Thoughts for the Day

* Symbol for Alpha and Omega

Grace to you and peace from him who is and who was and who is to come, and from the seven spirits who are before his throne, and from Jesus Christ, the faithful witness, the firstborn of the dead, and the ruler of the kings of the earth.

To him who loves us and freed us from our sins by his blood, and made us to be a kingdom, priests serving his God and Father, to him be glory and dominion for ever and ever. Amen.

Look! He is coming with the clouds;
every eye will see him,
even those who pierced him;
and on his account all the tribes of the earth will wail.

So it is to be. Amen.

‘I am the Alpha and the Omega’, says the Lord God, who is and who was and who is to come, the Almighty.

(Lectionary, New Revised Standard Version)

Thoughts

Today we celebrate the theme of 'Christ the King' with a reading from Revelation, the last book in the New Testament. This is apocalyptic literature about the time to come when God will gather His people together and Christ will judge the world. It's full of weird and wonderful pictures of a vision of the future. But as well as apocalyptic it's also prophecy, and the writer refers to himself as a Prophet. Written by a man called John from Asia, around 90 CE, it's not the same person who wrote the Gospel of John. This John uses vivid language but dreadful grammar (one expert says "such as no schoolboy would use"), while the writer of John's Gospel uses simple but correct Greek. This was pointed out by Dionysius head of the Christian school in Alexandria in 250 CE!

What lies behind this amazing book? One awful fact, the arrival of the Emperor Domitian (81-96 CE). Other Emperors had played with the idea of themselves as divine, but Domitian demanded every word spoken or written to him began with the phrase "My Lord and God". To refuse meant death, so Christians had no escape. John's book doesn't seek a way out of this terror but points out the glory that awaits those who defy Caesar for the sake of Yahweh.

John begins his work by sending God's grace (His love) and His peace (harmony) to the seven churches in Asia. He then gives three titles to Jesus Christ.

• Jesus Christ is the faithful witness: A witness speaks of what they know and have seen, so Jesus speaks as one who knows God (John 17.25-26).
• Jesus Christ is also the firstborn: the Son who inherits the honour and power of God the Father (Colossians 1.15).
• Jesus Christ is the King of kings (Psalm 89.27).

Jesus Christ is, was, and will be - He is the beginning and the end of all things. He is Alpha and Omega.

Collect for this Sunday: Christ the King
(Common Worship)

Eternal Father,
whose Son Jesus Christ
ascended to the throne of heaven
that he might rule over all things
as Lord and King:
keep the Church in the unity of the Spirit
and in the bond of peace,
and bring the whole created order
to worship at his feet;
who is alive and reigns with you,
in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God,
now and for ever.
Amen.