Read 1 Chronicles 5-6, Zechariah 3, and John 18.
This devotional is about Zechariah 3.
One of the most important truths people need to grasp in order to understand our salvation is the concept of “imputation.” Imputation is a theological name for the truth that our salvation is given to us–imputed to us or credited to us–by God. God declares us to be not guilty and righteous in his sight even though we are actually guilty and unrighteous.
Zechariah 3 gives us a clear picture to help us understand imputation. In verse 1 a man named Joshua is facing the angel of the Lord but Satan is standing next to Joshua also. Verse 1 tells us that Joshua is “the high priest.” This indicates that he represents the whole nation; that’s what the high priest does when he goes to offer the sacrifice on the Day of Atonement.
Satan stood next to Joshua “to accuse him.” He was ready to bring up every sin he’d ever committed in order to show that he was not a holy man but one who deserved God’s punishment. In verse 2, however, the Lord rebuked Satan and then said this, “Is not this man a burning stick snatched from the fire?” That statement indicates that Joshua has been saved. He was in the fire, about to be consumed for his sins, but the Lord snatched him from that judgment.
However, he was still burning because the Lord said, “Is not this man a burning stick….” So he had been rescued for the moment, but was still deserving of punishment. Verse 3 changes the imagery and notes that Joshua was “dressed in filthy clothes.” This was another way of conveying his guilt. In verse 4, the angel of the Lord decreed that his filthy clothes be exchanged for “fine garments” that the Lord would put on him. The meaning of this exchange: “I have taken away your sin, and I will put fine garments on you.” God imputed righteousness to him as symbolized by his rescue from the fire and the exchange of his robes.
After completing the clothing change for Joshua (v. 5) and charging him to live obediently to the Lord (vv. 6-7), the Lord explained the meaning of this vision. First, he told them that this was about things in the future: “…who are men symbolic of things to come…” (v. 8). In the future, then, the Lord promised, “I am going to bring my servant, the Branch…. and I will remove the sin of this land in a single day” (vv. 8-9).
This is what God has done for us in Christ. He rescued us from certain destruction and exchanged our guilt for his righteousness. And this is prophesied in the Old Testament because this is what God always intended. Israel never kept his laws because sinners are incapable of keeping the law of God without God’s gracious work in our lives. If you’ve come to know Jesus, “the Branch,” by faith, then no matter what you’ve done in your life or how guilty you feel, God silences the accusations of Satan against you and you stand before him perfect. This perfection came to you by imputation, when God credited to filthy sinners like you and me the perfect righteousness of Christ.
So this should give you confidence when you live the Christian life, even when you fail to follow the Lord perfectly. And, it should give you confidence when you go to the Lord in prayer. When God sees you, he sees you clothed with the perfect righteousness of Christ. Now, God has a lot of changes to make in all of us and he’s making those changes by the power of the Holy Spirit. But God sees us and treats us with the perfect, imputed righteousness of Christ. So this should give us great assurance and confidence to live for God and to call on him in prayer.