The Finisher of Our Faith

Encountering a problem with my home office setup, the solution I needed was 3-D printing a piece of plastic. Like I usually do when I have a problem that needs a fix, I carry out thorough research on how to go about it. I began watching Youtube videos on how 3-D printing would solve my problem. It was then I discovered that there were different types of materials used to print and each material, depending on the use of what was printed, needed a different type of finish. For ornamental pieces ( items placed in view of others as decorations), a process known as Vapor Smoothing is employed. The object is sprayed with Acetone vapor to melt and smooth out the surface of the object, taking away its crudeness. The finishing process turns the object into something of value. While the words finish commonly means to complete, it also means to decorate or to give an attractive surface appearance so its ready for use.

Jesus endured the cross to complete the process of our redemption, finishing the reconciliation of man to His God. Jesus, by His obedience and sacrifice, finished what was set in motion after man had fallen. The Messiah (deliverer and rescuer) , as prophesied all through the Old Testament, had come to deliver man from certain death, by bearing our guilt and paying the price for it. And on the cross, before He gave up the ghost, asked for a drink. Fulfilling David’s prophesy in Psalms 69:21, he was given vinegar to quench His thirst, and then He said, “it is finished”. The process of initiating our Salvation and modeling man’s Faith had been completed.

"who Himself bore our sins in His own body on the tree, that we, having died to sins, might live for righteousness— by whose stripes you were healed. For you were like sheep going astray, but have now returned to the Shepherd and Overseer of your souls"

1 Peter 2:24-25

Like we began with, to finish a thing has two dimensions. To finish is to complete. To finish is also to make perfect. Like an ornament, to finish is to remove the rough edges, beautify, make perfect, rework, and make fit for use. Philippians 1:6 (AMP) says “I am convinced and confident of this very thing, that He who has begun a good work in you will [continue to] perfect and complete it until the day of Christ Jesus [the time of His return]”, meaning that even though Christ had finished the work of redemption on the cross, we are still being worked on by Him. After He had risen and returned to the Father, 1 John 2:1 says He became an advocate for us with the Father. While He performs this function in Heaven, He also did not leave us here on earth alone. He gave us a helper, the Holy Spirit, who helps us in our weakness and humanness.

Romans 8:2 (NLT) “And because you belong to him, the power of the life-giving Spirit has freed you from the power of sin that leads to death” and in Romans 8:26-27 (NLT) “‘And the Holy Spirit helps us in our weakness. For example, we don’t know what God wants us to pray for. But the Holy Spirit prays for us with groanings that cannot be expressed in words. And the Father who knows all hearts knows what the Spirit is saying, for the Spirit pleads for us believers in harmony with God’s own will”.

So, while Christ has brought us redemption, it is still by Him, albeit God’s Spirit, that we are being made perfect, fit for use for His Glory here on earth. And if we stay at it, being just ( consistent in character), Proverbs 4:18 (AMP) which says “But the path of the just (righteous) is like the light of dawn, That shines brighter and brighter until [it reaches its full strength and glory in] the perfect day”, becomes our reality.

To wrap this up, Christ finished the work on the cross that we may be made righteous. Yes, we have encountered salvation, but do we just stay saved without growing in the knowledge of what we have come into. Being saved means we are no more of this world although still in it. We now dwell in the Kingdom of our God, governed by Him, as directed by His Word (constitution) and guided by His Spirit. The end goal of the salvation journey is that we reign with Him at the end of this age. On that journey, He works on us to make us like Himself. Romans 8:29-30 (NKJV) “For whom He foreknew, He also predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son, that He might be the firstborn among many brethren. Moreover whom He predestined, these He also called; whom He called, these He also justified; and whom He justified, these He also glorified” and in 1 Peter 2:4-5 “‘Coming to Him as to a living stone, rejected indeed by men, but chosen by God and precious, you also, as living stones, are being built up a spiritual house, a holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ”.

Growth, Biblically, is to become like Christ and Apsotle Paul emphasied this in 2 Cortinthians 3:16-18 (NKJV) “Nevertheless when one turns to the Lord, the veil is taken away. Now the Lord is the Spirit; and where the Spirit of the Lord is , there is liberty. But we all, with unveiled face, beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, just as by the Spirit of the Lord”.