“And he who sat upon the throne said, ‘Behold, I make all things new.’ Also he said, ‘Write this, for these words are trustworthy and true.’ And he said to me, ‘It is done! I am the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end. To the thirsty I will give from the fountain of the water of life without payment. He who conquers shall have this heritage, and I will be his God and he shall be my son.”’

There is a great temptation to imagine that we are the beginning; to imagine that we are the end. We are all the makers of our own destiny, right? Do we not control the outcome of our lives? Does not the ability to make something great of ourselves rest in our own hands?

To some, this is a comforting belief; to others, a turmoil. We as human beings want to imagine that we are in control. It feels good to think that circumstances must bow to me, to my decision. It brings delight to imagine that my word is final. But then in Revelation Jesus makes an astonishing claim, “I am the Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end.”

Jesus claims in this passage that from the beginning of time, to the end of history, He is the One making all things new. He is the One who dreamed of us from before eternity. He is the One who is holding us in every moment. Further, He is the One who shall bring our salvation to completion. Jesus is the One who redeems every sin and curse, all brokenness and destruction, pain, hurt, disease and death… Our God shall make all things new.

While at a first glance this truth can seem disempowering, undignifying, or humiliating, a deeper look reveals something of great peace.  

We are not the author of our own salvation.

In every bit of brokenness, He is the redeemer. He has the last say. When our friends and acquaintances say that we have failed beyond redemption, God is Omega. When are emotions tell us we are disqualified, God is greater than our hearts.

When we feel the pressure of making something happen—spiritually, in career or family—God is Alpha. He is the One who started this journey. Every new leap along our path is His initiative. The pressure is on Him.  

God is the One who started our story, and He shall finish it.  Let us rest in this beautiful hope.