Later, knowing that all was now completed, and so that the Scripture would be fulfilled, Jesus said, "I am thirsty." A jar of wine vinegar was there, so they soaked a sponge in it, put the sponge on a stalk of the hyssop plant, and lifted it to Jesus' lips. When he had received the drink, Jesus said, "It is finished." With that, he bowed his head and gave up his spirit.
John 19:28-30
It seems that every generation imagines itself at the turning point of history. World War I was the war to end all wars, until we fought World War II, which then led straight to the Cold War. When the Soviet Union collapsed some proclaimed "the end of history" because democracy and capitalism had triumphed over totalitarianism, believing this brought an end to the conflicts that fueled human history. In our times we are told the decisive struggle is with terrorism, but before the war on terror we waged war on poverty, drugs and cancer. Within the Church there are some who proclaim that the end is near, that many who are alive today will witness the return of Christ and be eyewitnesses to the most decisive event in all of time and eternity.
But part of the scandal of the cross is that the most decisive event in the history of the universe happened almost 2,000 years ago when Jesus Christ was "lifted up for all to see and glorified," which is John the gospel writer's way of speaking of Jesus' death on a cross. When Jesus said, "It is finished" he was not talking about his life nor about his earthly ministry. He was talking about the redemption and salvation of the world being completed in his death. By submitting to death Jesus shattered death's hold on us. By dying at the hands of sinners – both Jew and Gentile – Jesus broke the power of sin. In Jesus' death the old order of sin and death has come to an end, and the new creation has begun.
For those of us who live in the most powerful nation in history this can be hard for us to wrap our minds around. We enjoy being the leaders of the free world, of setting the tune that the rest of the world has to follow. We believe that when history turns the corner we will be in the driver's seat. But, in the words of Paul, what we experience now are not decisive turning points in history, but birth pangs and labor pains that remind us that the work accomplished in Jesus Christ will soon be fulfilled, and until this consummation we live in the tension of the now, when sin and death still have a foothold in the world, and the not-yet arrived kingdom of God, where sin and death will be no more.
In the words of Stanley Hauerwas, "It is finished, but its not over." While we believe that Jesus accomplished the salvation of the world in his death, this does not mean we wait quietly until God's kingdom comes in full. What we are called to do is live out the fullness of Christ's salvation in the present so the world can see that sin and death have been dethroned, that the emperor has no clothes. We demonstrate the forgiveness of sins by the way we forgive one another. We demonstrate the abundance of God by our generosity. We demonstrate the reality of Christ's reconciliation by including people of all nations, languages, races and social classes in the fellowship of the church. We, the church, are proof of Christ's salvation as we live lives shaped not by sin, but by God.
How do we live in this way? You are invited to listen to these passages from Scripture as we seek God's salvation in Jesus Christ:
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