Friday, September 7, 2007

A wonderful word

There is a truly glorious word in Greek that speaks of the completeness of Christ's work on the Cross. It is: Tetelestai. Tetelestai is a Greek word meaning 'paid in full'. Back in Bible times, when someone paid off his bill in the marketplace, he would run through the streets shouting "tetelestai, tetelestai, my debt is paid in full!"
When Jesus was on the cross, His last words were, "It is finished," or, in the Greek, 'tetelstai', meaning the debt is paid. In FULL!. He was referring to the debt for our sins. Jesus paid the debt for our sins in full on the cross. Totally!!! Always, for all time!
Mankind owes a debt for our sins that we can never repay. We can never outweigh the good with the bad. But the Good News is that we don't have to. Jesus paid the full debt. Not one whit left undone!!!
By the way, back in the 1600s, when the Bible was being translated in England, the common people understood that word, gospel, to be "the good, glad, merry news that makes a man fairly leap for joy!" Oh that we would hear that same expression these days. Alas, more often than not, the "good" news is presented as bad news. Poor God (a minister once actually said that) - He would like to have His own way, but...man's will is stronger.
PTL that is NOT true. God is God, and He is having HIS way - He shall have ALL saved (which is why Jesus Christ is called the "Saviour of the WORLD.")
Amen

1 comment:

Eulene said...

Indeed! One is not a Saviour unless he saves! John, in his epistle, states that "the Father sent the Son to be the Saviour of the world," and this He accomplished at the cross. Isaiah assures us that "He shall see of the travail of His soul, AND BE SATISFIED." (Isa. 53:11) "But every man in his own order."
(1 Cor. 15:23)