Do your duty; defeat evil where you see it and go with God.”
–D.C. Adkisson (Mal de Ojo)
“But if the Spirit of Him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, He who raised Christ Jesus from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through His Spirit who dwells in you.”
–Romans 8:11 (NASB)
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I believe that the three most powerful and important words were spoken on that first Good Friday when Jesus hung on the cross. “It is finished!” The work that Jesus came to do was finished on the cross. He fulfilled His purpose; He completed what He was sent to do.
Redemption–it was finished, mankind had been redeemed. Propitiation–it was finished, the sacrifice of Jesus satisfied the wrath of God. Atonement–it was finished, man’s sin was covered with the blood of Jesus. Reconciliation–it was finished, there was now a way back to the Father. Substitution–it was finished, Jesus took man’s place on the cross, He died where man did not have to. Justification–it was finished, the Judge of Heaven pronounced Jesus guilty instead of you or me.
It was the cross that satisfied God. It was the cross where Jesus took ALL the sins of the world, past and present, upon Himself. It was the cross that made the earth tremble, made the demons cheer, and the skies darken. Jesus, the Son of God, man perfect upon this earth now became sin and He cried out when sin came upon Him in all its horror and terror–It is finished!
However, there were a few things to take care of before the complete mission was fulfilled. The three silent days we know little about. Things took place in the spirit world, the gates of hell were broken, but what actually happened we don’t know for sure. Then. . . another shaking of the earth, then another shaking in the spirit realm and Jesus walked out of that tomb. Death, sin, and hell had been defeated, now–the mission was complete!
As Jesus completed His mission, so He expects us to complete ours. We are given work to do; duty to follow the steps of Jesus. No, we don’t have to die for our sins, Jesus did that, but we do have to pick up our cross and carry it. Each of us play a different part in the mission, therefore, each of us have a job to finish. There are battles to face, but that does not mean the mission is over. I think of D-Day, June 1944, which insured the defeat of Germany, however, the mission was not completed until May 1945, when the Nazi government of the Third Reich surrendered to Allied forces. Your personal mission will not be over until Jesus says, “well done, good and faithful servant.”
Please take some time today and throughout the weekend to contemplate those words, “It is finished!” (see John 19). Then be ready to shout in victory as V-S Day came about. (Victory Over Satan/Sin) It is finished, the victory is won! Throw your shoulders back, hold your head high, for Jesus Christ brought about the glorious victory.