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Do you know what Jesus’ final word was on the cross?

If you said “finished”, then you are right! John, one of Jesus’ closest followers writes that as he drew his final breath, Jesus said “it is finished”, a statement that means more than you may realize.

See, whenever I think of being “finished”, I picture the end of a task or project. I mean, when the sun is setting on a day or a week, I love being able to close my computer, sit on the couch with my family and chill, knowing that my work is finished. It’s a time when the chaos of the day is replaced with peace and rest. But the Hebrew word for “finished” is “nishlam” … and if you follow me on Instagram and have read my posts, you already know that “nishlam” probably means more than just “finish”, right? 

Well, it does! 

The word “nishlam” was often used as an accounting term to describe a debt or a bill that had been “paid in full”. Now, normally, that added insight would be good enough for one of my posts, but let me go deeper. You see, “nishlam” comes from the same root as the well-known Hebrew word “shalom”—a word we often translate as “peace”. But the word “shalom” has several meanings, including “wholeness” or being made whole.

So when Jesus said “nishlam”, I believe he was indicating that his mission was finished ... but I wonder if he was also letting us know that with his sacrifice, our relationship with God was restored to wholeness.

Isn’t that Good News—that throughout our life we can have an unbroken, complete, whole relationship with God! 

For reflection:

Jesus said, “It is finished.” With that, he bowed his head and gave up his spirit." — John 19:30