His first words were a prayer to the Father: “Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they do” (Luke 23:34).
His second words were a pardon to a sinner, a criminal who was crucified next to Him who had said, “Lord, remember me when You come into Your kingdom.” Jesus replied, “Assuredly, I say to you, today you will be with Me in Paradise” (Luke 23:42-43).
Third, seeing His mother standing at the foot of the cross, Jesus said, “Woman, behold your son!” And, no doubt nodding toward the Apostle John who stood beside Mary, He said, “Behold your mother!” (John 19:26-27).
His fourth words were a plea to the Father, most likely when the sin of the world was poured upon Him: “My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me?” (Matthew 27:46). There on the cross, Jesus bore our sin. On the cross, God the Father treated Jesus as if He had lived your sinful life. And He did this so He could treat you and me as though we had lived His perfect life. That is the good news of the Gospel.
His fifth words were of a personal nature: “I thirst!” (John 19:28). Imagine, this is the Creator of the universe saying, “I thirst.” He could have called in an angel, who would have flown from Heaven with a chilled bottle of water for Him. He could have spoken and a river would have appeared.
But though He was God, He never did miracles for His personal benefit. He only did miracles for the benefit of others. Jesus was fully God and He was fully human. He gave up the privileges of Deity and came to us as a servant. And so He said, “I thirst.”
Now we come to the sixth statement. Jesus said, “It is finished!” (John 19:30). In the original language, it’s the word tetelestai. It means it is completed; it is accomplished; it is done; it is finished. He didn’t say, “I’m finished.” He said, “It is finished.”
“Because the power of sin is broken, you don’t have to be under the power of any sin, any vice, any lifestyle. … You don’t have to be under the power of anything or anyone, because Jesus has purchased your freedom at Calvary.”
What was finished? The work that the Father had given Him to do. Finished were the sufferings of Christ. Never again would He bear the sins of the world. Never again would He even for a moment be forsaken by God. Finished was Satan’s stronghold on humanity. The Bible says, “Through death, Christ destroyed him who had the power of death, who is the devil” (Hebrews 2:14). Death was defeated at the cross of Calvary and the resurrection of Jesus Christ. Death died when Christ arose.
And He finished our salvation. It’s done. It’s paid for. It’s bought. You don’t need to add anything to it. It’s a gift to you. If you put your faith in Jesus, you can say with confidence, “I know that my sin is forgiven.”
Finally, He gave His seventh and final statement, “Father, ‘into Your hands I commit My spirit’” (Luke 23:46).
Taken from an article by Greg Laurie Why Did Jesus Have to Die?
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