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You can turn in your Bibles to 
the prophet Zechariah. We find ourselves in Zechariah 
chapter 3, a familiar passage of scripture in our church, one 
that illustrates the doctrine of justification by faith alone. Westminster Shorter Catechism, 
I think, accurately summarizing biblical teaching, asks the question, 
what is justification? The answer, justification is 
an act of God's free grace wherein he pardons all our sins and accepts 
us as righteous in his sight, only for the righteousness of 
Christ imputed to us and received by faith alone. It's a most wonderful 
doctrine. It's a most wonderful truth. 
And as I said, it's illustrated here beautifully in the prophet 
Zechariah. So I'll read Zechariah chapter 
three in its entirety. So beginning in verse one. Then 
he showed me Joshua, the high priest, standing before the angel 
of the Lord and Satan standing at his right hand to oppose him. 
And the Lord said to Satan, the Lord rebuke you, Satan, the Lord 
who has chosen Jerusalem rebuke you. Is this not a brand plucked 
from the fire? Now Joshua was clothed with filthy 
garments and was standing before the angel. Then he answered and 
spoke to those who stood before him saying, take away the filthy 
garments from him. And to him, he said, see, I have 
removed your iniquity from you and I will clothe you with rich 
robes. And I said, let them put a clean 
turban on his head. So they put a clean turban on 
his head and they put the clothes on him. And the angel of the 
Lord stood by. Then the angel of the Lord admonished 
Joshua saying, thus says the Lord of hosts, if you will walk 
in my ways and if you will keep my command, then you shall also 
judge my house and likewise have charge of my courts. I will give 
you places to walk among those who stand here. Here, oh Joshua, 
the high priest, you and your companions who sit before you, 
for they are a wondrous sign. For behold, I am bringing forth 
my servant, the branch. For behold, the stone that I 
have laid before Joshua, upon the stone are seven eyes. Behold, 
I will engrave its inscription, says the Lord of hosts, and I 
will remove the iniquity of that land in one day. In that day, 
says the Lord of hosts, everyone will invite his neighbor under 
his vine and under his fig tree. Amen. Well, let us pray. Father, 
we thank you for your word. We thank you for the glorious 
doctrine of justification by faith alone. We know that this 
is the battle cry of the Protestant Reformation. We know that this 
ultimately is the truth upon which our souls rely. We bless 
you and we thank you for that glorious exchange, that our sin 
is imputed to the Savior and punished in Him, and His righteousness 
is imputed to us and received by faith alone. We give glory 
and praise and honor unto you, that you have satisfied all requirements, 
that law, justice, everything has been satisfied under the 
gospel of our blessed Savior. We thank you and rejoice in your 
loving kindness and pray for the ministry of the Holy Spirit 
to guide us now, encourage our hearts and cause us to reflect 
upon our blessed Lord Jesus Christ and what he has done on our behalf. 
Do forgive us again for all sin and transgression and we pray 
in Jesus' name, amen. Well, Zechariah, along with Haggai 
and Malachi, are what is called post-exilic prophets. So these 
men prophesied after the exile in Babylon. Remember that as 
a result of their covenant unfaithfulness, Israel was conquered by, first, 
the Assyrians in 722 BC, and then by Babylon, and under Nebuchadnezzar, 
in about 586-587. At that point, they spent about 
70 years in that captivity, and then under a decree by Cyrus, 
the king of Persia, they were free to return to their land. 
So the books of Nehemiah and Ezra deal with that, as well 
as these post-exilic prophets Haggai, Zechariah, and Malachi. 
Malachi comes a bit later than Haggai and Zechariah, but they 
were contemporaries. Basically, after that exile, 
you had the first return of exiles in about 538, 536. And then the 
people immediately began to restore their center of worship. They 
built an altar, according to Ezra 3, and they began construction 
on the temple, according to Ezra 3. After, or rather, this halted 
for 16 years, due to external opposition. Again, you can see 
this in the book of Ezra. There were people in that land 
that were not into the Jews rebuilding their temple. And so after 16 
years, Haggai and Zechariah preached in about 520 BC and temple construction 
started again. It was completed in about four 
years in about 516 BC. And again, that is in Ezra. Now the second return of the 
exiles took place under Ezra and Nehemiah. Zechariah himself 
is mentioned in Ezra 5, Ezra 6 and again in Nehemiah 12 in 
connection with Haggad. And basically these men preached 
to encourage the returning exiles to build the temple, to build 
the house of God, to restore religious worship, and to get 
back on track. Remember, they lost that. They 
forfeit it because of their unfaithfulness. So Haggai and Zechariah come 
along and say, be faithful, look unto the Lord, be what God has 
called you to be. Now with reference to Zechariah, 
he received eight night visions. And if the commentators are to 
be trusted, They can pinpoint the particular day. In February, 
February 15th and 519, he received these eight night visions. The 
one we're looking at is the fourth and it has to do with cleansing 
from sin. That's the specific emphasis. 
You see that later in the Prophet Zechariah. We'll visit that as 
we move through this material. So the fourth vision concerns 
cleansing from sin, and as a result, it would encourage the people 
to continue building the temple. Remember, the temple was the 
place where the Israelites met with their God. They didn't meet 
with their God without sacrifice. They needed to bring a bloody 
sacrifice to the Lord for atonement. Now, all of this was prefigurement. 
All of this was foreshadowing. All of this was typical, pointing 
forward to the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world. 
So that's the historical context. When we drop down specifically 
to chapter 3, there's two things we ought to appreciate in the 
passage. First, the legal controversy in verses 1 to 7, and then secondly, 
the prophetic announcement in verses 8 to 10. Again, it's a 
night vision. He sees this in his, whether 
he's on his bed or what the specific reference is. He sees this and 
it communicates to him the message from God that he would communicate 
to the exiles. So let's look first at the legal 
controversy. We'll spend the bulk of our time 
here in verses 1 to 7. And there's five things I want 
to look at. First, the accusation of the devil. Secondly, the response 
of the Lord in verse 2. Third, the appearance of the 
high priest in verse 3. Fourth, the glorious exchange 
in verses 4 and 5. And then following, or fifthly, 
the blessing of the Lord in verses 6 and 7a. So first of all, notice 
the accusation. This is a legal controversy. 
There is a problem. And that's how the passage starts 
off. Notice in verse 1. Then he showed me Joshua, the 
high priest, standing before the angel of the Lord, and Satan 
standing at his right hand to oppose him. And the Lord said 
to Satan, the Lord rebuked you, Satan. So we see immediately 
that something is going on that transcends just Joshua the high 
priest. Joshua the high priest is a public 
person. He is a representative. This 
isn't Joshua the son of Nun who led the conquest in Canaan, but 
this is Joshua the high priest. And Joshua the high priest in 
this exilic community functioned in a manner of prominence. Remember, 
they didn't have a king. Having returned after the exile, 
they didn't have a monarchy. They had a governor, and they 
would have the high priest. And they would be the prominent 
ones in terms of the covenant community. So it's not Joshua 
and his individual sin that's in view. It's Israel's sin. It's 
the covenant community's sin. It's the covenant community's 
breach of that covenant that God had made with them. And with 
reference to the high priest, we know this because of Leviticus 
chapter 16. In Leviticus chapter 16, what does the high priest 
do on the Day of Atonement? With reference to that first 
goat, he sacrifices it, pours the blood upon the mercy seat. 
With reference to the second, he lays his hands upon the head 
of that scapegoat and he confesses to God the transgression of Israel. 
and then he drives that goat out into the wilderness. The 
picture is one of expiation or the removal of guilt. In other 
words, what Israel witnessed in that day of atonement was 
not only cleansing from the effect of sin, but also the removal 
of sin and its effects. And so Joshua, or rather the 
high priest in Leviticus 16, wasn't functioning simply for 
himself, he was functioning on behalf of the covenant community. 
As well, notice the reference to Jerusalem in verse 2, as chosen. Not just Joshua, this transcends 
him. It's not an individual sinner 
thing, it is rather the covenant community thing. As well, notice 
the brand plucked from the fire in verse 2. Jerusalem's restoration 
after exile. And then the removal of the iniquity 
from that land according to verse 9. So Joshua, the high priest, 
is functioning here as a public representative. He is functioning 
on behalf of the nation. And so what we have here is this 
legal controversy between the devil and these people. The devil, 
or the word Satan, means accuser, and that is precisely what he 
does here. In Job chapter 1, we see that nature of the devil, 
or that function of the devil, to accuse righteous Job before 
our holy God. You see it in Revelation chapter 
12. The devil is referred to as the accuser of the brethren. 
So we have the parties here. We have God, who is sitting upon 
the throne. The angel of the Lord is the 
Lord. And then we have the devil appear before him in order to 
bring a charge against Israel. In order to bring a charge against 
the covenant community. So it is a legal situation. John Gill describes the business 
of Satan this way. It was here to accuse, to bring 
charges, to plead for condemnation, and endeavor to get that sentence 
of it passed against Joshua. For he was at his right hand. 
to be an adversary to him as his name Satan signifies, being 
an enemy to mankind in general, and especially to the people 
of God, and more especially to persons in sacred public offices. So look back again at verse 1. 
Then he showed me Joshua the high priest standing before the 
angel of the Lord, and Satan standing at his right hand to 
oppose him. Brethren, I think this is what 
Paul is dealing with in Romans chapter 8, verses 31 to 35. Who will bring a charge against 
God's elect? It is Christ who has died. In 
other words, when that accusation comes from the devil, you're 
not as good as you should be. You're not as good as you ought 
to be. You're hypocritical. Take it to the blood of the Lord 
Jesus Christ. The devil's right in the sense 
that we're never perfect. Our obedience to God is not entire. 
It's not exact. It's not perpetual. We fall in 
many ways. But he's always there at our 
heels trying to show us that we are a fake, to show us that 
we are a hypocrite. But with reference to the gospel 
of our salvation, we go back to the Savior, we go back to 
the Lord, we go back to the gospel. That is our strength, that is 
our hope, that is our comfort. So he is there to accuse. Now 
notice, secondly, the response of the Lord. The devil is in 
his position to bring this charge against God's elect. But before 
he can even open his mouth, the Lord God Most High rebukes him. 
Notice in verse 2, And the Lord said to Satan, The Lord rebuke 
you, Satan. The Lord who has chosen Jerusalem 
rebuke you. Is this not a brand plucked from 
the fire? So it's the Lord's initiative 
before the devil can open his mouth, before the devil can sort 
of list all of the sins of the covenant community. You think 
God doesn't know that? You think God is caught off guard? God needs the devil to tell him 
when the people of God are not walking as they ought to be? 
The Lord knows this, and the Lord rebukes him, and the Lord 
reproves him. Even before we see verse 3, the 
appearance of the high priest. Verse 3 indicates that the devil 
is kind of right. The high priest is filthy. The 
high priest is wretched. The high priest is despicable. And again, it's not just Joshua 
the high priest. It's the entirety of the covenant 
community. But even before we see that, 
even before the appearance of the accused, the Lord has already 
undertaken by way of his own initiative to silence the mouth 
of the devil. The Lord rebuke you. And notice 
how the Lord answers this particular charge. He doesn't say, well, 
they try really hard. They're doing the best they can. 
It's tough to be a creature in a world filled with temptation. 
It's tough to be an Israelite in the land of Canaan. It's tough 
to be an Israelite when you're surrounded by idolaters. It's 
tough to be the kind of person that fears the Lord and walks 
in service to God when you're surrounded by a bunch of wicked 
people. That's not how God silences the 
devil. God silences the devil based 
on his sovereign grace and based upon his justifying them through 
faith in Jesus Christ. Notice what he says in verse 
2. The Lord said to Satan, the Lord rebuke you, Satan. In other 
words, be quiet, shut your mouth, you have nothing to say, I don't 
want to hear it. In other words, the Lord rebuke 
you. He says, the Lord who has chosen Jerusalem rebuke you. Brethren, where does our comfort 
lie? Does it lie in our careful walk 
before the Lord? No, I'm not minimizing the necessity 
of a careful walk before the Lord. I'm not minimizing the 
necessity of letting our conduct be worthy of the Gospel. I'm 
not minimizing that reality, but where does the foundation 
of our comfort lie? It lies in Ephesians 1. Blessed 
be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed 
us with every spiritual blessing, in the heavenly places in Christ. 
And then it goes on to say, just as He chose us in Him before 
the foundation of the world. Wherein do we have comfort? Wherein 
do we have assurance? Wherein do we have that ability 
to face the temptation and the onslaught, the accusation of 
the devil? It's in God's sovereign grace. It's in the fact that 
He chose. It's in the fact that the Lord 
is carrying out His purpose. It's in the fact that the Lord, 
according to verses 4 and 5, cleanses sinners from all their 
filth and and clothes them with the righteousness of another. 
So the Lord's reasons for the rebuke of the devil is the sovereignty 
of God in election. Thomas McCombsky says the accuser 
has no right to expect God to destroy the nation on account 
of its sin. His accusation is futile because God has already 
revealed his will for the people by delivering them from the captivity. 
If he had wished to let them perish for their sin, the Lord 
would have left them in Babylon. But by snatching them from the 
flames of exile, he revealed that his grace, notice this, 
was even greater than their sin. And that is precisely the emphasis 
of the prophet in this fourth night vision that he received 
in February of 519. It is still an abiding principle. It is still an abiding piece 
of comfort. It is still an abiding piece of encouragement for the 
people of God. It's not our hold on Christ, 
it is rather God's hold on us. It is not our choice for Jesus, 
but God's choice of us from before the foundation of the world. 
So it's the sovereignty of God in election, and it's the justifying 
grace of God in salvation that we'll see later in verses 4 and 
5. So you've got the accusation of the devil, the response of 
the Lord. Now notice the appearance of the high priest. As I said, 
the devil, I don't want to say he's right in the sense that, 
you know, sort of vindicate what he's doing, but he has an accusation. Joshua the high priest is filthy. 
Notice what we see there in verse three. Now Joshua was clothed with filthy 
garments and was standing before the angel. Joshua was clothed 
with filthy garments and was standing before the angel. Now, 
when you put on a shirt in the morning or a pair of trousers 
in the morning, you might see a spot on them. You might say, 
well, I can't wear that shirt. I've got a business meeting, 
and they'll think I'm a barbarian if I've got a big blotch on my 
shirt. That's kind of how we think of this filthiness. The 
high priest is there, and he's a bit disheveled. He's a little 
bit off. He's not as fit and prepared 
as he ought to be with reference to an appearance before the sovereign 
God of heaven and earth. That's not what the filthiness 
refers to. Filthiness, in this particular statement, refers 
to what we find in other passages of Scripture. Filthiness is used 
of feces and vomit and all those sorts of things that we don't 
like to consider as sort of dignified people on a Sunday night at church. 
The reference to filth, it does not mean less than glorious. It does not mean unkempt or disheveled 
in appearance. The root connotes more than merely 
soiled, for its related nouns refer to human feces, and they 
are used in conjunction with vomit. So Deuteronomy 23, 13, 
and 14, Ezekiel 4, 12 for the feces, and then the vomit in 
Isaiah 28, 8. I don't say this to make you 
sick. I say this to make you sick over 
the fact that this man was, in fact, a sinner. This man represented 
a sinful people. So when the devil is there to 
accuse the brethren, God rebukes him even before this evidence 
is on display, even before we see it. Now, when it comes to 
the high priest, their regalia, their clothing was glorious. 
Ezekiel chapter 28 goes into detail as to what they wore. 
And it was to show the prominence of their office. It was to show, 
as well, the glory of God most high. And so we expect to see 
the high priest in all of his beauty, but what we're met with 
is the high priest representing the people in all of his filth, 
in all of his waywardness, in all of his unfaithfulness, and 
in all of his sin. So as I said, there is a degree 
to which the devil has an accusation against the people of God at 
this particular point. And that brings us, fourthly, 
to consider the glorious exchange. This is language utilized by 
Martin Luther relative to the gospel, the idea that our sin 
is imputed to the Savior and His righteousness is imputed 
to us. 2 Corinthians 5.21 makes this altogether clear. It says 
that God the Father made Him, God the Son, Christ, who knew 
no sin, to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness 
of God in Him. Now, Christ wasn't transformed 
into a sinner. Christ never engaged in the act 
of lawlessness, but rather it's a legal thing. It is a forensic 
thing. It is the fact that God the Father 
heaps up our sin upon God the Son and punishes Him in our stead, 
punishes Him in our place. He satisfies divine justice, 
which gets at the heart of the word atonement. And that is precisely 
what Jesus does. And as I said, this passage illustrates 
that in a beautiful manner. Notice, now Joshua was clothed 
with filthy garments and was standing before the Lord. We 
see this glorious exchange in verses 4 and 5. Then he answered 
and spoke to those who stood before him, saying, He needs 
to try a little bit harder. He needs to get a little bit 
better. He needs to engage in self-atonement. He needs to make 
sure that his faithfulness is such as to mitigate the effects 
of it. That's not what God does. God in the gospel doesn't call 
you to fix your life. God in the gospel doesn't call 
you to repair your backsliding. God in the gospel doesn't say, 
once you, you know, sort of meet me halfway, then I'll meet you 
with the rest of salvation. That's not God in the gospel. 
That's man in his perverted gospel, when he thinks that man has the 
ability, some intrinsic ability, to reach on up to God and to 
actually access Him. That's not what we find here. 
Then he answered and spoke to those who stood before him, saying, 
Take away the filthy garments from him. That's the first aspect 
of justification. That's the forgiveness of sins. 
Take away the sin. That's the language the Baptist 
applies to the Lord Jesus Christ in John 1.29. Behold the Lamb 
of God who does what? He takes away the sin of the 
world. The reality is that we can't 
take it away. We can't mitigate its effects. 
We can't make it go out to the cornfield. It is only God who 
is able to deal with the sin of man. That's why the gospel 
is absolutely crucial. That's why the gospel and its 
preaching is absolutely crucial. We live in a sin-cursed world. 
We live with a lot of people hell-bound. And the way of salvation, 
the way of escape, is the truth as it is in Jesus Christ. His 
life, His death, His resurrection. All those who look to Him in 
faith will have everlasting life. So that first aspect of justification 
is answered here. Take away the filthy garments 
from Him. And to Him He said, See, I have 
removed your iniquity from you, and I will clothe you with rich 
robes. That's the second aspect of justification. It's an act of God's free grace 
wherein He pardons all our sins and accepts us as righteous in 
His sight only for the righteousness of Christ imputed to us and received 
by faith alone. So you see that we're cleansed 
in the blood of the Lord Jesus. and were clothed in the righteousness 
of the Lord Jesus. And that is precisely how God 
deals with Joshua, the high priest, or the covenant community of 
Israel in this fourth night vision. Now, if this wouldn't encourage 
them to build the temple, if this wouldn't encourage them 
to seek after that ongoing representation of atonement in the Levitical 
system, I don't know what would. This is God responding to the 
accusation of the devil with the glorious grace of salvation. He removes the filthy garments 
and he places on him this robe of righteousness. I will clothe 
you with rich robes. Now, for those of you who've 
been around for some time, you'll know that there's a departure 
from the Protestant doctrine of justification by faith alone 
called the new perspective on Paul. There's also one called 
the federal vision. It seems to have waned a bit 
in the last several years. It's still there though, so I 
wouldn't go out looking for it to imbibe it or to embrace it. 
But the new perspective on Paul arose in academic circles and 
made much of the Second Temple and said, you know, the Jews 
got in by grace, but they stayed in by their faithfulness. In 
fact, one proponent of the new perspective on Paul is named 
N.T. Wright, and he mocks the concept 
of the imputed righteousness of Jesus Christ. He just thinks 
that that is so far off. Calvin and Luther missed it by 
a mile. What they said was only in response 
to the Pope. It had nothing to do with the 
Bible. But he's wrong. Look at the language. Remember, 
this is the courtroom. This is a legal controversy. 
This is a pronouncement by the judge to take off the filthy 
garments and to put on righteous garments, to put on glorious 
garments. One man, I think his last name 
is pronounced Duguid, it's spelled D-U-G-U-I-D, I think it's pronounced 
Duguid, makes this observation relative to N.T. Wright. He says, 
this clearly, this scene, this transaction, this glorious exchange, 
the filthy garments are stripped from him and then these rich 
robes are placed upon him. He says this clearly disproves 
Wright's statement that, quote, if we use the language of the 
law court, it makes no sense whatever to say that the judge 
imputes, imparts, bequeaths, conveys, or otherwise transfers 
his righteousness to either the plaintiff or defendant. Righteousness 
is not an object, a substance, or a gas that can be passed across 
the courtroom. That's right. That's not right. That's N-T right. Right with 
a W. That's do-good telling us what right says. He mocks the 
concept of the imputed righteousness of Jesus. You know who else does 
that? The Roman Catholic Church. They 
don't have an imputed righteousness of Jesus. They have an infused 
righteousness of Jesus so that justification necessarily involves 
sanctification for the acceptance with God. That's bad theology. So a new perspective, federal 
vision, are basically cousin to Roman Catholic theology. Now, 
Duguid goes on to comment on Wright's statement. He says, 
here in Zechariah, precisely in a courtroom setting, we have 
the defendant's defilement removed at the order of the judge and 
replaced by an alien righteousness. If that is not forensic imputation, 
then I do not know what would qualify as such. Turn to the 
book of Romans just to see this fleshed out in the pages of the 
New Testament. Romans chapter 5. Paul's federal 
theology, Paul's comment on or commentary on the two Adams, 
Adam the first and Adam the last. Adam in the garden and Jesus 
Christ, that last Adam who fulfills all that was given to him by 
the Father. Notice in Romans 5.19, therefore, 
As through one man's offense judgment came to all men, resulting 
in condemnation, even so through one man's righteous act the free 
gift came to all men, resulting in justification of life. For 
as by one man's disobedience many were made sinners, so also 
by one man's obedience many will be made righteous. Now, made 
there is not transformative. It's not, you're going to get 
better, you're going to be holier, you're going to be gooder at 
living the life that you're supposed to live. No, it's forensic language. It's a legal situation. It's 
imputed righteousness. It's constituted as righteous. 
It's not made transformed-wise, but it's made legally. It's made 
forensically. Turn over to 1 Corinthians chapter 
1. 1 Corinthians chapter 1. Notice what Paul says, specifically 
at verse 30. But of him, you are in Christ 
Jesus. Again, you're not in him because 
of you. But of God, you are in Christ 
Jesus. Not of you, you're in Christ 
Jesus. He's not stressing the good free 
will of his audience. He's not stressing their choice. 
He's not stressing their wisdom. He's stressing what God does 
in Zechariah chapter three, verse two. He's stressing sovereign 
election, sovereign grace. Verse 30, but of him, you are 
in Christ Jesus. who became for us wisdom from 
God. I think that dash and and could 
be better translated as that. So we might read it this way, 
who became for us wisdom from God, that or that is rather righteousness 
and sanctification and redemption. Christ is our righteousness, 
right? It's not the fact that we just 
have to, you know, do everything that God has commanded in order 
to be accepted in His sight. Again, in sanctification, we 
have to do everything God commands. But that's not the basis upon 
which we enter into heaven. Christ is our righteousness. 
I already cited 2 Corinthians 5, verse 21. It bears repetition 
because it's such a powerful statement concerning this glorious 
exchange. 2 Corinthians 5.21, For he made 
him who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might become 
the righteousness of God in him. Galatians chapter 2. Typically 
not a passage persons go to for the imputation of the active 
obedience of Christ, but a passage that I think certainly stands 
the test relative to this transaction. Notice in Galatians 2.21, I do 
not set aside the grace of God, for if righteousness comes through 
the law, then Christ died in vain. That's Paul's point. We 
need a righteousness in order to stand in the presence of God. 
If it comes through the law, then Christ died in vain. So 
what's the implication? It doesn't come through the law 
because we're sinners. It comes as a result of Christ's 
death on our behalf. So when Christ lives, he dies, 
and he's raised again, we get the benefits in terms of forgiveness 
and an imputed righteousness by which we can stand in the 
presence of God. And then one final New Testament 
passage, look at Philippians chapter 3. Philippians chapter 
3 the Apostle Paul is basically boasting here in terms of a man 
who if possible could have earned his way to heaven That's his 
point. He's trying to show the folly 
of what's called Judaizing Judaizing is when certain men would come 
to the churches of Christ and say it's good for you to believe 
the gospel But you also must obey Moses in order to be accepted 
by God And so the Apostle Paul basically says in verse 3 beware 
of dogs. He's not talking about canines. 
He's talking about Judaizers That's hard language, isn't it? 
The Lord Jesus uses that language as well. Don't cast your pearls 
before swine. Don't cast these things before 
dogs. Do you think he's actually cautioning you from going near 
pigs and going near dogs? The same passage, Matthew 7, 
where Jesus says, judge not, lest you be judged, tells the 
people of God not to throw things before pigs and dogs. So whatever 
judge not, lest you be judged means, it doesn't mean what the 
modern proponents tell us. You can never make a statement 
about somebody's sin. You can never, ever say that 
somebody's wrong. You can never, ever denounce 
anybody's act. Of course you can! You must absolutely, 
positively do so. He's talking about a judgment 
that's not based on God's law. He's talking about a judgment 
that is hypocritical. He's talking about a judgment that we oftentimes 
fall prey to because we're self-righteous and we're Pharisaic. But with 
reference to this casting things before dogs and swine, the Lord 
Jesus uses that language of men. And Paul does the same thing 
here in verse 2. Beware of dogs. Anybody that would try to pervert 
the gospel of free and sovereign grace is a dog. He is a bad man. Notice, beware of evil workers. 
Beware of the mutilation. What was the Judaizer seeking? 
First and foremost, he was seeking foreskins. I don't mean to be 
crass. I don't mean to be carnal. But that's precisely it. He wanted 
persons to be circumcised. That's the point in Galatians. 
The Apostle Paul condemns that mindset. Again, ethnically or 
culturally, if you choose that path, that's between you and 
your God. But religiously, if you think 
getting circumcised is going to commend you to God, you don't 
understand the gospel of Jesus Christ our Lord. So that's Paul's 
point here. These are the mutilation. What 
they're trying to engage in by way of getting you circumcised 
is just essentially mutilation. you know, distorts the body. 
It doesn't commend you to God. Now notice he goes on, for we 
are the circumcision, who worship God in the spirit, rejoice in 
Christ Jesus, and have no confidence in the flesh. Now here it is 
in verses 4 and following. He's essentially saying that 
if anybody could have ever thought they would have earned their 
way to heaven, Paul was your God. This is Paul's religious 
resume. This is Paul before that Damascus 
Road experience. This is Paul as Pharisee trying 
to earn his way into heaven. And that's what he says in verse 
4, though I also might have confidence in the flesh. If anyone else 
thinks he may have confidence in the flesh, I more so. Circumcised 
the eighth day of the stock of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, 
a Hebrew of the Hebrews, concerning law, a Pharisee, concerning zeal, 
persecuting the church, concerning the righteousness which is in 
the law, blameless. In other words, he checks all 
the religious boxes. If ever there was an Israelite 
in the covenant community that could have earned his way into 
the favor of God, Paul's your man. But he uses this as a foil 
to describe that what he thought was good wasn't good enough. It wasn't perfect, and that's 
God's demand. Notice in verse 7, But what things 
were gained to me, these I have counted loss for Christ. Yet 
indeed, I also count all things loss for the excellence of the 
knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have suffered 
the loss of all things, and count them as rubbish that I may gain 
Christ. Now notice the language of the 
glorious exchange, "...and be found in him, not having my own 
righteousness which is from the law, but that which is through 
faith in Christ, the righteousness which is from God by faith." 
It seems like anti-right is anti-wrong when it comes to this whole idea 
of the imputed righteousness of our blessed Savior. And when 
we go back to the prophet Zechariah, you see it there very loudly 
and very clearly. See, I have removed your iniquity 
from you. and I will clothe you with rich 
robes." In Zechariah 3, 5, I think this is Zechariah the prophet. 
And I said, let them put a clean turban on his head. So they put 
a clean turban on his head, and they put the clothes on him, 
and the angel of the Lord stood by. Why the turban? To complete 
the priest's robes, to complete the priest's appearance, to complete 
all that is necessary for the priesthood to function appropriately 
in Old Covenant Israel. And then that brings us, fifthly, 
with reference to the legal controversy, the blessing of the Lord in verses 
6 and 7. Notice, there's this exhortation to faithfulness, 
but you need to appreciate the order, the theological order, 
justification and then sanctification. We come to God by His grace, 
we come in faith to our Lord Jesus Christ, and He justifies 
us freely by His grace. We are forgiven. We have that 
imputed righteousness received by faith alone the moment we 
believe. That's what's so beautiful and 
wonderful about justification by faith alone. Everybody's on 
an equal status. Paul's no more justified than 
you and I. Spurgeon's no more justified 
than you and I. Now, Paul and Spurgeon were probably 
a lot more sanctified, at least speak for myself, than me. But 
with reference to justification, it's a one-size-fits-all. In 
other words, when you believe the gospel of our blessed Savior, 
you are forgiven of your sins. You receive the righteousness 
of Christ, by which you are accepted in the Beloved. And so then, 
on the heels of that, there is instruction now on how they are 
to walk. Verse 6, then the angel of the 
Lord admonished Joshua, who's now justified, who's now had 
the filthy garments removed and the glorious robes applied, and 
this turban on his head, thus says the Lord of hosts, if you 
will walk in my ways and if you will keep my command, In other 
words, sanctification necessarily follows justification. When we 
come to God by grace, when we come to Christ in faith, we are 
justified freely. And on the heels of that, we 
then live the life of sanctification. Now, that's not perfect. It's 
not one size fits all. There's growth, there's progress, 
there's, what's the word, digress, or ingress, or the opposite of 
progress, movement the other way. There's the ebb and flow 
of the Christian life. But with reference to our acceptance 
with God, it's based on the doing and the dying and the rising 
of our Lord Jesus. It's based on that glorious exchange. 
It's based on the fact that our sins are heaped upon the Savior 
and punished in Him and that divine justice is satisfied and 
that His righteousness is heaped upon us and received by faith 
alone. Again, we live in light of that, 
we let our conduct be worthy of the gospel, and that's the 
emphasis relative to this particular statement. So, if you will walk 
in my ways, and if you will keep my command, notice the blessings 
that would avail for Israel. Notice, Israel would govern the 
house of God, or the priesthood. Again, this is typical and prefigurement 
of New Covenant reality. So Israel will govern the house 
of God, then you shall also judge my house. I think we see this 
in 1 Timothy 3, verse 15. But if I am delayed, I write 
so that you may know how you ought to conduct yourself in 
the house of God, which is the church of the living God, the 
pillar and the ground of the true. The church in this new covenant 
era is the Israel of God. That's what Paul says in Galatians 
6. That's what Paul says in Romans 
2. The Jew is not one who is circumcised outwardly or externally, 
but rather he's the one circumcised inwardly. By God's grace in the 
new birth, he's been brought forth out of darkness into marvelous 
light. So Israel will govern the house. 
Israel will have charge of God's courts. Notice that there in 
verse 7. If you will walk in my ways and 
if you will keep my command, then you shall also judge my 
house and likewise have charge of my courts. I will give you 
places to walk among these who stand here. This language at 
the end means communion with God. These who stand here, I 
think, is a reference to the angels of verse 4. In other words, 
the blessing upon the justified people of God is life in the 
church of the Lord Jesus Christ. It is life in the church of the 
Lord Jesus Christ wherein we have communion with God each 
and every Lord's Day. We've seen that in Ephesians 
chapter 2 in two places. 2.18, 2.22. We come to the Father 
through the Son in the Spirit. You see it in Revelation chapter 
1. Where is Jesus on the Lord's Day? He's in the midst of the 
lampstands. So this promise to these people, 
predicated on their justification, is communion with our blessed 
God. This is why Paul says in Romans 
5.1, Therefore, having been justified by faith, we have peace with 
God. This is why the Apostle Paul 
can say that all these things are but rubbish. All these things 
are dumb. Now I gain Christ. I have Christ. I have everything in Him. If 
you are justified freely by the grace of God, you have God. You have everything. This is 
another impetus for coming to the church on the Lord's Day. 
It's to be where the people of God meet. It's to be where the 
God of the people meet. It's to be where He dwells in 
a special way in this new covenant setting. So what justification 
brings is acceptance with God, but it also brings communion, 
and blessing, and privilege, and all of the spiritual blessings 
that Paul highlights throughout the book of Ephesians. And then 
notice, lastly, in terms of the chapter, it's all predicated 
on this branch. Notice this prophetic announcement 
in verses 8 to 10. There's some difficult stuff 
here in verses 8 to 10 that I may not be able to answer, but I 
think the gist of it is simple. All that is said prior, all that 
is said in verses 1 to 7 is based on this branch. And you'll notice 
that in the New King James at least, it capitalizes branch. This is a title of the Messiah. 
This is a title of our Lord Jesus Christ. You see it utilized in 
the prophet Isaiah. You see it utilized in the prophet 
Jeremiah. It's intriguing because in the 
prophet Isaiah, Jesus is both the servant of Yahweh and he 
is the branch. So the branch is the reason for 
the blessings that are spelled out in verses 1 to 7. It's because 
of the branch that this legal controversy is resolved. It's 
because of the branch that Israel will govern the house of God. 
Because of the branch that Israel will have communion with God. 
It's not them, it's not their performance, it's not their do-goodery, 
it is rather the grace and the power of the Lord God Most High 
in the provision of His Messiah, here entitled, the branch. So notice in 9, or verse 8, Here, 
O Joshua, the high priest, you and your companions who sit before 
you. These would be the other priests, the existing priesthood, 
which continued after the restoration, functioned as a sign or type 
of the coming priest, even our Lord Jesus Christ. Remember, 
this is not the New Testament. This is not the New Covenant. 
This is still anticipatory. This is still the time of promise. 
And so, there is an existing priesthood in this post-exilic 
community, and this existing priesthood is being encouraged, 
and helped, and blessed, and benefited by this prophetic announcement. So here, O Joshua, the high priest, 
you and your companions who sit before you, for they are a wondrous 
sign. For behold, I am bringing forth 
my servant, the branch. The servant of the Lord in Isaiah 
envisions someone who brings redemption to his people. You 
see that in the servant songs. He does so through suffering, 
according to Isaiah 53, which is the fourth and final of the 
servant songs. in the prophet Isaiah. He accomplishes 
the will of God in spite of shame, Isaiah 49.7, and humiliation, 
Isaiah 50 and verse 6. As I've said, we see that Jeremiah 
envisions the branch as a king associated with David. In fact, 
turn back to Jeremiah chapter 23. Jeremiah chapter 23, titles 
of the Messiah. It's a beautiful and a wonderful 
thing. It's a way that we can see the many facets of the glorious 
work of our blessed Savior, His person and His work. We have 
that wonderful banner that Mrs. Mars in the Sunday school class 
made concerning the names of God up in the Sunday school room. The names of God are revelatory. 
The names of God show us things about God. They show us His perfections. They describe for us His being. They demonstrate to us His nature. 
And see, when the Old Testament assigns these various titles 
or these various names to the Savior Himself, this is a help 
to the people of God to appreciate and to admire Him even more. 
So notice in Jeremiah 23.5, Behold, the days are coming, says the 
Lord, that I will raise to David a branch of righteousness. A 
king shall reign and prosper. and execute judgment and righteousness 
in the earth. In his days Judah will be saved 
and Israel will dwell safely. Now this is his name by which 
he will be called the Lord our righteousness." Same emphasis, 
the imputed righteousness of Jesus received by faith alone. Christ is our righteousness, 
brethren. Just like Paul says in 1 Corinthians 
1 and verse 30. And one other passage with reference 
to the branches, right there in the prophet Zechariah. Look 
at Zechariah chapter six. Zechariah chapter six, specifically 
at verse 12. Then speak to him saying, thus 
says the Lord of hosts saying, behold, the man whose name is 
the branch. From his place he shall branch 
out and he shall build the temple of the Lord. Yes, he shall build 
the temple of the Lord. He shall bear the glory and shall 
sit and rule on his throne. So he shall be a priest on his 
throne and the council of peace shall be between them both. He's 
a king priest, just like Psalm 110 tells us. The Lord said to 
my Lord, sit at my right hand till I make your enemies your 
footstool. Verse four. He's a priest, according to the 
order of Melchizedek. Our blessed Savior is all that 
we need. Our blessed Savior contains in 
himself all the blessings of God most high conveyed to his 
people. All that we see in terms of the 
justification of Joshua is predicated on the coming of the branch, 
the son of God, who lived, who died, and who was raised again. 
And then in verses 9 and 10, again, you have a sort of announcement 
of blessing. For behold the stone that I have 
laid before Joshua. Probably some sort of a stone 
that was representative of the building project they were undertaking 
in terms of the temple. Typically, points to that stone, 
which is the Lord Jesus Christ. Upon this rock, I will build 
my church. He is the chief cornerstone. 
So again, this passage is riddled with biblical prophecy. This 
is the rationale for the alleviation of this controversy, or rather 
the resolution of this controversy. It's all about the branch. For 
behold, the stone that I have laid before Joshua, upon the 
stone are seven eyes. Behold, I will engrave its inscription, 
says the Lord of hosts. and I will remove the iniquity 
of that land in one day. And then in that day says the 
Lord of hosts, everyone will invite his neighbor under his 
vine and under his fig tree. That convention under his vine 
and under his fig tree is used in other places in the Old Testament 
to speak of peace, to speak of peace. But when it says in verse 
nine at the end, and I will remove the iniquity of that land in 
one day, Zechariah has something else to say about that in chapter 
13. You can look at chapter 13, we're almost done. Chapter 13, 
specifically at verse one. In that day, a fountain shall 
be opened for the house of David and for the inhabitants of Jerusalem 
for sin and for uncleanness. God promises the removal of sin. God promises the institution 
of peace. God promises and Christ fulfills. That's what Zechariah 3 is all 
about. So just a few thoughts before 
we transition into the supper. First, with reference to the 
assault of the adversary. If you've not read Romans 8, 
31 to 35 recently, read it. Paul is dealing with accusations 
against God's elect. When the devil, and it's hard, 
I think, right? What's just me in terms of remaining 
corruption and my own guilty conscience? And what is the devil 
that's right there nipping at my heels trying to tell me just 
how bad I am? It's kind of hard at times to 
figure that out. But whether it's me and guilty conscience 
or the devil nipping at my heels, what's the resolution? The resolution 
isn't my performance. The resolution isn't that I did 
devotions this morning. The resolution isn't, I went 
to church last Sunday twice, three times, we prayed for the 
persecuted church. The resolution is the gospel 
of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. There is a story about 
Martin Luther. It's retold by Walter Kaiser 
in his commentary here on Zechariah. He says, one of the most famous 
ink spots, before we had computers, we had ink pens. And before we 
had the ink pens that you could just click, they had these little 
bottles of ink, and you had to dip the nib of the pen in there, 
and you wrote. So back at the time of Luther, 
that's how it was. He didn't have Word. He didn't have Bix. 
He had a little pool of ink and his pen with the nib, and he 
would write. So one of the most famous ink spots in the world 
is on the wall of Wartburg Castle in Germany. Luther dreamed that 
Satan appeared to him reading a long scroll with all his many 
sins from his birth on. As the reading of the list proceeded, 
Luther's terrors grew until finally he jumped up and cried, it is 
all true, Satan, and many more sins I have committed in my life, 
which are known to God only. But right at the bottom of your 
list, the blood of Jesus Christ, God's son, cleanses us from all 
sin. He grasped the inkwell on his 
table and threw it at the devil. So that's why there was an ink 
spot there on the wall. He had some other intriguing 
ways of repelling the attacks and the assaults of the devil. 
I'll leave that to your further investigation. Not altogether 
savory for a mixed crowd on a Sunday night. Secondly, we have the 
power of the gospel. And that fellow, Ian Duguid, 
I don't know that he has a commentary on Zechariah, but he has an article 
in a book on justification. And he cites this passage. And 
he expounds and deals with this passage. It's very, very good. 
I think it's called Covenant, Justification, and Pastoral Ministry. It's a multi-author book edited 
by, I think, R. Scott Clark, Westminster Seminary 
guys. And there are several articles. 
Very, very helpful on justification. But he makes the observation 
that every privilege assigned to Joshua is matched by a move 
in the opposite direction by Christ. Every privilege assigned 
to Joshua is matched by a move in the opposite direction by 
Christ. First, Joshua was clothed in 
filthy garments. Christ is the righteous and the 
holy one. Joshua was clothed in rich robes. The sin of the elect was imputed 
to Christ. Joshua received a clean turban. 
Christ received a crown of thorns. Joshua is declared not guilty 
by God. Christ is delivered up by lawless 
hands and crucified as a criminal. Joshua is promised access to 
God. Christ cries out, why have you 
forsaken me? It's a lot of gospel in Zechariah 
chapter three. I think it illustrates again 
what Luther calls the glorious exchange, and I'm not sure this 
is the specific place where he refers to it as the glorious 
exchange, but this is what Luther said. The rich, noble, pious 
bridegroom Christ takes this poor, despised, wicked little 
whore in marriage, redeems her of all her evil, and adorns her 
with all his goods. We are filthy, we are undone, 
we are disgusting before the sovereign God of heaven and earth, 
rightly. subject to the accusations of 
the devil himself. But our blessed Savior went in 
our stead to the cross, satisfied divine justice, was raised again 
the third day, so that all who look to Him in faith will not 
only receive the forgiveness of sins, but they will receive 
the righteousness of Christ imputed to us and received by faith alone. As we eat this bread and as we 
drink this cup, we proclaim the Lord's death and every blessing 
attendant upon that death vis-a-vis the doctrine of justification 
by faith alone. Well, let us pray. Our gracious 
God and Holy Father, we thank you for your word. We thank you 
for this wonderful passage, this fourth night vision of the Prophet 
Zechariah. We see how it does so well illustrate 
this doctrine of justification. We see it so clearly taught in 
the New Testament and in the Old Testament as well. For Abraham 
believed God and it was accounted to him for righteousness. We 
know this is not new. We know this is your way. This 
is the way you have chosen to deal with miserable sinners. 
And we thank you and we praise you. And God, when we are under 
accusation, when we are under that guilty conscience, may we 
fly to that fountain that is open for sin and uncleanness, 
and may we invoke the glory of the gospel of our Lord Jesus 
Christ. And we pray in his most blessed 
name. Amen. Well, you can turn with me now 
to the book of Matthew.