After the Miracle

Today's Devotional Thought
April 02, 2010 by Rachel Piferi

It is Finished

Today is Good Friday, the day that Jesus was beaten, harassed, spat upon, and killed brutally on a cross. Today, Jesus willingly took on the sins of the world and died as a sacrifice for us. He died so that we might have life in Heaven with Him. He died willingly. And, He died lovingly.

Have you ever thought of how confused the disciples must have been? Or how confused His mother must have been? His disciples saw Him perform miracles. They saw Him feed thousands with very little. They saw Him heal the sick and raise others from the dead. They knew He was powerful. And, His mother knew how He came into the world. They all knew how powerful He was. Why didn�t He just take Himself off the cross? Why did He not call His angels to save Him? Why did He just submit?

He was Jesus. Why didn�t He do something to save himself?

Can you imagine how confused they must have been as they watched and then when they heard Jesus say, �It is finished.???

Finished? What do you mean finished? How can it be finished? You came into this world miraculously. You healed many. You are the Son of God. How can it be finished?

We see many places in scripture where many who knew Him didn�t completely understand what He was doing and the sacrifice He was making. And, in these beautiful final words of Jesus, we see Him proclaiming victory over sin and willingly submitting himself to death. With his triumphant words, �It is finished??? He was reasserting His fulfillment of His purpose on this Earth. And, after uttering those words, He bowed His head and died.

We know the rest of the story and know that the story really doesn�t end there. He conquers death on the third day and truly frees us from our punishment for sin. But on that original Good Friday, those around Him did not know He was going to rise from the grave. They watched their friend, teacher, mentor, son, brother, and God die. And, they were likely confused, And, they mourned.

As we celebrate Good Friday, let�s remember the suffering and willing sacrifice that Jesus made today.

"28Later, knowing that all was now completed, and so that the Scripture would be fulfilled, Jesus said, "I am thirsty." 29A jar of wine vinegar was there, so they soaked a sponge in it, put the sponge on a stalk of the hyssop plant, and lifted it to Jesus' lips. 30When he had received the drink, Jesus said, "It is finished." With that, he bowed his head and gave up his spirit."
~John 19: 28-30