Finished

Finished.  Easter, 2015

The procession reached the top of Mount Calvary--Jesus and two criminals are to be crucified. Jesus is stripped naked, with his arms outstretched--a five-inch long, three-eighths-inch square nail is driven through each of his hands-actually, more the wrists. The soldiers bend his knees, place his feet flat against the wood, and drive a nail through each foot. At high noon, the soldiers raise the cross, and position its base in the hole, and drop it in with a jarring thud.  Imagine the pain he endured in his already battered body.  [Jesus had said, "When I am lifted up from the earth, [I] will draw all men to myself."¹]

From the sixth hour until the ninth hour, darkness came over all the land. The Light of the World was about to be extinguished--the darkness was a cosmic sign.  Though it was midday, the sunlight was blocked, which was perhaps a reaction to the Son of God being put to death. About the ninth hour Jesus cried out in a loud voice, "Eloi, Eloi, lama sabachthani?"--which means, "My God, my God, why have you forsaken Me?"^2,3 My heart aches at the incredible alone-ness Jesus experienced, as God the Father had to look away from him as he became our sin.

Later, knowing that all was now completed, and so that Scripture could be fulfilled, Jesus said, "I am thirsty." Immediately, one of them ran and got a sponge. He filled it with wine vinegar, put it on a stick, and offered it to Jesus to drink.

When he had received the drink, Jesus said, "It is finished." "Tetelestai!" Jesus called out in a loud voice, "Father, into your hands I commit my spirit." If he were anyone other than Jesus, calling out in a loud voice would have been impossible because at this stage in his crucifixion he would not have had enough breath or strength to yell. With that, he bowed his head and gave up his spirit.⁴ Hmmm, I wonder if God the Father yelled also . . .

At that moment, the curtain of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom. This was a hugely significant happening for all who are followers of Christ, and takes some explanation. The Temple had three parts: the courts for all the people; the Holy Place, where only priests could enter; and the Most Holy Place, where the high priests alone could enter once a year to atone for the sins of the people. In the Most Holy Place (or Holy of Holies), the Ark of the Covenant and God's presence rested. As Jesus 'gave up his spirit,' the thick veil (curtain) was torn apart, from top to bottom. Symbolically, that curtain separated holy God from sinful people; through Jesus' work on the cross, sinful people could now approach God on their own. They were no longer dependent on the High Priest to secure forgiveness from God; they had direct access. With the curtain torn in two, there was an open way to God, as Jesus Christ became the once-for-all sacrifice.⁵ The earth shook and the rocks split; an earthquake rocked the land. When the centurion and those with him who were guarding Jesus saw the earthquake and all that had happened, they were terrified, and exclaimed, "Surely he was the Son of God!"

When all the people who had gathered saw what took place, they beat their breasts and went away. But all those who knew him, including the women who had followed him from Galilee, stood at a distance, watching these things. The women included Mary, the mother of Jesus, (flanked by the beloved disciple, John, the only disciple at the cross), her sister, Mary, the wife of Clopas, and Mary Magdalene

The soldiers came to break the legs of the three men on the crosses to hasten their death—as death ultimately came through suffocation--but when they got to Jesus, he was already dead. Instead, the soldier used a spear to pierce Jesus' side, from which flowed blood and water. Jesus was in fact dead.

"Tetelestai!" He had uttered, and then drew his last breath. It was a Greek expression meaning, "It is finished." Tetelestai when used in accounting, meant "paid in full." Interestingly, archaeologists have found papyrus tax receipts with the word written across them. With Jesus' dying breath, our sin was paid in full--our debt was cancelled. Let his death not be in vain, for you. . . for me~ Why don’t you take a few minutes and pray—thank Jesus for his great sacrifice?

Christine

PastorWoman.com

1 - John 12.32

2 - from Matthew 27, Mark 15, Luke 23, and John 19

3 -fulfillment of David's words in Psalm 22:1

4 - fulfilling the words of Psalm 31.5

5 - Hebrews 7.27; 9:14, 16, 26-28

6 - John 19.31-37