“It is finished.”  this was not the despairing cry of a helpless martyr.  It was not an expression of satisfaction that the termination of His sufferings was now reached.  It was not the last gasp of a worn out life.  No, rather it was the declaration of the Divine Redeemer that all for which He came from Heaven to earth to do, was now done.  All that was needed to reveal the full character of God had now been accomplished.  All that was required by the Law before sinners could be saved had now been performed.  The full price of our redemption was not paid.

“It is finished.”  What was finished?  His sacrificial work.  The is true that the act of death remained which was necessary for the making of atonement.  The Lord here speaks in anticipation of the completion of His work.  This sacrificial work made an end of a number of things.

Fulfillment of All The Prophecies Written of Him

Centuries beforehand, the prophets of God had described step by step the humiliation and suffering which the coming Savior should undergo.  One by one these had been fulfilled, wonderfully fulfilled, fulfilled to the very letter.

Prophecy had declared

• He should be the woman’s seed (Genesis 3:15)
• He was born of a woman (Galations 4:4)
• His mother would be a virgin (Isaiah 7:14)(Matthew 1:18)
• He should be the seed of Abraham (Genesis 22:18) (Matthew 1:1)
• He should be a lineal descendant of David (11 Samuel 7:12,13)(Rom 1:3)
• He should be named before He was born (Isaiah 49:1) (Luke 1:30,31)
• He was to be born in Bethlehem of Judea (Micah 5:2)
• His birth would entail sorrowing for others (Jeremiah 31:15)(Matthew 2:14,15)
• He would appear before scepter of tribal ascendancy had departed from Judah (Genesis 49:10)  So He did, for though the ten tribes were in captivity, Judah was still in the land at the time of His advent.
• He would with his parents flee into Egypt and subsequently return to Palestine (Hosea 11:1; Isaiah 49:3,6; Matthew 2:14,14)
• He would have one going before Him to make ready His way (Malachi 3:1) See the fulfillment in the person of John the Baptist.
• His appearing, “then the eyes of the blind shall be opened, and the ears of the deaf shall be unstopped.  Then shall the lame man leap as a hart, and the tongue of the dumb sing. (Isaiah 35:5,6)
• He was spoken of as “poor and needy” (Psalm 40:17) – not having where to lay His head.
• He was to speak in “parables” (Psalm 78:2)
• He was to still the tempest (Psalm 107:29)
• He was to enter Jerusalem with a “triumphal entry” (Zechariah 9:9)
• He was to be despised (Isaiah 53:3)
• He was to be rejected by the Jews (Isaiah 8:14)
• He was to be hated without a cause (Psalm 69:4)

Prophecy painted the whole picture of His degradation and crucifixion.  There had been the betrayal by a familiar friend, the forsaking by His cherished disciples, the being led to the slaughter, the being taken to judgment, the appearing of false witnesses against Him, the refusal on His part to make a defense, the establishing of His innocence, the unjust condemnation, the sentence of capital punishment passed upon Him, the literal piercing of His hands and feet, the being numbered with transgressors, the mockery of the crowd, the casting lots for His garments were all predicted centuries beforehand, and all fulfilled to the very letter.

The Completion of His Sufferings

He was appropriately designation as “The Man Of Sorrows”.  He suffered at the hands of men, at the hands of Satan, and at the hands of God.  Pain inflicted upon Him by enemies and friends alike.  From the beginning He walked under the shadow of the Cross.  Hear His lament:

“I am afflicted and ready to die from My youth up”
(Psalm 88:15) 

The Savior knew the end from the beginning!

Remember at the marriage-feast of Cana, where all was gladness and merriment, He makes a solemn reference to “His hour” had not yet come.  When Nicodemus interviewed Him at night the Savior referred to the “lifting up of the Son of Man.”  When James and John came to request from Him the two places of honor in His coming kingdom, he made mention of the “cup” which He had to drink and of the “baptism” wherewith He must be baptized.

When Peter confessed that He was the Christ, the Son of the Living God, He turned to His disciples and began to show unto them

“how that He must go unto Jerusalem,
and suffer many things
of the elders and chief priests and scribes,
and be killed, and be raised again the third day”
(Matthew 16:21).

When Moses and Elijah stood with Him on the mount of transfiguration it was to speak of “His decease which He should accomplish at Jerusalem.”

We are quite unable to estimate the sufferings of Christ due to the anticipation of the Cross.  The physical sufferings were excruciating, but even this was as nothing compared with His anguish of soul.

The better we are acquainted with His sufferings, and the more frequently we mediate thereon, the warmer will be out love and the deeper our gratitude.

At last the closing hours have come.  Now the suffering is ended.  The wages of sin have been paid.  The prophecies of His sufferings are all fulfilled.  The Cross has been “endured”.  Divine holiness has been fully satisfied.  With a cry of triumph – a loud cry, a cry which reverberated throughout the entire universe – the Savior exclaims,

“IT IS FINISHED.”

Never again shall He experience pain.  Never again shall He endure the contradiction of sinners against Himself.  Never again shall He be in the hands of Satan.  Never again shall the light of God’s countenance be hidden from Him.

“The head that once was crowned with thorns, is crowned with glory now;
A royal diadem adorns the mighty Victor’s brow.
The highest place that Heaven affords is His by Sovereign right,
The King of kings and Lord of lords, and Heaven’s eternal Light.
The Joy of all who dwell above, the Joy of all below,
To whom He manifests His love, and Grants His name to know.”
Hymns to the Living God #189 

The Goal of the Incarnation is Reached

Scripture indicated there is a special Work peculiar to each of the Divine Persons.

God the Father is specially concerned in the Government of this world.  He ruleth over all the works of His hands.

God the Son is specially concerned in the work of Redemption:  He was the One who came here to die for sinners.

God the Spirit is specially concerned with the Scriptures:  He was the One who moved holy men of old to speak the messages of God, as He is the One who now give spiritual illumination and understanding, and guides into the Truth.

The Work of God the Son

Before the Lord Jesus came to this earth a definite work was committed to Him.  He came to do the will of God.  Even as a boy of twelve the “Father’s business” was before His heart and occupied His attention.  Again in John 5:36 we find Him saying, “But I have greater witness than that of John:  for the works which the Father hath given Me to finish, the same works that I do.”

On the last night before His death, in that wonderful high priestly prayer we find Him saying, “I have glorified Thee on the earth:  I have finished the work which Thou gavest Me to do” (John 17:4)

The Mission upon which God had sent His Son into the world was now accomplished.  It was not actually finished until He breathed His last, but death was only an instant ahead, and in anticipation of it He cries, “It is finished.”  The difficult work is done.  The Divinely given task is performed.

The task for which he had left Heaven’s glory, the task for which He had taken upon himself the form of a servant, the task for which he had remained upon earth for thirty-three years to do, was not finished.  Nothing remained to be added.  The Goal of Incarnation is reached.

The Accomplishment of the Atonement

The Son of Man came here “to seek and to save that which was lost”
(Luke 19:10)  Christ Jesus came into the world “to save sinners”
(I Timothy 1:15)  God sent forth His Son, born of a woman, “To redeem them that were under the law” (Galatians 4:4).  He became a man
“to take away our sins” (1 John 3:5).  And all of this involved the Cross.

The “lost” which He came to seek could only be found there – in the place of death and under the condemnation of God.  Sinners could be “saved” only One taking their place and bearing their iniquities.  They who were under the law could be “redeemed” only by Another fulfilling its requirements and suffering its curse.

Our sins could be “taken away” only by their being blotted out by the precious blood of Christ.  The demands of Justice must be met.  The requirements of God’s Holiness must be satisfied.  The awful debt we incurred must be paid.  On this Cross this was done; done by none less than the Sod of God; done perfectly; done once for all.

Greek word here “Teleo”

Teleo (pronounced tel-eh’-o) means to end, complete, execute, conclude, discharge (a debt),accomplish, make an end, finish, to bring to a close.

Putting these words together we learn the scope of the Savior’s sixth Cross utterance.  He cried:  it is “made an end of;” it is “paid;”  it is “performed;” it is “accomplished.”

What was “made an end of?” – our sins and their guilt.
What was “paid?” – the price of our redemption.
What was “performed?” – the utmost requirements of the Law.
What was “accomplished?” – the work which the Father had given Him to do.
What was “finished?” – the making of Atonement.

Four Proofs of Christ’s Finished Work

First is the rending of the Veil, which showed that the way to God was now open.

Second, in the Raising of Christ from the dead, which evidenced that God had accepted His sacrifice.

Third, the Exaltation of Christ to His own right hand, which demonstrated the value of Christ’s work and the Father’s delight in His person.

Fourth, the sending to earth of the Holy Spirit to apply the virtues and benefits of Christ’s atoning death.

End of Our Sins

The sins of the believer – all of them – were transferred to the Savior.

“The Lord hath laid on Him the iniquities of us all”
(Isaiah 53:6)

Sin there is IN me, for the old Adamic nature remains in the believer until death or until Christ returns should he come before we die.  But, there is no sin ON me.

This distinction between sin IN and sin ON is a vital one.  When we hear the judge say that he passed sentence ON a criminal, and that he is now under sentence of death, everyone would understand what it meant.

In the same way everyone outside of Christ.  Those who have not accepted Christ as their personal Savior and Lord has the sentence of God’s condemnation resting upon him.  But when a sinner becomes a believer in Jesus Christ, receives Him as his Lord and Master, he no longer “under condemnation” – sin is no longer ON him.  The guilt, the condemnation, and the penalty of sin is no longer upon him.

WHY?

Because Christ bore our sins in His own body on the tree (1 Peter 2:24).  The guilt, the condemnation, and the penalty of our sins, were transferred to our Substitute.  Therefore, because my sins were transferred to Christ, they are no longer upon me.

“It is finished.”  Do we really believe it?  Or, are we endeavoring to add something of our own to it and try to gain some merit or favor of God?

Have a GREAT day . . . someday it will be HISTORY!