Tetelestai!

Your blood speaks a better word

Than all the empty claims

I’ve heard upon this earth

Speaks righteousness for me

And stands in my defense

Jesus it’s Your blood
[Chorus]What can wash away our sins?

What can make us whole again?

Nothing but the blood

Nothing but the blood of Jesus

What can wash us pure as snow?

Welcomed as the friends of God

Nothing but Your blood

Nothing but Your blood King Jesus
Your cross testifies in grace

Tells of the Father’s heart to make a way for us

Now boldly we approach

Not by earthly confidence

It’s only by Your blood
[Chorus]
We thank You for the blood

We thank You for the blood
We praise You for the blood

We praise You for the blood
Nothing but Your blood

Nothing but Your blood King Jesus

I just love this version of “Nothing But the Blood” by Matt Redman! We sang this at church yesterday during communion, and it really made me think about the true miracle of God’s grace. As we approach Good Friday, I pray that you know and understand what the Cross means for those who have accepted Christ as their Savior. I love the first verse of this song which says, “[Your blood] speaks righteousness for me and stands in my defense.” It is the blood and only the blood of Jesus that makes us righteous. Someday, when we, as Christians, stand before our Father in Heaven, Jesus will literally stand in as our defense lawyer and say that all charges against us have been dropped, erased, forgiven………forgotten!

I also love the last verse that explains that we can boldly approach the throne of grace “not by earthly confidence…..it’s only by your blood.” This Friday, remember that when Jesus said, “Tetelestai (It is finished!),” as he died on the Cross,……..He literally meant that our debts have been paid in full!

Merrill Tenney (Expositor’s Bible Commentary, IX, 185) notes that the verb, Tetelestai, was used in the first and second centuries in the sense of “fulfilling” or “paying” a debt and often appeared in receipts. “It is finished” (Tetelestai) could be interpreted as “Paid in full.” “Paid in full” means that once a thing is paid for, you never have to pay for it again. In fact, “paid in full” means that once a thing is paid for, it is foolish to try to pay for it again. God is offering you salvation free of charge. That’s what Tetelestai means. Jesus paid in full so you wouldn’t have to pay anything. Our salvation has been accomplished solely by the blood of our Lord Jesus Christ, who died in our place. Because our debt has been “paid in full” nothing…..no good deeds, no ceremonies, no submission to “rules or regulations” by any church, no effort or works can add in the very least degree to the value of the blood, or to the merit of the finished work of Jesus Christ. As Romans 10:4 puts it, Christ is “the end of the law.”

God loved you so much that He sent Jesus to pay the complete price for your sins so that one day you can live with Him FOREVER in Heaven! You can take this to the bank! If you have asked Jesus to live in your heart, He has already signed off beside your name in His receipt book…….. Tetelestai…..Paid in Full.

It is because we love our Defender, Redeemer, Savior…..that we live for Him, love Him and try to honor and please Him. Remembering His Body that was broken for us and His Blood that was shed……… is why we praise Him and desire to live according to His word………not because we have anything more to gain…….but because we are so very thankful that the Cross means Tetelestai…..Paid in Full!

Galatians 2:20-21 “I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me. I do not set aside the grace of God, for if righteousness could be gained through the law, Christ died for nothing!"