On Good Friday, I gave this talk along with six other leaders at church. Each person spoke about one of the sayings (there were seven) that Jesus did while on the cross. My talk was cut short, but here it is in full.

How our dreams and desires drives us

When I was a child, I had two distinct dreams. I wanted to get a PhD and I wanted to be a writer. I didn’t know the path to becoming a writer, but I knew how to get a PhD. So I went with that. This one dream to get a PhD governed my life. All the decisions I made, even the unconscious ones were geared to seeing this one dream come true. Five years ago, I finally graduated with a PhD. And I remember thinking before that day of graduation, that I was going to be so happy, all my problems would be over, and I would post lots of pictures with the statement “it is finished.”

It would have been a loaded statement, I had overcome many obstacles (spiritually, physically, mentally, emotionally, and relationally, and I struggled with my will versus the will of God) during the years leading up to the PhD and especially during the PhD. The experience had such an impact on me, it changed my life, and I wrote a book about it. Remember that I wanted to be a writer? God has his ways to get us where he wants us.

One dream. You see, the dream to get the PhD was not just any dream it was an assignment from God. And although that assignment was finished my life’s assignment had just begun.

Did Jesus have struggles while he was on earth?

However, for Jesus, it was finished. His assignment and his struggles were over.

 Wait minute.

 Jesus the Son of God, who was God, had struggles. During Holy Week, Jesus, though he was God, struggled with his humanity. 

What does it mean to struggle with our humanity?  

In 3 John 2, John wrote

Beloved, I pray that you may prosper in all things and be in health, just as your soul prospers. 

As human beings, we are spirits we know this from Genesis. We are made in the image of God and God is a spirit. We live in a physical body and according to 3 John 2, we have a soul. The soul includes the mind, emotions, will, memories, dreams, and desires. Information is being passed from the physical world to our physical body to our soul and from the spiritual world to our spiritual being and on to our soul. The soul acts as a medium and there is a battle for our souls. 

Who or what has authority over our souls? 

This is why we need to feed our spirits with the Word of God, and not just by hearing, but by doing, because If the spirit is unwell all the other parts of who we are are unwell. 

During Holy Week Jesus struggled with this human experience. He demonstrated this while he was praying in the garden of Gethsemane “Father, if it is Your will, take this cup away from Me; nevertheless not My will, but Yours, be done.” After this, Jesus was betrayed, arrested, denied, questioned, cursed, beaten, and nailed to the cross. 

This was his cup.

But despite such harsh conditions, Jesus finished his assignment. What was the assignment? Jesus said, The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy. I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly, John 10:10. Some translations say “that they may live a full life.” Others say “so that they may live a rich and satisfying life.”

Are you living a full and satisfying life?

Jesus walked the earth without sinning and he had no problem. I call myself a problem solver, but Jesus is the master problem solver, he turned water into wine, healed the sick, and raised the dead, whatever the problem was, Jesus solved it while he was still human.

How did Jesus conquered the cross?

How did he do it? He showed us on the cross

He forgave us:   “Father, forgive them for they do not what they do.” Luke 23:34 – Forgiveness                        

He offered us salvation: “Assuredly, I say to you, today you will be with me in Paradise.” ​​Luke 23:43 – Kindness

He gave us relationship or family: “Woman, behold thy son! Son Behold thy Mother.” John 19:26-27 – Family (relationships or community)

And he did it while he suffered abandonment “My God, my God why has thou forsaken me”  and felt deep distress “I Thirst.”

Matthew 27:46 and John 19:28.

Another word for suffering alongside is compassion.

Kindness, Forgiveness, Compassion, and Family.

This is how Jesus finished his assignment. 

It is Finished

In John 17:4, Jesus prayed to God the Father saying “I have brought you glory on earth by finishing the work you gave me to do.” This was before the cross. He was showing us how he did it all along. 

“It is finished” is from the Greek word tetelestai, when translated means paid in full. He without sin paid the price for our sins in full. We got the victory because Jesus paid the full price. It is finished. 

This doesn’t mean we won’t have struggles in our human experience, what it means is that we have the opportunity to live a full and satisfying life. Jesus gave us a gift. He showed us how to finish our life’s assignments. 

But, Is Jesus the Lord of our lives? 

Is he the one governing our souls, driving our decisions? 

Or Have we gained the world and lost our souls? 

In this world where there is so much information and noise, it is a question we need to ask ourselves daily. 

What or who are we listening to? 

Will we take the opportunity that Jesus gave us, is giving to us? 

We got the victory. 

It is finished.