FEBRUARY 19-Finished, Not Over

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“Therefore 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

When Jesus died, it felt like everything was over. There was no coming back from that. 

But like the seed that falls to the earth and dies in order to bear fruit (John 12:24), Jesus’s death was not the end.

If the seed were aware, its falling to the ground would feel like there was no hope. There was no chance to become anything; its life was over. It would feel like it was being buried in death when it was really being planted for life.

Sometimes circumstances in our lives make us feel like everything is over. There’s no chance of revival, redemption, or renewal. Hope is dead, and it feels like the end.

But what did Jesus say on the cross? He didn’t say, “This is the end,” but rather, “It is finished.”

We say, “It is finished,” not at a hopeless end, but at the completion of a plan.

Perhaps we could learn to say, “It is finished,” when we lose the job, lose the loved one, or lose our health. This is the planting. We may not be able to see how life will come of it, but we can trust that just like it seemed too late when Jesus died, it’s never too late for him to bring life out of death.

We can bow our heads and say in faith, “It is finished,” and know, despite the agony of the moment, that his ways are higher, and his thoughts are higher.

Remember that what feels like an ending might be a completion ushering in something new.

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