It is finished!

When man ate from the forbidden tree in the Garden of Eden, sin and death entered the lives of man and caused a separation between God and man. But God, in His great mercy, already had a perfect redemption plan in mind for fallen man, to reconcile man back to God. It all began with a tree and it is finished at a tree; the cross on Calvary. At the cross, 耶稣说, It is finished! But what is finished at the cross? What did Jesus mean when Jesus said, it is finished and bowed His head and gave up the ghost? (约翰 19:30)

Jesus went about doing good

因为神如此爱世人, 他赐下他的独生子, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, 但有永生. For God sent not His Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through Him might be saved(约翰 3:16,17)

The word which God sent unto the children of Israel, preaching peace by Jesus Christ: (He is Lord of all:) 那句话, 我说, you know, 在整个犹太地区出版, 从加利利开始, 在约翰宣讲洗礼之后; 神如何用圣灵和能力膏抹拿撒勒人耶稣: 谁出去行善, 医治一切被魔鬼压制的人; 因为神与他同在 (使徒行传 10:36-38)

耶稣; the living Word of God, was sent to this world and came 在肉体中 to fulfill God’s redemptive work for fallen man and reconcile man back to God.

Jesus served His Father, by walking in His will and doing good. He preached and brought the Kingdom of God to the people.

Jesus healed all, who were oppressed by the devil. He stood in the service of His Father and served the people by giving them what they needed.

Jesus was a reflection of God. He said to the people, that if anyone had seen Him (耶稣), he had also seen the Father (希伯来书 1:1-4).

Jesus said unto him, Have I been so long time with you, and yet hast thou not known Me, Philip? He that hath seen Me hath seen the Father; and how sayest thou then, Shew us the Father? 你不信我在父里面, 和我里面的父亲? 我对你说的话不是我自己说的: but the Father that dwells in Me, He does the works (约翰 14:9-10)

Jesus is the only way to God the Father

我就是那条路, 真相, 和生活: 没有人能到父那里去, 但由我. If you had known Me, you should have known My Father also: and from henceforth you know Him, and have seen Him (约翰 14:6-7)

Jesus is the only way to God the Father and eternal life. There is no other way! 这 admission to the Kingdom of God and the reconciliation with God the Father, began at Calvary, where Jesus was made sin for the salvation of mankind (另请阅读: Is Jesus the only way to eternal life?).

We read in the Old Testament, that the high priest was only allowed to enter the holy of holies of the Tabernacle, once every year.

The high priest was allowed to enter God’s presence after he had sacrificed animals (offerings) for the remission of the sins of the people and after he covered himself with the blood of the offering.

Without the blood, the high priest could not enter the presence of God (利未记 16, 希伯来书 9).

That was the way of the remission of sins of God’s people under the Old Covenant, which was sealed with the blood of animals. This had to be done on a regular basis, because the people remained the old creation and were still trapped in their sinful nature.

现在, let’s have a look at the remission of sins and the sinful nature of fallen man in the New Covenant, which is sealed with the blood of Jesus Christ.

The Garden of Gethsemane

The work of redemption already began in the garden of Gethsemane, where Jesus crucified His soul. He had to crucify His soul before He was able to fulfill God’s plan for His life. Jesus prayed to the Father and said: “父亲, if Thou be willing, 从我身上取下这个杯子: 然而不是我的旨意, 但祢, 完成”.

When Jesus spoke these words, an angel appeared unto Him from heaven and strengthened Him.

And being in agony, Jesus prayed more earnestly. And Jesus’ sweat was as great drops of blood falling to the ground (卢克 22:42-44 另请阅读: 灵魂被钉十字架).

Jesus conquered this deadly fear, which was the only adversary (enemy), that could hinder Him from finishing the work of His Father. But Jesus overcame this deadly fear through 坚持不懈的祈祷.

After Jesus’ battle in the garden, Jesus was taken captive. Jesus was brought to the council and they interrogated Him. After the interrogation, Jesus was brought to the whipping post, where Jesus was scourged.

The whipping post

但他因我们的过犯而受伤, 他因我们的罪孽被压伤: 我们的平安的惩罚落在他身上; 因他受的鞭伤，我们得医治 (以赛亚 53:5).

他在树上亲自担当了我们的罪孽, that we, 向罪死, 应该为正义而活: by whose stripes ye were healed (1 彼得 2:24)

在鞭打柱上, Jesus was scourged, wounded, and bruised. Jesus bore all your sicknesses, 疾病, and all your infirmities at the whipping post. And by His stripes, you were healed.

The stripes of Jesus did not occur on the cross, but at the whipping post, when Jesus was brutally scourged. He was scourged so badly, that the blood flew out of Him.

But if ye will not drive out the inhabitants of the land from before you; then it shall come to pass, that those which ye let remain of them shall be pricks in your eyes and thorns in your sides, and shall vex you in the land wherein ye dwell (Numeri 33:55)

请确实知道，耶和华你的上帝不会再将这些国家从你面前赶走; but the shall be snares and trapes unto you, 和你身边的祸害, 和你眼中的刺, 直到你们从耶和华你们神所赐给你们的这片美地上灭亡 (约书亚 23:13)

But the sons of Belial shall be all of them as thorns thrust away, because they cannot be taken with hands (2 塞缪尔 23:6)

The Crucifixion

然后那一刻到来了, that Jesus was brought before the people, together with Barabbas. The people of Israel were given a choice, they could choose for the release of Jesus or Barabbas. The Jewish people chose Barabbas instead of Jesus. 所以, the lot fell on Jesus, and Jesus was chosen by the people of Israel to be crucified (另请阅读: 耶稣或巴拉巴, 你选择谁?).

The devil thought he was smart. 他以为, that he finally had gotten rid of Jesus and could continue to build his kingdom on earth without any resistance. But the devil was wrong. Because this was all part of God’s plan and work of redemption for mankind.

Jesus was crucified and yielded Himself to God, so that God could lay the sins of the world upon Jesus.

耶稣, Who was without sin, was sacrificed as a Lamb to deal with the sin problem and to reconcile man back to God, 一劳永逸.

When Jesus took all the sins of the world, including yours, 在他自己身上, Jesus cried with a loud voice: Eloi, Eloi, lama sabachthani? Which means: 我的上帝, 我的上帝, why hast Thou forsaken Me?

Jesus had always been united with His Father. He was never separated from Him, until the moment, that God laid the sin of the world upon Jesus. 因为事实, that God is a holy God and can never have fellowship with sin, Jesus was separated from His Father.

耶稣说, It is finished, cried with a loud voice, and gave up the ghost. 那一刻, 这 veil of the temple was rent in twain from the top to the bottom (标记 15:33-39).

We all, 包括你, should have been the ones, instead of Jesus. We should have deserved these punishments and be put to death and go to hell, because of our fallen state and the way we lived.

But because of God’s great love and mercy, Jesus took our place and became our Substitute and took the punishment for sin upon Himself.

It is finished!

For as Jonas was three days and three nights in the whale’s belly; so shall the Son of man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth (马修 12:40)

When Jesus therefore had received the vinegar, 他说, It is finished: and He bowed His head, and gave up the ghost (约翰 19:30)

For this cause was the gospel preached also to them that are dead, that they might be judged according to men in the flesh, but live according to God in the spirit (1 彼得 4:6)

After Jesus said, It is finished, Jesus died at the cross and entered Hades (地狱). 这证明, that Jesus carried all the sin of the world and that Jesus was made sin. 因为否则, Jesus wouldn’t have gone to Hades (地狱) (另请阅读: 耶稣在地狱里做了什么?)

Jesus was in Hades for three days and preached the gospel. But death was not strong enough to keep Jesus in Hades. Because after three days Jesus was raised from the dead by the power of God and had legally taken back the keys of hell and death.

我是活着的他, 并且死了; 和, 看, 我永远活着, 阿门; 并拥有地狱和死亡的钥匙 (启示 1:18)

We are reconciled with God by the blood of Jesus Christ. We can live in unity with God in Christ Jesus. Our sinful past is gone and our sins are all washed away, by the power of the blood of Jesus. 耶稣已经解决了罪的问题; the sinful nature of fallen mankind.

Through faith in Jesus Christ and regeneration in Him, you have been made holy and righteous and are reconciled to God and can have a relationship with God in His presence (另请阅读: 宗教或关系? What do you have?)

The birth of the new creation

But if the Spirit of him that raised up Jesus from the dead dwell in you, he that raised up Christ from the dead shall also quicken your mortal bodies by his Spirit that dwelleth in you (罗马书 8:11)

Jesus conquered death and by the power of the Holy Spirit, Jesus was raised from the dead. The same Spirit, who raised Jesus from the dead, now lives inside of you. When you are born again and have become a new creation, 神圣的灵魂, Who is your Helper and Comforter here on earth, dwells in you.

经过 renewing your mind 与神的话语, you will put your carnal thoughts, which derive from a carnal mind to death.

When you renew your mind with the Word of God, your mind will line up with the Word of God.

You will get the mind of Christ, that knows God’s ways 和神的意念.

所以, if you have the mind of Christ you will walk in obedience to God in His will.

As a son of God, you will walk the way Jesus walked in obedience to the Father. You will do good and preach and bring the Kingdom of God to the people.

You will be a representative of Jesus Christ and the Father and will walk in His authority, serving people.