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"
Just before his arrest Jesus spent time in prayer. In John 17:4, in anticipation of his death Jesus prayed "I have brought you glory on earth by completing the work you gave me to do"
Q What about us. Are we intentionally striving to be obedient to the mission Jesus has given us? Are we enhancing Godâs reputation and bringing him glory by the way we are living our lives?
Q What about other areas where Jesus has commanded? Baptism, serving, giving?
For the joy set before him Jesus endured the cross, scorning its shame?
Is our obedience in such a spirit?
3. When Jesus cried out "It is finished" he was proclaiming that he sufferings were over.
Isaiah 53 identifies Jesus as a man of sorrows, acquainted with suffering and shame. The climax of Jesusâ sufferings was upon the cross as he hung there torn and bearing the punishment of God that we deserve for our sins.
Yet upon his taking our sins and Godâs punishment for our sins, his sufferings came to an end. His sufferings ended because by his death upon the cross Godâs demands for justice and punishment for sin were satisfied.
4. When Jesus cried out "It is finished" it shows to us that the time of his death was of his volition for immediately following it says that Jesus Îgave up his spiritâ.
In John 10:17-18 it says "The reason my Father loves me is that I lay down my life- only to take it back up again. No one takes it from me, but I lay it down of my own accord. I have authority to lay it down and authority to take it up again. This command I received from the Father"
When Jesus called out "It is finished" that was him willfully giving up his spirit. As some say in life "Itâs not over until I say its over" Thatâs in essence what Jesus was partly saying.
5. When Jesus cried out "It is finished" we rightly understand that this a word of triumph spoken out against Satan. By his death Satan and death were defeated- for in Christ one comes to life and death is not the end.
Genesis 3:15 anticipates Satanâs defeat when it speaks of the serpents head being crushed.
In Hebrews 2:13-15 it says "Since the children have flesh and blood, he too shared in their humanity so that by his death he might destroy him who holds the power of death- that is, the devil- and free those who all their lives were held in slavery by their fear of death.
I Cor. 15 picks up this idea of death brought about by Satan being defeated when it says "When the perishable has been clothed with the imperishable, and the mortal with immortality, then the saying that is written will come true: "Death has been swallowed up in victory" "Where, O death, is your victory? Where, O death, is your sting?"
By the agency of Satan sin and death entered into our world. Death comes to all men because of sin yet in Christ physical death is not the end, for Jesus is the giver of eternal life.
By his death upon the cross Satan became a vanquished foe. No longer is there reason to fear death, but only for the Christian, for by Christâs work applied to us, we have life.
While Satan is indeed our enemy he has been defeated and for us who are the followers of Jesus, he is no longer our master.
Satan is a defeated foe. He fearfully awaits the final day of judgment when he, the fallen angels, and all other God haters will be thrown into the fires of Hell.
Because of Jesus indwelling us the Bible encourages us in James by saying "resist the Devil, and he will flee from you". He has been defeated and has no rightful claim upon those who have called upon the name of Jesus.
6. In crying out "It is finished" we must understand that Jesus is declaring that he has completely fulfilled the laws requirements.
Q Do you know what the demands of Godâs law is? PERFECTION
Q Is there anyone who can perfectly keep the law?
The Jews tried yet what does the Bible say "For all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God"
Jesus perfectly kept the requirements of the law!
In Matthew 5:17 Jesus says "Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them"
In life and in his death Jesus did exactly that: he fulfilled the righteous requirements of the law.
Jesus never broke a single law or standard of God. He was perfect. He was sinless. This qualified him to act as our Savior.
Of ourselves we cannot perfectly keep Godâs law and because of this comes the righteous judgment of God. But something amazing happens when a person turns and asks Jesus to be their savior.
When we come in faith to Jesus, asking him to be our Savior, the Bible in Romans 8:4 indicates that because we are in Christ that we are viewed as fully meetings the righteous requirements of the law. This is exciting stuff because it means that God views us a being holy and pure and itâs because we are spiritually with Jesus who has taken our sins upon himself and paid for them for us.
Colossians 2:13-15 follows up on this by saying "When you were dead in your sins and in the uncircumcision of your sinful nature, God made you alive with Christ. He forgave us all our sins, having canceled the written code, with its regulations, that was against us; he took it away, nailing it to the cross. And having disarmed the powers and authorities, he made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them by the cross."
By his death the righteous demands of the law had now been perfectly met
By his perfectly keeping all of the requirements of the law he showed himself qualified to act as our Savior. When we come to Jesus, we are, viewed to have likewise met the requirements of the law: this is because we have been cleansed of all our sins.
7. In crying out "It is finished" Jesus had in mind that we understand that the sacrificial system was at end.
At one point or another most of us ask: "How come we donât offer animal sacrifices to God anymore"
Day after day, week after week, month after month, year after year, decade after decade, century after century, animals had been sacrificed by the priests for the sins of the people.
The OT sacrificial system anticipated by its sacrifices the sacrifice of one once for all sacrifice by which sins could be truly and completely atoned for.
Hebrews 10:1-4 speaks of this when it says "The law is only a shadow of the good things that are coming-not the realities themselves. For this reason it can never, by the same sacrifices repeated endlessly year after year, make perfect those who draw near to worship. If it could, would they not have stopped being offered? For the worshipers would have been cleansed once for all, and would no longer have felt guilty for their sins. But those sacrifices are an annual reminder of sins, because it is impossible for the blood of bulls and goats to take away sins.
While the death and shed blood of animals was not sufficient for a permanent cleansing of those of the OT era, the shed blood of Jesus was sufficient for he is the Son of God sent to die for our sins.
Jesus died as a perfect and spotless sacrifice. He who knew no sin became sin for us that we might become the righteousness of God.
As the animals of the sacrificial system stood as substitutes in the place of those bringing the animal so Jesus is our substitute. He died in our place and shed his blood for the forgiveness of our sins; for as the scriptures say "There is no forgiveness without the shedding of blood" Hebrews 9:22
Not only did the OT sacrificial system anticipate the coming of one who would act as a once for all sacrifice but in addition to this there were other pictures that spoke of and pointed to the better sacrifice of Christ:The Passover Lamb, the Bronze snake, the deliverance of Noah by the Ark, Rahab and the scarlet cord out of Jerichoâs window, the account of Abraham being told to sacrifice his beloved son Isaac, the more excellent sacrifice of Abel. All these things pointed to Jesus and the better sacrifice he would offer for sins cleansing and our salvation and deliverance.
Jesus perfectly fit the bill. When he died all such things anticipated were fulfilled. Hence the temple veil was rippedin two indicating that access to God was no longer by the blood of animals and priestly intercessors÷but by Jesus and his shed blood alone.
8. When Jesus cried out "It is finished" it meant that all that needed to be done to make for our salvation had been done.
The question one might ask is "Are you endevoring to add something of your own to the work of Christ, that you might somehow merit the favor of God."
A story is told of a farmer who was deeply concerned over a friend of his who was a carpenter. Often the farmer sought to present the gospel message to his friend and often he sought to explain that Jesusâ work on the cross was sufficient for all his sins and forgiveness. The carpenter persisted in the belief that he must do something himself. One day the farmer asked the carpenter to make him a gate. When the gate was ready he picked it up and took it home. Shortly after the farmer arranged for his friend to come and see the installed gate. Upon arriving the carpenter was surprised to find the farmer standing with an axe in his hand. "What are you going to do with that" he asked. "I am going to add a few cuts and strokes to your work" was the response. "but there is no need for it," replied the carpenter. "The gate is alright as it is. I did all that was necessary to it.". The farmer took no notice, but lifting his axe he proceeded to hack and slash the gate until it was useless. "Look what youâve done! Cried the carpenter "youâve ruined my work!" "Yes" said the farmer, "And that is exactly what you are trying to do. You are seeking to nullify the finished work of Christ by your own miserable additions to it"
We canât add to Jesusâ work. Jesusâ death was a once for all death. There remains no more need for sacrifice. His sacrifice was perfect and sufficient for all sins.
There is but one work a person must do to be saved. John 6:28-29 says "Then they asked him, "What must we do to do the works God requires?" Jesus answered. "The work of God is this; to believe in the one he has sent"
Jesus has paid for all of your sins. There is nothing for you do but believe on the Lord Jesus that you might be saved.
CONCLUSION
The meaning of Jesusâ word "It is finished"
1. Work was done. Mission accomplished "The seeking and saving of the lost"
2. Jesusâ doing of the work the Father had given Him examples his obedience
3. His sufferings as the man of sorrows were at an end
4. Shows his control over the timing of his death and over his actually dying
5. Satan and death defeated.
6. The righteous demands of the law had now been perfectly met
7. The sacrificial system which pointed and anticipated the once for all sacrifice of Christ was rendered obsolete.
8. All that was needed to be done to effect a persons salvation had been done.
