When Jesus had received the sour wine, he said, “It is finished,” and he bowed his head and gave up his spirit.
John 19:30
What was finished? One thing that was finished was the long night of Jesus’ suffering. Jesus knows about suffering from the inside. He has been to the edge of endurance.
Jesus knows about excruciating suffering more than anyone else has ever known it. But He is not suffering now. He is not on the cross now. He is done with that. It is finished.
Jesus is no longer in the grave either. He died and He was buried. But death could not keep a hold on Him. The Bible records for us that He was raised from the dead on the third day (John 20). That means Jesus is alive!
Well, then, you may be wondering, what is He doing now? The Bible tells us that Jesus is seated at the right hand of the Father in heaven, where He intercedes for us (Rom. 8:34).
These truths are important, because a suffering world needs a saviour who knows suffering from the inside. But a saviour who is overwhelmed by suffering, or a saviour who remains in suffering, is of no use to us.
We need a saviour who has triumphed over suffering, and that is what we have in Jesus. He was plunged into indescribable suffering, but He was not overcome by it. He came through it, and He triumphed in it. That’s your Saviour, the Lord Jesus Christ.
What do you think it means for you, that Jesus triumphed over His suffering and death?
