What Did Jesus Mean When He Said, "It Is Finished"?

Many years ago, H. A. Ironside penned the following words that are still true today and that are very applicable in regards to the false teaching of Lordship Salvation: "When anyone comes promising salvation to those ‘who make full surrender’ of all that they have to God, and who ‘pay the price of full salvation,’ he is preaching another gospel, for the price was paid on Calvary’s cross and the work that saves is finished. It was Christ Jesus who made the full surrender when He yielded His life on Calvary. It is His death that saves us, not our surrender in any way to Him."[1] 

Just before Jesus died on the cross, He cried out: "It is finished!" (John 19:30). The word used in the original Greek is tetelestai, meaning "PAID IN FULL!" This is why eternal life is a "free gift" (Romans 6:23, cf. John 1:12, 3:16, 4:10; Rom. 3:24, 4:4-5, 6:23; Eph. 2:8-9). There is nothing left for us to pay because Jesus paid it all! Furthermore, the Bible says that Christ has "by Himself purged our sins" (see Hebrews 1:3, KJV). So here again it's clear that Jesus did it all and paid it all "by Himself"! He doesn't need or want our help. He purged our sins "by Himself" (Heb. 1:3). Similarly, Isaiah 59:16 says: "And He saw that there was no one, and was amazed that there was not one to intercede; then His own arm brought salvation to Him, and His righteousness upheld Him." 

So if "the ultimate price for salvation"[2] has already been "PAID IN FULL" (Jn. 19:30) by Christ on the cross, what's left for us to pay? Obviously nothing! This is why the Bible says, "Is anyone thirsty? Come and drink — even if you have no money! Come, take your choice of wine or milk — it’s all free!" (Isaiah 55:1, NLT). The very last invitation to salvation in the Bible echoes this same thought. Revelation 22:17 says: "And the Spirit and the bride say, 'Come!' And let him who hears say, 'Come!' And let him who thirsts come. Whoever desires, let him take the water of life freely."

The Free Grace theologian William R. Newell has well said: "It is just here that the legalist flees away. He cries, 'I must be this or that!' 'I must do this or that.' He dares not rest in the word 'finished,' as spoken by Christ on Golgotha's tree. He does not believe it is finished, in his case. He dare not come out into the open before God in his inmost soul as a guilty sinner. He cries out with his mouth that he is guilty, but in his heart he hopes to put away his guilt. He speaks much about his utter unworthiness, but he never dares to smite upon his breast and wait for mercy from God [cf. Luke 18:13]. He flees to church membership, to baptism, to the Lord's Supper, to 'Christian work,' to fastings, prayers, anything — sometimes to the gospel ministry itself, to get relief from his accusing conscience."[3] 

ENDNOTES:

[1] H. A. Ironside, from a tract titled “Another Gospel”.

[2] Quoting John MacArthur, from his book The Gospel According to Jesus (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 1988), p. 140. In the book, MacArthur admits that "Eternal life is indeed a free gift (Rom. 6:23)." But then he goes on to contradict himself by saying: "But this does not mean there is no cost in terms of salvation's impact on the sinner's life. This paradox may be difficult but it is nevertheless true: salvation is both free and costly. Eternal life brings immediate death to self. 'Knowing this, that our old self was crucified with Him, that our body of sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves to sin' (Romans 6:6). Thus in a sense we pay the ultimate price for salvation when our sinful self is nailed to a cross. [Editor's note: But where does Romans 6:6 say that "we pay the ultimate price for salvation"?] It is a total abandonment of self-will....It is an exchange for all that we are for all that Christ is. And it denotes implicit obedience, full surrender to the Lordship of Christ. Nothing less can qualify as saving faith." (Ibid., p. 140.)

[3] William R. Newell, Galatians 1 and 2, or Paul's Defense of His Gospel, p. 11.