It Is Finished

Over the last year we have considered 6 of the 7 last words of Jesus from the cross. Today we are going to consider the meaning of these words of Christ "It is finished"

Q What does "It is finished mean" What does Jesus mean?

The word in particular that Jesus used means "complete, perfect completion, fulfillment, complete satisfaction"

In English we have 3 words yet in the Greek there is just one. One aspiration of the Greeks of Jesus day was to say much using few words. Jesusâ one word exclamation from the cross is a triumph of that philosophy and goal.

The job for you and I today is to try our best to unpack what Jesus meant when he cried out "It is finished". Our goal will be to answer this question "What was Jesus saying was complete, perfected, or fully satisfied?"

Before going to our text. What do you think was the tone of Jesusâ cry "it is finished"?

-Do you think he said it dejectedly

-Do you think he said it with a sense of relief, as if he was glad that things were over

-Do you think it somehow barely croaked out of his mouth as the final gasp and cry of one defeated?

-Do you think he was merely telling the crowd that that was it for him, death was at hand

Or, do you think this here is a punctuation mark, and a shout of victory?

Our text is John 19:30 READ

1. When Jesus cried out "It is finished" he was proclaiming that his work was now completely done

His was a triumphant shout of "Mission accomplished". Jesus proclaimed that his work was done. In John 17, Jesus in anticipation of his going to the cross prays to God the Father so looking forward to his being once again before the Fatherâs heavenly presence. The ground of Jesusâ words "And now, Father, glorify me in your presence with the glory I had with you before the world began" is his completing the work given him.

Q What was the work that Jesus was sent to do?

"To seek and save the lost" Luke 19:10

Q Who are the lost?

-all those who are not followers of Jesus Christ

Q What do lost people need to be saved from?

-sins

-wages of sin is death

-under the judgment of God for their sins

Q How did he effect their being saved?

-substitutionary death upon the cross

-satisfied Godâs righteous demand for penalty and sacrifice and took upon himself the wrath of God for sin that we deserve

-Jesus died as the final, once for all sacrifice

When Jesus cried out "It is finished" his proclamation was "my work is done"

2. As you and I consider the fact that Jesus had finished the job given him by the Father to do, it becomes crystal clear that a key mark that identifies Jesus is that of his obedience to the Fatherâs will.

A lot of times we "obey" someone or a command of Godâs for all the wrong reasons.

Q What can we learn from the obedience of Jesus to the Father?

This cry evidences Jesus as obedient to the Father unto death, for as Philippians 2:8 says "And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself and became obedient to death- even death on a cross"

In obedience Jesus left Heaven and became a man. According to the plan of the Father, fashioned before the worldâs foundation, Jesus left Heaven and came to this earth to do the Fatherâs will.

Even as a 12 year old boy Jesus knew and was about his Fatherâs business for did not he say to Mary "donât you know that I must be about my Fatherâs business"

In John 4:34 Jesus is recorded as saying "My food is to do the will of him who sent me and to finish his work"

The obedience of Jesus was complete and he stands as a example of how we are to be obedient. To Jesus a mission was given and of that mission he was able to declare "Mission accomplished"

You and I have likewise been given a mission. The mission of Matthew 28:18-20. Listen to our mission "Then Jesus came to them and said, "All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I will be with you always, to the very end of the age."

If we were honest we would often have to confess that we have personal mission statements that significantly differ from the one Jesus has given us. At times our personal mission statements read like this "My mission: pursue pleasure" "My mission: get rich" "My mission: family" "My mission: my career"