---
title: "Tetelestai: It Is Finished"
date: 2026-03-25
author: "Laurie Stroud"
featured_image: "https://birminghamchristian.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/0426-best-books-words-from-the-cross.jpg"
categories:
  - name: "Best Books"
    url: "/category/news/entertainment/best-books.md"
tags:
  - name: "Featured"
    url: "/tag/featured.md"
---

# Tetelestai: It Is Finished

**Best Books**

Completion, finishing the task, winning the race. These are all moments that we long for. We can’t wait until our workweek is done to get to the weekend. We all long for completion and the end. As Jesus comes to the end of His time on the cross, He makes a statement of completion that stands at the heart of the Gospel story. He says the single word in Greek, *“tetelestai,”* or as John 19:30 in English says… *“It is finished.”*

[![Words from the Cross Cover](https://birminghamchristian.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/Words-from-the-Cross-Cover-188x300.jpg "Words from the Cross Cover")](https://birminghamchristian.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/Words-from-the-Cross-Cover.jpg)Words from the Cross is available now [on Amazon](https://www.amazon.com/Words-Cross-Statements-that-Transform/dp/B085KK6N4S/ref=sr_1_1?crid=3GATP7ZJGZMAT&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.ZypDIl_hlMc3BBsJOynedg.H9h1zQ9tGw0dp8R_DOSHFVoPlQ3YqnyCEZ1q-Z78xOY&dib_tag=se&keywords=words+from+the+cross+ben+birdsong&qid=1774478366&sprefix=words+from+the+cross+ben+birdsong%2Caps%2C159&sr=8-1).This statement stands as a cry of victory. It is the battle cry of our salvation. The word *tetelestai* is one a banker would write at the top of a bill, stating that it has been “paid in full.” It is a word that a judge would write over a case file of a man who has been released from prison. *Tetelestai* is a word of victory. When Jesus cries *tetelestai* at the cross, He marks the end of a great battle. At the cross, Jesus purchased a victory over sin, hell, and the devil. Those who lived under the weight of the payment due for their sin can live a new life of freedom because their debt has been paid in full. Those who lived in prison due to their sin and its consequences can now walk free because their case is dismissed. *Tetelestai* is a moment of great freedom and victory, not only for Jesus but also for everyone who will follow Him.

Yet as Christians, so often, we forget *tetelestai*. We begin to live like salvation is something that we can earn. That our performance somehow impresses God and helps us to earn His favor. We forget that it is finished means that Jesus’ work for us is enough when our work could never begin to be enough. We also forget *tetelestai* when we fall back into the old ways of sin. We go back to the bank and live like we are under outstanding debt. We go back to the prison cell and wrap ourselves back up in the chains that Jesus broke for us at the cross. We run back from the place of freedom that we were made for back into the comfort of our past bondage.

When we forget *tetelesai*, we forget the Gospel. We forget that the same message that saves us is the message that sustains us. One of the keys to following Jesus is a daily reminder that Jesus paid it all, that my performance is never enough, and that I need Jesus to live His perfect life through me.

So today, are you living in light of *tetelestai*? Are you embracing the ongoing work of Jesus in your life? Are you running from the lure of sin and bondage and walking in true life and freedom?

*-This devotion is an excerpt from Ben Birdsong’s book* Words from the Cross: 7 Statements that Will Transform Your Life*. It is a 7-day devotional exploring Jesus’ final words on the cross through devotional reflection and illustrations by Pete Collins.* Words from the Cross *is currently available on Amazon.*