What's Finished?

Here's an idea to ponder: when Jesus said "it is finished", what was He talking about? Did He painfully labor to speak these words as He was dying on the cross to tell us the obvious: that His life was finished? Or was He talking about His requirement to pay taxes or that His job was finished...those joyful declarations might have been worth the excruciating pain. Heck, maybe He was talking about His laundry--that's never done till your dead-because He couldn't have meant that the work to get close to God was finished since we're still doing it!!!

We still have to work to get close to God, right? Isn't that why we try to act a certain way: to make sure our actions will show God we've earned the right to be loved? Isn't that why we have to say the right things: so our language won't send God away covering His delicate ears? Isn't that why we tell the truth and obey traffic lights and avoid arguments and read our Bible and pray...to prove fresh everyday that we are temporarily pure enough to hang out with Him (as long as we're doing something wholesome) until we screw it up by our own humanity. Are our efforts necessary?

Tell me this one thing: did you receive God's Spirit by doing what the law requires or by simply hearing the gospel and believing it? How can you be so foolish? You began by God's Spirit; do you now want to finish by your own power? Galatians 3:2-3

Call me crazy, but I think Paul's saying that when we believe we have to do something to earn our right to be close to God, we're relying on our own power--not what Jesus did on the cross! 

I don't turn my back on God's gift of undeserved grace. If we can be acceptable to God by obeying the law, then it was useless for Christ to die. Galatians 2:21

This is so cool: “It is finished” translates in the Greek to an accounting term that means “paid in full.” When Jesus uttered those words, He was declaring the sin-debt owed to His Father was wiped away completely and forever. Jesus paid our debt! There's nothing left to pay!

We aren't required to do one single thing to be in relationship with God! Most of us understand that we become acceptable to God because of Jesus' sacrifice, but that's also how we continue in this relationship with the God Of The Universe: because of Jesus' sacrifice! Not because of anything we do!

So, dear friends, this is what we learned today: Don't do ANYTHING to "earn" your right standing with God! Give religion the finger by only doing what you GET TO do! Because God LOVES LOVES LOVES you no matter what you do (or don't do)!!!

Jesus said,"It is finished". Let's live like we believe Him :-D