On fulfilling the Scriptures in the death of Christ and on the words It is finished!
On fulfilling the Scriptures in the death of Christ and on the words It is finished!
LORD JESUS CHRIST, Revealer of deep mysteries and Fulfiller of the law and the prophets, I bless and thank you for having perfectly accomplished your Father’s will as expressed in those few appropriate words, which you fittingly pronounced immediately after receiving the vinegar: It is finished!1 These words sum up your entire life. It is as if you were saying: “Now is fulfilled all that the Old Law had foretold of me, and all that the sacred ceremonies and sacrificial rites of former years had prefigured. The predictions of the holy prophets are finally realized as well as the long hoped for desires of the ancient patriarchs. All that pertains to the redemption of the human race has been wonderfully brought about, and all the promises found in the heaven given Sacred Scriptures have all been clearly fulfilled as regards to time and place, and everything has now come to a happy end. The few things that remain will undoubtedly come to pass in due time. I have obeyed my Father’s commands; he had sent me into the world and I have completed the work he had entrusted to me.
“In my time I have cured the sick, have given clear proof of my divinity, and as the Father has taught me, so I preached to the world, never keeping any saving doctrine from the ears of the faithful. For thirty-three years I have walked this earth as a pilgrim, enjoyed my dealings with men and frequently have become tired from my journeying. I was cruelly calumniated by my adversaries, betrayed by a disciple, abandoned by friends, taken captive by enemies, scourged by their servants, condemned by judges, mocked by chief priests, and here I now hang on a Cross, innocent though I be.
“What more should I have done that I have not done? What more should I have suffered and have not suffered? If I have done or endured less than I should have, then I am ready to make up for it before I die. In fact, my death will pay every debt in full. Today I have finished all that I had to do. I will not allow my death to be postponed; it is out of pure love that I freely lay down my life for my sheep. At this hour, when I know that the first man had incurred perpetual death by eating of the forbidden tree, I willingly accept the death of my body for the transgressions of sinners—though in no way have I merited this death.
“All that pertains to me will soon come to an end. I will not speak many more words in this world, because I will not be here much longer, for I hasten to the Father. All labors will cease, sorrow and grief will vanish, conflicts will be no more, troubles will be unknown, and by my death, death itself will be overcome.
“There remains nothing more to be done, except to commend my spirit to my Father and to leave my body behind until the third day. This I certainly know, that men imbued with pity and mindful of former friendships will take that body with them and place it in a new tomb. Therefore, to indicate that all the requirements of the Old Law have been properly fulfilled, and to establish that of the New, I hereby declare to all listening my final but brief remark: It is finished.”
O Lord Jesus Christ, illustrious and wise Master, it is indeed just as you state and affirm. There is nothing objectionable in your words. By your divine actions you have confirmed all that you say and you have shown how the oracles of the prophets had been fulfilled in you.
Now is the time for you to rest from all labor, to rest from all that you have done while you were on earth. In the beginning, Lord, you have created all things with the Father, and now in cooperation with the Father you have made all things new. In six days you made all that is in this world of ours, and in the sixth age of the world you completed the work of man’s redemption. On the sixth day you formed man from the slime of the earth, and on the sixth day you redeemed him by your blood. Adam was tempted and deceived by Eve on the sixth day, and on the sixth day you were announced by an angel and were conceived in the Virgin’s womb. On the sixth day man sinned and lost paradise, and on the sixth day you suffered for our sins and mercifully received the thief into paradise. In order that recent times should correspond to those of old, and that the deeds of today correspond to those of yesterday, it was fitting that your sixth utterance from the Cross be: It is finished.
Continue on your way, Lord Jesus, wherever you will; and now that you have accomplished your great work of mercy on earth, return to your Father in heaven. Precede your servants, prepare the way so that they may quickly follow you. Open the door to the heavenly kingdom, which our first parents’ audacity had caused to be closed for so long a time. Go and visit the Holy Fathers in the abode of the dead, shed light on those sitting in darkness, destroy the power of the devil, loosen the chains of those bound, grant rest to those who are weary, console those who mourn, deliver those who await you, and liberate your captives from the lower regions. After you have led and placed them in the heavenly mansions with the angelic host, then, in your kingdom, remember me, Lord, and release me from this prison, from this abode of flesh and slime, from my ever-threatening surroundings, and finally from this deceitful and miserable world.
You, who profess to follow Christ, imitate him in fulfilling this utterance of his, and as long as you have the strength and the time, do not seek to end your labors. Complete what you have begun, so that when you come to the evening of life, you too can say with your friend Jesus: It is finished. Therefore, walk along the path of true virtue, pursue righteousness, resist sin even unto death, so that you may gain eternal life and be able to say with Saint Paul: I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith.2 You still have some labors ahead of you and some time left on this earth. Your hour will come quickly, when being made perfect in a short period of time, you fulfilled a long time.3
O Jesus Christ, Lord of heaven and earth, outstanding and perfect Model of all virtues and everlasting Reward for good deeds, direct all my actions so that they may always please you, and enlighten and purify the thoughts in my mind. Teach me humbly to begin all my works for the praise and glory of your holy name, that I may diligently see them through, and bring them to a happy conclusion. Grant that I not become negligent before the time appointed by the Father, but that I may work for the reward of eternal life day and night in the vineyard of holy religion, and wholeheartedly exert myself in the school of godly exercises until my soul leaves me. Finally, I ask that in my final hour and after much toil and labor, I may, with happiness of heart, say with you: It is finished.
Good Jesus, grant me reward for my labors, repose for my fatigue, joy for my sorrows, a crown for my struggles, glory for my humiliations, and beatitude for the miseries I endured living in this world. In this place of pilgrimage, you were and are the final cause of all my actions. Be now my reward in the kingdom of heaven, because I desire to have you alone as the recompense of my labors, you, who are the beatitude and glory of all your saints.