Do Vs. Done

“It is finished!” (John 19:30)

The two words “Do” and “Done” look very similar, but in actuality the infinite chasm of all eternity lies between them.Please read on and be greatly encouraged today!

Before Kim and I were saved, we were visiting First Baptist Church of Fort Lauderdale. Every week, Pastor Larry Thompson would say during his sermon, “It’s not about a religion, it’s about a relationship.” It took a while for us to understand that biblical truth, but when we got it, we finally understood the immeasurable difference between the words “Do” and “Done.”

The religion Kim and I had grown up in was all about doing, doing, and then doing some more. The list of things to do was endless. We had been taught that heaven was available to all those who would do enough to get in. The great difficulty with this theology, of course, is how can you know when you have actually done “enough” for God to unlock the gates of heaven and allow you to enter? Sadly, you can never know, and because you don’t know, you never experience the freedom, joy, and peace that is promised to all who believe the Gospel.

True Christianity is about what God in Christ has done for us. What Jesus did for us we can never do for ourselves. Why? Because we are far too sinful to save ourselves! The Bible tells us that –

There is no one who does not sin (1 Kings 8:46)

The Lord looks down from heaven on the sons of men

to see if there are any who understand, any who seek God.

All have turned aside, they have together become corrupt;

there is no one who does good, not even one.  (Psalm 14:2-3)

The wages of sin is death. (Romans 6:23)

Sinners need a Savior, and His name is Jesus Christ. Our verse for today, John 19:30, is perhaps one of the best-known in all of sacred Scripture, and it can be said in one word: Done!

The Greek verb teleo that is translated “It is finished” in our English Bibles means “To complete something, not merely to end it, but to bring it to perfection or its destined goal.” Christ’s work on our behalf is perfect; it is complete; it is done. Our sin debt was paid in full. Our salvation was fully accomplished and is fully secure in Christ.

It has been well said that Christianity begins with an historical “Done,” not with an experiential “Do.” Every other religion in the world is built upon the foundation of “Do.” Only Christianity stands upon the foundation of “Done.” For many of us, there is no more difficult truth to grasp than the truth that God saves us by His grace alone, not by grace plus our good works (Ephesians 2:8-9). To be sure, there is much to do after we are saved, but our good works are the fruit of our salvation, not the root of it.

Let me ask you: Does your life reflect the truth of Do? Or Done? The difference between those two words makes all the difference in the world!This is the Gospel. This is grace for your race. NEVER FORGET THAT . . . AMEN!