Biblical Issues and Answers - The Finished Work

Salvation

The Bible teaches the finished work of Jesus on behalf of the believer.

He said, "It is finished," and bowed his head and dismissed his spirit. (John 19:30, tlb)

"It is finished!" Receipts for taxes found in the papyri have written across them this single Greek word, which means "paid in full."

The price for our redemption from sin was paid in full by our Lord's death. "It is finished!"

This final, glorious proclamation is pregnant with meaning.

These words specify not the end of Jesus' life, but the completion of His task. According to the Greek, the expression can also mean, "It is accomplished," "It is fulfilled," or even, "It is paid in full." His death accomplished redemption-paid in full. "It is finished!"

The Greek word is "Tetelestai." The verb tense is the perfect, done in the past with enduring results.

The purpose of His mission (Mark 10:45 "The Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life a ransom for many.") has been completed, and the meaning is that the consequences of His work continue to be effective - and need nothing added.

What do I need to do?

Simply realize that Jesus' death and resurrection were God's final remedy for sin. Here is what God says;

Acts 15:11 "We believe that we are saved through the grace of the Lord Jesus, in the same way as they also are."

Acts 16:31 They said, "Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved, you and your household."

Rom 10:9 that if you confess with your mouth Jesus as Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved;

"It is finished!" "It is finished!"

Until this time, a complicated system of sacrifices had atoned for sins. Sin separates people from God, and only through the sacrifice of an animal, a substitute, could people be forgiven and become clean before God.

But people sin continually, so frequent sacrifices were required. Jesus, however, became the final and ultimate sacrifice for sin. "It is finished!"

The word finished is the same as "paid in full."

Jesus came to finish God's work of salvation (4:34; 17:4), to pay the full penalty for our sins.

With his death, the complex sacrificial system ended because Jesus took all sin upon himself. Now we can freely approach God because of what Jesus did for us.

Those who believe in Jesus' death and resurrection can live eternally with God and escape the penalty that comes from sin.

"It is finished" (19:30). What was finished?

The mission of Jesus, the Son of God, to die a substitutionary death for sinful persons. As a result of His death on our behalf, our sin was atoned for, and eternal life through Jesus became attainable through trusting faith.

Romans 10:8-13 The Message "The word that saves is right here, as near as the tongue in your mouth, as close as the heart in your chest." It's the word of faith that welcomes God to go to work and set things right for us. This is the core of our preaching.

[9] Say the welcoming word to God-"Jesus is my Master"-embracing, body and soul, God's work of doing in us what he did in raising Jesus from the dead. That's it. You're not "doing" anything; you're simply calling out to God, trusting him to do it for you. That's salvation.

[10] With your whole being you embrace God setting things right, and then you say it, right out loud: "God has set everything right between him and me!"

[11] Scripture reassures us, "No one who trusts God like this-heart and soul-will ever regret it." [12] It's exactly the same no matter what a person's religious background may be: the same God for all of us, acting the same incredibly generous way to everyone who calls out for help. [13] "Everyone who calls, 'Help, God!' gets help."