Christ is the First, the Last, the Beginning, and the End. The First, the Last, the Beginning, and the End are all He. Revelation 22:13 says, “I am the Alpha and the Omega, the First and the Last, the Beginning and the End.” When I first read the Bible, I did not understand this word; I felt that the Bible was somewhat repetitive. I thought that the First and the Last were the same as the Beginning and the End. However, the Bible says that Christ is the First and the Last; He is the first One, and He is also the last One; He is the Beginning and the End. Is this repetitive? I gradually received the light to understand that the First means the first One, and the Last means the last One. Hence, one of the hymns we sing says,
Thine origin, the same as God,
Before creation was decreed!
Before the foremost, Thou art first,
None other doth Thyself precede!
Thou never changest thru all time,
Thy years are to eternity!
None is as lasting as Thyself,
Nor is there any after Thee!
Just as the Father, diff’ring not,
The same perfection Thou too hast!
Thou art the Alpha and the First,
Thou art Omega and the Last!
(Hymns, #81)
As to the first, Christ is the foremost; as to the last, Christ is the hindmost. The beginning is He, and the end is also He. He is always the First; no one precedes Him. He is also the Last; no one is behind Him. Furthermore, He is the Beginning and the End. You can be the first, but you may not be the originator. You can also be the last, but you may not be the finisher. Christ is not only the First but also the Originator; He is not only the Last but also the Finisher. In other words, in this universe from beginning to end, all is Christ.
We have already seen that Christ is surpassing, eternal, unlimited, and complete, but how does this relate to us? The relationship depends on His being the light, the life, the door, and the way. In John 8:12 the Lord Jesus said, “I am the light of the world; he who follows Me shall by no means walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life.” In 11:25 He said, “I am the resurrection and the life.” In 10:9 He said, “I am the door; if anyone enters through Me, he shall be saved.” And in 14:6 He said, “I am the way and the reality and the life; no one comes to the Father except through Me.” Dear friends, who among you does not want these four things? Who does not want light, life, a door, and a way? Everyone wants these four things. I would also like to tell you that for our whole life and even until eternity we will always need light, life, a door, and a way. And this light, this life, this door, and this way are the Lord Jesus. Christ Himself is the light, the life, the door, and the way.
Finally, Christ is the Savior of the world. The Lord Jesus was in a city of Samaria called Sychar when He told a Samaritan woman about the living water of life. After that woman believed in the Lord, she left her water pot and went away into the city to testify to all the people. Many Samaritans came to the Lord Jesus because of that woman’s testimony. Then many more believed because of the Lord’s word, and they said to that woman, “It is no longer because of your speaking that we believe, for we ourselves have heard and know that this One is truly the Savior of the world” (John 4:39-42). Hallelujah, our Lord Jesus is the Savior of the world!
This is the Christ of supreme preciousness; He is truly surpassing. He is the Son of the living God, the Lord of all, the Head of all things, the One who fills all in all, the Head of the church, the One who takes the first place in all things, and the One who has obtained the name which is above all names. Moreover, He is the King of kings, the Lord of lords, the First, the Last, the Beginning, the End, the light, the life, the door, the way, and the Savior of the world. The One whom we have obtained today is such an excellent Christ.
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