O Lord, Thy being is of old

C72* CB81 E81 G81 K72* R65 S47 T81
1
O Lord, Thy being is of old,
Before th' eternal past began!
For Thou th' eternal Father art,
The uncreated, great I AM!
2
Although a man with men become,
Yet Thou with God eternal art!
The same completeness Thou dost share,
And infinite as God Thou art!
3
Thine origin, the same as God,
Before creation was decreed!
Before the foremost, Thou art first,
None other doth Thyself precede!
4
Thou never changest thru all time,
Thy years are to eternity!
None is as lasting as Thyself,
Nor is there any after Thee!
5
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!
6
We praise Thee for Thine endless years,
Extol Thee for Thy perfectness!
Admiring all Thy fulness vast,
We marvel at Thy boundlessness!

Copyright Living Stream Ministry. Used by permission.

3
Un Hermano

A. Concerning God

Let us now consider the progress of the divine revelation in the Scriptures in more detail. First, God reveals Himself to us (Gen. 1:1). In Genesis 1:26 God is revealed as Elohim, a Hebrew word meaning “the Mighty One. ” The English word God is the translation of the Hebrew word Elohim. Following this, in Genesis 2:7 God is revealed as Jehovah, which means, “I am who I am. ” God is the great I Am, the ever-existing One. As the ever-existing One, He is the reality of every positive thing. This name Jehovah denotes God in His relationship with man. Concerning His creation, God is revealed as Elohim; concerning His relationship with man, He is revealed as Jehovah. Jehovah is the Old Testament form of the name Jesus, and Jesus is the New Testament form of Jehovah. In other words, in the Old Testament Jesus was called Jehovah, and in the New Testament Jehovah is called Jesus. The entire Old Testament, which comprises thirty-nine books, is mainly a revelation of the two divine titles, Elohim and Jehovah.

B. Concerning Christ

The second step in the progress of the divine revelation is the revelation concerning Christ (Matt. 1:1). At a certain time God was incarnated as a man called Jesus Christ. Thus, following the Old Testament, we have the four Gospels, which reveal a wonderful person named Jesus Christ. The name Jesus mainly means “the Savior” (Matt. 1:21), and the title Christ mainly means “the anointed One” (16:16). Jesus is not only our Savior but also God’s anointed One or, using today’s term, God’s appointed One. God has appointed Him to carry out His eternal economy. He is not only Jesus to save us but also Christ to carry out God’s eternal plan.

C. Concerning the Spirit

God is revealed as Elohim and as Jehovah, and Christ is revealed as Jesus and as Christ. The revelation concerning the Spirit, however, is not simple (Matt. 28:19); rather, it is a mystery. Few Christians have ever fought for the revelation of God, and not many have fought for the revelation of Christ. But when we come to the matter of the Spirit, there is much argument because the revelation of the Spirit is a mystery. The Spirit is mysterious because He is related to life. There are many aspects of the revelation of the Spirit: the Spirit of reality (John 14:16-17), the Spirit of life (Rom. 8:2), the Spirit of power (Luke 24:49), the Spirit of God (Rom. 8:9), the Spirit of Christ (v. 9), the Spirit of Jesus (Acts 16:7), the Spirit of Jesus Christ (Phil. 1:19), the Holy Spirit (Acts 5:32), and the seven Spirits (Rev. 1:4; 4:5; 5:6).

Life-study of Revelation

Message 7 (LSM)


Richard Housel

Long Island, NY, United States

This hymn really uplifts our appreciation of Christ. We need this uplifting always.. I believe that is one of the apostle Paul's burdens in writing Colossians.


Bob Carbrey

Amherst, New York, United States

I this song generates a special worship and thankfulness. How priceless is our Lord-the Alpha the Omega. the First the Last. Blessed are we. Lord grants mercy to worship You with understanding and light

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,

...

[Stanzas 3-5]

...

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.

Piano Hymns