Zechariah Series

September 18, 2021

Two months after Haggai presented his 4-part sermon series, Zechariah “Yahweh Remembers” began his prophetic ministry.

Zechariah’s Messianic Prophecies are among the greatest and most comprehensive of all the minor prophets. With the exception of Isaiah, Zechariah gives us more prophecy regarding the Coming of Christ than any other of the Old Testament writers.

My Favorite Thing About ZECHARIAH – Vision #4 - The burning stick snatched from the fire.

• Zechariah 3:1-5 - Then he showed me Joshua the high priest standing before the angel of the LORD, and Satan standing at his right side to accuse him.

The LORD said to Satan, "The LORD rebuke you, Satan! The LORD, who has chosen Jerusalem, rebuke you! Is not this man a burning stick snatched from the fire?" 3 Now Joshua was dressed in filthy clothes as he stood before the angel.

The angel said to those who were standing before him, "Take off his filthy clothes." Then he said to Joshua, "See, I have taken away your sin, and I will put rich garments on you." 5 Then I said, "Put a clean turban on his head." So they put a clean turban on his head and clothed him, while the angel of the LORD stood by.

We find ourselves in a courtroom. The key players are:

• Joshua, the high priest - representing the nation of Israel

• God the Judge.

• Satan the accuser.

The text does not provide us with any specific accusations, but we don’t have to go very far to discover what they are – See Exodus-Haggai.

Idolatry, unfaithfulness, unbelief, rebellion, greed, lust, injustice, theft, murder, pride, presumption, arrogance, bigotry, etc., etc., etc.

The sad truth is…. Satan was not lying and he probably didn’t really have to exaggerate his point. God’s “Chosen” were guilty and he had reams of evidence to back up his accusations.

Definitely a stick firmly in the fire.

But then something strange happened. Instead of the Judge taking the reams of evidence, sitting back, perusing them and then nodding His head, “I see what you mean, prosecutor. They are guilty of all your charges against them”, the Judge REBUKED the Accuser. Not because the accusations were not true, but because the Judge had a plan – a daring rescue mission to snatch the stick from the fire.

The rescue mission in Zechariah’s vision had to do with wardrobe. Apparently, Joshua was wearing a pretty disgusting outfit. It wasn’t just dirty. It was covered with blood and feces and puss and all sorts of nastiness. It was a pretty shameful sight and no doubt Joshua hung his head as the smell filled the room. To add insult to injury, that was the BEST outfit in Joshua’s closet - His closet was ONLY filled with hand-made disgusting nastiness, which he had no ability to make clean.

• Genesis 3:7 - Then the eyes of both of them were opened, and they realized they were naked; so they sewed fig leaves together and made coverings for themselves.

• Psalm 14:1-3 - The fool says in his heart, "There is no God." They are corrupt, their deeds are vile; there is no one who does good. 2 The LORD looks down from heaven on the sons of men to see if there are any who understand, any who seek God. 3 All have turned aside, they have together become corrupt; there is no one who does good, not even one.

• Ecclesiastes 7:20 - There is not a righteous man on earth who does what is right and never sins.

• Isaiah 64:6 - All of us have become like one who is unclean, and all our righteous acts are like filthy rags; we all shrivel up like a leaf, and like the wind our sins sweep us away.

• Jeremiah 8:6-7 - I have listened attentively, but they do not say what is right. No one repents of his wickedness, saying, "What have I done?" Each pursues his own course like a horse charging into battle. 7 Even the stork in the sky knows her appointed seasons, and the dove, the swift and the thrush observe the time of their migration. But my people do not know the requirements of the LORD.

• Zephaniah 3:1-2 - Woe to the city of oppressors, rebellious and defiled! 2 She obeys no one, she accepts no correction. She does not trust in the LORD; she does not draw near to her God.

A sad and sorry state Israel finds herself in. The flames were working their way up the stick. It will be consumed if no one steps in. But don’t forget the Rescue Mission:

The Judge turned to the bailiff, "Take off his filthy clothes." Then the Judge looked directly at Joshua, "See, I have taken away your sin, and I will put rich garments on you." …. The Judge stood by as the bailiff exchanged Joshua’s filthy hand-made clothes for a clean new suit that covered him from head to toe.