It Is Finished

Welcome to this edition of PowerPoint with Jack Graham. A little later in the program we'll tell you how you can get a copy of Dr. Graham's book, Heaven. But first here's the message.

It is finished. We have a cross as a symbol of our faith. Crosses are everywhere, on steeples, on jewelry, on tombstones. Everywhere you turn, a cross. It is the cross that marks and identifies our faith, the cross. Now when you think about it, a cross is an unusual choice to be the symbol of our faith. The symbol of the faith.

Why? Because there's a word that is given to us about the cross when Jesus was on the cross and these words spoken from the cross tell us why. Why the cross? And why Jesus died? And why we celebrate something as unusual as a cross. I mean you wouldn't wear a hangman's noose around your neck or a little electric chair but the cross was a symbol of death and execution. And the way you died on a cross basically was by suffocation.

So it was very difficult, if not impossible at times, to speak. But God gave us these words from Jesus. And preserve them. Not dead words, but living words. Not the words of a victim, but the words of a victor. And each word that we have covered tells us something more about why the cross. At first there was the word of appeal to the Father.

He cried out, Father forgive them for they do not know what they do. It was a prayer, a word of appeal. Then words of assurance to a dying thief who repented.

And Jesus said, this day you will be with me in paradise. And then there were words of affection. When He spoke to His mother and cared for her and said, woman, your son, pointing to John.

He is your mother. And He took care of His mother by giving her to His beloved disciple. Words of affection. And then when supernatural darkness encroached upon the land, at high noon the sun hit its face because Jesus cried out, my God, my God, why have you forsaken me? These are words of abandonment. When Christ was cut off from fellowship with the Father that God Himself, the Father, turned His back on His dear and darling Son.

Abandonment. And then came words of agony. I thirst. Speaking of the total humanity of Jesus as well as His holiness, for He satisfies the deepest longing, He satisfies the deepest thirst of the human heart. These were words of agony of human suffering Then as we note today came words of accomplishment. And then finally words of acceptance. Father, into Your hands I commit my spirit. Today, words of accomplishment. In chapter 19 of John's Gospel, beginning at verse 30, when Jesus had received the sour wine, He said, it is finished.

And He bowed His head and gave up His spirit. Now it's important that you realize that these words are not the last gasp breaths of a worn out or wasted life. But these words, it is finished.

Really just one word in the language of the New Testament. Jesus was saying it's over, but rather it is finished. It is accomplished. It is done. It is the shout of a victor.

The Greeks prided themselves in having a language that could say a lot with just a few words. When a builder would complete a construction job, a project was completed, then the word to telestai was offered. Project done.

It is built. It is done. An artist would often use this word. When the sculpture was complete or the painting was finished, to telestai, it is done. It was also used by priests when the sacrifice was given and the blood was spilled and the priest would come out to say, to telestai, it is finished. These words were offered or this word to telestai was given when a servant would complete a task for a master. Finished. Done.

Complete. This word was also used by accountants. When a bill was paid, when the mortgage was finished or completed, they would write to telestai. Paid in full.

It was also used by warriors, by soldiers. When the battle is done, to telestai, it is finished. Something is incredibly important. I don't know about you, but sometimes I have a hard time finishing things.

Don't look at me like that. I mean, how many of you have, it's easy to start things, but more difficult to finish things. You got to clean the house.

It's spring cleaning. You decide to take a nap about halfway through. You decide to lose weight. I'm going on a diet.

How many can say I finished? Well, no, you said I'm famished, right? There goes the diet. Or maybe I'm going to get in shape. I'm going to exercise. And you start out like a house of fire.

You're running like crazy for two days until you're burned out. And you're not finished yet. God has called every one of us to finish life well. And I'm so glad that He said in Philippians 1.6, He who began the good work in you will complete it, will finish it in the day of Jesus Christ. What God starts, He finishes. That's encouraging for me and for all of us to know that He's going to complete the work in us that He has started.

He's never going to give up on any of us. And the way we can know that is because of what Christ has done on the cross. When He said to Telestai, it is finished, what did He mean? He didn't say, I am finished. There's a big, big difference between saying I am finished and it is finished. Jesus was not finished. It was all just really beginning. But it, God's plan, God's purpose, God's salvation is now finished.

It means that the Scriptures are now fulfilled. You know the cross was not an accident. It was not an afterthought. The cross of Jesus was not plan B. It was not something thrown together at the last minute. In fact, it was planned in eternity past.

Scripture says that the Lamb of God was slain before the foundation of the world. That in the infinite counsel and heart and mind of God, 1 Peter 1-20, that the cross was foreordained before the foundation of the world. That God's plan all along, knowing that man would sin, knowing that Satan would rebel and lead a revolt on earth, man's sin that would bring death and destruction, God had a plan all along. And the plan was redemption. The plan is salvation. And from Genesis, the first book of the Bible, to Revelation, the last book of the Bible, is all about Jesus and this story of salvation.

It's all about the message of the cross. So every promise relative to salvation is fulfilled when Jesus said it is finished. Every prophecy, we've talked in the past in these messages about the detailed and directive prophecies regarding the coming of the Messiah, the coming of Jesus in the world that would identify Jesus as the Savior. All of those promises, all of those prophecies are now fulfilled. In fact, Jesus shouts to Telestai and then bows his head and gives up his spirit after he fulfilled the last prophecy which was from Psalm 69 when it was prophesied that he would cry out, the thirst, and receive hyssop and the gall and the sour wine, the vinegar from his thirst. And that was all prophesied. It was all planned. And it was all perfected at the cross. And why?

Just one reason. God loves you. You're listening to PowerPoint with Jack Graham and today's message, It is Finished. Even in life's heaviest moments, the promise of heaven holds out an encouraging hope for you today. And when you understand what your future with God will be like, the burdens of the present fill lighter. That's what Pastor Graham's book, Heaven, is all about.

And it's why we want to get a copy into your hands today. Heaven is our thanks for your gift to help share the truth of the gospel to more people around the world. So call now to request your copy of Heaven when you give. Call 1-800-795-4627. That's 1-800-795-4627.

You can also text the word PowerPoint to 59789. And don't forget to visit JackGraham.org where you can shop our e-store, give a gift online or sign up for Dr. Graham's free daily email devotional. Our website again is JackGraham.org.

Now let's get back to today's message, It is Finished. God gave His only Son. Would you do that? Would you offer the life of your child for someone else?

I wouldn't. Now I could make a list. If you were to ask me to make a list of people for whom you would die, Jack Graham, I could make a list on that one. People that I love and no questions asked, I would be willing to lay down my life. But if you were to ask me how many people would you put on your list for whom you would allow or even sacrifice your child, one of your children to die? That would be a blank page.

I love you, but I don't love you that much. But do you know who's on God's list? Everybody in the world.

No one is excluded. For God so loved the world that He gave His only Son. I told you that this word tetelestai is a word which means to complete a project. It's used by builders. And if you think about it, this is why we have a cross. Why the cross?

Why this symbol? There's a vertical stake in the ground. There's the vertical beam of the cross which extends from heaven to earth and represents the holiness of God that has come down to man. And then there's a cross beam, a horizontal beam, which represents the wideness of God's grace and His mercy which is inclusive of all who will come to Him. So when you see a cross, it is as though God has built a bridge. When God's holiness intersects with God's mercy and His love at the cross and when Jesus is suspended between heaven and earth, this bridge is now built that connects sinful humanity with holy God. The bridge is done.

The work is finished. Jesus paid it all. His precious blood paid the price.

I told you it was an accounting word. We were in debt, a debt that we could not pay way over our heads. We were indebted because of our sin. We were imprisoned by our sin. But tetelestai means the debt is paid. When someone was put into prison in the ancient world, the day of Christ, they would write the offenses on a piece of paper and place it upon the doorpost or the prison where that person was incarcerated.

And when the time was served, the sentence was completed, they would take down the sign and the debt and write across it tetelestai, paid in full. Jesus paid the debt that He did not owe because we owed this debt that we could never have paid. He lived a life that we could not live and died a death that we deserved in order that we might have eternal life. And now, because of the cross, as God has reached out His arms to us, Jesus is saying, I love you this much. And as I said, the holiness of God and the mercy of God intersect in the person of Jesus.

This is why He said, it is finished. Salvation is finished, His sufferings are finished, the sufferings of Jesus were beyond our ability to define or even to discuss. It's unfathomable what Jesus went through. No one has ever suffered like Jesus suffered. He was a man of sorrows acquainted with grief.

Many have died. Many have died terrible deaths, many have suffered, many have suffered on crosses and died, but only Jesus took on not the physical pain alone, but the spiritual pain of separation from God and bearing the weight of the world when He carried the cross for you and me. So thank God His sufferings are finished. The pain is done. The plan of God, of salvation, is finished to tell us die.

But there's one final thing. Not only is the Scriptures fulfilled and sin is now forgiven, but Satan is finished. Revelation 12, 11 says that they overcame Him, the devil, by the blood of the Lamb, the word of their testimony, and they loved not their lives unto death. In other words, Satan was defeated because death and hell and judgment was destroyed at the cross. The Bible says the Gospels tell us that Jesus came to destroy the works of the devil. This is why we say there is power, power, wonder working power in the blood of the Lamb. Oh how Satan hates the cross because it reminds him of his biggest mistake. His only power was in the lie that he could control the minds and the hearts and the destinies of men.

That lie is still, is now forever undone by the truth of Jesus Christ. Jesus said, now is the prince of this world cast out. The writer of Hebrews said, in as much then as the children have partaken of flesh and blood, he himself likewise shared the same that through death, listen to this, that through death he might destroy him who had the power of death, that is, the devil. Satan made his last move.

It was the cross, but he overplayed his hand because Satan turned the cross into the weapon that would destroy the power of the enemy, the works of the enemy forever and ever. You say, wait a minute pastor, Satan is still around right? Yes he is. He's not in the pit yet, one day he will be forever. Satan is not in hell right now.

He's roaming about like a roaring lion seeking whom he may devour. So he's not down in hell making people shovel coal. That's not what the devil does. The devil is alive and active on planet earth.

One day he will be totally defeated and put in the pit of hell forever and ever. The devil now has power to do certain things. He has power to tempt, power to seduce, power to tell lies that people believe. So the devil still has power. But listen to this, the devil has no authority over the life of the believer.

Satan has no authority over you as a follower of Jesus. You say, what's the difference? There's a big difference. Let me illustrate it with a police officer standing out here on the corner. When you leave the parking lots today, there will be police officers to help guide our traffic out. These police officers, they have authority. And the policeman may just weigh, let's say 150, 60 pounds, and he can't physically stop the traffic. If you decide you're going to go 50, 60, he can't physically stop you. But he's been given authority by virtue of his badge and position and the laws of the state of Texas.

That officer has been given authority to say stop. Not power, but authority. Now when it comes to Satan, listen to this, this is going to bless you. When it comes to Satan, because Jesus finished the work, because Jesus cried to Telestai, Satan no longer has any authority over your life, over your family, Satan is defeated. Therefore, we war from a position not of personal power, but spiritual authority. The spiritual authority that we've been given and that authority is in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ. And when you say stop in the name of Jesus, when you say hold on there, when Satan comes to you and says something like, well, you remember your past, hey, the next time Satan reminds you of your past, you just remind him of his future.

Because in the future, he's going in the pit forever. And you now have authority, you have victory in Jesus Christ. You're not the devil's little plaything. You're not the devil's tool.

You're not the devil's toy. You have the power and the authority of Jesus Christ living in you to live not as a victim, but as a victor because Christ has defeated the enemy in your life. You're listening to PowerPoint with Jack Graham and today's message, It is Finished. No matter what struggles you're facing today, you have hope in the promises awaiting you in heaven, and God calls you to share that hope with others today. That's why we want to encourage and inspire you today by sending you Pastor Graham's book, Heaven. This exciting book takes you straight to Scripture to help you see all that awaits you in the life to come and how it impacts your life today.

You'll find hope for today and courage to share that hope with others. So don't wait to request your copy. Heaven is our special thanks for your gift to help boldly proclaim God's word through PowerPoint. So request your copy when you call today. Call 1-800-795-4627. That's 1-800-795-4627. You can also text the word PowerPoint to 59789. And don't forget to visit JackGraham.org where you can shop our e-store, give a gift online, or sign up for Dr. Graham's free daily email devotional.

Our website again is JackGraham.org. Pastor, what is your PowerPoint for today? When Jesus cried out on the cross, it is finished. It was a cry of victory, that the victory is won. Christ has suffered and died and paid the price for our sins, and now we can live in the victory, the salvation that God has provided. This salvation doesn't come in what we have done in trying harder to be good and trying to be good enough because we can never be good enough to earn our salvation. Jesus finished the work on the cross for you and for me.

And so there's no more work to be done. We are not saved by our performance, but by His performance, what Christ has done for us. So don't try to add anything to the cross. Don't try to add anything to your life in order to gain heaven or to merit yourself favor with God.

It's impossible. Trust in Christ alone for what He has done for you, and I promise you He will save you. You look at all the religions of the world, it's man's quest to find God. It's man's efforts to gain favor with God. But when Jesus cried out, finished to Telestai on the cross, it means that the work is done, the search is over. And we don't need to look any further than Jesus Himself and what He did for us in dying and rising again on the third day. Jesus truly is the answer, the way, the truth, and the life. He is the way and the only way we can have eternal life. On the cross, Jesus paid the debt that you owed.

You owed a debt that you could not pay. He paid a debt that He did not owe in order that you could be forgiven and fulfilled in life and live forever in the power of Jesus Christ. That's why we say that heaven is a free gift, that eternal life is the gift of God. Wherever you are right now, would you right now bow your head, close your eyes, and invite Christ into your life? Or just look up into the sky and say, Lord Jesus, come into my life. I believe you died for me and rose again, that you did what I couldn't do, and I trust in you and not in myself for my eternal life. Receive Jesus right now. Turn from your sins and trust in Him, and you will be forgiven and changed and transformed forever. That's the good news. That's the gospel.

That's why Jesus died for you. And that is today's PowerPoint. Today, if you prayed that prayer with Dr. Graham and accepted Jesus as your Lord and Savior, we'd love to hear from you so we can help you begin your new life with Christ. Please call us at 1-800-795-4627.

That's 1-800-795-4627. Join us again next time as Dr. Graham brings a message about the hope you can find today in Christ's final statement on the cross. That's next time on PowerPoint with Jack Graham. PowerPoint with Jack Graham is sponsored by PowerPoint Ministries.