But What IF...?
When Jesus therefore had received the vinegar, he said, It is finished: and he bowed his head, and gave up the ghost.
When Jesus died on the cross He cried out, "It is finished!" The big question is, what was "IT"? Obviously He finished what He voluntarily came to do! He finished the work His Father sent Him here to do, but what was that? The Bible says in John 3:16 & 17 that Jesus came to die in our place so that we could live, right? He gave Himself for us! His death ensured our life! His death ensured our salvation! Because of what Jesus said on the cross many people have come to believe that everything is done. There's nothing else that needs to be done. IT IS FINISHED!
Because the Tabernacle (The one Moses built in the wilderness.) and its services teach us about God's plan for us let's take a quick look at that. The sacrificial lamb represented Jesus dying for us. Everyone understands that, but after the lamb died the High Priest (Jesus again) still had more work to do.
So then, since we have a great High Priest who has entered heaven, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold firmly to what we believe. This High Priest of ours understands our weaknesses, for he faced all of the same testings we do, yet he did not sin. So let us come boldly to the throne of our gracious God. There we will receive his mercy, and we will find grace to help us when we need it most.
What was every High Priest's job?
Every high priest is a man chosen to represent other people in their dealings with God. He presents their gifts to God and offers sacrifices for their sins.
Jesus is now our High Priest before the Father, and His job is exactly the same as the earthly High Priest's was. Jesus offers His death before the Father as the substitute for our death. "Because of His stripes we are healed."
Jesus finished His job on Earth when He died on the cross. His death ensured that now when I come and ask for forgiveness the Father can legally forgive ME because Someone else died for me. It WAS finished on the cross! JESUS DID IT, praise His Holy Name!!!!!!!
And I am certain that God, who began the good work within you, will continue his work until it is finally finished on the day when Christ Jesus returns.
"Finally finished", What? I thought Jesus said it was already finished? According to the Bible even when Jesus comes in the clouds of Heaven the end of sin will not have totally come. In fact, it is evidently not until sin and sinners, and even death and hell are cast into the Lake of Fire will the FINAL END to sin come.
Then death and the grave were thrown into the lake of fire. This lake of fire is the second death. And anyone whose name was not found recorded in the Book of Life was thrown into the lake of fire.
At some point AFTER Jesus comes, and AFTER the lake of Fire Jesus again says, "It is finished!"
And he also said, "It is finished! I am the Alpha and the Omega—the Beginning and the End. To all who are thirsty I will give freely from the springs of the water of life.
Evidently, like in the tabernacle, there are stages that are finished. The death of Jesus caused the death of sin, so that part was finished. Of that there is no doubt. But again, even after the coming of Jesus in the clouds of Heaven it won't be fully at an end.
For thus hath the Lord said, The whole land shall be desolate; yet will I not make a full end.
Here is that vision of Jeremiah's:
"I looked at the earth, and it was empty and formless. I looked at the heavens, and there was no light. [Sounds a lot like pre-Creation, but it's not because the cities, etc are broken down.]
I looked at the mountains and hills, and they trembled and shook. I looked, and all the people were gone. All the birds of the sky had flown away. I looked, and the fertile fields had become a wilderness. The towns lay in ruins, crushed by the Lord's fierce anger. This is what the Lord says: "The whole land will be ruined, but I will not destroy it completely."
God has something else that needs to be done yet. Part of God's great plan for the total eradication of sin and our eternal safety has been finished. In fact, the death and resurrection of Jesus ensures that, but the Bible tells us that God isn't totally finished yet.
Why? Because until the whole Universe sees the end result of sin we will always wonder, "But what if...?"