Please turn with me in your Bibles to Zechariah chapter 3. Zechariah chapter 3, I hope, a familiar passage of scripture to all of us. It's a passage we have looked at in the past. I thought it would be fitting for our time tonight before the Lord's Supper.

I made reference to the doctrine of justification by faith alone this morning, and this is a wonderful display, a wonderful illustration, a wonderful picture of that doctrine of justification by faith alone. I'll read chapter 3 in the prophet Zechariah verses 1 to 10. 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 bran plucked from the fire? Now Joshua was clothed with filthy garments and was standing before the angel. But 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.

And 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, 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, 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. Our blessed God and our Holy Father, we thank you for the scripture. We thank you for the prophetic word We thank you for what this points forward to in the new covenant. We thank you for our Lord Jesus Christ and the justification we have as a result of his life and his death and his resurrection.

We praise you for our beloved Savior. We praise you for our beloved King and Lord, that one who is a friend to sinners. We thank you, God, for your wonderful grace and for your wonderful mercy. And we pray now that your Holy Spirit would guide us as we look to this portion of scripture We pray that he would teach us and lead us and that we would worship you as a result of the good things herein.

As well, we pray that you would forgive us for all of our sins, that you would wash us in the blood of the Lord Jesus. Help us never to forget that it's through that blood we have redemption. And we praise you through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

Introduction

The prophet Zechariah is one of the post-exilic prophets. That means after the exile in Babylon, there were several, or a few rather, prophets that spoke to the children of Israel. I'm just going to read a brief history or a brief statement concerning the location of Zechariah in the biblical record. I hope that this will be of help to set it in its context.

After the exile, the first return of the exiles from Babylon occurred in 538 B.C. and then in 536 B.C. As the people returned to the land, they immediately began to restore their center of worship. According to Ezra chapter 3 verses 1 to 3, they built an altar there. And then in Ezra 3 at 8 to 13, they began the temple.

Remember that in the siege upon Jerusalem by the Babylonians, the temple was destroyed. the city was sacked and the persons then went into the Babylonian captivity. So after that 70 year period they returned to the land and as I said they began the temple. They halted temple construction for about 16 years. They were opposed by persons in the land.

Then Haggai and Zechariah preached in 520 BC and the temple construction started again. It only took about four years to complete the temple in 516 BC. Ezra 6, 14 and 15 indicate this. Ezra and Nehemiah go with these post-exilic prophets.

The second return of the exiles took place under Ezra and then Nehemiah. Zechariah is mentioned in Ezra and in Nehemiah in connection with Haggai the prophet. Zechariah was both a prophet and a priest and he was probably born during the Babylonian exile. Now in this particular section of his prophecy, chapters 1 to 6, He receives eight visions, and no doubt these took place on one night.

And if the commentators be trusted, that night was February 15th in 519 B.C. Now the February, obviously, their month corresponding to our February. Three and one-half months after his initial message, two months after Haggai's final message, and five months after the building of the temple commenced. So you see that Haggai and Zechariah preached to the people while they were building the temple as a means of encouragement, as a means of giving promise, as a means of telling them the good things that God would do.

And here in chapter 3, it looks forward as well to the new covenant and what would be wrought under our Lord Jesus Christ. So this particular vision, this fourth vision, concerns cleansing from sin, and as a result, it would encourage the people to continue building the temple, as that was the location for the sacrificial system that spoke to the cleansing of sin for the nation of Israel. So that's the location of the prophet Zechariah in the history of biblical revelation.

Three Considerations in Zechariah 3

Let's look at chapter 3, verses 1 to 10, under three considerations. First, the cleansing of Joshua. Secondly, the charge given to Joshua. And thirdly, the promise concerning the branch.

The Cleansing of Joshua

We see this figure called the branch in verse 8b. That is the Lord Jesus Christ. So certainly this prophecy not only encourages the people at the time in their building of the temple, but it looks forward to what God will do in and through our Lord Jesus Christ. Note in the first place, with reference to the cleansing of Joshua, we have several considerations here.

Note, first of all, there is a legal controversy. Verses 1 and 2, 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? So there are several parties involved in this legal controversy.

A Legal Controversy

In the first place, we have Joshua, the high priest. This isn't Joshua, the son of Nun that led the conquest. That was many, many years prior. This is Joshua, the high priest.

And in the absence of a king in Israel, the high priest took even more responsibility and was more of a figure of great notoriety. But in this particular instance, Joshua stands for the people. Priests were public representatives. Priests were men who stood for the entirety of the nation, and this is borne out by several considerations.

In the book of Leviticus, in chapter 16 on the Day of Atonement, the High Priest confesses the sins of Israel. He is a public representative of the nation. Here in verse 2, the reference to Jerusalem as being chosen, not just Joshua. As well, the grand plot from the fire in verse 2 is Jerusalem's restoration after the exile, not simply Joshua the High Priest.

And as well, there is a reference in verse 9 to the removal of the iniquity from that land. So we need to appreciate that Joshua stands for the people, the nation of Israel, the post-exile, the return east to their particular land. Then we have the introduction of this angel of the Lord, most likely the pre-incarnate Christ. He is there as an advocate.

He is there as an intercessor. He is there to represent his client in this legal controversy. It's almost as if what we have before us is a divine courtroom. And then in the third place we have Satan.

We see that Satan is standing at his right hand to oppose him. This is the adversary of our souls. In the book of Job, we see this particular function of Satan. He is an accuser of Job.

In the book of Revelation, we find that Satan is an accuser of the brethren. John Gill describes his business this way, the business of Satan here was to accuse, to bring charges, to plead for condemnation, and endeavor to get the 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 you see the scene. We've got Joshua, the high priest, representative of the nation of Israel.

We've got the presence of the angel of Yahweh, and then we have Satan there as the accuser, as the opposer. Notice that then the Lord God Most High speaks in verse 2. 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? Isn't it intriguing that Satan doesn't ever open his mouth? Isn't it intriguing that Joshua the High Priest never opens his mouth? The Lord God doesn't need to listen to a lot of goings-on to establish the guilt of a particular party.

As we'll see in verse 3, Joshua is standing there filthy. Joshua is standing there in a vile situation. Joshua is standing there before the Lord Most High clothed basically in dung and vomit. And essentially what we find is the Lord rebuking Satan.

He can't even open his mouth to bring accusation against Joshua and our God already is shutting him down. The Lord knows the particulars. The Lord knows the ins and the outs. It's not as if Satan can bring new information to the Lord and suggest that somehow the Lord ought to punish these people.

The Lord knows what he's doing with his people. The Lord justifies his people. The Lord sanctifies his people. The Lord will ultimately glorify his people so that when the accuser of the brethren seeks to disrupt The Lord God shuts him down.

He doesn't give him any opportunity whatsoever to speak concerning this situation. And notice the Lord's reasonings as to why he silences Satan. It's not because Joshua is a wonderful guy. Not because he's a swell guy.

Not because he is a clean man. Not because the nation is good and upright. That is not the reason by which God the Lord shuts down Satan.

Sovereign Election Silences Satan

There are two reasons that God the Lord uses to shut down Satan. And the first is sovereign grace. It is sovereign election. It is predestination.

The devil can't open his yap, but rather the Lord God says, the Lord who has chosen Jerusalem, rebuke you. Is this not a brand plucked from the fire? It is sovereign election that shuts the mouth of the devil. It is sovereign grace and predestination that shuts the mouth of the devil.

When you are in the depths of sorrow, when you are battling with the devil, do not proffer your good deeds, do not put forward your law keeping, but rather plead the covenant promises of God Most High. Rather go to Ephesians 1.4. just as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, in love, having predestinated us onto adoption as sons by Jesus Christ. It's not our goodness, it's not our polish, it's not our luster, but rather it is God's sovereign grace that is in the forefront in this particular position. This is what successfully shuts the mouth of the adversary.

This is what successfully closes that yap. This is what successfully keeps him at bay and keeps him from destroying us. Brethren, we will have this accuser of the brethren seek to disrupt. We will have this one seeking to whisper.

I don't know how it all works. But there are these suggestions that enter into the minds of God's people. There are these temptations and tendencies and whatnot. And we must accredit some of this to the devil.

It isn't our goodness, it is God's sovereignty that ultimately shuts the mouth of the devil. And the proof positive is this reality. Is this not a brand plucked from the fire? God the Lord understood the sin of the people of Israel.

He could have most certainly left them in Babylon. He could have most certainly left them to the judgment of the nations. But it was 70 years, that 70 years was fulfilled, so God plucks them out of the fire, He brings them back to Judah, He puts them back in their land, and He does indeed promise all that He had given to them by way of the prophets before that. It's truly a glorious statement when we are in that position or when we are in that place.

But it's not only his sovereign election, but it's also his justifying grace. It is his justifying grace. The Lord rebuke you, Satan. The Lord who has chosen Jerusalem rebuke you.

Is this not a brand plucked from the fire? So sovereign election, but notice his justifying grace.

Joshua's Filth and God's Justifying Grace

Verse three, now Joshua was clothed with filthy garments and was standing before the angel. This is an intriguing passage. Because what we expect from the high priest is all that we read of in Exodus 28. If you ever read Exodus 28, you'll notice that the priest there has garments that are quite beautiful and majestic and glorious.

They are meant to reflect the glory of the living and true God. The idea being that God's agents on earth, who represent him in the temple, are going to be decked out. They're going to have all of that holy gear. They are going to have all those holy accouterments.

They are going to be dressed in a beautiful manner. That's what we expect to see at the introduction of Joshua the high priest. But that's not what we see. Notice what we do see, verse 3.

Now Joshua was clothed with filthy garments. You see, it's not the case that the Lord rebuked Satan because Joshua is a man of splendor. It's not that the Lord rebuked Satan because Joshua is clothed in accordance with Exodus 28. No, it's just the converse.

What we find is that Joshua is filthy. And it's important for us to understand the particular word that is used here. The reference to filth does not mean less than glorious. It does not mean unkempt or disheveled in appearance.

Joshua didn't spill a little cream cheese on his way to appear before the Lord in this heavenly court. That is not what's going on in terms of filth. The root connotes more than merely soil, for its related nouns refer to human feces in Deuteronomy 23 and in Ezekiel 4. The root is also used in conjunction with vomit in Isaiah 28a.

As Feinberg says, the strongest expression in the Hebrew language for filth of the most vile and loathsome characters. So you see the scene. We've got Joshua in all of his filth and all of his disgustingness. We've got the angel of Yahweh and we've got the devil who wants to bring charge against him.

The Lord already knows the score. The Lord already understands Joshua's condition. The Lord doesn't need Satan to present evidence in terms of Joshua's guiltiness or of the nation's guiltiness. What we find is Israel represented by Joshua in this state of filth and wretchedness and wickedness.

Thomas McCombsky says, feelings of revulsion turn to wonder. Must not God turn his back on this repulsive sight and vent his anger at this affront to his holiness? It seems that the accuser is justified in calling for God's judgment on the sin this filth represents. You see, in terms of the reality of the situation, the devil's accusation would be legitimate.

It's not as if God doesn't know this, but God rather shuts him down because of sovereign election, he chose Jerusalem, and because of his justifying grace. And that is displayed in the following section. So Joshua is filthy, he's standing before the Lord, and now notice what we find in verse 4. Then he answered and spoke to those who stood before him, saying, take away the filthy garments from him." If I was a black preacher in a black church, I would say at this point, can I get an amen?

Because that's glorious. What does that typify? What does that illustrate? What does that demonstrate but the removal of our transgression?

God sees Joshua and Israel filthy, undone, vomit, feces, covered. And the Lord God says, remove the filthy garments from them. Isn't that our experience at the cross? We come to the Savior filthy?

We come to the Savior filled with all manner of wickedness and lawlessness? And what do we find at the cross? Do we find God saying, well, you know, you're not as bad as the rest. I think I'm going to let you in.

No. God says take the filthy garments off of him. Get rid of the sin, expunge the guilt. This is what the blood of Jesus is all about.

This is why Paul says in Ephesians 1.7, In whom we have redemption through his blood. This is why we read several times in scripture, the blood of Jesus Christ his son cleanses us from all sin. Later in this prophecy in Zechariah 13.1, In that day there will be a fountain open for, for what? For sin and uncleanness.

This is justification. This is God's grace. This is pardon for our iniquity. This is the first half of Westminster Shorter Catechism number 33.

What is justification? Justification is an act of God's free grace wherein He pardons all our transgressions. That is amen-worthy stuff. As we suck tonight, as we eat the bread, and as we drink the cup, realize that that shed blood is what washes you from your sins.

That shed blood is what secures your entrance into heaven. That life and that death and that resurrection of our beloved Christ is what secures salvation. It is the reason by which Paul can say, just as he has blessed us, with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ. As we look at this filthy, vomit, feces-covered man representing a vomit, feces-covered nation, and we hear the Lord Yahweh say, take the filthy garments from him, I hope it resonates in our hearts to see ourselves in this passage and praise God most high.

But notice, it doesn't stop there. We have the pardon of sin, but we also have the latter half of Westminster Shorter Catechism, number 33. In the 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. Notice in verse 4.

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." I will clothe you with rich robes. There's our righteousness. There's the result of the work of Jesus Christ.

You see, we need Him in His death. We need His passive obedience. We need our guilt expunged through the blood of Jesus. But we need a righteousness that avails with God.

We need to be clothed with a righteousness wherein we can stand in that marriage supper of the Lamb. And that is secured for us by our Lord. It is an act of God's free grace Justification is holy and alone of our Lord. He not only takes away the filthy garments, but He also clothes us with rich robes.

I love what Luther says concerning this divine transaction. He says, the rich, noble, pious bridegroom Christ takes this poor, despised, wicked little whore in marriage, redeems her of all evil, and adorns her with all his goods." Praise God that that is the case. And that didn't just come from the reformer Martin Luther, but it comes from the pen of the prophet Zechariah on that grand date in February 519, when he had this fourth vision at night This is what he wrote concerning, and in this I hope we are encouraged. And then Zechariah speaks up according to verse 5, 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. Before we move on with reference to the charge given to Joshua, let us consider this fact often. Not just when we come here once a Sunday for the supper, but may this be our constancy each and every day. The sovereign grace of God, the justifying grace of God.

Look at Romans chapter 8 for just a moment and see how the apostle combats the accuser. Romans chapter 8, verse 31. What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us?

He who did not spare his own son, but delivered him up for us all, how shall he not with him also freely give us all things? Who shall bring a charge against God's elect? The very introduction of the question seems to assume its potential. Does it not?

You ever had this in your own life? You ever had that when you've considered yourself? How in the world could I be a Christian? Look at the way that I am.

You look in the mirror and you see yourself filthy, or you look at your actions and you see yourself filthy, or you look at Exodus 20 or Deuteronomy 5 and you see yourself filthy. Who can bring a charge against God's elect if it is the devil accusing, whispering in your ear? who shall bring a charge against God's elect." Now notice Paul's arsenal. It is God who justifies. Who is he who condemns?

It is Christ who died and furthermore has also risen, who is even at the right hand of God, who also makes intercession for us. Paul's point is simply this. When persons level accusation, the effective response by the saint of Christ is not the saint of Christ's saintliness. The effective response from the saint of Christ is that it's Christ who lived, it is Christ who died, it is Christ who has risen, it is Christ who is our all in all.

You see, brethren, that must be wherein we launch our counter-assault, when the devil suggests or when our own heart originates these things. We need to realize that our strength, our comfort, our stability, our peace, and our security do not lie in our performance. They do not lie in our ability. They do not lie in the things that we have accomplished.

Rather, they rely upon or they lie in the finished work of our Lord Jesus Christ. And sovereign election, sovereign grace, predestination. I like what Calvin says concerning this. He says, let us then learn to rely on the gratuitous adoption of God if we would boldly exalt against Satan and all his assaults.

He says it hence follows that those men who at this day obscure and seek as far as they can to extinguish the doctrine of election are enemies to the human race. Not ISIS. Not the Taliban, not Al-Qaeda, but those who twist the doctrine of election. He says, for they strive their utmost to subvert every assurance of salvation.

That's powerful, isn't it? We ought to stand fast on the blessed reality that whom he foreknew, he predestined. that God the Lord is sovereign in his doings with reference to his people. It is that which will shut the mouth of the accuser. It is that coupled with his justifying grace that is the foundation upon which the saints find rest, security, and comfort.

Now having said that, I don't mean don't read your Bible, lay on the couch, and if the devil comes, just say, well, you know, God elected me, and I'm justified freely by his grace. Certainly say that. You need to be faithful, and we'll see that with reference to Joshua, subsequent to the justifying grace of God in his life. Notice, in the second place, the charge given to Joshua in verses 6 and 7.

I note the theological progression, or the specific theological order. He is justified, and then he's commanded how to function in light of that. Justification precedes, in this regard, sanctification. Sanctification without justification is an impossibility.

But justification is the foundation upon which sanctification necessarily follows.

The Charge Given to Joshua

Notice in verse 6, then the angel of Yahweh 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 these who stand here. You see, Joshua, you've been justified. You see, Israel, you've been brought out of darkness.

Now, function in a capacity that is consistent with God's justifying grace. And I do believe that several of these things point to the new covenant. 1 Timothy 3, verse 15. The house of God is the church of the living God. Israel will have charge of God's courts according to the Prophet Zechariah.

This finds application in 1st Peter, 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. And our function as New Covenant priests to our Lord is in verses 9 and 10 of 1st Peter 2. But you are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, his own special people, that you may proclaim the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light, who once were not a people but are now the people of God, who had not obtained mercy but now have obtained mercy." And I think what we have at the end of verse 7, I will give you places to walk among these who stand here.

Probably a reference to angels. I will give you places to walk among these who stand here. We ought to conclude with reference to this statement, it means access to God. The angels are the attendants of the glory of God.

If we are going to walk where the angels are, that means that we will be in the presence of God. Isn't this the consummate blessing of God's covenant? I will be their God and they shall be my people. The new covenant description of access to the Father through the Son by the Spirit is clearly indicated and given to us in Ephesians chapter 2.

So you see, Zechariah and Haggai are encouraging the people of God, but as well, Zechariah and Haggai are giving. promise concerning the new covenant in which the Lord Jesus Christ will come as champion to successfully effect the covenant that was laid upon him in eternity past to bring the salvation to his people and glory to his father.

The Promise Concerning the Branch

Now notice thirdly the promise concerning the branch. All of these good things hinge upon him. all New Covenant blessings, all blessings for the people even in Zechariah's time hinge or focus upon our Lord Jesus. Notice in verse 8, Hero Joshua the high priest, you and your companions who sit before you for they are a wondrous sign, probably his fellow priests. Joshua is the high priest, there are other priests that are not high priests.

Notice, for behold I am bringing forth my servant the branch. Now, this is a blessed description of our Lord Jesus that I'm sure you've met with before in your Bible reading. It seems to originate in 2 Samuel chapter 23 at verse 5. As well, we have Psalm 132.17 and several times in the prophets.

But just take these twin identifiers of our Lord. I am bringing forth my servant, the branch. It could be the case, my servant the branch, or it could be two distinct references. My servant, and if we consider servant language in the Old Testament, Hopefully, our minds will be taken back to what Pastor Porter read at the outset of worship.

In Isaiah 53, we see the servant of the Lord. We see the servant of Yahweh. We see him several times in the prophet Isaiah. The servant of the Lord in Isaiah envisioned someone who brings redemption to his people through suffering, accomplishing the will of God in spite of shame and humiliation.

As well, Ezekiel 34 associates the servant of the Lord with the Davidic shepherd king. With reference to this title branch, Jeremiah envisions the branch as a king associated with David in Jeremiah 23 and again in 33. The branch reappears in Zechariah. You can probably just look over in your Bible to see that in chapter 6 verses 12 and 13.

Notice he is the king priest who builds the temple. Zechariah 6.12, 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 counsel of peace shall be between them both." So you see, all of this hinges upon this servant, the branch. All of these new covenant blessings that are promised in the prophets find their focus in the Lord Jesus. Isn't this what Paul says in 2 Corinthians? All the promises of God are yea and amen in him.

So Zechariah, to the people, building that temple, is preaching Jesus Christ. It's quite a glorious passage of scripture. And then the section ends with a promise of blessing. as our God is often want to do, he encourages his people with the promise of blessing. Notice in verse 9, for behold the stone that I have laid before Joshua.

Now this stone could have symbolized temple reconstruction, which of course symbolizes the chief cornerstone, which is Jesus Christ. And of course the two encouragements for the post-exilic community, that they would be successful in building this temple. Remember, they halted temple construction for 16 years. Why?

Because they were opposed by people in the land. Certainly, it would be a helpful thing for Zechariah to say, look, the temple's going to be built. Makes you swing your hammer a lot more firmly. It makes you get to your work a lot more diligently.

It makes you rise up in the morning realizing that we are going to complete our particular task here. And they did it in four years. That's pretty impressive. It did lack the glory of Solomon's temple. as we see in the prophet Haggai, as we see in Ezra, nevertheless it was indeed God's promise that it would be successful.

So notice, verse 9, 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, and I will remove the iniquity of that land in one day. Love the way Gil traces this one day to the doing and the dying of our Lord Jesus. When Christ says it is finished, that is when there is an end to iniquity. That is when there is a removal of iniquity.

And then in verse 10, a familiar promise in the Old Testament. It's found in 1 Kings and in Micah the prophet. And it's a promise of peace and security. In that day, says the Lord of Hosts, everyone will invite his neighbor under his vine and under his fig tree.

It's peace. It's security. It's comfort. It's consolation.

It's blessing. It is the provision of Yahweh to his people after he, by His grace alone elects them and justifies them freely by His grace.

Application

Well, brethren, there's a few concluding observations that I think will be helpful before we move on to observe the Lord's Supper. In the first place, you may not be of a particular bent to have Satan assault you often, but it may happen. There may be those instances. There's a little book by Carl Truman called Luther on the Christian Life.

It's a recent publication, I think last year. And there's a section or subsection in one of the chapters called Martin Luther, Dr. Martin and the Devil. And it was really intriguing.

Martin Luther saw the devil a lot. Not, you know, horns and a pitchfork and the cave coming into his room and whatnot. But he was conscious of the presence of the devil. He was conscious of the opposer of his soul. 1 Peter 5 is a reality.

I'm of the mind that the devil is bound vis-a-vis Revelation 20. But the binding of Satan in Revelation 20 is specified so that he may not deceive the nations. But 1 Peter 5 tells us that he roams about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour. He's not a vanquished foe, he is a defeated foe, but nevertheless, his presence is real.

Remember that instance in Matthew chapter 16, Jesus announces that he's going to go to Jerusalem to die. What does Peter say? No, that's not going to happen. And Jesus rebukes him and says, get behind me, Satan.

When the disciples go out preaching, according to Luke 10, Jesus says, I saw the devil falling like lightning. The Lord Jesus recognized the machinations of the devil, and some of God's people throughout the history of the church have recognized those as well. You need to understand that there is going to be opposition to you. It's not going to be the case that you're just going to sing your way to heaven.

I mean, sing on your way to heaven, but realize there will be assaults, and realize there is an adversary. Again, a reference to Luther. I think he's so helpful in this matter of justification. This is a statement by Walter Kaiser.

It's probably a familiar story. I'm just reading Kaiser's version. One of the most famous ink spots in the world is on the wall of the Wartburg Castle in Germany. I'm sure the halls would tell me I'm butchering Wartburg.

It looks like Wartburg. Luther dreamed that Satan appeared to him reading a long scroll with all his many sins from his birth on. As the reading, could you imagine that? It would be a terrible dream, wouldn't it?

To have someone reading the list of sins from your birth on, I'd have to say that would be a long dream, too. They say dreams are, what, two or three seconds? That would take about two or three thousand years for somebody to read all our sins. He says, 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. That's why the ink spot's there on the door, or on the wall at the Wartburg Castle. That's what we tell the devil. Now, I don't say we tell him, we talk to him.

You know, some of the Charismatics and Pentecostals, they're casting out the demons of cloudy days and all that. I'm not suggesting that we do that, but this is the point. But right at the bottom of your list, the blood of Jesus Christ, God's Son, cleanses us from all sin. If anybody ever produces that list, that is your comfort.

The blood of Jesus Christ, God's Son, cleanses us from all sin. That's always our comfort. That's always the antidote against the devil. That's how we combat the adversary, whether it is the devil or whether it's our own hearts.

How can you be a Christian? How can you say you're a believer? How can you go through these motions? You know your heart.

You know your sins. You know your depravity. You know your filth. You know your vomit.

You know your feces. Ah, but the blood of Jesus Christ is sun. cleanses us from all sin. Romans 8, it is He who died and has risen again. Paul ushers this challenge, who shall bring a charge against God's elect?

The Lord Most High has chosen, the Lord Most High has justified us freely by His grace. That is the foundation upon which our comfort springs. As well, we ought to consider, in this particular section, the things given to Joshua find their counterpart in the things given to Jesus.

Imputation in Reverse: Christ and Joshua

Here I'm indebted to a great essay by Ian Duguid in a book, it's not Duguid, like D-O-G-U-I-D, he goes out and he does good, it just happens to be his name. Ian Duguid, in a book called Covenant Justification and Pastoral Ministry. He says that this vision or the vision should remind us of the imputation which occurred in the opposite direction in the life of Jesus Christ. You understand imputation?

The removal of the filthy garments and the imputation of the righteous garments. So the sin is forgiven, the righteousness is imputed. We have to understand that there was an opposite occurrence in the life of our Lord Jesus. In the first place, Joshua was clothed in filthy garments.

Christ is the righteous and holy one. Secondly, Joshua was clothed in rich robes. The sin of the elect was imputed to Christ. Thirdly, Joshua received a clean turban.

What does Christ receive? He receives a crown of thorns. Fourthly, Joshua is declared not guilty by God. Christ is delivered up by lawless hands and crucified as a criminal.

And fifthly, Joshua is promised access to God. I will give you places to walk among these who stand here. At the end of verse 7, Christ cries on Calvary, my God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me? You see, all the good that is imputed to Joshua, we find with reference to Jesus, the new covenant Joshua, our sin, our filth, our vomit, our feces, are all imputed to him, and he pays that debt.

Paul brings this out beautifully in 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. 2 Corinthians 8-9, For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though he was rich, yet for our sakes he became poor, that you through his poverty might become rich. in that passage that Pastor Porter read at the outset of worship. You see all the stuff from us that is heaped upon Him. All the stuff that is ours is imputed to the Savior so that He can pay the debt at Calvary on our behalf. Surely He has borne our griefs and carried our sorrows.

Yet we esteemed him stricken, smitten by God, and afflicted. But he was wounded for our transgressions. He was bruised for our iniquities. The chastisement for our peace was upon him, and by his stripes we are healed.

All we, like sheep, have gone astray. We have turned everyone to his own way, and the Lord has laid on him the iniquity of us all." Bless God for the doctrine of justification. Bless God for the doctrine of imputation. Bless God for the forgiveness of sins and the righteousness of Christ that is given to us and received by faith alone.

A faith that he himself gives us. And all of this in the context of God's sovereignty of his election, of his predestination. So when your own heart seeks to bring a challenge, reflect on theology, reflect on soteriology, reflect on the glory of God Most High as revealed in the scripture. If the devil seeks to assault you, take up that inkwell and throw it at him, saying this, right at the bottom of your list, that Christ, or rather the blood of Christ, God's Son, cleanses us from all sin.

Praise the Lord Almighty for his justifying grace.

Closing Prayer

Let us pray. Our Father, we thank you for your word. We thank you that justification is not an abstract doctrine just given to impress theologians, but it is the stuff of the Christian life. We thank you for this picture, for this portrait, for this illustration, description that we find in the prophet Zechariah and certainly as justified by grace through faith alone people, we acknowledge that this is the reality.

Our sins have been forgiven. We have been given a righteousness that avails with God and we praise you for the mercy that you have shown to us. We praise you for the the grace context, or the sovereign grace context. We praise you for election, predestination, and for all of your goodness displayed through these things.

We ask our Father that you would protect us and keep us and help us to refresh ourselves with memory of these things for our daily lives. And we pray these things through Christ Jesus, our Lord. Amen.

Scripture References

• Exodus 20; 28
• Leviticus 16
• Deuteronomy 5; 23
• 2 Samuel 23:5
• Ezra 3:1-3; 3:8-13; 6:14-15
• Psalm 132:17
• Isaiah 28; 53
• Jeremiah 23; 33
• Ezekiel 4; 34
• Zechariah 3:1-10; 6:12-13; 13:1
• Matthew 16
• Luke 10
• Romans 8:31
• 2 Corinthians 5:21; 8:9
• Ephesians 1:4; 1:7; 2
• 1 Timothy 3:15
• 1 Peter 2:4-5; 2:9-10; 5:8
• Revelation 20