A WORD OF PERFECTION (Sixth Word from the Cross)

#106                                                             A WORD OF PERFECTION (Sixth Word from the Cross)

Scripture  John 19:29-35, NIV                                                                                                          Orig. Date 4/15/1962

                                                                                                                                                  Rewr. Dates 4/1979; 4/8/1987

Passage: 29 A jar of wine vinegar was there, so they soaked a sponge in it, put the sponge on a stalk of the hyssop plant, and lifted it to Jesus’ lips. 30 When he had received the drink, Jesus said, “It is finished.” With that, he bowed his head and gave up his spirit.

31 Now it was the day of Preparation, and the next day was to be a special Sabbath. Because the Jewish leaders did not want the bodies left on the crosses during the Sabbath, they asked Pilate to have the legs broken and the bodies taken down. 32 The soldiers therefore came and broke the legs of the first man who had been crucified with Jesus, and then those of the other. 33 But when they came to Jesus and found that he was already dead, they did not break his legs. 34 Instead, one of the soldiers pierced Jesus’ side with a spear, bringing a sudden flow of blood and water. 35 The man who saw it has given testimony, and his testimony is true. He knows that he tells the truth, and he testifies so that you also may believe.

Purpose: Continuing the series of last words, here using the sixth word to show the perfection of Christ’s work in our behalf.

Keywords:                           Christ as Mediator                           Easter                   Salvation

Timeline/Series:               Words from the Cross

Introduction

                All of us are interested in life and the way we are able to live it.  We want to be able to conclude that some good did come out of it.

                The annals of history record for us the signal achievements of many people and of the great things that they accomplished.  Some lived brief lives, and yet they are noted for their success.

                Alexander was a world conqueror by the age of 23.

                Hannibal had become a Carthaginian commander by the time he was 26.

                Christopher Columbus had  finalized all of his plans made and was ready to sail to the new world by the time he was 28.

                Captain John Smith had a colonial empire in this new world carved out and staked by the time he was 27.

                Martin Luther, of Reformation fame, was only 30 when he nailed his Ninety-Five Theses to the church door in Wittenberg.

                John Calvin was molding the thought that would be the basis for Presbyterian theology by the time he was 21.

                Joan of Arc had finished her work and had been burned at the stake by the time she was 19.

                At 26 Patrick Henry had already determined, “Is life so dear, or peace so sweet, as to be purchased at the price of chains and slavery?  Forbid it, Almighty God!  I know not what course others may take; but as for me, give me liberty, or give me death!”

                Alexander Hamilton was Secretary of Treasury at 32.

                John Newton discovered law of gravity at 26.

                Roger Williams was banished as an heretic at 29—because Jesus meant more than man-made laws.

                Of Jesus only, however, who died on this cross at 33, could it ever be claimed that His work was unconditionally finished.  Only He could say, and be unchallenged, “It is finished!”  Toward a greater understanding of this sixth word we move this morning.

I.             It was a Word Spoken to the Battlements of Heaven.  To the eternal praise of the Father, Jesus said, “It is finished!”

                All of the pronouncements of the WORD have been fulfilled. 

·         That the Saviour would be of David’s line.  Isaiah 11:1 “And there shall come forth a rod out of the stem of Jesse, and a branch shall flow out of his roots.”

·         That He would be rejected by those to whom He had come.  Psalm 118:22 “The stone which the builders refuse is become the corner stone.”

·         That all nations and cultures would be drawn to Him.  Daniel 7:14 “And there was given him dominion, and glory, and a kingdom, that all people, nations, and languages should serve him:  His dominion is an everlasting dominion, which shall not pass away.”

·         That God’s ultimate purpose in Him had to do with sin, our sin.  Zechariah 13:1 “In that day there shall be a fountain opened to the house of David and to the inhabitants of Jerusalem for sin and for uncleanness.”

·         That this sixth word from the cross means that the power of sin has been disengaged.  Isaiah 53:10f “. . . Thou shalt  make his soul an offering for sin, . . . by his knowledge shall my righteous servant justify many; . . . and he bore the  sin of many, and made intercession for the transgressors.”

                This is not all that the Father had to say of the “anointed one.”  Isaiah confirms His mortal birth (Isaiah 7:14).  Micah affirms His birth in Bethlehem (Micah 5:2).  Hosea declares the flight to Egypt (Hosea 11:1).  Isaiah again, in the most beautiful passage of all, describes Calvary (Isaiah 53:4f).

                Make no mistake of it, to the eternal praise of the Father, Jesus proclaims “It is finished!”  The promises of the Godhead stand complete.  The promises and the performance await man’s profession and progression.  Hebrews 10:16 “This is the covenant that I will make with them after those days, saith the Lord:  I will put my laws into their hearts, and in their minds will I write them.”  I Thessalonians 5:9, “For God hath not appointed us to wrath, but to obtain salvation by our Lord Jesus Christ.”

II.            It was a Word Spoken to the Engagements of Earth.   To a people more concerned with the sensual, and the sordid, and the sensational, Jesus declares, “It is finished.”   

                Amidst these earthly engagements, all have experienced words every bit as grand as nature’s spectacles: Words of peace after season of conflict; words of joy penetrating even grief’s sad hour; words of forgiveness after the languishing dread of broken relationship; words of hope, when it seemed that there was none.

                This word is unequal in all the earth.  “It is finished!”  In the Greek, only one word “tetelestai.”  Archaeologists have repeatedly found its Latin counterpart, “consummatum est” written across the tax-vouchers of those days.  The meaning is clear: “PAID,” the debt is paid.  Many scholars believe that this is what many at the cross heard Jesus say.

                Only the Lord Christ could declare such completeness in the face of such human limitations surrounding Him.  Pressed into this package of human flesh and blood was a faith without limits.  He had caused the blind to see.  He had caused the lame to walk.  His was a faith with such intensity that it spills over into believing hearts even now.  Philippians 4:13 “I can do all things through Christ which strengthens me.”  Hebrews 5:9 “. . . he became the author of eternal salvation unto all that obey him.”  II Corinthians 1:20 “For all the promises of God in him are ‘yes’.”

                To all earthly engagements, His and ours, He declares it: “It is finished!”  In His life and His work and His death.  And in every simple act of faith, “consummatum est: the debt is paid.”

III.           And Finally, It was a Word Spoken to the Deep Trenches of Hell.  Satan must now know absolutely, that the redemptive work of Christ forever stands.  “It is finished.”

                Make no mistake, Satan heard this once spoken word.  Everyone, and anyone, can be saved.  John 7:37 “In the last day, the great day of the feast, Jesus stood and cried saying, If any man thirst, let him come to me and drink.”  Luke 2:10f “And the angel said unto them, Fear not, for behold I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people.”  I don’t know all that we learn from Acts, but this I know, that the early church had to change their attitude to include Samaritans and gentiles.  There are still a lot of attitudes of Christians needing changes.  It is a salvation contingent upon [a] believing and obedient faith. 

                Revelation 22:14 “Blessed are they that do  his commandments, that they may have right to the tree of life, and may enter in through the gates into the city.”

                Thus, this word ultimately means that Satan has no power in our lives that we do not yield to Him.  There are many whom Satan has aspired to entrap in meaningless living.  There are a few who will be able to say “I have done all that I could do.”  The notables mentioned in introduction.  Only Jesus could say “It is finished!”

Conclusion

                Someone tells the story of an elderly lady who had reached her 100th year.  The local newspaper knew of the happening and sent a reporter out to do a story.  “Ma’am, you must have seen a lot in your lifetime?”

                The old lady was said to have rocked for a spell as she contemplated the question, and then replied, “Well, if  you really want to know, seemed to me everything was always over by the time I could find my glasses.”

                Because of Jesus, the spiritual quest is over.  But there are still a lot of people stymied about what to do with Him because they’re having trouble finding their “faith” glasses.