“It Is Finished”: Understanding the Completed Work of Christ
Rev. Aniekan "Mbomboyo" Okokon ·
When Jesus had received the sour wine, he said, "It is finished," and he bowed his head and gave up his spirit. — John 19:30
Tetelestai. It was written across receipts when a debt was cleared, said by servants when a task was done, and pronounced by priests over a sacrifice found perfect. Jesus chose it for His last word, and He did not whisper it. John says He cried out.
Finished, not failed
To the soldiers it looked like an ending: a man running out of breath. To Jesus it was a completion. The work the Father gave Him - to bear sin, fulfil righteousness, open the way - was done, entirely, and nothing was left for anyone else to add. He did not say "I am finished". He said "it is finished". The difference is the Gospel.
What was completed
- The debt. Every sin of every believer, charged to Him and paid. There is no outstanding balance.
- The law. Fulfilled by the one Man who kept it, on behalf of all who could not.
- The sacrifices. The lamb they pointed to had come; the altar could close.
- The distance. The curtain tore from top to bottom. God did the tearing.
- The enemy's claim. Disarmed, put to open shame, triumphed over.
What a believer does with it
The temptation is to admire the finished work and then go on working as if it were not. To pray for what was purchased, fast for what was given, serve to earn what was declared. Hebrews calls that unbelief and offers a better word: rest. Enter the rest, and let the work you do flow from it rather than toward it.
Finished is not a mood. It is the state of the account. When the accuser lists your failures, the answer is not a better list of your successes; it is one word, spoken by the only One with the right to say it. It is finished.