Accomplished

“It is finished.” – John 19:30

Choosing goals for your life? I imagine you can name a number of them, once required to answer the question. But from His understanding youth to his death, Jesus had only one goal for His life on earth: the salvation of men, women, and children.

On the cross he cried out as he accomplished His one overriding goal when crying, “It is finished!” “It“ was “His work of salvation.” And now it was completed!

He pleaded with His Father in Gethsemane to remove the “cup” he faced immediately before Him. The Father would not remove it. But Jesus not only endured this “cup,” he triumphed over it.

Satan believed he had won, not really understanding Jesus’ death would be His victory. He defeated Satan on that cross, and Satan never saw it coming. Nor did the disciples. Nor would you or I if we had been there.

Jesus was laser focused on the cross from his youth, as he came to read and grasp the prophecies of the Old Testament and see Himself as the real subject of them. This was true for Him before he reached the age of 12, and this was manifested at the temple as He answered the questions of the Jewish religious experts.
He understood He would be the “suffering servant,” the perfect “Lamb of God,” a worthy, fully sufficient sacrifice. He knew He could satisfy the impossible demand which sin made, for He himself was sinless.

He, as the sinless One, became sin for us by taking upon Himself the congregate sum of all our sins. The believer will not fully appreciate this until he no longer “sees through a glass darkly,” but with clear eyes, free from all mental and spiritual fog.

Jesus’ cry of “It is finished!” was the exclamation point of His death on the cross. Salvation is complete. It’s application to those who will be saved will proceed until God’s book of life is complete.

But that application is now fully secure. Your salvation, the salvation of children, grandchildren, or greats was won on Calvary where Jesus completed His task with a cry ringing out through the ages, “It is finished!”

“The earth shakes with the force of the conflict; the sun refuses to shine. For there hangs God’s Son in the balance, and then through the darkness He cries: ‘It is finished!’ The battle is over!

‘It is finished!’ There’ll be no more war!

‘It is finished!’ The end of the conflict!

‘It is finished!’ And Jesus is Lord!”

(3rd verse of Bill and Gloria Gaither’s hymn, “It Is Finished,” 1976)