It is Finished

John 19:30

This is one of Jesus’ seven saying from the cross. The words “It is finished” are often called the words of victory. Jesus’ death on the cross is definitely a great part of the victory that we have through him but if we think about it for a moment there were still somethings that were not finished or accomplished when he said these words. In this lesson we will look at what was not finished, what was finished and then see how we can apply this to us today for a spiritual application.

Things that were not finished:

The gospel was not completed until Jesus Christ was risen from the dead (1 Corinthians 15:1-4). The resurrection from the dead is what proved he was the son of God (Romans 1:4). Jesus still had to ascend into heaven and put the blood on the mercy seat (Hebrews 9:12 ; 10:12-13). This is why when he appeared to Mary at the tomb he told her not to touch him for he had not yet ascended (John 19:16-18). Yes, Jesus became sin on the cross and paid the ultimate price there but he still had to spend time in hell and then be resurrected to accomplish everything needed for our salvation.

Things that were finished:

With the above statements you may ask why in the world he said it is finished if our salvation really was not completed until he arose from the dead. There were somethings that were finished on the cross. As the sacrifice for sins Jesus work was complete (Hebrews 10:10), there would not need to be another sacrifice for sins. Also the work that he came to do in the flesh was finished note how Jesus referred to this work many times in the book of John.

(John 4:34 ; John 5:17,34 ; John 9:4 ; John 14:10 ; John 17:4)

Thoughts for us:

Jesus said it is finished and then gave up the ghost. From this point he is trusting in God (Acts 2:24-31). We must do as Jesus and finish the work that he has given us to do. Paul said he had finished his course (2 Timothy 4:6-7). We must be careful to finish our work before we finish our course. Once we have done the work God has given us to do then we must trust him for the results. Paul accomplished a lot on this earth, but by his writings you could say he accomplished more since his death. We should ask ourselves will any of our work for the Lord accomplish something for God after we are dead.