If you’re anything like me (and I’d like to think I’m a fairly typical human being), a sense of shame can be hard to shake. Sometimes we feel shame about stuff we actually did wrong. Sometimes we feel shame about stuff we suspect we could have done better. Sometimes we feel just a general shame – more about our own subconscious view of our identity than about any particular action. It leaves us feeling exposed and vulnerable. Thankfully our God in Christ does not leave us that way!
In Genesis 3 our first parents brought shame upon humanity for the first time. God sought them out, shed the blood of an animal in order to provide a covering. “And the LORD God made for Adam and for his wife garments of skin and clothed them.” This was the first foreshadowing of how one day the Father would initiate a final sacrifice to cover the shame of his people.
There’s an interesting vignette in Zechariah chapter 3. It’s post-exile and the people of Israel are back in the land. But they aren’t much of a kingdom, and they still bear the shame of covenant promises unkept. They have no glory, no king, no bright future to speak of. And so we see this scene of Joshua the high priest, representative of the people before a Holy God. Satan is standing at this Joshua’s right hand, accusing him (typical…the name “Satan” means “accuser”!). But then the angel of the Lord rebukes Satan, saying, “Is this not a burning stick plucked from the fire?” In other words, “Yes, you’re right that Israel was found guilty and the people are basically burned down by judgment, but here is a remnant pulled out of that fire. And the Lord has purposes here that you will not thwart!” Next we read, “Now Joshua was standing before the angel, clothed with filthy garments. And the angel said to those who were standing before him, ‘Remove the filthy garments from him.’ And to him he said, ‘Behold, I have taken your iniquity away from you, and I will clothe you with pure vestments.’ And I (Zechariah) said, ‘Let them put a clean turban on his head.’ So they put a clean turban on his head and clothed him with garments.” The passage goes on to speak of how Joshua will be both high priest and ruler, and how God will soon bring his servant “the Branch”. Remember, “Joshua” is the same name as “Jesus” – Yeshua – and the Hebrew for “Branch” sounds like “Messiah”. This is an acted-out prophecy of how Jesus represents us by embodying our shame, but that shame is taken away for all of God’s people as he then dons his high priestly and kingly attire.
“Joshua”’s change of clothing means that we who are in Christ can change clothing too. When the shameful Prodigal Son returns home, the Father tells the servants, “Bring quickly the best robe, and put it on him, and put a ring on his hand, and shoes on his feet!” (Luke 15:22). In once sense the clothing is Jesus Christ himself (Romans 13:14, Galatians 3:27). In another sense, our clothing to put on is “the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge after the image of its creator” (Colossians 3:10). In still another sense, the clothing we put on is the deeds of Christ, which become our way of living too (Colossians 3:12-14, Revelation 19:7-8). Like the orphan in a rags-to-riches story, we have to be reminded to put on our spotless clothes, because we’ve just been slumming it in our shame for so long. But one day we won’t need any more reminder. Any in Christ who have been made to feel shame unjustly will be given clothes of rest (Revelation 6:11). And after hard lives in this shame-filled world, all those who just can’t feel comfortable in their own skin will be given clothes of permanent honor (2 Corinthians 5:2-5).
So when you get dressed each morning, imagine that you’re taking off your shame, and putting on the new identity, the noble life, and the eternal honor that Jesus has bought for you. Clothes are an ever-present reminder that we don’t have to live in shame anymore!