Today we celebrate Good Friday. A day when we focus on the suffering and death of our Lord Jesus Christ. I want to focus today on the importance of the three of Christ's final words: "It is finished!"
John 19:28-30 28 Later, knowing that all was now completed, and so that the Scripture would be fulfilled, Jesus said, "I am thirsty." 29 A jar of wine vinegar was there, so they soaked a sponge in it, put the sponge on a stalk of the hyssop plant, and lifted it to Jesus' lips. 30 When he had received the drink, Jesus said, "It is finished." With that, he bowed his head and gave up his spirit.
The last words of a person before they die tells us what they lived for
Finishing is one of the hardest things for a person to do. People are great starters, we are quick to embark upon things that need to be done but many times lack the strength to carry it through.
Though man's intentions are true and sincere, they lacks the ability to finish what they start.
Our Human tendency is to quit too soon Our human tendency is to stop before we get too the finish-line. Our inability to finish what we start is seen in the smallest of things like: a partly mowed lawn, a half read book, a letter begun but never completed, wasted food, a car still being repaired, a cold faith, a job hopper, a wrecked marriage and un evangelized world.
Look at all the unfinished work & things at home or in your life
In our life we are tempted to quit so many times because of the odds and enemies that have come to stop our successes in God.
If you feel like quitting remember that Jesus was tempted in every point as we are yet without quitting! He felt like quitting but pressed on to victory.
It is finished is not a cry of defeat but a cry of relief, victory and fulfillment.
On Good Friday we deal with death up close. We stand at the foot of the cross of Jesus Christ. We experience the reality of death - his death. We get to consider the gaping wounds caused by the cracking of the whip and the thorns and the blows. Blood flows freely. Screams of agony and pain come from Jesus. His sinews are pulled and stretched to the point of breaking. His lungs burn for breath. And why? He had done nothing deserving of death. He was an innocent man. But the cost for sin had to be paid. And Jesus paid it - It is finished.
On the cross Jesus took every unfinished works and plans of man and finished what we could never accomplish. He took the bitterness of defeat and transformed it into a finished victory.
He took our weakness, sickness, pain, sin, curse, all upon Himself on the cross
Imagine what it is to say It is finished How many things you have started and not finished
It is Finished - were not words of Defeat or loss BUT of Victory, Triumph
Nobody understood the Death of Jesus ? Even His own disciples whom He was with for 3 ½ years did not understand His death.
Gen 3:15 And I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and hers; he will crush your head, and you will strike his heel."
God knew the plan of man's redemption but the devil did not know
1 Cor 2:8-9 8 None of the rulers of this age understood it, for if they had, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory. 9 However, as it is written: "No eye has seen, no ear has heard, no mind has conceived what God has prepared for those who love him"--
What did Jesus mean when He said the Last Words from His lips It Is Finished
First let us be clear what it is finished means. It is four words in our language but in Greek it is only one word tetelestai.
Tetelestai means it is finished, it is accomplished, it is completed, the work is done, it stands finished, it will always be finished.
A Servant would use tetelestai to tell his master that he had completed the work/task set for him.
A Priest would say tetelestai in relation to the sacrifice offered by someone at the temple, meaning it is perfect, it is accepted.
A Merchant would state tetelestai when a debt had been fully paid for a purchase. It would mean paid in full.
An Artist would use the word tetelestai when he had completed his work. He would step back and exclaim tetelestai it is finished, the picture is completed and excellent work.
So let us now turn to Christ and seek to understand what he meant by saying tetelestai before he gave up his spirit and died.
1) The Redemption of Man had been completed Romans 3:23-24 23 for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, 24 and are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus.
Hebrews 9:12 He did not enter by means of the blood of goats and calves; but he entered the Most Holy Place once for all by his own blood, having obtained eternal redemption.
Ephesians 1:7 In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God's grace
Jesus mission on earth was to redeem man ( buy back what was lost by paying the full price.
The Mission for my coming to earth to redeem man is accomplished The Cost of Redemption was the Precious blood of Jesus Christ
1 Peter 1:18-19 18 For you know that it was not with perishable things such as silver or gold that you were redeemed from the empty way of life handed down to you from your forefathers, 19 but with the precious blood of Christ, a lamb without blemish or defect.
2) Total Atonement for SIN was completed
Hebrews 2:17 For this reason he had to be made like his brothers in every way, in order that he might become a merciful and faithful high priest in service to God, and that he might make atonement for the sins of the people.
The Cost of Sin was paid in Full
But you must not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, for when you eat of it you will surely die. (Genesis 2:17) Listen to the words that tell us of the cost: It is finished Father, into thy hands I commend my spirit. See what sin costs. The price is not cheap.
Our sin - those little white lies, the lustful thoughts all of our sins were placed upon Jesus. See the cost being paid. The price for sin is steep. The soul who sins is the one who will die (Ezekiel 18:20) Jesus the innocent took on the full weight - He became sin for us. And He paid the cost. For the wages of sin is death. (Romans 6:23) It is finished Jesus died.
The forgiveness of Sins had been purchased
Hebrews 9:22 In fact, the law requires that nearly everything be cleansed with blood, and without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness.
Eph 1:7 In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God's grace
The curse of sin has been removed.
Galatians 3:13-14 13 Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us, for it is written: "Cursed is everyone who is hung on a tree." 14 He redeemed us in order that the blessing given to Abraham might come to the Gentiles through Christ Jesus, so that by faith we might receive the promise of the Spirit.
3) The Death of Jesus Demonstrates the Love of God
Romans 5:8 But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.
4) The death of Jesus Destroyed the Power of Death 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.
1 Corinth 15:55 "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 the Power of death has been destroyed.
5) The death of Jesus Reconciled us to God
Reconcile means – restore back our friendship to God, since SIN made us enemies to God..
Romans 5:10-11 10 For if, when we were God's enemies, we were reconciled to him through the death of his Son, how much more, having been reconciled, shall we be saved through his life! 11 Not only is this so, but we also rejoice in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received reconciliation.
Colossians 1:19-22 19 For God was pleased to have all his fullness dwell in him, 20 and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether things on earth or things in heaven, by making peace through his blood, shed on the cross. 21 Once you were alienated from God and were enemies in your minds because of your evil behavior. 22 But now he has reconciled you by Christ's physical body through death to present you holy in his sight, without blemish and free from accusation--
2 Corinth. 5:19 19 that God was reconciling the world to himself in Christ, not counting men's sins against them. And he has committed to us the message of reconciliation.
Ephesians 2:12-16 12 remember that at that time you were separate from Christ, excluded from citizenship in Israel and foreigners to the covenants of the promise, without hope and without God in the world. 13 But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far away have been brought near through the blood of Christ. 14 For he himself is our peace, who has made the two one and has destroyed the barrier, the dividing wall of hostility, 15 by abolishing in his flesh the law with its commandments and regulations. His purpose was to create in himself one new man out of the two, thus making peace, 16 and in this one body to reconcile both of them to God through the cross, by which he put to death their hostility.
6) The Death of Jesus opened the way into the Holy of Holies
Hebrews 10:19-22 19 Therefore, brothers, since we have confidence to enter the Most Holy Place by the blood of Jesus, 20 by a new and living way opened for us through the curtain, that is, his body, 21 and since we have a great priest over the house of God, 22 let us draw near to God with a sincere heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled to cleanse us from a guilty conscience and having our bodies washed with pure water.
Because of Christ's Death We Have Access to God
No one was allowed access to the holy of holies but the High Priest on the Day of Atonement which occurred once a year
The Day of Atonement which occurred on the 10th day of the 7th month was to serve â a reminder that the daily, weekly and monthly sacrifices made at the altar of burnt offering were not sufficient to atone for sin.
On this one day in the year, atoning blood w Our Lord Jesus Christ, we have to ask ourself this question. What am I carrying with me that Christ carried for me on the Cross ??
If Jesus carried and took up for me , then why am I still carrying and taking up ?
Matt 8:17 This was to fulfill what was spoken through the prophet Isaiah: "He took up our infirmities and carried our diseases."
Isaiah 53:4-5 4 Surely he took up our infirmities and carried our sorrows, yet we considered him stricken by God, smitten by him, and afflicted. 5 But he was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was upon him, and by his wounds we are healed.
Jesus took upon Himself all our Infirmities and carried upon Himself all our sorrows
What are you carrying today in your life ? unforgiveness, anger, jealousy, hurts , bitterness, slander, gossip, sickness, diseases ,
Today , give them all to Jesus. Nail them all on the cross .
Illustr: A story tells us of a mother's dramatic rescue of her child. Workmen were blasting rock in a quarry. One day after they had attached the fuse and retired to a safe place and gave the alarm they saw a three year old child wandering across the open space where danger threatened. Every passing second meant death was closing in on the child.
The workmen called to the child and waved their arms, but he only looked on their strange antics with amusement. No man dared run forward knowing the explosion was only seconds away. The child most certainly would have been killed, had not his mother appeared at this moment of crisis.
Taking in the situation at a glance she did what her mother's heart dictated. She did not run toward her son or yell to frighten him. Instead, she knelt down, opened wide her arms and smiled for him to come. Instantly the child ran towards her. Shortly later the area shook with the force of the explosion, yet the child was safe in his mother's arms.
What a picture of the grace of God and of the cross. With outstretched arms on the cross Jesus gives his gracious invitation to the world. Indicating we are to come to him for eternal safety.
Today, Will you come to Jesus? Will you give Him your life so that He may give you eternal security.
Be Blessed as you give your life to Jesus Christ.
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