Today is Good Friday, the sixth day of Holy Week.

For Jesus, Friday was a torturous day that followed a brutal night. He had been arrested under the cover of night. His disciples abandoned him. The Jewish religious leaders led Jesus through some kangaroo courts complete with exaggerated charges, false accusations, and lying witnesses. The beatings and mocking began before Jesus even faced the first real Roman official, Pilate, the governor of the day. Pilate sent him to Herod, who sent him back to Pilate.

Even though he did not want to convict Jesus, Pilate succumbed to the will of the people. He presented Jesus to the crowd saying, “Behold your king.”  And in response they all shouted, “Crucify him. Crucify him.”

Jesus was handed over to be crucified.

And thus commenced the long, meticulous process of shame, humiliation, and torture unto death known as Roman crucifixion. Soldiers beat Jesus with 39 lashes. Then they dressed him in a purple robe with a crown of thorns on his head to mock him as the King of the Jews.

By midday, Jesus was forced to carry his cross to a hill called Golgotha, “the Place of a Skull.” The Roman executioners hammered long spikes through his hands and feet to attach the naked Jesus to the cross. Then, they raised the cross for the last part of the brutal agony designed to suffocate him and slowly quench his life.

The sky grew dark as the Father poured out his wrath on his sinless Son – the Lamb of God who came to take away the sins of the world. Just before he died, one last prophecy was fulfilled when sour wine was held to Jesus’ mouth. Then he said, “It is finished.” And the author of life died.

“It is finished,” is just one word in Greek, tetelestai.

What was Jesus talking about when he said his last word, tetelestai? What was finished?

Jesus might have simply meant his life was over, but the message of the Bible, from first to last, declares that Jesus’ last word was much more than just an announcement that death had come.

A long list of things was finished when Jesus died, but the most important one was this: Jesus had finished all that needed to be done to bring salvation to lost sinners.

Jesus had lived a perfect life. He had completed his mission of drinking the cup of suffering for sin. He took the just punishment required to satisfy the wrath of a Holy God. The work of purchasing our redemption was finished. Sin could now be justly forgiven. Those separated from God by sin could be reconciled to God completely.

So, if you wonder why we call it Good Friday when Jesus suffered and died, well, it’s because it’s good for all who have faith in Jesus. It’s good that Jesus did for us what we could not do for ourselves. It’s good that Jesus, the Lamb of God, came to die in our place and take away our sin. It’s good because it is finished.