Today, I would like you to turn
your Bible, please, to John chapter 19. John chapter 19, and let's
begin reading in John 19, verse 28. And after this, Jesus, knowing
that all things were now accomplished, that the scriptures might be
fulfilled, said, I thirst. Now, there was set a vessel of
vinegar, and they filled a sponge with vinegar, and put it upon
hyssop and put it to his mouth. When Jesus, therefore, had received
the vinegar, he said, It is finished. And he bowed his head and gave
up the ghost." Now, the phrase I want to look at and study this
morning is the phrase, It is finished. Now, these are the
last words of the Lord Jesus Christ as he hung upon Calvary's
tree dying for the sins of his people. Keep this in mind. Never view the cross of Christ
as a tragedy. It's not a tragedy, it's triumph. These are not the words of a
helpless victim, they are the words of a jubilant victor. This
is a plain declaration of fact that all for which he came to
do was accomplished. It was done. He said it is finished. All that was needed to reveal
the full character of God had now been accomplished. All that
was required by the law before sinners could be saved had now
been performed. All that was demanded by holy
justice to pay the ransom price had been paid in full. The great
eternal purpose of God has been fully accomplished in time. That which God purposed in eternity,
He fully accomplished in time. In the fullness of time, God
sent forth His Son, we read in Galatians 4.4. God sent forth
His Son, made of a woman, made under the law to redeem them
that were under the law. I want to ask this question this
morning on this statement, it is finished. What was finished? What was accomplished? And hopefully
we can answer this according to the scripture. What was finished? Well, several things. The first
one is this. The fulfillment of all prophecies concerning
the Messiah, concerning the Lord Jesus Christ, all types and pictures
written of throughout the Old Testament were all fulfilled
in Christ's crucifixion. We read in this scripture here
in John 19, verse 28, Jesus, knowing that all things were
now accomplished, that the scriptures might be fulfilled. The Lord
Jesus died for our sins according to the scriptures. Centuries
before he actually came into this world, the Holy Spirit declared
through the prophets all the details concerning his birth,
his suffering, his death. One by one, all were fulfilled
to the very letter of Holy Scripture from Genesis clear through to
Malachi. Everything that was written concerning
the coming Messiah, He fulfilled. It was written in Isaiah 7, 14
that the Messiah would be born of a virgin. And he was. It was
written that he should be the son of David. And he was. It was written he should be born
in Bethlehem. And he was. It was written in
Isaiah 53 that his person would be despised and rejected. He
came into his own and his own received him not. It was written
of him and Isaiah again being led as a lamb to the slaughter,
and he was. Betrayed of a friend, forsaken
by disciples, crucified between two thieves, numbered with transgressors,
the piercing of his hands, his feet, his side, the mocking of
the crowd, all these were written throughout the Old Testament,
and the Lord Jesus Christ fulfilled all things concerning him. The
imputing of our sin upon him, he bare our sin in his own body. When our master saw the fulfilling
of all things that were written of him, he said, it is finished. All the prophecy types and pictures
of the Old Testament, he said, they're finished. Secondly, what
was finished? Well, the end of his sufferings.
Truly he was a man of sorrow and acquainted with grief. Who
can calculate the weight of his sorrow? Not only the physical
and mental anguish, but also his soul agony when our sins
were laid upon him. He suffered at the hands of men,
yes. He suffered at the hands of Satan,
yes. But my friend, never forget,
it pleased God to bruise him in our room and in our stead.
He suffered at the hands of God. He experienced the storm of God's
wrath against our sin. The wrath of God's justice fell
upon him as the designated sin offering. But now his sufferings
are ended. The Lord had bruised him. The
storm of his wrath is spent. Justice is satisfied. The sin
debt is fully paid, and the scriptures are fulfilled, and now he enters
into glory. never again to suffer, never
again to be forsaken of God, never again to taste death. He
said it is finished. What's finished? All prophecy
concerning him. His sufferings are finished.
Thirdly, we see this. What was finished? The goal of
his coming and incarnation. Our Lord spoke often of the work
that the Father had given him to do. He says in John 5, if
you want to read this, John 5, verse 36. Turn over there and
let's read this together. He said, I have greater witness
than that of John, for the works which the Father hath given me
to finish, the same works that I do bear witness of me that
the Father hath sent me. He said in John chapter 17, I
finished the work the Father gave me to do. The mission of
mercy that was entrusted to the surety, the surety of the covenant,
the Lord Jesus Christ has been accomplished perfectly, effectually,
and eternally. This is a faithful saying and
worthy of all acceptation that the Lord Jesus Christ came to
save sinners, and my friend, he didn't fail. He came to seek
and to save his own people from their sin, and at Calvary that
was accomplished. Isaiah said, the pleasure of
the Lord shall prosper in his hand. That which God had eternally
planned fully came to pass. Him being delivered by the determinate
counsel and foreword knowledge of God. He completed the work
God gave him to do. Something else we see. What was
finished? This is what he said on the cross. It is finished. What's finished? Fourthly, we
see this, accomplishment of atonement. We read in 1 John 3, 5, he was
manifested to take away our sin, and in him is no sin. Sinners
can only be saved by one taking their place and bearing their
iniquity. This is what the Apostle John
said, here in his love, not that we love God, but that He loved
us and sent His Son to be our propitiation, our sacrifice in
our room and in our sin. The demands of God's holy justice
must be met. The debt we owe must be paid. And on the cross, this was done
and done perfectly and done for all of God's elect. Atonement,
sacrifice, payment for sin. A covering from sin and shame,
typical of the coat of skin that God provided for Adam and Eve.
This was provided in Christ's crucifixion. A more excellent
sacrifice typified by Abel's lamb has now been offered. John
the Baptist said, Behold the Lamb of God which taketh away
the sin of God's people. A cure from the serpent's bite
was now ready. to be offered up. He said, Nicodemus
in John chapter 3, as Moses lifted up the serpent, even so must
the Son of Man be lifted up. The life-giving fountain was
opened, typical of Moses striking the rock. The Lord Jesus Christ
is the water of life. In the original language, where
it says, it is finished, in the original language, it's one word. In other scriptures, this same
word is rendered. In Matthew 11-1, it's rendered,
made an end. In Matthew 17-24, the word is
rendered, paid. In Luke 2-39, the word is rendered,
performed. In Luke 18-31, the word is rendered,
accomplished. The same word. Same word. When our Lord said, it is finished
on the cross, He was saying sin was made an end of. He appeared
once in the end of the age to put away sin by the sacrifice
of Himself. He's saying the price of redemption
was fully paid. We're redeemed not with corruptible
things, as silver and gold, but with the precious blood of the
Lord Jesus Christ. What he performed satisfied God's
law when sin was put away. What he performed there at Calvary,
when he said it is finished, satisfied God's offended law
and justice. And what he accomplished was
completed. It's finished. The accomplishment
of thine iniquities is completed. God has given us at least fourfold
proof that the work the Lord Jesus Christ was given to accomplish
at Calvary was accepted and completed and sufficient. At least four
proofs were given that what Christ had done is accepted. Let me give them to you. The
veil of the temple was rent from top to bottom. The raising of
Christ from the dead signified that what he did was accepted.
The exaltation to the Father's right hand when he had by himself
purged our sin, he sat down at God's right hand. And the sending
of the Holy Spirit to make application to the sinner's heart of what
the Lord Jesus Christ has accomplished. Now, see what he's saying here
when he says it is finished? Accomplishment of atonement. Something else. What was finished?
The end of our sin. We read in Isaiah 53, verse 6,
that God laid on him the iniquity of all we like sheep. If God
laid my iniquities on Christ, then they're no longer upon me.
If the Lord Jesus Christ bear my sin in his own body, then
they're no longer upon the believer. There is sin in the believer. Now listen to me carefully. This
will be a blessing to you. There is sin in the believer.
We're sinful by nature. by practice and by birth we have
a sinful nature, but to the believer there's no sin on him. Everyone outside of Christ is
under the sentence of just condemnation. The soul that doesn't believe
the wrath of God abides on him. But when we believe by God's
grace and when we receive and repent And receive the Lord Jesus
Christ by God's mercy and grace. We're no longer under condemnation,
under condemnation, under judgment. Yes, there's sin in us, but we're
no longer under the condemnation. There's no longer sin on us.
We read in Romans 8, 1, there is therefore now no condemnation
to those who are in the Lord Jesus Christ. The guilt and penalty
of sin is no longer upon the believer because the Lord Jesus
Christ took my guilt and condemnation and the penalty of my sin to
himself and set the believer free. What was accomplished when
he said it is finished? Well, what was finished? Let
me give you this, the fulfillment of the law. We read in scripture
the law is holy, the commandment holy, just, and good. How can the law be anything less
than holy, just, and good? God gave it. The fault lay not
in the law, but in us, who are totally because of our sin, totally
depraved and unable to keep God's law. There's nothing wrong with
God's law. The problem is with this sinful nature that we have.
Our Lord came in the flesh to honor His own law. He said, I
didn't come to destroy the law, Matthew 5, 17. He said, I came
to fulfill it. He not only kept the precepts
of the law, but he also satisfied all the penalty of the law. He
endured its curse. The Lord Jesus Christ satisfied
his own law for us. Paul wrote this to the Galatians. He's redeemed us from the curse
of the law, being made a curse for us. He wrote to the Romans,
Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to everyone
that believe it. Again, we read in Romans 6, 14
that we're not under the law, but under grace. This is good
news. The Lord Jesus Christ came to
fulfill the law, all of its precepts and all of its penalty. What
is finished? In closing, let me give you this.
Destruction of Satan's power. That's when he said it is finished. What was finished? The destruction
of Satan's power. Satan, by the believers, should
be treated as a defeated enemy. He was defeated by Christ at
Calvary, the woman's seed crushed the serpent's head, crushed his
dominion and crushed his power. Once we walk according to the
prince of the power of the air, but now it's God which worketh
in us both the will and to do of his good pleasure. Now you
see what's all involved in this phrase when the Lord dying upon
Calvary said, it is finished, all things were accomplished,
sin put away, suffering ended. Atonement made. The law honored. Satan's power Destroyed. It's finished. Now, in closing,
do you believe it? Or are you trying to add something
of your own merit, your own works to His perfect atonement to secure
God's favor? God is satisfied with the Lord
Jesus Christ. He said, this is my beloved Son
in whom I'm well pleased, hear Him. God is well pleased and
satisfied with the Lord Jesus Christ and His redemptive work. His high priestly work. How about
you? Do you believe Him when He said
salvation is finished, righteousness is finished, redemption is finished,
redeemed by the blood of Christ? Well, I pray that you believe
the gospel. And if you don't, I pray that God will give you
grace to believe the gospel and to trust Him.