Eternal
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Day 1 - God is El Olam
Did you know that names are of great significance in the Bible? God was very intentional when He gave new names to some of the heroes of our faith. For example, Abram, which means exalted father, changed to Abraham, meaning father of nations, which he became. God also reveals His character and divine nature in the names He gives Himself. The Hebrew word El is a singular name used for God, meaning “might, strength, and power.” The word olam means “for a long time, always, forever.” Therefore, in Genesis, when Abraham calls on the Lord as El Olam (el o-lawm), he is calling Him the Eternal God.
El Olam is the Eternal God without a beginning or an end. He is, as Psalm 90 tells us, “from everlasting to everlasting.” At first, this seems a little repetitive. Everlasting implies never-ending, so why say it a second time? What it means is from age to age. You probably remember some of these from high school history class: the stone age, the bronze age, the dark ages, or the middle ages. This name of God should give us great peace that whatever man does or does not do, however bad we or the powers that be mess up, God will continue His plan from age to age. He will not change. We live in an age of constant change - technology, prices, weather patterns, schedules, political powers, finances, relationships, aging...nothing is unchangeable.
We should feel assured to serve a God that does not change. We serve a God that is the same from everlasting to everlasting.
El Olam, I come to You with a humble heart. Forgive me for all the ways I try to cling to control and create or avoid change. I declare that only you are unchangeable; from everlasting to everlasting, you remain the same. You are a refuge and safe place from our constantly changing world. Help me to find peace and rest in you as the Eternal God. I ask that you open my mind this week and help me grow in my understanding and acceptance of your eternality. In Jesus’ name, Amen.
Day 2 - God Has No Beginning
You have likely heard the phrase “The Alpha and The Omega.” Did you know this is a reference to the Greek alphabet? Jewish rabbis would use this phrase to stand for the whole of anything. It’s like us saying “A-Z and everything in between.”
Alpha is the first letter of the Greek alphabet, meaning “something that is first.” The spiritual meaning of this statement is that He (God) is the beginning of everything. However, the beginning of everything doesn’t have a beginning. Can you believe that??!!
As humans, we are bound by time. We live in a world of 24/7/365. As time-bound beings, it is incredibly challenging to wrap our finite minds around the idea of “no beginning.” To us, everything has a beginning - life, relationships, jobs; even the most ancient trees were once seeds in the ground. But the Bible tells us God always was. God has no beginning. Science tells us that time exists when matter exists. But God is not matter; in fact, He created matter. Before that, God was simply existing. Time began when God created the universe. Having created time, He is greater than time and exists outside of it. Scripture calls us to acknowledge this aspect of God, even if we can’t fully understand it.
Heavenly Father,
I confess that this is hard for me to wrap my head around. I believe that you are the Alpha, the beginning of all things. You are not created, but rather you are Creator. Help me to not let my limited mind get in the way of believing this foundational truth. El Olam, I believe that you are from everlasting to everlasting.
In Jesus’ name I pray, Amen.
Day 3 - God Has No End
Yesterday, we referenced Alpha, the first letter of the Greek alphabet, which spiritually represents that God is the beginning. He is before all things. Today, we look at the second word in the phrase “The Alpha and The Omega.” Omega is the last letter in the Greek alphabet. Omega is defined as “the final part, the end.” Just as God has no beginning, God also has no end.
As humans, we understand that everything begins and ends. We are born, we live, we die. Everything on earth follows this cycle. Psalm 90:10 even refers to our human lifespan as 70 to 80 years. However, we serve a God with no lifespan. In Deuteronomy, God testifies that He will live forever. Since God cannot lie, we can trust that He will have no ending.
Father God,
I admit that your eternality is beyond my comprehension, but I accept it in faith. I declare that you are the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end. I am filled with awe and wonder when I consider the comprehensiveness of who you are and your love for your creation. Forgive me for the times that my limited mind has doubted your endlessness. You are, always have been, and always will be.
In Jesus’ name I pray, Amen.
Day 4 - God Sees All Time Equally Vividly
As time-bound humans, we are forced to live moment to moment. We can remember the past and we can think about the future, but we can’t be in the past or be in the future. Simply put, we are people of the present. God, however, sees everything equally vividly. What this means is He sees all of eternity at all times. Four minutes ago, 400 years ago, 4,000 years in the future, every time zone, and every age that has ever been - He sees it all just as clearly as we see this very moment. God is past, present, and future at all times. This fact is incredibly challenging to comprehend but should be incredibly reassuring to us believers to know that we serve a God who exists outside of time.
Why does the apostle Peter urge us to not forget this important fact? Because it means our prayers, our tears, our obedience are always before the Lord. Our prayers from years ago are still before Him with the same intensity. Our obedience is never forgotten. The promises He made us that haven’t come to fruition are fresh on His mind. We might move on and forget, but He does not. He might feel far away at times, but He is always here with us in the here and now. We might fear the future, but He is already seeing it.
Father,
I am so grateful to serve a God who sees all things at all times. It gives me assurance to know that when I come to you, you already know what I need. You are not guessing. I can live in confidence that my past, present, and future are safe in your arms. I choose to rest in you, the ruler over all the universe - even over time itself - from everlasting to everlasting.
In Jesus’ name I pray. Amen.
Day 5 - God Has Placed Eternity (Olam) in the Human Heart
We started this week looking at El Olam, Eternal God, and now we end the week with olam again. Ecclesiastes states that God sets an eternal longing, or olam, “in the human heart.”
Heart refers not to our physical heart but to our mind, soul, or spirit. Genesis teaches us that man was created in the image of God, so it makes sense that we have eternity in our hearts. This desire for eternity sets us apart from the rest of creation. While the rest of creation lives solely in the here and now, with no ability to think about eternity, humans have a deep longing for eternity that we can sense in our bones and are constantly trying to fill. Many people have questioned if this life is all there is.
According to Ecclesiastes, the answer for those of us who have placed our faith in Jesus is a resounding NO! In every human soul is a God-given awareness that there is something more than this world has to offer. Before we meet Jesus, we are constantly searching for something to fill this longing - money, success, love, power. However, scripture makes it abundantly clear that this longing can ONLY be filled through a life-giving, saving relationship with Jesus Christ.
For those of us in Christ, we live in these temporal bodies and this chaotic world full of change and challenges, but at the same time, we live with eternity in our bones, in our soul, and we long for eternity with our Father. We hold in tension living in the here and now and our longing for eternity until we see Jesus face to face, knowing that this life is not all there is.
El Olam,
Thank you for making me in your image and giving me the gift of eternity in my heart. Help me to trust your plans and your timing. You are the Alpha, the Omega, and you exist in all places at all times. Give me the strength to live in light of eternity, even when facing the challenges of this world.
In Jesus’ name I pray. Amen.