It Is Finished
What we, from our perspective, see as an ongoing battle is a mopping up operation. Satan, defeated, cannot do anything but attack those who “keep the commandments of God, and have the testimony of Jesus Christ” (Rev. 12:17).
- Mark R. Rushdoony
“It is finished” (John 19:30). We are familiar with these words as the last spoken by our Lord before His death. We rightly also see them as referencing the completion of His atoning sacrifice for our sins.
In the month we celebrate Easter, however, we should also remember the implications of the accomplished redemption that Calvary represented. For thousands of years, the atonement was a covenant promise, but not an accomplished fact. It was, wrongly, assumed that atonement was something that happened in the temple. It was also assumed that the Messiah’s role was to usher in an era of prosperity for the Hebrew nation. Not even the disciples understood that the Christ would Himself die to atone for sins. This is why the death and resurrection of Jesus represents a finished, accomplished work that we must see as the watershed moment of human history around which all other things must be oriented.
Jesus now sits (reigns as Lord) at the right hand of the Father (Mark 16:19; Lk. 22:69; Acts 2:33; 7:56; Rom. 8:34; etc.) as His enemies are all defeated (Ps. 110:1; Heb. 1:13; 10:13). “It is finished” means the work accomplished at Calvary has set in place the eternal purpose of the triune God from before the foundation of the world. What we, from our perspective, see as an ongoing battle is a mopping up operation. Satan, defeated, cannot do anything but attack those who “keep the commandments of God, and have the testimony of Jesus Christ” (Rev. 12:17).
“It is finished” means we are on the winning side in time and eternity. We know the outcome of the war and have only to show our faithfulness to the Victor.
- Mark R. Rushdoony
Mark R. Rushdoony graduated from Los Angeles Baptist College (now The Master’s College) with a B.A. in history in 1975 and was ordained to the ministry in 1995.
He taught junior and senior high classes in history, Bible, civics and economics at a Christian school in Virginia for three years before joining the staff of Chalcedon in 1978. He was the Director of Chalcedon Christian School for 14 years while teaching full time. He also helped tutor all of his children through high school.
In 1998, he became the President of Chalcedon and Ross House Books, and, more recently another publishing arm, Storehouse Press. Chalcedon and its subsidiaries publish many titles plus CDs, mp3s, and an extensive online archive at www.chalcedon.edu. His biography of his father will be published later this year (2024).
He has written scores of articles for Chalcedon’s publications, both the Chalcedon Report and Faith for all of Life. He was a contributing author to The Great Christian Revolution (1991). He has spoken at numerous conferences and churches in the U.S. and abroad.
Mark Rushdoony has lived in Vallecito, California, since 1978. His wife, Darlene, and he have been married since 1976. His youngest son still resides with him. He has three married children and nine grandchildren.