John 19:23-42

"Jesus knew that by now everything had been completed..." (19:28)

My favourite church service of Holy Week is Tennebrae. There are several versions of this service, but the one I grew up with concentrates on the 7 words from the cross. It's also called the "service of shadows". As each word is said, a candle in extinguished. By the end of the service, Jesus has died, and the congregation sits in total darkness, in a quiet church.

But in this service, we are comforted by this message in verse 28. In the last week of Jesus's life, we see him both hailed as a king, and betrayed like an enemy of the state. His friends and followers turn against Him. His body is beaten and abused. His clothes become prizes in a game of chance.

And now, this moment of revelation: "It is finished!" (19:30) Not only has Jesus been aware of God's plan from Day 1, but He is now able to say, with confidence, that the plan has been successfully completed. Nothing was random. God was in control all along. What an awesome moment! What a comfort to know that the terrible events of the last week have not been in vain!

Sometimes, in our own lives, we lose sight of the fact that God is still in control. If God can control the fate of His own Son through the terrors of trial and death, He will surely be in control in our lives.

Jesus is now in the tomb. If we can just hold on through the night, joy will come in the morning...