Sunday Service
08th September, 2024
Text: Zechariah 3:1-7
Topic: Holiness: An Efficacious Divine Coverage
Clothes are any item worn on the body, made from materials like leaves, animal skins, textiles, and other natural products. In society, clothing can symbolize class, royalty, profession, or wealth.
The divine call and challenge to us as Christians is to attain holiness. Holiness refers to a state of absolute purity, being free from pollutants, dross, and defilement. Today's sermon seeks to reveal the futility of human efforts to cover up sins without embracing God’s gift of holiness.
The concept of clothing began with the fall of man in the Garden of Eden. After Adam and Eve sinned by eating the forbidden fruit, they realized their nakedness and attempted to cover their shame and guilt with fig leaves (Genesis 3:7). This represented man's flawed attempt to cover sin. However, God, in His mercy, provided a more lasting solution by clothing them with the skins of a slain animal (Genesis 3:21), showing that life and blood were the price for covering sin.
In Zechariah 3:1-7, we see Joshua, the high priest, standing before God in filthy clothes. As a priest, Joshua knew the requirements for spiritual covering but failed to uphold them, standing unworthy before God. Despite being outwardly perfect in religious rituals, he was inwardly tainted, symbolized by his filthy garments. The angel of the Lord commanded that Joshua's filthy clothes be removed, signifying the removal of sin, and new, clean clothes be placed upon him, representing divine righteousness and holiness.
This passage highlights the danger of relying on religious rituals without genuine holiness. Religion is not enough. As Ecclesiastes 9:8 says, “Let your garments always be white, and let your head lack no oil.” Holiness provides divine coverage, and without it, we are spiritually naked, no matter how impressive our outward appearance may be.
Joshua, despite his high office, was exposed on God’s holy ground, where titles, rituals, and social status hold no weight. Only divine coverage, symbolized by holiness, matters before God. Similarly, self-righteousness and superficial religiosity cannot stand on holy ground. What we truly need is divine cleansing, made possible through the blood of Jesus Christ. As the hymn says, "What can wash away my sin? Nothing but the blood of Jesus."
The church today has lost much of its power because we have replaced true holiness with empty philosophies and human efforts. We need to return to messages of salvation and repentance, backed by the authority of God. In the day of God’s power, His people will be willing (Psalm 110:3).
The angel instructed Joshua to walk in obedience to God, and by doing so, he would lead others and have authority in spiritual matters. Similarly, we must submit to God, walking in His holiness to receive divine authority and coverage.
Conclusion:
Brothers and sisters, it is time to examine the clothes we wear spiritually. Are they made of divine righteousness or of worldly sources? Joshua’s self-righteousness could not stand before God, and neither can ours. As Isaiah 64:6 reminds us, "All our righteous acts are like filthy rags." True holiness only comes through Jesus Christ. His blood, shed on the cross, is the ultimate covering for our sin. Let us turn our faith to Christ, seeking the divine coverage that only He can provide.
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