This year, I had more things to write about Easter – but time ran out. It is such an important week in the Christian calendar that it would take a lifetime to discuss all the nuances of the events of Jesus during Holy Week. So… tonight I thought I would finish up the Easter series this year by discussing the last words of Jesus on the cross. The various statements, or even commands, that Jesus spoke while hanging from the cross have been studied by theologians for centuries and one of the psalms even foretells of the things that Jesus would speak in His final hours.
Typically, theologians have listed seven statements attributed to the Son of God as He was in His final day, on the cross. These statements included, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” Then, “Father, forgive them….”, “Woman, behold thy Son”, “I thirst!”, “Father, into your hands I deliver my Spirit…”, Today, you will be with me in paradise…” and, finally, “It is finished!”. That last declaration is the thing that we are focusing on tonight…
You see, the Greek word is, “Tetelestai” which means, in English, “It is finished…” Like so many other words in the Bible, it is difficult to get the full impact of what is being said in English when the Greek is so much more descriptive and complete. I have often said that reading the Bible in English is like seeing in black and white – the Greek is more like seeing in full color. In this case, “Tetelestai” is in what is called the perfect tense. We don’t have anything like the perfect tense in English. In short, words in the perfect tense have a specific point in time that something happens but the event has ongoing impact – in other words, things are forever altered as a result of what happened.
For Christians, this means that the death of Jesus on the cross happened at a specific time, but the action had ongoing results, in this case, for all eternity. The death of Jesus, and subsequent resurrection, changed everything. His death signaled the end of the weekly sacrifices that were necessary before this.
“Tetelestai” also means that a debt is paid in full. This definition means that the sacrifice for the forgiveness of sins was now paid in full – Jesus paid the price! God is a just God – the penalty for sin had to be paid even if God had to pay the debt Himself.
Thirdly, “Tetelestai” is also a military term that means the war is wholly and completely won… It is important to understand how incredible this news is – the victory is won… no doubt about it at all…
Our verse for tonight is from the book of John. The apostle that Jesus loved tells us, in John 19:30, “When he had received the drink, Jesus said, “It is finished.” With that, he bowed his head and gave up his spirit.” Another significant, although often overlooked, interesting fact is that Jesus chose His moment to die. He chose to “give up His spirit” – He wasn’t a victim of circumstance – He decided when to breathe His last.
Of course, this leads to a discussion among theologians as to who raised Jesus from the dead. The word “resurrection” can mean to “raise oneself from the dead”. In other words, Jesus raised Himself on the third day. There are other verses that allude to the fact that the Holy Spirit raised Jesus and even another verse that God the Father raised His Son that Resurrection morning. In any event, God raised God – it’s as simple as that.
So as we close out this Easter week and enter the liturgical season of Eastertide, my encouragement this evening is that God gave His only Son for the sins of the world and that includes us. My prayer is that we will continue to see Easter week for what it really is – the greatest sacrifice ever made for mankind by the only perfect Man – fully man and fully God – who was without sin Himself. Have a great day in the Lord, grace and peace…