June 25, 2001

Lessons for July 8

FAMILY BIBLE STUDY:
'It is finished' does not apply to the love of Christ
___ John 19:1-42
___By Bobby Dagnel
___First Baptist Church, Nederland
___"It is finished," Jesus said.
___And so thought each of the identified personalities surrounding the cross event (John 19)--the crowd who cried for his crucifixion, the chief priests who claimed to have no king but Caesar, Pilate, the two thieves crucified on either side of Jesus, the soldiers who cast lots for his garment, his mother, his mother's sister, Mary the wife of Clopas, Mary Magdalene and John, the disciple whom Jesus loved. They each assumed it was finished. What they would come to understand in the next three days is that God's definition of finished differs greatly from humankind's.
___While family, friend and foe understood these final words from a temporal perspective--that life was coming to an end--there is a far more important theological promise coming to pass. "It is finished" expresses the reality that the work Jesus came to do has been fully accomplished. God's plan of redemption for those who would be called the people of God has been completed. What is finished is the power of sin to bury us under guilt and the power of death to terrify us.
___The power of God in Christ Jesus to forgive, save and transform continues to be unfinished. His renewing power continues to work in our world and lives day by day. It is unfortunate that the English reading of "it is finished" fails to offer the ongoing ramifications of this one-time act.
___In the Greek, "it is finished" is one word "tetelestai" and is used by John in the perfect tense. English has no corresponding tense adequate for expressing the Greek perfect and thus the past tense has been used as an accommodation only. This utilization of the past tense does not sufficiently capture the full force and significance of the Greek perfect.
___The easiest way to understand the subtleties of the perfect tense is to view it as a past tense act that has a present tense reality and a future consummation. It implies a process, but it exists as a completed state. The finished work of Jesus stands forever complete, and the basis of our faith has been firmly established. Nothing further needs to be done.
___Though we look back upon the cross with a sense of triumph and celebration, there is another sense in which the cross stands in contradiction to the narcisstic, feel-good religion that dominates western Christendom today. If anything, we should be reminded that the cross eliminates once and for all the equation--faith equals happiness. The cross stands as a reminder of the burden of faith and the cost of salvation.
___Artists have tended to romanticize the crucifixion of Jesus, and have not fully comprehended what a gruesome and disgraceful means of execution it was. William Edwards, a pathologist at the Mayo Clinic, writing in the prestigious Journal of the American Medical Association, concludes Jesus died of shock due to blood loss; a contributing factor was the weight of his body pulling down on his outstretched arms and shoulders, making breathing difficult.
___Crucified persons tended to survive anywhere from three or four hours to three or four days. Jesus dying so soon suggests his lashing was severe and blood loss significant. Edwards says Jesus being too weak to carry his own cross supports that conclusion.
___It is a wonder Jesus even made it to Golgotha considering the scourging he received. Roman scourges were made of leather cord knotted with pieces of bone or metal. Chunks of flesh were removed with each lash of the whip. Jesus' physical appearance must have been nearly beyond recognition by the time he arrived at the place of crucifixion.
___What Jesus finished that day outside Jerusalem was the fulfillment of everything God had ever promised to his people. "The day is coming," he promised Hosea, "when I will remember their sins no more." "There will be a day," God confided to Jeremiah, "when these people will be my people and I will be their God." And "someday," wrote David, "the mistakes of men will be tossed as far as the east is from the west."
___That day took place 2,000 years ago at a location known as the Place of the Skull. On this day, we see the very worst of man pitted against the very best of God. What took place that day on the cross reveals God's appraisal of and love for a sinful humanity.
___What a contrast to the love this world offers. The world's love is conditional--I will love you "if" you are good-looking, intelligent and wealthy; "if" you have a good job, education and connections; "if" you produce much, sell much, buy much. We become enslaved as we spend our lives trying to fulfill everyone's "if list" in the hope of receiving their love.
___God, on the other hand, loves with no strings attached. It is as if God said, "I know your faults, your sins and your rebellion. But you are of such value and usefulness to me, I am going to sacrifice my Son that you might be mine. He will pay the price, and you shall receive mercy."
___The finished work of Jesus is unfinished until we respond in faith and trust, receiving the mercy he has procured on our behalf.

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