John 19:30

John 19:30 says, When Jesus had therefore received the vinegar, He said "It is finished:" and He bowed His head and gave up the ghost. It is finished did not mean Jesus' life and redemptive work.  His task, the earthly part of His ministry was finished, and by His death, so was redemption completed.  The suffering and humiliation were finished.  Jesus took all the pain and suffering, but now that was over and victory was claimed.  Jesus came to redeem mankind, and the redemption plan was finished.  Jesus would never again have to suffer like this for us.  He took all of humanities sin for all time with Him to the cross.  Our sins were paid for that day.  We, as His followers, have claimed the gift Jesus gave us that day, but too many in the world allow it to go unclaimed.  It is so sad that they are redeemed but choose to remain lost.  God's chosen people, the Jews, even today see Jesus as having been defeated on the cross.  It says Jesus bowed His head and gave up the ghost.  He was not struggling for breath, and His life was not taken from Him.  Jesus submitted to the will of the Father and voluntarily gave His life.  Those looking on might have thought they were victorious, but they only played a part in redemption.  Often today, those of the world may think they can defeat God's redemptive plan that came through Christ, but they are as wrong as the witnesses to the crucifixion of Jesus were that day. Like Jesus, we may one day give up the ghost, that is, die a physical death, but our spirit lives on.  This life with its pain and suffering will be over, but that is all that is finished.  Jesus was going to the Father, and if we are truly His followers, so will we.  We are called on to have that same faith.  Even in a situation that seems to bring nothing but humiliation and defeat, we must stand firm in faith so that we too can say that it is finished.  We need to be able to say as Paul did that we fought a good fight and kept the faith.  Jesus remained true to His task until He could truly say, "It is finished."