John 19:30 When Jesus therefore had received the vinegar, he said, It is finished: tet..les...tai
TETLESTAI Greek word for "It is finished" is the second-to-last. But it is certainly not the least important of the words that our Lord spoke.
TETLESTAI was a word that was written across goods that were bought ...or a receipt received for taxes in Jesus day meaning "Paid In Full" It is finished...Tetlestai .
My Dad probably never heard that word but, he knew what ..."It is finished" meant.
I was raised on a tobacco farm and when Dad would ask me to do some chore while he was gone.... it was for my best interest and the seat of my pants that I did it.
But when I finished it and did the very best I could to please my Dad there was a great satisfaction in seeing his face and hearing him say...well done. But, there were many times I failed my Dad in doing what he ask me to do.
There were times when he would finish the job himself and that would grieve my heart to know I hurt my Dad in my disobedience and neglect.
God used some great men down through the history of the Old Testament to get things done for Him..but men would fail many times.
But when it came to paying for our sins....when it came to paying a price for our disobedience and neglect....He came to do it Himself.....not only did He endure to the end but,
He said "it was finished"...paid in full ...tetlestai
1. In His life, Jesus faced many obstacles.
a. As a young child, King Herod tried to kill Him.
b. His family and friends rejected Him.
c. The religious leaders… branded Him as a false teacher.
d. His own disciples abandoned Him and denied even knowing Him.
e. He was arrested, falsely accused of being a criminal, crucified, and died a horrible death on a cross.
Not once did Jesus ever think about failing...not once did He ever think about not finishing the chore God the Father had before Him.
Failing did not enter our Lords mind BUT, there were 2 things that did....1..For God so loved the world and 2..Pleasing the Father.
For God so loved the world that He gave...no one took it....
His only begotten son...Christ only had to die once for our sins.
He paid the price and finished it once and for all.
It's Bible verses we have heard hundreds of times but, in this day of politically correctness........ sometimes the true meaning gets lost.
These words our Lord spoke "for God so loved the world and "it is finished" should make the saved weep for joy and the lost cry out in repentance.
Why? Because our sins are paid in full because, God loves us.... not because of anything we have or could ever do.
Our Lord intervened for us......we all were doomed and bound for Hell BUT, God came to our rescue by a man name Jesus Christ.
Apostle Paul said in
Eph 2:1 And you hath he quickened, who were dead in trespasses and sins:
Eph 2:4 But God, who is rich in mercy, for his great love wherewith he loved us,
Eph 2:5 Even when we were dead in sins, hath quickened us together with Christ, (by grace ye are saved;)
Eph 2:6 And hath raised us up together, and made us sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus:
Paul says we were dead......we had no chance...we were Hell bound.
But God....not only His love... but, Paul said with His Great Love that He loved us.
How can you define His great love?...Paul said it like this in Ephs 3: 18-19 hope that we.....
Eph 3:18 May be able to comprehend with all saints what is the breadth, and length, and depth, and height;
Eph 3:19 And to know the love of Christ, which passeth knowledge, that ye might be filled with all the fulness of God.
The breadth of Christ's love that passes knowledge...Christ arms reaching out and embracing the whole world...for God so love the world.....He gave ...He gave His Son...He gave it all...He paid in full...He showed His great love...by finishing the chore before Him.
The length of Christ's love passes knowledge ...It was the spotless Lamb of God that stepped out of eternity into our time to die... to be a sacrifice for our sins and returned to eternity to set at the right hand of God the Father
The depth of Christ's love that passes knowledge ...The depth goes all the way down to the foot of the cross of Calvary..... humbled himself, and became obedient unto death and....
..Christ said "it is finished" because He knew one day old Ronnie Miller would lay everything at the foot of that cross and would need payment for his sins...why because I had no way of doing it....
I was dead in my trespasses and sins and had a one way ticket to Hell..
BUT, God who is rich in mercy and showed His great love to me by forgiveness of my sins at the foot of that old cross..
..........there is no other but, Jesus..He is the only way truth and life!
And the height!!
I can't comprehend His love but, I can feel it...I can't explain or define His great love but, I know one day when He calls me home ..
I will be taken to the very height of Heaven and ...I will see Him as He is and I shall be like Him. ...Halleluiah
It's all because for God so love the world that He gave His Son and His Son said "it is finished"
There is nothing left for you and I to do except ask for forgiveness of sins and believe on His holy and precious name...Jesus Christ
........................................................Pleasing the Father
Jesus said in John chapter 6 and verse 38
For I came down from heaven, not to do mine own will, but the will of him that sent me.
It was the will of the Father.....it was the obedience of the Son.
Gods will..that Jesus become a servant...
It was the night before in that upper room that Jesus showed His servant hood to mankind.
One by one the disciples came into that room and one by one passed by that picture of water and a basin.
It was the job of the servant of the house to wash the guess feet but, the Bible says that Jesus waited till all were seated and he walks over to the door and hung His robe up and wrapped a towel around Him and began to pour the water into that basin.
I'm sure that water going into that basin sounded like a water fall to those disciples...I would say that they were looking at one another and wondering what was about to happen and when He began to wash their feet ....I'm sure they were in shock and were ashamed of themselves.
Our Lord did the same for us...He hung that robe of righteousness and became a servant..... He hung up His heavenly cardinals.
Paul said in:
Php 2:7 But made himself of no reputation, and took upon him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men
But made himself of no reputation….that's comes from the Greek word “keno” meaning empty. ………….He emptied Himself but, what of?
He lived on this Earth with certain limitations…..they were self limitations.
That was His choose…...He lay down His life .....no one toke it.
…but there was never a time when He wasn’t God.
He could have spoke this world out of existence at any given time. But He chose to humble Himself for you and me.
Die a gruesome death .......endured till the end ............until He said "It is finished "
He was doing the will of the Father....finishing the chore He had before Him.
Illus: Some of you may remember the a TV program that came on Saturday afternoons back in the 70's and early 80's called Wide World of Sports!
The shows introduction would say: Spanning the globe to bring you the constant variety of sport! The thrill of victory...and the agony of defeat! The human drama of athletic competition! This is ABC's Wide World of Sports!
It always showed young boys jumping up and down after winning a Little League ball game.
"The thrill of victory"....then it would show a Ski Jumper as he would go off the side of a high slope, tumbling and crashing to the ground...."the agony of defeat"
Jesus could have never been defeated because He was all God and all human but, lets imagine just for a moment
...If He had never went to the cross or had never finished paying for our sins ...what if He had disobeyed and neglected God the Fathers plan.
What if we had never heard the statement..."It is finished" Tetlestai
Instead of praise we give Him for our salvation and we can rejoice in the thrill of the victory for us all ...
.......What if it had been ........the agony of defeat?
I would say we be at the mercy of Satan...here and all eternity..
...life wouldn't have been worth living ........as a matter of fact ...we would have been better off ....if we had never been born.
One of my favorite verses in the Bible is on the license tag on my truck.. 1Cor 15:57 But thanks be to God, which giveth us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.
We can sing Amazing Grace....we can sing songs about Heaven...we can live a life more abundant....we have access to the very throne of God... we can shout "the thrill victory" because, our Lord said.." it is finished".
Love in Christ Jesus, Ronnie Miller www.themillersbiblestudy.com
