THE THREE MOST IMPORTANT WORDS JESUS EVER SAID
“IT IS FINISHED”
(JOHN 19:30)
One would think that of all Jesus ever said, it would be next to impossible to determine what out of those words could, or would, be chosen to be the most important and greatest three words that Jesus ever uttered. As you can see at the beginning of this message, those three words are simple, but they are so profound. Therefore, this preacher desires to go into as much detail as possible so that anyone reading can have a clear understanding of what makes these the most important of all that Jesus said.
When determining what these three words mean, we must first understand what the word “It” is speaking about. Therefore, we must have a clear understanding of what “It” is so that we can properly interpret what Jesus is saying. To accomplish this, let us look at this from a “hermeneutical” standpoint, with the word hermeneutical meaning how scholars interpret Scripture. In doing so, we need to read what comes before these words, along with what comes after these words. One of the most important verses before verse thirty in interpreting the words of Jesus is found in John 19:26-28, which says, “When Jesus, therefore, saw his mother and the disciple standing by, whom he loved, he saith unto his mother, Woman, behold thy son! Then saith he to the disciple, Behold thy mother! And from that hour that disciple took her unto his own home. After this, Jesus knowing that all things were now accomplished, that the scripture might be fulfilled, saith, I thirst.” Jesus has been on the cross since 9:00 a.m., and He has spoken such things as, “Father forgive them, for they know not what they do.”(Luke 23:34). All told, Jesus says seven things on the cross. However, before Jesus dies, He ensures that John, the disciple whom Jesus loved, is left with the responsibility of caring for His mother Mary because it is obvious by this time that Joseph has died. Now we come to “After this”, after leaving the care of His mother to John, even though Jesus is near death, now knowing that all Scripture concerning Him is fulfilled. Jesus now says, “I thirst” in verse twenty—eight of chapter nineteen. According to Psalm 69:21, they gave Jesus exactly what God had said they would, as we see in the very next verse, John 19:29. At this point, after they put the vinegar to Jesus’ mouth, which was meant to ease the pain, therefore, one can easily see that He chose not to drink it. Then we see Jesus say those three powerful words, “IT IS FINISHED”.
What was the “It” that Jesus had finished? He had accomplished all that the Scripture had said concerning the Messiah’s coming to this wicked earth, His place of birth, His life, and His death, knowing that after three days He would rise again. All had been accomplished for the believer to have a place reserved in heaven had been accomplished, as it says in 1 Peter 1:4-5, “To an inheritance incorruptible, and undefiled, and that fadeth not away, reserved in heaven for you, Who are kept by the power of God through faith unto salvation ready to be revealed in the last time.” All that is necessary CHRISTIANS I to gain access to heaven’s throne room in prayer had been accomplished, as Jesus broke down the barrier between God and man, the veil of the temple being rent from top to bottom symbolic of this being accomplished (Matthew 27:51; Ephesians 3:12; Hebrews 10:19) I hope that if you are one of those who think that they can lose their salvation that you notice very clearly that this inheritance is “reserved”, and that it is kept, not by our power, but by the “power of God.” The only way someone could lose their salvation would be for God to lose His Power, and folks, it will never happen, not now, not ever. Jesus said in John 14:6, “ I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.” Jesus is the ONLY WAY to HEAVEN. Some may say that He is a way or the best way, but God Himself will disagree with you because Jesus said that there is no other way to heaven but by HIM. Never forget that we are human and that we are not, nor will we, or never can we become God, or a god, contrary to what Mormons and other cults teach. God is the only Authority that matters, and one day all will bow at the feet of Jesus (Philippians 2:10-11).
So in closing, let me say to you that without Jesus, you will never see heaven as your home, instead, you will reside with the devil and his angels. And please hear this dear soul, it will not be a time of partying, or even seeing someone. Hell is a place of outer darkness, so dark that you cannot see your hand in front of your face. You will be in flames (Luke 16:19-31), and you will cry out for even a drop of water to cool your tongue due to the torment of the flames. Bodies will burn, but not burn up. There will be the foulest stench, so much so that you will be constantly wanting to vomit. The cries of others, though you cannot see them, you will hear them, as they too will hear you, and the cries will never end. Imagine here on earth that when you want to have a place to go so that it is quiet and peaceful, you can go somewhere to enjoy that. In hell, then the lake of fire and brimstone, that will be an impossibility. And dear soul, once you are there, you will never escape (Luke 16:26). Jesus said, “It is finished”, but that will only apply to you if Jesus is your Savior and Lord. I beg you before it’s too late, give your life to Jesus, because it is a decision that you will never regret, however, if you choose to reject God’s offer of salvation in Jesus, your eternity will be sealed. You cannot change your mind, or be prayed into heaven once you are dead. The choice is yours, and only yours to make.
One last word to any reading this. You will never be able to say to God, “You sent me here” (to the devil’s hell, Matthew 26:41) because you made your own choice, and God, being Holy, will respect your choice, and not change the decision that you alone made, because that is against His nature. As I close, the timeclock on your life is ticking and will stop at some point. Then you will meet God as either His friend or His enemy. It is this preacher’s heart’s wish that you give your life over to Jesus, and I pray that you do it now.
ROMANS 3:23
ROMANS 3:10-11
ROMANS 5:8
ROMANS 10:9-10, 13