Tonight Kansas plays Kentucky in the Division 1 NCAA basketball finals. 68 teams began the tournament a month ago. Tonight a champion is crowned and the tournament is finished for another year. As a former basketball player, I enjoy watching some of the games, and will definitely be watching tonight. I also know that what sets apart great players from average ones is their ability to finish off plays. Michael Jordan, for example, was a great finisher. He got the job done when the game was on the line.
There was no greater finisher than Jesus. He was asked to do something infinitely more difficult than finishing a basketball game. He was asked to take the world's sin upon himself and in the process, suffer and die. He was asked to put complete trust in God the Father, that the Father's will would be accomplished through him. Today, Jesus finishes. "It is finished!," he cries out from the cross. Our debt of sin is paid in full.
I've been privileged to be present on many occasions when a person's life has come to an end and they rest at peace with God. The suffering ends and the new, eternal life begins. There is a profound sense of peace in that moment. For Jesus, all that suffering now ends. Given what we've read about all he has gone through, I feel almost a sense of relief for him as he cries out, "It is finished." His suffering is over. He is set free from all that has wounded him. And, at the same time, new life is now made possible for us. Today I thank Jesus for finishing the extremely difficult task he was asked to do for me.
Pastor Jeff. Was that the point of completion, or did He still have to descend into Hell in order to completely fulill my penalty?
ReplyDeleteI think the final completion would include both the descent into hell and the resurrection from the dead. His pain and suffering on the cross is finished, but the work of our atonement is ultimately fulfilled in the resurrection, the victory over sin and death.
DeleteThroughout this journey to the Cross, my eyes have been opened to see Christ's Journey from a whole new perspective and to me, at this point in His Passion for us, I see it as the Greatest Masterpiece in the world. All I need to do when faced with ANY trial is turn my mind and heart to Jesus, all anyone need do is surrender to Him, His yoke is easy and His burden light. All the guidance and hope that we need is available to us because of Christ's Passion. Christ's death on the cross is the crescendo from the sin in the garden. We can now walk with God, we need nothing else!
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