doodle: It is finished!
The Gospels record seven different things Jesus said from the cross, each one giving us deep insight into his heart during those final hours. In India (where I grew up) our Good Friday services always featured seven speakers, each speaking on one of these seven statements. Over the years I’ve mulled over the significance/essense of these words…
Forgiveness – “Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing.” (Luke 23:34 NIV)
Jesus’ focus, even in the midst of the horrific torture he experiences on the cross, is on forgiving those who have done this to him.
Selfless Love – “Truly I tell you, today you will be with me in paradise.” (Luke 23:43)
Two thieves crucified along with him have two different reactions and responses to him. One mocks him, his authority, his identity. “If you are who you say you are, save yourself, and us!” The other humbly acknowledges who Jesus is. “We are punished justly, for we are getting what our deeds deserve. But this man has done nothing wrong… Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom.”
And Jesus, in the midst of the crushing pain he now endures on the cross, gives this man his undivided attention. He assures him that his future is secure, that he will soon be with him in paradise. Jesus was always mindful of his purpose on earth – in life and in death.
Relationship and Commitment – He said to his mother, “Woman, behold your son.” Then he said to the disciple, “Behold your mother.” And from that hour, he took his mother into his family (John 19: 26-27).
As far as we know, there is only one disciple (John) standing at the foot of the cross that day. Others have fled, are in hiding, or watching from a safe distance. Jesus sees John standing at the foot of the cross with his mother. Even in his dying moments, while in the throes of unimaginable agony, he cares deeply about what will now happen to her and entrusts her into the care of his beloved disciple.
Authenticity – “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” (Matthew 27:46)
Jesus knows his prayer will not be answered in a way that will spare him this cruel death. He has already submitted willingly to this. But as in the Garden of Gethsamane, he is authentic in expressing his agony to his Father. We see the raw pain in the separation he feels from his loved ones, especially the Father. What Jesus cries out is a quote from the Psalms (Psalm 22:2).
Fully God and fully Man – “I thirst.” (John 19:28)
Jesus expresses a very real, physical, human need even as he reverses the curses Man brought upon himself through disobedience in the Garden of Eden. Fully God and fully Man, he is able to take our place on the cross as the perfect sacrifice.
A sponge is dipped in sour wine vinegar and offered up to Jesus on a hyssop branch, once again fulfilling prophecy (Psalm 69:21). Hyssop is an important symbol for salvation and purification that is mentioned several times in scripture. The Israelites were instructed to use it the very first Passover, to smear blood from the sacrificed lamb on their door posts so the angel of death would “pass over” their homes that night and spare their firstborn. It was also widely used in purification rites, inspiring the Psalmist to say, “”Purge me with hyssop…” (Psalm 51:7)
Obedience – “It is finished!” (John 19:30)
He fulfills what he has come to do. He is obedient to his Father. “…in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.” (Philippians 2:8)
Trust and Surrender – “Father, into your hands I commit my spirit.” (Luke 23:46)
This is another phrase from the Psalms (Psalm 31:5). Even though he is broken and is about to give up his human life, Jesus’ final words show absolute trust and reliance on God the Father. He dies around 3 in the afternoon, the time when the Passover lamb is traditionally slaughtered in the temple. Paul refers to this later on in his letter to the Corinthians: “Christ, our Passover lamb, has been sacrificed.” (1 Corinthians 5:7)
Jesus, who is equally God and Man, has taken our punishment upon himself and has offered himself as the unblemished sacrifice law demands for our sin.
“All we like sheep have gone astray;
we have turned—every one—to his own way; and the Lord has laid on him the iniquity of us all.” (Isaiah 53:6)
Love has been shown in the deepest way possible. Jesus is pierced, once and for all, for all. It is done.
As Jesus dies, the curtain in the temple is torn in two, from top to bottom…” (Matthew 27:51) destroying the barrier that stood for centuries between God and Man, thus opening the way to authentic relationship with him.
God’s original design for us, can now be restored since the blood-debt for sin has been fully paid. Death has been conquered paving the way to eternal life. Paradise once lost, can now be regained.
Hallelujah! What a savior!
~shini abraham, ©2017, duco divina – contemplative doodling
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