It is Finished

Well, good morning, everyone.

My name's Steve, if I've not met you before.

And if this is the first time you've been here at St. Paul's,

so you've just joined in, tuned in at the moment.

We have been, over the course of a couple of months,

working our way through the second half of John's biography

on the life of Jesus.

And we did the first half early this year.

What we've been really the undercurrent all the way through

is really just showing out here again and again

from the text of John's Gospel,

how the Christian faith is relevant, it's reasonable, and it's good,

and that ultimately it leads to abundant life.

That's the undercurrent.

Today's passage is really getting to the crux of it all.

It's like Jesus' whole life and ministry is coming to this point,

and this is what, this crucifixion of Jesus, as we've just read,

is what Christianity offers a world that is losing hope

in its ability to fix itself.

That's what we're looking at today.

It's what Christianity offers you,

who are struggling to change,

for you who are looking for peace,

who cannot find security,

for you who are looking for hope.

And it's crucial, this message,

because over two centuries now,

Western societies like us here in Australia

have put our hope in the progressiveness of history.

We've held this strong belief for over two centuries

that every generation will experience a better world

than the one before it.

We've held out this hope that it's just a matter of time,

just a matter of time,

and we'll be able to solve our greatest ills.

We've assumed that human reason,

ingenuity,

science,

once it's freed from superstitious beliefs,

and especially anything to do with religious belief,

we will have a much better world,

a much better world,

a better future.

And the reality is,

over the last couple of centuries,

there's a number of good things that have come our way.

But the reality is,

that the first four decades of the 20th century,

last century,

should have been enough

to wipe out the illusion of the progressiveness of history.

In the space of four decades,

our world faced two world wars,

a pandemic,

and a Great Depression.

What followed that was the Cold War,

and the threat of nuclear holocaust.

Holocaust.

It seems the greatest threat to our hope for a better world,

in the end,

is not the natural environment,

but the various forms of evil that spring from the human heart.

You see, science can come up with a vaccine.

We're thankful for that.

And we've got a bunch of technology.

And 16's coming out.

That's sure to make life better for everyone.

There's a heap of stuff.

That's sarcasm, in case you didn't pick that up.

But what it can't do,

it can't eradicate human evil.

It still exists.

The ordinary cruelties of self-interest in business,

racism,

arrogance,

pride,

dishonesty,

corruption,

abuse,

sexism,

bullying,

bullying,

the countless acts of selfishness

that we witness,

and, dare I say,

we even practice day by day ourselves.

And so John 19 offers us our deepest hope.

The word that the Bible uses for hope

is a word that means profound certainty.

Christianity offers a profound certainty

about our future,

and even about our presence,

even during evil and suffering,

a profound certainty that God is guiding

every twist and turn

in our life towards the resurrection

of our bodies and our souls

to a new,

perfect,

and eternal world

where there is no more pain,

no more death,

no more tears.

In fact,

Christianity

is the only worldview

that has ever existed

in society,

anywhere in the world

in history,

that offers

a perfect new world

with new bodies

as our ultimate hope.

It's the only one.

all founded on the resurrection

of one person.

But that's next week.

It's really all founded here

in these explosive three days of history

that are the death and resurrection

of Jesus and Nazareth

2,000 years ago in Israel.

And today I want to focus on

just two things on this passage

just read out to you.

Open your Bibles,

John 19.

Two things

that Jesus said on the cross

those two things reveal

firstly of all

the nature

of the hope

that Jesus offers us

and secondly

how do we take up,

how do we accept

this offer of hope?

That's in these two points

and if you've got the St. Paul's app

you can follow along in there

if you like

and take some notes.

So first of all

the nature

of his offer of hope.

At the end of the crucifixion account

in John 19

we read this in verse 28.

Later

knowing that everything

had now been finished

and so that scripture

would be fulfilled

Jesus said

I am thirsty.

Now our first reaction

to hearing Jesus say that

is you go

well of course he's thirsty

you know like he's

he's out there

exposed

you know

crucified

under the

hot Middle Eastern sun

losing bodily fluids

he's got no

sun protection

and of course he's thirsty.

But I think

we need to dwell on it

just a little bit more

than that.

because think about it

up to this point

Jesus has suffered

an awful lot.

He's been beaten

in the face

with fists

he's been lashed

with a whip

in such a way

that his back

would have been

looked like a chunk

of raw meat

his ribs

would have been

exposed from behind

he's had

tent pegs

driven

through

his wrists

and his feet

a crown

of thorns

squeezed

over his head

he's endured

all of that

and he's not

said a single

word

nothing

not even

an oof

ow

that hurt

nothing

he accepted

it

and he has

submitted to it

so why now

does he say

actually I'm thirsty

something deeper

is happening here

than mere physical

thirst

and so what you need

to do is you need

to read the

I am thirsty

in the context

of everything

that John's

already written

in his gospel

earlier John

records Jesus

encountering a

woman at a

well

she's a Samaritan

woman a first

century

mortal enemy

of the Jewish

people

and she is

surprised that

Jesus who's a Jew

asks her for a drink

and then Jesus

says to her

in John 4 verse 13

John 4:13

everyone who drinks

this water

will be thirsty

again

talking about the

water that's in

the well

but whoever

drinks the water

that I give them

will never thirst

indeed the water

that I give them

will become

in them

a spring

of water

welling up

to eternal

life

so Jesus

in this

encounter

is talking

about something

much more

significant

than drinking

water

out of a

water bottle

out of a

well

you see

in the

Bible

thirst

is a

metaphor

for the

spiritual

emptiness

that comes

when God

is not the

centre of

our life

Psalm 42

another one

of the

famous

Psalms

as the

deer

pants

for

streams

of

water

so my

soul

pants

for

you

my

God

my

soul

thirsts

for

God

for the

living

God

where

can I

go

and meet

with

God

you see

it's one

thing to

believe

that God

exists

it's another

thing

entirely

different

to have

him as

the central

reality

of your

life

it's not

belief

in God

that our

soul

needs

so much

as

meeting

God

as

knowing

God

as

experiencing

God

you see

without

God

being the

central

reality

of our

life

we

die

of

thirst

spiritual

thirst

that is

it's

actually

possible

to believe

that God

exists

but have

something

entirely

different

as the

central

driving

reality

of our

life

if I

may

continue

to

use

the

metaphor

here

these

other

things

they might

be

success

approval

comfort

friendship

family

sex

romance

influence

it might

be money

are the

actual

drink

that we

are consistently

pouring

into our

lives

in order

to satisfy

a soul

quench

that we

constantly

feel inside

the emptiness

the void

that we

feel inside

the point

Jesus

is getting

to is

this

if we

attempt

to quench

the thirst

of our

soul

with anything

other

than the

love

and the

beauty

and the

comfort

of God

in Jesus

then we

will thirst

again

and again

and again

and again

and again

until we

thirst

forever

only God

in Jesus

can fully

and completely

satisfy

that thirst

of emptiness

everything else

is like drinking

seawater

momentarily

makes you

feel okay

until you

just thirst

again

and again

until it

kills you

so what

Jesus does

here is he

offers this

woman something

better

the water

I give them

will become

in them a

spring of

water

welling up

to eternal

life

this woman

replies

sir

give me

this water

so that I

won't get thirsty

and won't have to

keep coming back

here to draw

water

Jesus

wants to

give it

she

immediately

wants it

but Jesus

doesn't

give it

to her

instead

it appears

that he

entirely

changed the

subject

altogether

go and

get your

husband

well

actually

I don't

have a

husband

and Jesus

says you

are right

when you

say you

have no

husband

in fact

you have

had five

husbands

and the

man you

now have

is not

your

husband

so she

wants to

take up

his offer

of this

water

of life

and he

changes the

subject

and brings

up her

broken

messed up

life

it's a

little bit

harsh

isn't it

Jesus

but he

isn't

changing

the subject

at all

he's

being

incredibly

tender

with this

woman

in this

moment

he's

pointing

out to

her

that all

her

messed up

love

life

is

simply

a result

of her

looking

for men

to give

her what

only God

can give

her

to use

the metaphor

again

her

life

has

revealed

that she

has been

drinking

the seawater

all her

life

the seawater

of romance

and relationships

and she

is thirsty

and thirsty

and thirsty

and it will

never satisfy

and so

Jesus

offers her

the fresh

water

that will

fill her

up

and satisfy

her

forever

the reason

her life

is going

so poorly

so poorly

is because

when we

look to

someone

or something

other than

God

for our

love

and our

significance

and our

identity

and our

security

and our

hope

we will

simply

thirst

over

and over

and over

again

until we

thirst

eternally

what she

needed

was God

as the

living reality

at the

centre of

her life

she needed

to have

the love

of God

at the

centre

of her

life

so that

she didn't

need to

look to

the love

of a

man

in her

case

to give

her

what only

the love

of God

could give

her

and so

Jesus

was not

so much

confronting

her

as he

was

lovingly

convicting

her

this is a

woman

who we

see in the

text

had a

belief

in God

but the

belief

wasn't

enough

God

wasn't

the centre

of her

life

and Jesus

helped her

see it

helped her

see that

other things

were in fact

more important

to her

so

that's the

back story

let's jump

back into

John 19

to the

crucifixion

of Jesus

that's the

reason why

Jesus says

I am thirsty

his thirst

is a

picture

of what

he is

really

going

through

on the

cross

as he

experienced

ultimate

thirst

for us

the old

testament

the book

of Nahum

puts it

like this

who can

withstand

his

indignation

this is

talking about

God

who can

endure

his

fierce

anger

his

wrath

is poured

out like

fire

as

I said

last week

on the

cross

Jesus

is here

getting

what the

whole human

race

deserved

for our

evil

in putting

everything

else but

God

our creator

God

is the

centre

controlling

influence

of our

life

he's

getting

what we

deserve

our

life

our

creator

God

he was

experiencing

divine

justice

it was

like in

that moment

the white

hot anger

of God

like a

million

suns

burning

down

on him

he is

thirsting

thirsting

and thirsting

so that

we could

receive

living

water

he is

dying for

our

spiritual

thirst

he is

experiencing

the agony

of being

separated

from God

the fountain

of living

water

so that

we can

have access

to the

fountain

of living

water

for all

of eternity

he experienced

the agony

of separation

from the love

of his

father

the experience

of his

fire of

judgment

so that

we can

experience

his

love

and the

never ending

refreshment

of the water

of eternal

life

he got

what we

deserve

so that

we can

get

what he

deserves

he

suffered

so that

we can

have a

river

of life

welling

up in

us

that is

another way

of saying

his

favour

his

love

his

approval

his

acceptance

that's

the nature

of his

offer

to us

today

as it

was to

this

woman

at the

well

in

John 4

so how

do we

if that's

the offer

how do we

take up

the offer

and that's

that's the

next point

I want to

go to the

next thing

Jesus says

the last

thing he

says

as he

breathes

out his

last

is in

verse 30

it

is

finished

it is

finished

Jesus

is using

a word

here

in the

original

language

means

totally

paid

it's a

word

you'd

write

across

an

account

in

the

original

language

in the

Greek

language

it would

be

it is

finished

it is

totally

paid

paid

in

full

one of

the

wonderful

and

great

paradoxes

of

history

is

that

here

is

the

helpless

and

powerless

and

dependent

Jesus

dying

on a

cross

and

his

last

words

are

I

did

it

I

did

it

I've

triumphed

I've

accomplished

it

it's

finished

it's

done

victory

and

what

he's

described

what

he is

his

accomplishment

here

is what

a little

bit later

in the

New

Testament

is

described

by

in

1

Peter

3

Christ

also

suffered

once

for

sin

the

righteous

for

the

unrighteous

to bring

you

to

God

I've

done

it

the

way

is

now

open

there

is

this

infinite

chasm

between

us

and

our

creator

God

and

Jesus

has

done

absolutely

everything

that's

required

he has

paid

every

single

debt

that we

owe

to

God

dealt

with

every

single

bit

of

shame

and

guilt

and

sin

he's

accomplished

it

all

there's

nothing

more

that we

must

do

to

bridge

the

gap

between

us

and

God

that's

his

last

words

it's

finished

a

word

to my

Asian

friends

and

elite

western

people

can

contrast

the

last

words

of

Jesus

with

the

last

words

of

Buddha

do

you know

what

his

last

words

were

strive

without

ceasing

strive

without

ceasing

Jesus

I

have

thirst

for

you

it

is

done

it

is

finished

it

is

accomplished

Buddha

Buddha

says

keep

working

keep

going

keep

going

keep

going

and you

may

get

there

now let

me say

there is a

whole lot

of admirable

things about

Buddhism

like the

self-denial

and the

recognition

that selfishness

is in fact

a major

problem

but the

eightfold

path of

Buddhism

is

incredibly

hard

it is

demanding

and that's

why his

last words

were strive

without ceasing

if you want

to achieve

enlightenment

Jesus

last words

was I've

done

everything

I've

done all

the striving

for you

I've done

everything

that's required

to bring you

to salvation

I've

thirsted

for you

so that

you can

be satisfied

religion

as I said

last week

is where

you give

God a

performance

and hope

that he will

bless you

on the

base of

your

performance

the core

message of

Christianity

is that

God blesses

us in

Jesus

Christ

and we

get to

live

to love

to serve

him

the one

who has

already

given us

the love

the blessing

and the

acceptance

Jesus

says

it's

done

any

effort

on our

behalf

to make

his

finished

work

better

does

not

in fact

make it

better

in any

way

whatsoever

it

actually

makes

it

worse

any

effort

at all

any

striving

at all

when

Jesus

says

it is

finished

what he

meant

to say

was

it

is

finished

we

cannot

receive

his

salvation

and act

as if

we can

add to

it

in

any

way

whatsoever

and I

know

there's

a bunch

of

Christians

sitting

in the

room

going

yeah

you know

I heard

this

30 years

ago

I

understand

that

Steve

got this

piece

of

information

but

let me

speak

particularly

to the

Christians

in the

room

right

now

someone

who

says

I

follow

Jesus

there

are

two

kinds

of

Christians

if you

like

who

try

to

add

to

the

work

of

Jesus

one

kind

is

the

beat

myself

up

person

and

the

other

is

to

prove

myself

person

the

self

beater

is

the

one

where

every

time

someone

criticizes

them

they

are

devastated

and

they

beat

themselves

up

every

time

you

do

something

wrong

or

make

a

mistake

you

beat

yourself

up

in

fact

you

did

something

15

years

ago

and

you

still

can't

get

past

it

always

the

need

to

feel

bad

about

yourself

let

me

just

tenderly

say

to you

in

this

moment

you

need

to

know

and

you

probably

need

to

know

this

every

hour

of

every

day

Jesus

was

beaten

up

for

you

he

was

beaten

up

for

you

and

good

enough

for

you

he

paid

for

your

sins

stop

trying

to

pay

for

them

yourself

it

is

finished

any

attempt

to

add

to

anything

that

he

has

done

is

simply

going

to

subtract

from

it

and

your

joy

in

it

the

other

person

is

the

self

prover

this

is

the

other

end

of

the

spectrum

they

usually

feel

much

better

about

themselves

they're

often

proud

self

made

person

you've

had

a bit

of

success

in

your

life

and

you

think

it

means

something

in

actual

fact

and

there's

the

need

to

have

the

money

there's

the

need

to

have

the

success

the

possessions

the

family

the

career

the

recognition

to

feel

secure

and

significant

means

you

are

constantly

adding

to

Jesus

work

he's

the

only

one

who

makes

you

feel

secure

and

significant

and

acceptable

the

message

of

Christianity

is that

we are

all

sinners

saved

by

grace

and

if we

trust

in the

finished

work

of

Jesus

that's

it

it's

so

simple

and

it's

so

simple

that

our

rebellious

human

heart

hates

it

and

that's

why

we

must

preach

the

gospel

to

ourselves

every

single

day

as I

said

last

week

our

hearts

are

more

evil

than

we

ever

dare

to

believe

but

we

are

more

loved

and

we

are

much

more

affirmed

and

accepted

than

we

ever

dare

hope

or

imagine

in

Jesus

the

person

who

tries

to

prove

themselves

doesn't

understand

they

never

can

you

never

can

I

remember

sitting

with a

pastor

a few

years ago

now

and

we were

talking about

church

growth

and

so on

he was

a pastor

of a

church

of 15,000

people

and he

said

to

me

Steve

you

know

it's

never

enough

the

size

of your

church

is

never

enough

never

satisfy

only

Christ

satisfies

what

is it

that

you're

pursuing

the

person

who

tries

to

prove

themselves

doesn't

understand

they

never

can

be

in

factual

fact

you're

more

evil

than

you

ever

imagined

that's

a

crowd

conversely

people

constantly

trying to

atone

for their

flaws

by beating

themselves

up

never

will

because

you're

already

more

loved

and

affirmed

more

than

your

wildest

dream

God

humbles

one

and he

affirms

the

other

it

is

finished

it's

done

Jesus

death

doesn't

contribute

to

our

salvation

it is

our

salvation

all of

our

overwork

and anxiety

and constant

striving

and lack

of gratitude

and joy

is because

we don't

yet

realise

it

is

finished

and

this is

the amazing

truth

of the

Christian

faith

as in

is

central

to

the

events

of

Easter

it's

so

summarised

succinctly

in the

New

Testament

writer

this is

1 Timothy

here is

a trustworthy

saying

that deserves

full

acceptance

Christ

Jesus

came into

the world

to save

sinners

is there

any

any more

wonderful

news

for people

like us

who know

that we

cannot measure

up to the

demands of

our own

conscience

let alone

the demands

of our own

morality

while living

in fear

what the

future holds

Christianity

is so

full of

hope

hope for

the self

beaters

hope for

the self

provers

it is

full of

hope for

you

it is

full of

hope for

this

world

let me

just say

it's why

we're

raising

funds

for

Burundi

for

training

of

theological

students