FEBRUARY 2026
IT IS FINISHED
“IT IS FINISHED” must be one of the most impactful and powerful phrases ever shouted out by a dying Man. Jesus knew the power His final words would have for generations to come, so they were not carelessly said.
As we begin the Lenten season, it’s important that we continue to remind ourselves in our generation, about the importance of these three powerful words (John 19:30).
“It is Finished.”……is from a Greek word “TETELESTAI”…..” te…ter…lis…tai….”
The Jews in those days would have understood this as the “Sacrifice Is accomplished.” On the Jewish feast day known as “The day of Atonement,” the High priest would enter into the temple and make a special sacrifice for the sins of the people of Israel. As soon as the animal was killed, he would appear and declare to the waiting crowd, it is finished. However the Bible tells us that this Sacrificial system was never complete or finished because the blood of that lamb really was not able to forgive sin completely (Hebrew 10:3-4).
But, when Jesus died on the Cross, He, became the ultimate Lamb of God and thus became the perfect and final sacrifice for all sin (Hebrew 9:28).
He completed the work of forgiveness and restoring us to our intimate relationship with our Father. So by making this declaration, “IT IS FINISHED”, Jesus was saying to the Jewish world, that there was no longer any need to have sacrifices, or temples because His work had brought ultimate fulfilment to what their sacrificial system had all these years foreshadowed.
The New Testament understanding of the word TETELESTAI means……. the work is complete.
An employee would tell his boss this, signifying that what he had been assigned to do, he had accomplished. Such was Jesus’s love and obedience to His Father, and love for you and I, that He accomplished all that His Father sent Him to do irrespective of the fact that it cost Him everything.
So Jesus’s work of Salvation in us is completed. We now have to work it out with fear and trembling (Phillippians 2:12-13). In other words, value the salvation you have received, and submit to God’s training. Jesus reconciled us back to God our Father, and enabled us enter in as sons (and daughters) of the Most High God. In this way Jesus restored our inheritance.
This word TETELESTAI is also used in accounting terms and understood as….”The Debt is paid in full.”
When a person finally paid off a loan, they were issued a receipt that was stamped with the word “TETELESTAI” which meant their debt was paid in full. We could never ever pay the debt for our sin on our own. When Jesus died, He was paying off our debt once and for all (Hebrew 9:12).
Jesus also came to destroy the works of the enemy. He gave His Body to be flogged and broken, so that your body and my body would be made whole. So when we have sickness in our physical body, or emotional pain, Jesus has paid for our healing.
It’s easier to accomplish stuff when you have some co-operation from those for whom you are doing it for. That was not the case here with Jesus. He was tortured, shamed, and crucified, yet He stayed the course to finish what His Father had sent Him to do.
If you are undergoing a challenging time now, be encouraged that with the help of the Holy Spirit, just like Jesus did, you also can accomplish what was marked out for you.
We also see in the Throne Room (Revelation 5:9-10), that the Angels in heaven sang a new song, where they thanked Jesus and declared how worthy He was to open the seal, for He was slain, and with His blood, He purchased for God, persons from every tribe, and language, and people and nation, including you and I. He has made us all to be a kingdom and priest to serve our God, and we will reign on the earth. What a glorious accomplishment to be involved in.
As a result of all that Jesus did, you and I don’t need to do anything else except believe it and receive it.
It is finished, meant that everything that needed to be done has been done.
Some of us struggle with this because it seems like we are getting this for free. I wonder if it’s because we don’t get a sense that we have earned it. Today, Jesus wants us to know how highly valued we are. It really wasn’t free because somebody had to pay the huge price. Jesus, paid the price for us, with His blood and in excruciating pain and with His last breath, He made a loud declaration to us that……
“IT IS FINISHED…” TETELESTAI
This truth, over the years has changed lives as people have recognised Jesus for who He is as our Saviour. The soldier who didn’t break Jesus legs, but plunged his spear into Jesus side recognised He was no ordinary man when blood and water gushed out from His side and he spoke of it (John 19:32-35).
There really is no more for you and I to add. Jesus has overcome and won the victory for us. We no longer have to be under the wieght of condemnation, guilt or shame.
All we have to do is put our trust in the finished work of Jesus, rest in the confidence of our Salvation and pursue God with all our heart.
God bless.
Mina
