Tools For The Treasure, Part Two

     Last week I gave some basic convictions I believe are important as we approach God's written word. Today I will give a few thoughts on three principles that guide me as I work with Scripture.
     In a nutshell, careful observation, supported by a constant awareness of context, both fueled by curiosity are three of my top operating principles. Stated in another way, if you want to glean lots of treasure from God's word: Be observant, be aware (of context), be curious. 
     Be observant. Most people will start discovering a lot more treasure in the Bible just by slowing down and looking more carefully at what they are reading (or hearing if they are auditory learners). Rushing through the Bible to get a reading program done rarely allows for the careful observation that exposes the gems in the Bible, so often tell people, "Stop, look and listen!"
      But it helps to know what you are looking for, of course, so what should you be looking for? I could write a book about this, but here are a few things for those starting out on the journey of discovery. 

• Look to see if the passage is a complete unit and for how it fits in with the rest of the book it's part of. 
• Look for the main thoughts/themes or events of passage and for how the themes are developed (or how the events fill out the story if the passage is a narrative).
• Look for repeated important words and other factors like emphasized words, connecting words (What is that "therefore" there for?, etc.) and other patterns.
• If applicable, look for hints about the writer and those he is writing to that give you clues as to the purpose and main ideas of the passage. 
• I hope this gives you a good starting point. Now let me illustrate just a little from Ephesians 1:3-14.

     Take a careful look at Ephesians 1:3-14 and it won't take too long to notice that words like, "all, everything, every" are repeated quite often, that the passage is one big long praise to/of God (the phrase "praise of His glory" or something similar appears three times), that the words "redemption" and "predestined" appear twice (NIV), etc. There are many more things to notice in this passage, of course--I have just scratched the surface. But just a little closer look at the first "every" leads to a remarkable discovery that can leave us reflecting on it for the rest of our lives: we have been blessed in the heavenly realms with every spiritual blessing in Christ! Just working through the implications of that one truth can change your life forever, especially when you remember that it's in the plural: all of us together and as individual parts of Christ' body have already been blessed with every possible spiritual blessing! And then there's all the worship in the passage, the rest of the "all, every" theme and much, much more. 
     One final thought about observation: careful observation can also help us see what's not there. What do I mean? I mean we get to question assumptions we or others have made. One of my favorite examples of this for me comes from the parable of the Sower. I recently realized that contrary to my previous assumptions, the parable does not imply only a 25% success rater, does not say that the word is planted only one time, does not say that the soil cannot change or be renovated or weeded, etc. All of these new things that aren't there have many implications which I cannot cover right now, but I trust they help you see what I mean by observing what's not there.
     Be aware of the context. Words only have specific meaning in context. A word can have potential meaning by itself, but it can have specific and clear meaning when we see its context. For example, you don't really know what I mean by the word "love" until I put it into some kind of context: "I love dark chocolate!" or "I love country music." or "I love my grandchildren!" And note that even this amount of context can be increased by adding more context. I can tell you what kinds of dark chocolate I "love." I give you specific types of country music that I "love." I can elaborate (forever) on what I love about our grandchildren. 
     So it is with the words in the Bible. Around every word in Scripture are concentric layers of context that give the word its specific meaning:  the possible meanings of the word in the language it is written in, the immediate words around it, the passage around the word, the book its part of, the Bible and theology that come from it, the history and culture of the writer and readers. All of these can affect the meaning of the words in Scripture, and an awareness of this held in our minds as we read the Bible and answer our questions about it is one of the most essential parts of discovering God's written treasure.
     Be curious! For me, insatiable curiosity is the fuel that feeds the discovery process in my approach to Scripture. I find myself asking curious questions all the time: "Why did Paul repeat that word so many times?" "What was the writer feeling when he wrote those words?" "How is this connected to that other passage later in this book?" "What would it have felt like to be there when Jesus did that or said that?"  I think you get the picture. My observation of the passage gives birth to these questions, of course, and then the questions lead to more observation so that it becomes a wonderful cycle of discovery that never really ends. Try it! Take a passage that you are familiar with and look carefully with your curiosity at full attention and see if you can arrive at questions you've never asked before. You won't be disappointed. 
     But how do we answer all of these questions and/or make sense of the observations? The answer to that will have to wait until next week when I will cover a simple method (SOAR) that will help you put all of this into practice and soar like an eagle on the winds of fresh discovery.

Marveling at the endless treasure,

Tom, one of Abba's little children

Tools For The Treasure, Part One

     In a few weeks I will be teaching a brief class on "Discovery Bible Study" here in Houston, and as I have worked on it I have come to realize that I have never given "Tom's tips" for digging the treasure out of God's Word in blog format. So today and the next two weeks, in a very, very basic way, I want to give a few thoughts, a few "tools," for digging out more of the endless treasure contained in God's Word.

     Let's start with some basic convictions about studying God's word I believe we need to take with us as we approach Scripture.

1. Everything that any follower of Jesus needs from the Bible in order to live the Jesus life is accessible to her/him. This is an unshakeable conviction of mine and very important. If we think we have to be experts to understand the important things of God's Kingdom, we will miss God's heart entirely and disqualify most folks from finding the treasure. It is always God's heart to make everything we need accessible to all of us. To think that He would lock up the truth of His word in complexity so that only a few could access it violates the very core of the good news of a God who is committed to removing every obstacle between us and Him. What this means for you is that you are qualified to dig for treasure, no special gifting required!
2. On the other hand, some digging is required! Because God wants us to move past infancy in our life with Him, He chooses not to spoon feed us by just dropping truth into our mouths with no effort on our part.Taking time with God's word, putting some careful thinking into the process, seeking Holy Spirit's guidance, etc., are all part of mining the treasure from God's word. As I have said before, simple is not necessarily always easy. 
3. It's best to approach scripture looking for the Promise-giver and not just promises, looking for the Person, not just principles. The Bible is ultimately His-story not a book of facts and principles, and we can encounter God in remarkable ways if we allow Holy Spirit to show us His ways and teach us His paths as we read it. Reducing the Bible to a packet of principles or passel of promises will move us back into religion and away from a relationship. If I am just looking for promises and/or principles, I am looking for things I can do: things I can claim or put into practice, and that tends to put the focus on me rather than Papa God, doesn't it? On the other hand, if I allow my reading of Scripture to draw me into increasing intimacy with the One who makes the promises and reveals His heart and character and imprints them into my life through Word and Spirit... you get the picture, I trust. I hope this is clear because it's really important, methinks. If it isn't, let me know and I will try again.
4. It's important to remember that the Bible cannot be approached like any other book. In the first place, it's the only book in the world that is inspired by God Himself, the only truly "holy" book. Secondly, it is a collection of books written over a period of hundreds of years by many different human authors, so it can't just be read from "cover to cover" without thinking about the context and circumstances of the writers and recipients. We will talk more about this when we discuss reading it in context. In some ways, of course, we do read and study the Bible like we do other books, but there are many differences as well, and remembering that up front helps us approach Scripture with increased awareness of our need for Holy Spirit's help and our need to stop and think as we read. More on this next week.
5. It's also important to be aware  of our "filters" as we approach the Bible. All of us bring to anything we read or hear our own assumptions, cultural biases and other filters. We can't fully remove these, of course, because they are an integral part of who we are, but we can be aware of them so that we can put them aside as best we can. If we succeed in doing so, we will be able to see what's really there and allow it to challenge our assumptions and adjust our filters. Perhaps I need to give a couple of illustrations here. The easiest filter for most of us to understand is the filter of our own 21st century western culture. Obviously, the world of the Bible was very different from ours but if we are not careful we will read the Bible as if it were written in our time and culture. For example, we tend to think of "church" as the very cultural, often building-centered organization of our day rather than the New Testament church which consisted of groups of people meeting mostly in houses. The "church in Philippi" was a collection of brothers and sisters meeting in homes throughout the city, not a visible collection of buildings--you get the point, I trust. Another set of filters we bring with us are those that have been put into us by our exposure to whatever "Christian" teaching we have been most influenced by. Being aware of what has influenced us and being willing to lay it aside or at least have its assumptions challenged will open up an entirely new world of revelation for most of us! Perhaps you may want to take a moment right now and ask Holy Spirit what filters you bring to Scripture. You will be amazed, I think, at what He shows you and how it helps to lay them aside!

     Okay, because this list took more space than I originally thought, I will give part two next week at look at some of the basic tools for treasure hunting that we all possess. But here's a preview of some of them: in addition to the most important tool of allowing Holy Spirit to lead you, other important tools are Careful observation, Curiosity and Context. We will look at these three "Cs" more thoroughly next week. 

Lost in the wonders of His Word,

Tom, one of Abba's little children

Journey with Papa or Project for the Boss?

     Like many believers, I used to think of discovering God's will as very hard, and I consequently lived with a low level anxiety inside of me about "missing God's perfect will." Yes, for many Christians "missing God's plan" is a real fear. How differently things seem now from with the arms of a loving Father!

    Today's entry was triggered by my reading a chapter from An Apple for the Road (a great book). In chapter 8, Pam Spinosi writes poignantly about her struggle to free herself from the tyranny of the fear of missing God's plan. (The title is appropriately called "Should I buy bread? Should I wear red? ... What's that God said?"). Her story elicited so many resonating responses in me, that I felt led to attempt to write down a few things that may help set you free from this tyrannizing fear. I will just scratch the surface of this topic today, but maybe a few foundational truths I have learned will help you live more peacefully in the middle of God's purposes for your life. Here's a few thoughts.

     Our life with God is best viewed as a journey with a loving Father, not a project for a demanding Master. This one truth unfolds into many wonderful implications that help take away our fear. Because God is the best of Good Fathers...

• He makes discovering His purposes for our lives easy, not hard. What kind of father would make the best choices hard to find? Yet Christians often seems to think God is like this. Nothing could be farther from the truth. God's will is clear for all who take time to enter into intimate, listening relationship with Him.
• He gives us increasing freedom in partnering with Him in making our life choices. Every good father knows that one of his duties as a dad is to help his children make increasingly wise choices. The children are able to do this based on their learning more and more to be like their daddy, filled with his wisdom and character. The more they become like their daddy, the more their choices and desires become totally trustworthy, made in dialogue with their daddy, and the more their father can partner with them rather than dictate to them.
• He delights in our desires, not threatened by them but rather calling them forth and folding them into His purposes for our lives, especially as we share more and more of His heart and character. God knows how He made you, including the things that make your heart sing. Do you really think He would dismiss those things that He Himself planted within you as He helps you discover your highest purposes?
• He brings us back on course when we call out to Him after missing a turn. Like a Heavenly GPS, God makes all things work together for our good, including our missteps. (Romans 8:28-29). A quick survey of Scripture shows us how this works. Even the Apostle Paul couldn't find God's will for his second missionary journey without missing a few times, but God kept "reeling him in")! (See Acts 16:6-10). 

     So does this mean that we can just do anything and it somehow becomes God's best for us? I think you know that's not the case. Living the Jesus life does indeed entail being led by the Spirit (Romans 8:14), keeping in step with the Spirit (Galatians 5:25), etc. But since Paul clearly states that being led by the Spirit is the mark of sons and daughters, not slaves, (see Romans 8:14-17), whatever else "guidance" means, it's not like getting orders from some sort of heavenly boss. It's best to think of it as a dialogue of a father and his son/daughter as they journey through life. This is obviously how Jesus lived. He was intently focused on His Father and committed to total obedience to Him (John 5:19, 30), but He also clearly dialogued with His Father with a confidence that He was always heard (John 11:41-42). Combining these two thoughts gives us a picture, I think, of a surrendered Son in constant conversation with His Father, sharing His heart and desires with His Abba while also surrendering completely to His Father's infinitely (at the time) superior wisdom. This seems to me to be a fairly good picture for us as well, don't you think?

     So from that place of growing intimacy with God, fueled by our getting to know Him through His Word and Spirit and by living life with Him, our journey through life with all of its choices becomes more and more a joyful conversation about the journey rather than a discussion of an unalterable blueprint. What do you think? 

     One final thought: I often remind people that if we listen to God only for guidance and correction we are missing 95% of the conversation God wants to have with us.  Again I ask, what kind of relationship would you have with anyone if the only topics were guidance and correction? Guidance is only a small part of our life with Him, and even calling it "guidance" makes me nervous because God is a father first, not a taskmaster, and relegating Him merely to the role of guide seems to miss the heart of what the Good News is all about. So I will journey with my Papa and we will discover together this amazing future...

Checking my GPS...

Tom, one of Abba's little children

Sometimes I wonder...

     Maybe it's just me, but I sometimes wonder about things in a way that seems upside down to much of the "Christian" world. Today's wondering may fit in that category. See what you think. Please note that I don't mean to be negative in this wondering, I am truly just wondering and longing for Papa's love to be more fully expressed through His children.

     Sometimes I wonder how helpful it is for believers to be perceived so often as "against" things (and by deduction, against people) in light of the fact that the world of unregenerate people by nature is against us already. I wonder if it feeds that negativity for us to be mostly known for opposing something rather than offering something better. 

     Please note that I am not suggesting that we should abandon truth. It is not loving to suggest to those caught in deception and sin that they are okay and not broken and in danger. On the other hand, I wonder what it would be like if we prayed more than we picketed, if we blessed and healed more vigorously than we boycotted, if we served more zealously than we organized, if we loved more fervently than we stood for truth and righteousness. I wonder if those caught in deception and brokenness might be more likely to be drawn to kindness and respect and generosity. Just wondering...

     I wonder what it would be like if Christians were known for being "for people." As far as I can tell from Scripture, God is "for" every human being, and it's only an individual's choice to reject the blessing of His being for them that prevents him/her from being reconciled to Him and healed. I wonder what it would be like for folks to very much be aware that we are for them like God is for them. Just wondering...

     I wonder what it would be like if the first thing that touched anyone who encountered us was kindness. If it's God's kindness that leads us to repentance, I wonder if we should try it as our first and best approach. Just wondering...

     I wonder, too, what it would look like for us to be able to live out what Paul said about the Kingdom of God in 1 Corinthians 4:20, "For the Kingdom of God is not a matter of talk but of power." It seems to me that this is rather reversed in church culture. I wonder what it would be like if the lost sons and daughters of Adam and Eve met love-cloaked power through the touch of Jesus' people more than just words or a reasoned argument. Just wondering...

     But when I wonder, I also hope! My deep conviction is that Papa is awakening His people to what He is really like, and they are beginning to reflect that powerfully. I see that happening more and more--Aslan is indeed on the move, and His people are beginning to reflect His character in remarkable ways, and my wondering is being changed into wonder. But I still wonder... :-)

Wondering in hope because of Papa's kindness to me,

Tom, one of Abba's little children

Mentored Into the Grace-Drenched Life

     One of my mentors graduated to Heaven yesterday. Although I never met Brennan Manning nor even listened to him speak, several of his books have impacted me greatly. Twice in this blog that I can find I quoted from one or more of his books. You can find those blogs here and here.

     But I am not feeling nudged to write today about Brennan Manning and his remarkable influence on Abba's children. Rather, his passing has triggered in me a desire to share just a few thoughts about mentors and a few pithy quotes from some of my favorites. 

     First, however, I remind you that you may or may not be able to relate to how I am mentored. Most of my mentors (living and departed) have mentored me from afar via what they have written. Not everyone, however, is wired to learn via reading, so although I cannot imagine anyone growing into maturity in Jesus apart from mentors in her/his life, I also recognize that each person must discover how s/he best learns. 

     Now about mentors. Everyone needs them, regardless of what we call them. The process many Christians call "discipleship" (an often loaded and very "Christianeze" term) involves being mentored by those a few steps ahead of us in the journey. Jesus mentored His disciples and Paul clearly followed His example (see, for example, his words to Timothy in 2 Timothy 2:2). I cannot imagine life without the influence of my many mentors, nor can I imagine a life where I am not mentoring others. It seems to be at the heart of the life of the Kingdom. 

      But that's all I will write about this today, because I want to share a few treasures from just a few of those who mentor me. I was going to make a list of these mentors for you, but I choose instead to let you find your own list and share a few pearls about living the grace-drenched life that Jesus invites us to.

     First, another quote from Brennan Manning that I carry around with me. It is a simple prayer from Ruthless Trust, p. 152 that invites me to live surrendered to Papa's love: "Abba, I surrender my will and my life to you today, without reservation and with humble confidence, for you are my loving Father. Set me free from self-consciousness, from anxiety about tomorrow, and from the tyranny of the approval and disapproval of others, that I may find joy and delight simply and solely in pleasing you. May my inner freedom be a compelling sign of your presence, your peace, your power, and your love. Let your plan for my life and the lives of all your children gracefully unfold one day at a time. I love you with all my heart, and I place all my confidence in you, for you are my Abba."

     Then there's this little jewel from Lady Julian that attempts to help us grasp God's endless love for us and the infinite grace it extends to us: “…love is nearest to us all. And this is the knowledge of which we are most ignorant; for many men and women believe that God is almighty and has power to do everything, and that he is all wisdom and knows how to do everything, but that he is all love and is willing to do everything—there they stop. And this ignorance is what hinders those who most love God; for when they begin to hate sin, and to mend their ways… there still remains some fear which moves them to think of themselves and their previous sins. And they take this fear for humility, but it is foul ignorance and weakness. … for it comes from the Enemy, and it is contrary to Truth. … It is God’s wish that we should place most reliance on liking and love; for it makes God’s power and wisdom very gentle to us; just as through his generosity God forgives our sins when we repent, so he wants us to forget our sins and all our depression and all our doubtful fear.”

     And one of Brother Lawrence's many reminders about "living loved" and always aware of God's presence: "That his prayer was nothing else but a sense of the presence of God, his soul being at that time insensible to everything but Divine love: and that when the appointed times of prayer were past, he found no difference, because he still continued with God, praising and blessing Him with all his might, so that he passed his life in continual joy; yet hoped that God would give him somewhat to suffer, when he should grow stronger."

     I have used this one from Brother Lawrence at least twice before, but it so wonderfully illustrates the scandal of God's messy grace for us that I share it again: "I consider myself as the most wretched of men, full of sores and corruption, and who has committed all sorts of crimes against his King; touched with a sensible regret I confess to Him all my wickedness, I ask His forgiveness, I abandon myself into His hands, that He may do what He pleases with me. This King, full of mercy and goodness, very far from chastising me, embraces me with love, makes me eat at His table, serves me with His own hands, gives me the key of His treasures; He converses and delights Himself with me incessantly, in a thousand and a thousand ways, and treats me in all respects as His favorite. It is thus I consider myself from time to time in His holy presence."

     Finally, although I could give many more, here's one on how to handle failure in view of God's amazing grace by Andrew Murray (The Deeper Christian Life, chapter 6): “Don’t be discouraged. If failure comes, at once, without any waiting, appeal to Jesus. He is always ready to hear, and the very moment you find there is the temper, the hasty word, or some other wrong, at once the living Jesus is near, so gracious, and so mighty. Appeal to Him and there will be help at once. If you learn to do this, Jesus will lift you up and lead you on to a walk where His strength shall secure you from failure.”

     And yes, all of these quotes fall mostly on the side of God's embracing love and grace. It would seem wrong of me not to head that direction in light of my mentor Brennan Manning's watching today from Heaven. No one I can think of understood the scandal of God's grace better than he.

Tom, one of Abba's needing-endless-grace children

Those Being Transformed

Today's entry is actually lifted from a message I hope to share tomorrow morning and draws on a previous entry. I have "grown some" since I last covered this topic, I trust, and below is the fruit of that. This is in outline form--my apologies, I am helping to babysit grandchildren today and didn't want to take time away from Charlie and the munchkins to rework this. The main question being answered below is "What do people whose lives are truly being transformed have in common with one another?"

People who live lives that are being transformed...

·       Have experienced the basics (see Hebrews 6:1-2). They have been truly reborn from above through repentance and trusting in Jesus alone. They have marked this by being baptized in water, and have also been filled with the Holy Spirit. These are the starting points, the "bare minimum" requirements for transformation, I think, because they are what every believer in New Testament times had experienced.

·       Live in increasing intimacy with God. In my mind this is the key to everything else. Living loved and listening, drawn ever more deeply into a constant love-infused awareness of Father's Presence is the source of everything else. This is supported by:

o   Learning to really “grasp grace.” (Grace that Embraces and Empowers). The indispensable requirement for true transformation is a heart-impacting, paradigm-shifting experience of the scandal of God's grace. Until we "get" how outrageous God's grace really is—that it is His very nature to express it continually, that it means we as believers are always and continually eligible for everything, that we are unconditionally and specifically loved, etc., we cannot possibly lay hold of the power of grace to change us. Ephesians 2:8-9 is always true! Romans 8:31-39 also seems appropriate: God is completely for us from this point on, and nothing can separate us from His love.

o   Learning to truly hear God and live listening! John 10:27, Romans 8:14 are in the present tense. Intimate relationship with anyone requires two-way communication, and our relationship with God is no different, of course. And it brings with it the additional aspect of surrender to the leadership of the One who loves us most and knows all things. (We cannot be led if we cannot hear and will not follow.)

o   Learning to live trusting. Biblical faith is trusting, not just believing and is relational not transactional. J.P. Moreland describes faith as “confidence, trust, reliance.” (In Search of a Confident Faith)

o   Learning to live "filled with the Spirit." Most western churches, no matter what their form, fail to provide New Testament levels of the power of God. Unless we are saturated, marinated, permeated, inundated by God's Spirit, we cannot possibly really know what it means to live a life that is "led by the Spirit." Jesus told the Apostles to wait until they were "clothed with power from on high" before starting their mission (Luke 24:49). Living "clothed with power" makes for radical transformation both personally and "environmentally" and is not, in my opinion, optional for those who wish to be transformed and also be "transformers" of the people and culture around them.

·       Live in open, transparent, safety-giving community. Yes, these kinds of relational jewels exist, but they are not often found in the things that "church" typically offers. They are found among those who may be part of church but who hunger for more than shallow, pretend relationships. It is in this kind of relational community that we experience life-on-life discipleship. Transformation requires relationship with other believers who are willing to sacrifice in order to pour life into others and who are willing to be transparent and vulnerable. When Jesus told His disciples, "As you go, make disciples..." they thought of what they had experienced. That experience of living life on life, translated into today's culture, still changes lives as deeply as it did then.

·       Understand that merely agreeing with Scriptural truth changes nothing whereas Holy Spirit-led and empowered, trust-filled response to Scriptural truth changes everything. Matthew 7:24-27, James 1:22-25 are two of many scriptures that come to mind here.

·       Do whatever it takes to get healed up! Christians who are walking wounded and "packing critters" cannot possibly mature as they long to until at least the major life wounds are healed and any critters are evicted.

·       Live in giving mode rather than consumer mode. Much of our approach to ministry encourages people to act like consumers rather than transmitters of grace. For example, when the early church gathered, "each one" brought something to give away (see 1 Corinthians 14:26 for just one example of this). I wonder how a return to this thinking would change "church as we know it." What if every believer was trained to be a transmitter rather than just a receiver? Just wondering.... :-)

·       Recognize that transformation is a journey, not a repair project. Deep change, even in the context of all of these things, doesn't happen overnight. I am quite sure that some of the immaturity we see among believers is simply due to their giving up at some point. Yet the Bible is noticeably consistent in its encouraging us not to give up. Joseph waited 13 years for his purpose to begin to reveal itself, the Apostle Paul waited about 15 years, even the first apostles required 3 years of intensive care with Jesus Himself for them to be changed enough to be trusted with their mission. You get the point, I trust. Fruit (Galatians 5:22-23, John 15, etc.) grows over time--it cannot be instantly manufactured, and nothing of true value comes without process (and often, some pain).

Now the question of response lies before us, eh? I will leave that to you and the Holy Spirit in this blog format. The questions Papa may want to ask us are contained in the body of the outline above, methinks. For me, I am compelled to press on and in, more aware than ever of my being drawn, not driven, invited not coerced, empowered not shamed by the One who loves me most. What else can I do but keep on following?

Tom, one of His "being transformed" children.

Finished!

     After this, Jesus, knowing that all was now finished, said ( to fulfill the Scripture), I thirst. A jar full of sour wine stood there, so they put a sponge full of the sour wine on a hyssop branch and held it to his mouth. When Jesus had received the sour wine, he said, "It is finished!" and he bowed his head and gave up his spirit. (John 19:28-30 ESV, italics mine)
     Good Friday has increasingly become a day of sacred wonder for me, feeling at times almost too holy to talk about. But that would miss the point entirely of what Jesus was doing on the cross, of course, so I write today about "the sixth word" from the cross. 
     What was finished? Certainly Jesus' life was finished--His very next words would be His last until after His resurrection. But Jesus was clearly referring to far more than His brief time on earth. Come along with me as we look with wonder at some of what this single but remarkably powerful word means (John used only one word to translate into Greek what Jesus said).
     Jesus evidently shouted "Finished!" in a loud voice (Matthew 27:50). And He didn't say, "I am finished" (as in "done in") but rather "It is finished" (as in a work or task to be completed). Also, the Greek word John uses to translate what Jesus (in Aramaic) uses a verb tense that means "an action completed with continuing results." This is amazing to me. Jesus didn't whimper at the end as His death drew near. Instead He shouted out His triumphant certainty that He had accomplished, with eternally lasting results, all that the Father had assigned to Him see verse 28 above). 
     "Finished!" Jesus' work of revealing the Father's heart and love was finished! Jesus came to reveal a loving Father, a Father seeking to reconcile His wandering children to Himself, not a string of theological facts,. He did this by doing the Father's works, co-laboring with His Father to heal the sick, destroy the works of the devil, confront religion's harshness, teach listening hearts, bring life to the dead. "Finished!"
     "Finished." But there's more, of course, and that's what makes this remarkable day (only one like it in all of time!), so sacred and full of wonder. The Father's final assignment was to do the unthinkable: to suffer beyond what any human could ever suffer, to suffer so far beyond the physical torment and gore of the cross that we simply cannot grasp what He endured. Death was part of Jesus' life assignment (John 12:27); and it was a death on behalf of those He and His Father love (John 10:11,18); a death that would bring judgment on the world, defeat to the evil one and that would draw all people towards Him (John 12:31-32). Please, dear ones, pause a moment and reflect on the wonder of those last words! Don't let familiarity with the story rob you of the holy awe that can overtake us as we place ourselves firmly at the foot of the cross, refusing to move until we catch in some new way why "Good Friday" is so very, very good! (Selah).
     "Finished!" A life that perfectly modeled living in the Father's love, perfect intimacy with Abba, was not ending but being transformed. The earthly modeling of "living loved, listening, saturated and surrendered" was finished.
     "Finished!" A life's work of perfect obedience to the Father that glorified the Father by pouring out the Father's love and power upon all He met was finished.
     "Finished!" All the power of Heaven, all the love of God were brought to bear upon the dark and evil kingdom and upon death itself, and the result was complete and eternally enduring victory! "It is finished!"

Bowing my head and heart in loving wonder.

Tom, one of Jesus' joint-heirs