... These verses tell us...
• There will be a loud noise… The trumpet call of the Lord.
• Jesus will appear in the heavens with His angels... In flaming fire.
• With Him... He will bring those souls who have fallen asleep.
• The dead of all ages… Will be raised...
• souls & bodies will be reunited in… a new body... An immortal… Celestial… body… That will be equipped to live forever.
• Those still living... Will be changed in a flash... In the twinkling of an eye…Into this immortal state.
• The dead in Christ will be caught up to meet Jesus in the air... To live with him forever.
• Those outside of Christ... Those not cleansed by His blood... Will be punished with what is called the Second death... Separated from God and all His blessings... Shut out from the presence of the Lord and from the majesty of His power.
• Peter tells us that at this time this heavens and the earth will be dissolved in heat and there’ll be a new Heaven and a new Earth…. A place of eternal joy… No more... Mourning... Tears... Pain... No more death... Because God has made everything new.
Listen... We may not understand all that will take place at His Coming... But we understand enough that we want to be found safe in the arms of Jesus when He appears... Amen?
Everyone wants to know when.
It was a question on the lips of the early church... And still is a big question today... Listen to First Thessalonians 5.1-4... Now... Brothers, about times and dates we do not need to write to you... The day of the Lord will come like a thief in the night. While people are saying... Peace and safety... Destruction will come on them suddenly... As labor pains on a pregnant woman... And they will not escape. But you, brothers... Are not living in darkness so that this day should surprise you like a thief.
The important issue this morning is not when... But Are we ready?
Indeed... Our Lord Jesus Christ is the unique ONE who has the authority to acclaim to be Both Alpha & Omega... The beginning & the end... self-existent…Eternal… The I AM THAT I AM... He is the One worthy of our praise... Amen?
Why stand you gazing into the heavens...
This same Jesus will come again...
Just as you have seen Him go...
Listen... This angelic message rang in the ears of those who witnessed His ascension for the rest of their lives.
The second coming of Jesus became...
• Their inspiration...
• TheIR hope…
• THEIR motivating force...
That drove the early church to righteous living…
The question becomes... willthis promise of Jesus do the same for us??
Peter encourages us with these words... So then, dear friends... Since you are looking forward to this... Make every effort to be found...
• Spotless...
• Blameless...
• And at peace with Him.
So the question is… What do we need to do to be found ready for His return?...
• Become a child of God… By Faith and the New Birth of Baptism...
• As His children… Do we need to do something…
TO Make sure of our walk with Him?
Whatever it might be… Let’s Do it now... As we sing this invitation song together.