When I saw Him, I fell at His feet as dead. But He laid His right hand on me, saying to me, “Do not be afraid; I am the First and the Last.”—Revelation 1:17
The very same Jesus who has given us the Sabbath, and has directed us how to keep it holy, is the Alpha of Genesis, and carries us step by step through the ages, through the incarnation, through His offering of Himself as a living sacrifice for the redemption of a fallen world. He was tried, but was not condemned, because there was nothing to condemn. After the trial Pilate said, “I find no fault in Him.” Yet He gave Himself up to be murdered because His own nation was jealous of Him, and hated Him. Christ died as a malefactor on the cross of Calvary. He was laid in the grave. The third day He rose from the dead, and proclaimed, over the rent sepulcher of Joseph: “I am the resurrection, and the life.” He ascended to His Father, and today He is our Advocate in the courts of heaven.
We trace Christ all through the Old Testament and the New. “And, behold, I come quickly; and My reward is with me, to give every man according as his work shall be. I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end, the first and the last. Blessed are they that do His commandments, that they may have right to the tree of life, and may enter in through the gates into the city. For without are dogs, and sorcerers, and whoremongers, and murderers, and idolaters, and whosoever loveth and maketh a lie. I, Jesus, have sent Mine angel to testify unto you these things in the churches. I am the root and the offspring of David, and the bright and morning star. And the Spirit and the bride say, Come. And let him that heareth say, Come. And let him that is athirst come. And whosoever will, let him take the water of life freely.”
Here we have the Alpha of Genesis and the Omega of Revelation. The blessing is promised to all those who keep the commandments of God, and who co-operate with Him in the proclamation of the third angel’s message. “I Jesus have sent Mine angel to testify unto you these things in the churches. I am the root and the offspring of David, and the bright and morning star.” That which Christ has spoken in the Old Testament is for all the world.—The Review and Herald, June 8, 1897.
Further Reflection: How is the fact that Jesus is the first and the last relevant to my life today?
From Jesus, Name Above All Names - Page 190
Jesus, Name Above All Names