Clean Garments

Zechariah 3:1-5

(1) Then he showed me Joshua the high priest standing before the angel of the LORD, and Satan standing at his right hand to accuse him.

(2) And the LORD said to Satan, "The LORD rebuke you, O Satan! The LORD who has chosen Jerusalem rebuke you! Is not this a brand plucked from the fire?"

(3) Now Joshua was standing before the angel, clothed with filthy garments.

(4) And the angel said to those who were standing before him, "Remove the filthy garments from him." And to him he said, "Behold, I have taken your iniquity away from you, and I will clothe you with pure vestments."

(5) And I said, "Let them put a clean turban on his head." So they put a clean turban on his head and clothed him with garments. And the angel of the LORD was standing by.

This passage is just pregnant with meaning for us who are on this side of the cross. The next time you read through the Old Testament and you feel like you're really slogging through Leviticus, I hope that this passage helps you to see the point. Joshua's garments had excrement on them. This would make the high priest unable to offer sacrifices.

Similarly, we naturally stand before God this way. We cannot clean ourselves up. I think of how my 2 year-old tries to clean himself. All he does is smear peanut butter around his face. It takes mom or dad with a wet washcloth to get him really clean.

That is how God's grace works in our lives. There is nothing we can do on our own. Yet God in His grace chose to clothe us with clean garments. Now we can stand before Him. If you are in Christ have you considered this? If you are not in Christ, please consider your attempts to clean up your own life. Are you perfect yet? If not, there is still work left to do and only Christ can do it.