“So when Jesus had received the sour wine, He said, ‘It is finished!’ And bowing His head, He gave up His spirit.” John 19:30

The three most powerful words ever breathed across lips of flesh are found in John 19:30, “It is finished.” These three words uttered victoriously from the cross into eternity are the culmination of not only three-and-a-half years of Jesus’ earthly ministry, but of God’s eternal plan for all mankind.

To fully understand the power of Jesus’ proclamation, it’s imperative that we know what “it” is. The Bible tells us that Jesus’ purpose on Earth was two-fold, to glorify the Father and to destroy the works of the enemy.

In John 6:38, Jesus states, “For I have come down from heaven, not to do My own will, but the will of Him who sent Me.”

We understand from scripture that the “will of the Father is that none should perish” and that He came to “call sinners to repentance.” Jesus’ primary motivation was not fueled by distain for principalities and powers, but love for the Father.

In this, He is our example, our hearts should be tuned to the heart of God and not to the lesser emotion of frustration concerning the issues that surround us.

It is imperative that we understand this, that Jesus was obedient in submission to the cross, that while His crucifixion can be viewed from many angles as the betrayal of the Jews, the sentence of the Romans, and certainly as the plan of Satan to destroy Him. Jesus saw the eternal plan, the cross and the atonement it accomplished was the cup of the Father.

So “it” that He finished is first the will of God, accomplishing in Himself salvation for all who believe on Him and will follow His pattern in laying down their lives.

Second 1 John 3:8 states, “For this purpose the Son of God was manifested, that He might destroy the works of the devil.” That what Jesus’ obedience effectively did was to reverse the curse over mankind. All that had been forfeited in the garden in the beginning was restored to the believer at the cross. Isaiah’s prophetic insight in chapter 53 explains in detail much of what was to be accomplished. That iniquity would be removed, peace restored, sickness healed, our sins forgiven and the effects of them would no longer loom. That the reign of the enemy, the accuser of the brethren, would no longer be given influence.

Every believer should know this, that Jesus not only by His blood declares us not guilty but in doing so, has also pardoned our sentence. That He is glorified in us in the same way that His Father was glorified in Him, that the world would see Him through us. His love, His victory, His power, and as in Jesus our willing obedience to walk according to what He has said concerning us.

The second word of His statement clarifies this, Jesus said “It IS finished,” not, it will be finished. Jesus has accomplished all that is necessary for our freedom and “it” is accomplished today, in the here and now.

We should know today as we live and pray, that all that Jesus intended to do for us to live victorious, and in the will of God, has been done. There is nothing left undone. Today, every believer in Christ Jesus can trust that no stone has been left unturned and no obstacle is left to be overcome that Jesus did not pattern victory in, on our behalf, and as our example.

This Easter Sunday we will celebrate that Jesus defeated death, Hell and the grave, and that by being resurrected we are assured that the Father received His sacrifice. That Jesus patterned not only submission in laying down His life, but also the pattern of victory in the Earth.

David Malcom is the pastor of Trinity Gospel Church. He can be contacted at davidmalcom75@gmail.com.