Good Friday Service | Sunday, April 3, 2026

Well, once again, good afternoon to all of you. I am so glad that you could come and join us today. Obviously, it is an important day in the annual life cycle of the Church, which has been commemorating this day every single year for the last 2,000 years. I don't think it's just my opinion; I believe it is the view of the Scriptures and the view of the Church for a very long time. This is the most important turning point in all of human history—what took place on this day that we remember today.

In thinking about it this last week, there is something that has just been circling around in my mind. It is a word that I think every single one of us loves to utter, whether we say it verbally or just within our own hearts and minds. We love to say the word "done." If you've been working really hard on a paper or a project, it feels great to finally say, "done." If you've been working hard to pay down a loan, that last payment brings such relief. Maybe you're still looking forward to that one day, but when you make that last payment, you can say, "It's done; I'm done paying that."

At the end of a long day or week, when you can finally say "done" after completing all your tasks, it feels wonderful. If you've been working hard to finish up everything before going on vacation, how great it is to close everything down, exit out of your inbox, close the laptop, or even put your phone on do not disturb. Just to say "done" is a great feeling.

Effectively, that is the last word of Christ on the cross, and that's what I want to take some time to consider and look at today. So, if you would, take out your Bible if you have one. If you don't have a Bible, you can raise your hand, and an usher will bring you one. I am going to ask you to stand, and we're going to turn to the end of the Gospel of John. If you turn to about the middle of your Bibles and then start turning to the right, eventually you'll find the Gospels: Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John. We will be looking at John, the fourth Gospel, in the 19th chapter at the 28th verse. That is John chapter 19, verse 28.

There John records that after this, Jesus, knowing that all things were now accomplished, said, "I thirst." A vessel full of sour wine was sitting there, and they filled a sponge with the soured wine, put it on a hyssop, and put it to His mouth. When Jesus had received the sour wine, He said, "It is finished." Bowing His head, He gave up His spirit.

God, I pray that You would speak to us this afternoon. For more than a few standing here today, this word in John chapter 19 is a familiar passage. We may have read it before, heard it taught before, or studied it ourselves. We know these words, "It is finished," but I pray that in some small way, You would open our eyes to see something we may not have realized before—not just intellectually, not just theologically, but practically. What does this mean for us each practically?

God, speak to us. Continue doing the work that You are awesome at doing—transforming us by the renewing of our minds, by the work of Your Word, and by the power of Your Spirit. Holy Spirit, do a work in us. Lord, stir us also today to gratitude, because it is hard to greet one another and say, "Happy Good Friday," but Lord, we are grateful for what this day means. Would You speak to us and teach us by Your Spirit, we pray. We ask this in Jesus' name, and all those that agreed said, "Amen." You may be seated.

The last words of Jesus from the cross are recorded here, and I am reading from the New King James Version: "It is finished." In most English translations, it is those three words, but in the original language, which was Greek, it is just one word: "tetelestai." This is one final declaration from Jesus on the cross—tetelestai. It is finished. Before it says He gave up His spirit, in the Gospel of John, He says, "No one takes My life from Me; I give."

It up freely. Here we see the fulfillment of that word: He gave up His spirit, but not until He had uttered that final declaration. Don't miss this: Jesus was not gasping one final word on a final breath as He was giving up the spirit and dying. He was not gasping as a victim on the cross, saying, "It's over," or with a sigh, "It's finished." That's not what is happening here when He says, "Tetelestai." It is not the word of a victim; rather, it is the declaration of a victor. He is making this awesome declaration about it being accomplished.

We see it in the opening verse of the section that we just read. After this, Jesus, knowing that all things were now accomplished, declared that it has been finished. This requires us to back up a little bit, to the passage that we have spent the last six weeks studying here at Cross Connection Church in Luke chapter nine. If you've been with us over the last many Sundays, you may remember about four Sundays ago when we were in Luke chapter nine, where Jesus was on the Mount of Transfiguration. This is really the starting point of the long path to Calvary, the mountain on which He would be crucified just outside the northern gate of the city of Jerusalem.

The long path toward Calvary began on the Mount of Transfiguration. Who was it that met with Jesus on the Mount of Transfiguration? The gospel writers record that there with Jesus were Moses and Elijah, the representatives of the law and the prophets. What were they talking with Him about? The scriptures reveal what they were discussing in Luke chapter nine, verse 31. They spoke with Jesus of His decease, which was about to be accomplished at Jerusalem—His exodus that He was going to fulfill.

Here in John's gospel, chapter 19, verse 28, knowing that all things were accomplished, everything that the law and the prophets looked forward to, is highlighted. This is why it is so important that Moses and Elijah were with Jesus on the Mount of Transfiguration. The representatives of the law and the prophets are affirming that all of the law and the prophets are oriented toward this fulfillment, the accomplishment of this task. It wasn't just Moses and Elijah; it also included Elisha and Isaiah.

Jeremiah, Obadiah, and every single one of the prophets, along with all the teachers of the law and the Levites, conveyed the sense of the law to the children of Israel for 1,400 years until Christ came, from Moses at Sinai until His advent. They all spoke about the fulfillment and accomplishment of the task for the deliverance of mankind—the redemption of humanity from sin and death, the bondage that we were all under.

On the Mount of Transfiguration, the law and the prophets spoke with Jesus about His exodus, His decease that would soon be accomplished in Jerusalem. From the cross, when Jesus realized it had now been accomplished, He declared this word. As He gasped, He proclaimed, "It is finished." This reminds us that this was His objective; this was the purpose for which He came.

In the Gospel of Matthew, chapter five, verse 17, one of Jesus's purpose statements is found. He says, "I have come to fulfill the law and the prophets; not one, even the smallest mark of the law or the prophets will pass away till all is fulfilled." In Mark's Gospel, the theme verse, if you will, is found in Mark 10:45, where Jesus states that the Son of Man has come to give His life as a ransom for many.

Thus, He declares, "My purpose is to fulfill the law and the prophets. My purpose is to give My life a ransom for many." In Luke 19, verse 10, which I have referenced many times over the last several weeks, the theme verse of the Gospel of Luke reveals that Jesus's purpose is to seek and to save that which is lost.

In the Gospel of John, chapter 10, verse 10, we learn that Jesus came to overcome death, to defeat the work brought about by the serpent, by Satan, through sin, and to bring life and give life more abundantly. Among the many things that could be said about Jesus's purpose statements are these four from the Gospels: He came to fulfill the law and the prophets; He came to seek and to save that which is lost; He came to give His life as a ransom for many; and He came to give you and me life, and that more abundantly. That is what He came to accomplish.

That's his purpose. That's his task. Seeing that those things were now accomplished, what does he finally sum it all up with there on the cross? One word: "Tetelestai." In English, it translates to "It is finished." This word, "Tetelestai," comes from the Greek verb that means "to let go." This word is important in Western culture and philosophy, going back to the time of the Greek philosophers, especially Aristotle.

The concept of the telos is significant to Aristotle. It was the most important way that he said we understand reality. When we look at a thing, and even ourselves, we shouldn't understand them only by asking the question, "What are they made of?" or "What caused them?" We should also ask, "What are they for? What is the telos? What is the purpose of these things? Why were they made? What are they moving toward? What is their proper fulfillment?"

According to Aristotle, if you go back nearly 2,500 years, to understand something fully, you need to understand its end, its purpose, the reason that it exists. For example, we would say that the telos of an acorn is an oak tree. It makes sense. There is a purpose for this thing, why it exists. The telos of medicine should be healing. The telos of politics, according to Aristotle, was the ordering of life towards the good, towards human flourishing. The telos of ethics was again moving us to what he identified as eudaimonia, or human flourishing.

So, there is a telos, a purpose to everything. In the Gospels, Jesus explains to us what his telos is, what his purpose is, what he was aiming at when he came. He did not just come to heal the sick, to feed the poor, to perform miracles, or to walk on water. All of those things merely validate who he is. He tells us what his purpose is: "I've come to fulfill the law and the prophets. I've come to seek and to save that which is lost. I've come to give my life a ransom for many so that you would have life and that more abundantly, and that the death that Satan and sin have brought into the world would be done."

The word "telos" is summed up with one word, and it is the root of the verb "tetelestai." Tetelestai is in a very specific form when Jesus says it, and it's important. You may think, why does any of this matter? Because it communicates something significant. That word "tetelestai" conveys that he is not saying, "Okay, finally, I'm done." He is not gasping at the end of all the brutal, horrific things he went through on Good Friday while he is on the cross. Rather, he is saying it has been finished. It has been accomplished. It stands finished.

The full weight of the word "tetelestai" is this: it has been brought to completion and it remains accomplished. What Jesus did on the cross brought everything to completion, and it is done for all the future. It is not something that has to be done again. This is important. Why? Because if you read through the Old Testament, you will find it filled with sacrifice. Some of you have read the book of Leviticus. Some of you have tried to read through the Bible in a year and stopped at Leviticus because it is hard. You may wonder, what is the point of all these sacrifices?

The point of all the sacrifices in Leviticus is to show you just how costly it is to redeem us from sin and death. Every one of those perpetual sacrifices had to be offered daily, weekly, monthly, and annually for all time because they could not take away sin; they could only cover it for a time. With every sacrifice came the remembrance of sin and the reminder that it would have to be done again.

How many of you have noticed that you still fall short even after you have been justified? Unless some of you think you are perfect. If that is you, we can have a conversation later, and then we will talk to your wife, and she will say, "No, he is not really perfect." Because we all fall short. So it is done. That is what this word communicates: it has been brought to completion and it remains accomplished. It is done once for all, which begs the question: what is done once for all through the cross?

I want to give you five things that the Scriptures show us are accomplished when Jesus says, "It is finished," or "tetelestai," on the cross. Number one: he finished paying your debt. He did not die for himself.

He died to pay my debt, the debt of sin. Every sin you and I have ever committed or ever will commit, Jesus finishes paying the debt for all of our sin on the cross. That's why he could say "tetelestai." Archaeologists have found papyri that have this word written on them, and it is essentially a term for a payment receipt indicating that it has been paid in full. This is one of the meanings of the idea of "tetelestai."

So, what does Jesus finish on the cross? He finishes paying your debt when he says, "It is finished." He also finishes breaking Satan's power—the power that the serpent had over humanity. Humanity handed that power over to him in the Garden of Eden through their rebellion and sin. Jesus breaks the power of Satan. The devil loses his hold when Jesus declares, "It is finished." He is declaring the end of the war. The battle is done. The war is finished. He is the victor.

Third, and this is awesome, in saying "It is finished," Jesus opens the door to God. He makes it possible for you and me to come boldly before the throne of grace to receive grace in our time of need. No longer do we need to go through the priesthood. No longer do we need to go to an altar to offer a sacrifice. No longer is there a veil separating man from God. Now we can come into His presence because, when Jesus says, "It is finished," He opens the door to God. You can come directly to God. That is awesome news! It means that at any moment, you can come before Him in prayer in Christ Jesus.

Fourth, Jesus finishes fulfilling the law. All the requirements of the law are accomplished in Christ Jesus. Everything stated in Leviticus and Exodus regarding the atonement for our sin is fulfilled.

Fifth and finally, He finishes making you and me right with God. Reconciliation is achieved in Christ Jesus. He is our peace, as Paul says in Ephesians chapter 2. Jesus has broken down the middle wall of separation that kept you and me apart from God.

God has reconciled us to the Father. We who were once at war with Him, at enmity with Him, are now brought back into a right relationship with God. The war is over—not just the war between Satan and God, but the war between you and me and God. The enmity is done away with when He says, "It is finished."

There are some wonderful passages of Scripture that highlight this and drive it forward. Hebrews chapter 10, verse 10 states, "We have been sanctified," which is in the past tense. We have been sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all. Every priest stood ministering daily and offering repeated sacrifices over and over again, which can never take away sins. But this man, after He had offered one sacrifice for sins forever, sat down at the right hand of God. By one offering, He has perfected forever those who are being sanctified. The work for our salvation and sanctification is finished when Jesus says, "Tetelestai."

Colossians chapter 2, verse 13 says, "And you, being dead in trespasses, He has made alive together with Him, having forgiven all of your trespasses." It's done. Everything is forgiven. He has wiped away the handwriting of requirements that was against us, which was contrary to us, and He has taken it out of the way, having nailed it to the cross. Having disarmed all principalities and powers, He made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them. In this verse, we have both Christ the Victor and Christ the one who atones for our sin—substitutionary atonement. He has dealt with it all right there.

Then there is this great verse, which many of you know quite well: "There is therefore now no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus, who do not walk according to the flesh, but according to the Spirit" (Romans 8:1). For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has made me free from the law of sin and death. The law could not do, and that it was weak through the flesh, God did by sending His own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh on account of sin. He condemned sin in the flesh, that the righteous requirement of the law might be fulfilled in us who do not walk according to the flesh, but according to the Spirit.

I could go on. There are dozens of other great passages like these, but I think these kind of encapsulate the whole concept, the idea. However, there's one question that remains—really, two questions that I think remain when considering what is finished when Jesus says, "It is finished" on the cross, "Tetelestai."

The first question is this: Do you recognize that it is done? This is a theological question, which means you have to go back to the Bible and consider what it says. Sometimes, like the man in Luke chapter 9, whose son was about to be healed by Jesus, we encounter doubt. Jesus said, "All things are possible if you believe," and the man replied, "Lord, I believe; help my unbelief." Sometimes we read the Scriptures and struggle with unbelief. The Bible says we are holy and beloved in Colossians, but we might question that because we know ourselves. We often have a hard time believing the theological truths, and we need to remind ourselves of what the Scriptures say about us.

So, the first question is a theological one: Do you understand this? Do you know these realities of what is finished?

The second question is even more important: Are you living like it’s finished? Or are you still striving? Are you still trying to make up for all the things you failed at in the past? I think many Christians know these truths intellectually and theologically. They can quote you chapter and verse. They can tell you the passage in Hebrews that states He died once for all. They can tell you that there is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. Yet, they still live under guilt, shame, and condemnation, thinking they have to do something more.

This is the practical question. This is where theology needs to be applied. Every theological position, if it doesn't have a clear application, if it can't be an applied theology, is, in my opinion, basically worthless. I know I would get into some pretty good arguments with my friends at Southern Seminary over that statement, but I still regard it as true. In applied theology, how does this work out in my life? Am I living as though it is finished, or am I still striving?

You see, every other religion, and really Western culture in a big way, says, "Do more, do better. You haven't done enough yet."

So it's never quite finished, is it? It feels like there's always more hanging over our heads that we have to do. Every religion says this, even the ones that are close to Christianity.

Let me give you one example. This is probably the first time I've ever quoted from the Book of Nephi at the church. I'm referring to Second Nephi from the Latter-day Saints' Book of Mormon. Yes, I know. Second Nephi 25:23 states, "For we labor diligently to write, to persuade our children and also our brethren to believe in Christ and to be reconciled to God." Get this: "For we know that it is by grace that we are saved after all we can do."

There's the divergence. If you ever wanted to know the difference between true Christianity and false faith, that's it, summed up in five words: "after all we can do." That's not what the Scriptures say. "For by grace are you saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast." It doesn't say "after all we can do," but that's what our conscience says.

That's why that flavor of religion is so attractive to us—the flavor of religion that says you need to do more to deny your desires, like Buddhism. You need to do more to attain a higher level of consciousness, as in Confucianism or Hinduism. Go down the list of all of them. You have to do more. You have to do better.

And Christ says, "It is finished." Therefore, He says to you and to me, "Come to me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest." That's the word of Good Friday. "Come to me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest."

Why? To tell us that it is finished. It is done once for all. Amen.

Let's stand together. God, thank You for this word—the word of freedom, the word of reconciliation, the word...

Of peace, rest, and joy, the word that gives us ultimate hope. It's not the wishful thinking, blind sort of hope that says, "I hope I've done enough." It's the hope that says, "I'm absolutely certain of my standing because Jesus, you did it all."

We rejoice in you today. We rejoice in your goodness, your graciousness, and your kindness. Lord, we are thankful for this, but we also pray that you would give us the boldness to share this reality with others. There are so many people who are still striving, finding no rest.

God, you are the one who stands and says, "Come to me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest." Thank you, Lord, for your rest. We praise you in Jesus' name. Amen.