Finished

The Sixth Word

“It is finished!” John 19:30

It is finished.  As Jesus was nearing death, as he hung on that cross, bloodied and fading, he told us that “it” is finished.  It, being the ultimate sacrifice.  The be all, end all, once, for all deal that won us the gift of eternal life with God.  The gateway to heaven was hanging on that cross, and made the announcement that “it” is finished.

“It”, the human life, the man, the burden, the guilt, the anguish, the torture, the weight of sin, the punishment, the physical act of forgiveness, the prophecy, the pathway to heaven.  “It” was finished by Jesus.  He did it.  He accomplished on that cross what we could never do.  Jesus made it possible for us to live forever, to live in communion, to live in peace.  Jesus gave us more than just his human life; he gave us salvation, forgiveness, freedom, and a helper, counselor, and guide.  Jesus poured out his blood for us, so that we didn’t have to shed ours.

And it was finished.  When he went to that cross, there was nothing more that needed to be done.  It was all complete.  It was finished.

Can we live as though the work that needs to be done in us is finished?  Probably not, because as long as we live, we must continue to grow, to mature, to become… but that work that needed to be done for us?  It’s done.

It is finished.