It Is Finished

In several of my recent posts I have written about dealing with fear. 

I'm using this blog to write Words that God gives me, and my current ponderings and processing different things. 

So today I was in our amazing house church, (undoubtedly more on that miracle later), listening to the sermon. Then a phrase that I had heard a hundred times before, set in a new light. It Is Finished. The words Jesus spoke before His last breath. 

Sometimes, unfortunately, with things I hear over and over again I don't consider their meaning to the fullest, or I do but then I forget and lose sight of it. 

It Is Finished. 

Those three words and the following events began the ending of an era. Three days later a new era began. The era of darkness ended. The era of Truth, Light, and Hope was ushered in when Jesus rose and death died. 

Death is Finished. Fear is Finished. Darkness is Finished. Despair is Finished. Rejection is Finished. Insecurity is Finished. Destruction is Finished. Doubt is Finished. Hate is Finished. Sin is Finished. 

This does not mean that these things are not still present. They are very present. What's the difference then? Darkness does not rule the earth any more. 

Light rules the earth now. We have the choice of eternal Life! We do not have to submit to fear, despair, rejection, insecurity, doubt, hate, and sin. Their rule is Finished. When faced with these things that do not rule but still exist we need to turn to God. 

Ephesians 5:8 
"For you were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Live as children of light"

We turn to these things, the opposite of light, far too easily because darkness once ruled the earth. Before we accepted Christ we were a part of the darkness. We know hate, we know fear and despair. True Light, Unconditional Love, and Trust is not something we are used to. The world still surrenders to darkness as though it is still ruling. The world has both forgotten and does not know that we do not have to live surrendered to fear, darkness, insecurity, and hate. Things we are exposed to over and over again have potential to become addictive. Then we don't care whether it is good or bad we just want more. We may even believe that we need what we are addicted to. Perhaps we may even think that we need the addiction to exist or survive. We may even take it on as a part of our identity. So, once we are accustomed to the darkness, it is hard to trust the Light. We may fear that the Light will blind us. If we're used to darkness then it seems comfortable, the Light might hurt, it might burn us, right? The only burning that takes place is the flames of purification. Burning off the darkness that is not apart of who God made us to be. 
Another reason we may want to stay in darkness is the another part of the false feeling of comfort that it gives. Often times we don't want to stand out. Standing out from other people can be quite uncomfortable, blending in is just easier. I've thought this before, and this will probably be a separate post but if we're just following everyone else, where are we going?? What path are we going down and what is leading us?? What consequences are there to just hopping on the bandwagon? In my opinion the scary part to those questions is no one really knows the answer. Blindly following darkness. Where does that lead?

Again, one of my favorite phrases in Ephesians, "But God"

He made it so that we have a choice. We don't have to blindly follow darkness anymore. 

It. Is. Finished.         
    

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Rooted

     A little pondering entry to start this post.      What is home?      Is it security? Is it that feeling of safety, knowing that you can put your guard down and let go of it completely leaving it behind you on the floor not caring if it is trod upon? Is it steady, reliability? Is it a feeling? Is it a piece of space and time in which you are safe, treasured, seen, and loved? Is it the well-known glances or smiles that immediately bring light and relief to your heart? Is it hearing the voices of dearly loved ones over the phone or in person that fill your heart with joy? Is it a group of people in which time spent together is healing and there is little need for translation? Is it a building or a place? Can you walk there? Do you have to take a plane? Can you point to it on a map? Is it one place or many? Is it a view that once you see it your heart swells and you know that you are home, back to a place of belonging? Is it familiarity, knowing a place well enough to walk it blindfol
Read more

Savoring Pain

 Well it's two in the morning right now...  One of the downsides to having a brachial plexus injury/ paralyzed arm is the pain. In the past couple years I've learned a lot about pain.  Lately it's been doing alright but there's some nights, or mornings like this, where the usual pain meds and compression sleeve and glove seem to do nothing and I can't sleep.     So come to think of it, I've been daily dealing with fairly constant pain since December of 2018.  I can't relate to everyone's pain. Mine has been less than some and more than others. So I will speak only of my thoughts, and experiences of my own pain.   I am familiar with pain, both physical and emotional.  I was hit by a car. My used-to-be dominant arm is paralyzed, with a rarer injury, the kind that only come from "accidents". I had a concussion.  I have sixteen scars from the ordeal. Only one of those scars came directly from the car, the other fifteen came from surgery. I've h
Read more

Lessons Learned After 5 Years with a Paralyzed Arm

     Happy Conquerors Day!!      For those who have not heard of Conquerors Day before I'll do a slight intro.      Five years ago today, December 10th, I was crossing the street and was hit by a car. I woke up in the back of a car speeding off towards the hospital and heard God say, "The devil just tried to kill you, but I said no. I only let him come so far." In that moment I felt peace amid countless unknowns God was in control. Being hit by a car has not changed the fact that God is sovereign and still on His throne. Then before I knew the extent of my injuries or even remembered the date, I heard God say to remember this day and celebrate it every year. He said to call it Conquerors Day because death and darkness did not conquer me, but God conquered them.       So, every year my family and I celebrate December 10th, as a reminder of God's goodness and His sovereign plan. We do something fun to celebrate and recount the mind-blowing ways that we have seen the han
Read more