“It is finished”
John 19:28-29
It is Friday, April 3, A.D. 33. It is the darkest day in human history, though most people have no clue of this. In Rome, Tiberius attends to the demanding business of the empire. Throughout the inhabited world, babies are born, barter in marketplaces, sail merchant ships, and tend to their fields people eat and drink. Children play, old women gossip, young men lust, and people die. But today, one death, one brutal, gruesome death will leave God’s only Son (John 1:3), dead, hanging on the cross.
It is mid-afternoon by now and an eerie darkness has fallen on those gathered at the cross. For Jesus, the darkness is a horror he has never known. The Father’s wrath against sin is hitting him in full force. He is in that moment no longer the Blessed One, but the Cursed (Galatians 3:13). He has become sin (2 Corinthians 5:21). And this holy, pefect God has to turn his back on sin and thus, His only Son. In terrifying isolation, he is cut off from his Father as Jesus screams, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” (Matthew 27:46, Psalm 22:1). Not only did Jesus suffer, enduring the pain and panic of slowly suffocating to death, he experienced for the first time in his life separation from the Father. In that moment, God’s only Son was forsaken so that we could be brought back into fellowship with him. Jesus now knew that sense of profound separation and desperate, panic ridden fear of being all alone.
Chuck Swindoll describes these last moments of Jesus’ life when he writes, “On this tree, the one who was sinless now bears our sins in his body (1 Peter 2:24), “the righteous for the unrighteous, that he might bring us to God” (1 Peter 3:18). At this point, Jesus knew He had accomplished everything the Father had sent Him to do. After being whipped within an inch of his life, after carrying his cross, after enduring the jeers and taunts of the crowd, after experiencing the full pain imposed by the cross as he struggled for each breath and after having God turn his back, Jesus realized the price had been paid in full. He has born the full weight of the curse and has nothing left to give. The wine-soaked sponge is lifted to him and moistens his mouth just enough to say one final words: “It is finished” (John 19:30)
There are several things we learn today. First, death is near. If you remember, John’s Gospel is filled with multiple layers of meanings, each going deeper toward the truths of God. When we take Jesus’ words at their face, Jesus is saying that he is finished. He doesn't have anything left to give. His life is just about used up. The end is near and he is on death’s doorstep. He has been hanging on the cross for almost 6 hours now and the light of his life is just about extinguished. How difficult it must have been for Mary, his mother ,and John, his friend and disciple, and the other followers gathered there that day to hear these words. In all of his humanity, it must have been terrifying for Jesus as well. He was getting ready to walk a journey no one else had, across death itself. That can be a frightening thing for anyone. I’ve seen this many times since as I have sat bedside with those about to die. One which touched me the most was my father. I received word that the end was near as I was driving into worship one Sunday morning. I immediately made my plane reservations with the hope that I would arrive that afternoon before he passed. I preached both services and then a member whisked to the airport. When I arrived bedside, my family spent time together with my Dad and then my siblings, who all had had their time alone with my Dad, left the room so I could be with him one last time and share last words. I spoke to him and shared how much he meant to me and thanked him for all he had done for me. Then I asked him, this man who had served God as a pastor for more than 42 years, “Are you afraid?” He barely was barely able to muster a whisper, “Yes.” I held his hand, kissed his forehead and told him there was nothing to be afraid of, for I knew my hand holding his would soon be replaced by God’s as he ushered him into his kingdom.
But Jesus had no one holding his hand. God had turned his back to sin and Him and now Jesus was all alone in the darkness. And like a child taking their first leap into the waiting arms of their father in the pool, with these words, he announced that death is near and he is completely used up and ready to let go and leap across death into the arms of God.
Second, the work and the mission of Jesus is complete. One of the things we have learned through this series is that throughout his life and ministry, Jesus always kept the mission “to save that which was the lost” first. Luke 19:10 Jesus never forgot why he came to this world. During his life and ministry, it was always about the mission. And even at the climatic end of his life as he hung upon that cross and slowly died, he did not forget his mission. Those three words, “It is finished” come from one Greek word, tetelestai. It was a word used by various people in everyday life in Jesus’ day. A servant would use it when reporting to their master, “I have completed the work assigned to me.” (see John 17:4) It was used by merchants to say, “The debt is paid in full!” And it is this word Jesus chose as one of his last for on the cross he has completed the task and fully paid the price for our sin. The purpose of His birth, His life, His ministry, His crucifixion has been fulfilled. Max Lucado writes, “The history-long plan of redeeming man was finished. The message of God to man was finished. The works done by Jesus as a man on earth were finished. The task of selecting and training ambassadors was finished. The job was finished. The song had been sung. The blood had been poured. The sacrifice had been made…It was over.”
Third, Jesus’ death is necessary. The righteousness and holiness of God has been satisfied and the price for our sin has been pain in full. Jesus knew he was born to die as part of God’s sovereign plan of salvation for the world. That is why Jesus in his life continued to look toward his death and resolutely set his face toward Jerusalem and the cross. He knew his teaching, healings and miracles were not sufficient for the redemption of mankind. He must die to satisfy God’s demand for payment for our sin. This was always on his mind as he walked upon the earth. Every person he saw, every man, woman or child he healed, every crowd to whom he preach, he knew it was not enough, that he would have to die on the cross for their sins for God to be satisfied. He knew that God would never be satisfied until the sacrifice was complete. The path led from the Garden of Gethsemane to Pilate’s Court to the courtyard where he was stripped and beaten, to carrying the cross through the streets of Jerusalem to Golgotha. But it wasn’t complete until he was forsaken by his own Father and he died for our sins.
Fourth, Jesus is the victor. These words are the shout of a victor. Matthew, Mark and Luke do not record the words of this incident but they do say he gave a shout and then gave up his spirit. With the shout of a victor who went to battle against Satan himself, with the shout of a King who has ascended to his throne, and with a shout of one who was about to conquer death, he looks out at those gathered there and musters up the strength for a shout of victory and says, “It is finished!” The price of redemption had been paid in full. So Jesus, realizing that he did not take shortcuts, realizing that he did not fall prey to the temptation of Satan to place himself first, realizing that he did not listen to the thief on the cross to save himself, is now ready to die. And in that moment, the fear of death itself is overcome by the realization that you and I will be able to live. By giving up his own life and losing it for our sake, today you and I find our life and even life in death itself! In these words, Jesus proclaims the task is complete, the battle is won, and the victory is being recorded in heaven.
At that moment, the prophets of old and all the company of heaven rejoice for now they look at Jesus’ body hanging on the cross and see that salvation for all humanity is now complete. They rejoice for there is a fountain of blood that washes all the stain of sin so that in the eyes of God, we are now pronounced righteous and forgiven. All heaven rejoices. Jesus paid the price, the perfect sacrifice and the Paschal Lamb. Today, we stand under the canopy of grace because Jesus 2000 years ago set his face toward Jerusalem and chose the cross to die for our sins. Our sins have been covered. We have been forgiven, his mission is complete and in that he gives us an example to follow so that like Paul we might say, “the time has come for my departure. I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith.”
We are called to complete our purpose to touch others with the Gospel. In Phoenix, Arizona, a 26-year-old mother stared down at her 6 year old son, who was dying of terminal leukemia. Like any parent, she wanted her son to grow up and fulfill all his dreams. Now that was no longer possible. The leukemia would see to that. That afternoon, she went to her fire department in Phoenix where she met Fireman Bob. She explained her son's final wish and asked if it might be possible to give her 6 year-old son a ride around the block on a fire engine. Fireman Bob said, 'We can do better than that. If you'll have your son ready at 7 am Wednesday morning, we'll make him an honorary Fireman for the day. He can come down to the fire station, eat with us, go out on all the fire calls, the whole nine yards! And if you'll give us his sizes, we'll get a real fire uniform for him, with a real fire hat with the emblem of the Phoenix Fire Department on it, a yellow slicker like we wear and rubber boots.'
Three days later Fireman Bob picked up Billy, dressed him in his uniform and escorted him from his hospital bed to the waiting hook and ladder truck. Billy got to sit on the back of the truck and help steer it to the fire station. He was in heaven. There were three fire calls in Phoenix that day and Billy got to go out on all three. He rode in the fire engine, the Paramedic's' van, and even the Fire Chief's car. Having his dream come true so deeply touched Billy, that he lived three months longer than any doctor thought possible. One night all of his vital signs began to drop dramatically and the head nurse called the family members to the hospital. His mom called the Fire Chief and asked if it would be possible to send a fireman in uniform to the hospital to be with Billy as he made his transition. The chief replied, 'We can do better than that. We'll be there in five minutes. Will you please do me a favor? When you hear the sirens screaming, will you open the window to his room?' Five minutes later a hook and ladder truck arrived at the hospital and extended its ladder up to Billy's third floor open window and 16 fire-fighters climbed up the ladder into Billy's room. With his mother's permission, they all hugged him and told him how much they loved him. With His dying breath, Billy looked up at the Fire Chief and said, 'Chief, am I really a fireman now?' 'Billy, you are, and The Head Chief, Jesus, is holding your hand.' With those words, Billy smiled and said, 'I know, He's been holding my hand all day,” and with that, he closed his eyes one last time.
It is finished. I don't know who was touched more, Billy or the firemen, but what I do know is this: one boy’s life and death touched an entire fire house and all of Phoenix as the story was reported through the news, fulfilling his work on this earth and we, in the name of Jesus, are called to do the same. Amen.
