John 19:30 (NKJV)
It Is Finished
April 20, 2025
ILLS: I heard a preacher this week tell us that his Momma would say, “You ain’t got nothing to worry about.” Momma said that there are only two things in this life to worry about; whether you are healthy or whether you are sick? If you are healthy, you have nothing to worry about, but if you are sick then you have two things to worry about; whether you are going to get better or are you going to get worse? If you get better, then you have nothing to worry about, but if you get worse you have two things to worry about; whether you are going to live or whether you are going to die? If you are going to live, you have nothing to worry about, but if you are going to die you have two things to worry about; whether you are going to heaven or you are going to hell? If you are going to heaven then you have nothing to worry about, but if you are going to hell then you have two things to worry about; whether you are going to be original or extra crispy? Today we will hear the words of Jesus, “It is Finished!” and you will have two things to concern yourself with; whether Jesus is the Christ, or should we look for another? The words we will consider today echo through the corridors of time, words that have changed the course of history, words that hold within them the very essence of our faith. “It is finished,” Three words in English, one word in Greek. Tetelestai. It is a word that speaks of fulfillment, of finality, and of freedom.
I. The Fulfillment of Prophecy - These words, "It is finished," speak to the heart of God's plan for humanity, a plan that was set in motion before the foundation of the world and was brought to fruition in the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ. The words of Jesus on the cross were the culmination of a series of events that had been prophesied centuries before. The prophets of old, moved by the Spirit of God, spoke of a Messiah who would come to redeem His people. They spoke of a suffering servant, a lamb led to the slaughter, a man of sorrows acquainted with grief. The prophet Isaiah, spoke of the Messiah's birth, His ministry, His suffering, His death, and His resurrection. He described the Messiah as one who would be despised and rejected by men, a man of sorrows and acquainted with grief. The words of Jesus on the cross, then, are the words of fulfillment, the words that signal the completion of God's plan for redemption. The words of Jesus on the cross are a reminder that God is still at work in the world today, fulfilling His promises and accomplishing His purposes. They are words that give us hope, that inspire us to trust in God, and that challenge us to live in light of His promises. So let us live in light of these truths, trusting in God, following Christ, and living out our faith with courage and conviction knowing He always keeps His Word.
II. The Finality of Sacrifice - It is Finished means that Jesus' sacrifice is Final! It was not a partial offering, not a temporary solution, but a complete and final sacrifice. When Jesus declared, "It is finished," He was affirming that His work of redemption was fully accomplished. There was nothing more to add, nothing more to do. The debt of sin was paid in full. In the book of Hebrews, we read that, "Christ was sacrificed once to take away the sins of many" (Hebrews 9:28). This once-for-all sacrifice stands in stark contrast to the repeated sacrifices of the Old Testament, which could never fully remove sin. But because of the finality of Jesus' sacrifice, we can have peace with God. We can have forgiveness of sins. We can have hope for eternity. In the Gospel of John, Jesus declared, "I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me" (John 14:6). Because It is Finished, there is no other way to salvation, no other path to God, no other means of forgiveness. And because of Jesus' final sacrifice, we are freed from the power of sin. We are no longer slaves to our sinful nature, but are empowered to live in righteousness. This is not something we achieve on our own, but something that is made possible through the power of the Holy Spirit. It is a truth that shapes our identity, directs our path, and anchors our faith.
III. The Freedom of Redemption - The thread of redemption runs through the entirety of Scripture, from Genesis to Revelation. It is a scarlet cord that binds together the story of God's people. The words "It is finished" are a declaration of freedom, a proclamation that the chains of sin and death have been broken. This is the truth that Paul expressed in Romans 6:22: "But now that you have been set free from sin and have become slaves of God, the benefit you reap leads to holiness, and the result is eternal life." This liberation is not a mere release from captivity, but a radical transformation from slaves to sons, from prisoners to princes. It is a freedom that transcends the physical, reaching into the very depths of our being, freeing us from the tyranny of sin, the dominion of death, the grip of guilt. The words "It is finished" are a promise of rescue, an assurance that we have been delivered from the kingdom of darkness and transferred into the kingdom of light. Galatians 5:1 says “It is for freedom, Christ has set us free.” This emancipation is not a mere exemption, but a radical empowerment, a divine enablement to live as God intended, to love as Christ loved, to serve as the Spirit enables. Let us walk in the freedom of our redemption, let us bask in the warmth of our deliverance, let us revel in the joy of our emancipation, let us rest in the peace of our restoration. For it is finished, and we are free. Jesus has paid the price. He has fulfilled prophecy, made the ultimate sacrifice, and secured our freedom. And "If the Son therefore shall make you free, ye shall be free indeed."
