New Year. New Beginnings.

After this, Jesus, knowing that all was now finished, said (to fulfill the Scripture), “I thirst.” A jar full of  sour wine stood there, so they put a sponge full of the sour wine on a hyssop branch and held it to his  mouth. When Jesus had received the sour wine, he said, “It is finished,” and he bowed his head and gave  up his spirit. (John 19:28-30, ESV)

When Jesus said, in verse 30, it is finished, every Jewish person who heard him would have immediately  understood their significance. Every year, on the Jewish holiday known as the Day of Atonement, the Jewish High Priest sacrificed an animal to atone for the sins of the nation of Israel, as prescribed in the law of Moses. The sins of the nation were symbolically placed on the animal, and its blood served as  payment for those sins. Immediately after the sacrifice was made, the Priest would come out of the temple and announce, "It is finished." The sins of the nation were covered for another year.

When Jesus used that same phrase - it is finished - he signaled that the need for animal sacrifice was over. In his death, he took the sins of the world on himself and paid for them with his own blood.

The “it” in the sixth utterance of Christ on the cross - it is finished - refers to the whole reason he came  to earth in the first place. He came to take the sin of the world on His shoulders and offer Himself as a sacrifice to His father for it. He came to pay for my sins and yours. He came to give us a new beginning.

That "it" is the reason we all sit here today reconciled to God with the hope that we will live with Him, starting today and for eternity. 

Let’s all remember that as Jesus uttered his last words, He was thinking about you and about me, and how he had just accomplished His mission—the "it" of making all of us God’s children again. 

God, we thank you that you made a way. We thank you that although we live in rebellion, you love us and want a relationship with us. We are thankful that Jesus finished his mission and because of that we can once again and forever call you Father. Amen.

This devotion was written by Cliff McCartney and read by Judy Wilson.

Outro: Sarah Outro General

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Episode notes

Grace for All is a daily devotional podcast produced by the members of the congregation of First United Methodist Church in Maryville, Tennessee. With these devotionals, we want to remind listeners on a daily basis of the love and grace that God extends to all human beings, no matter their location, status, or condition in life.

If you would like to respond to these devotionals in any way, we would enjoy hearing from you. Our email address is: podcasts@1stchurch.org.

First United Methodist Church is a lively, spirit-filled congregation whose goal is to spread the message of love and grace into our community and throughout the world. We are located on the web at https://1stchurch.org/.