416. Remove Iniquity
Zechariah 3:9 For behold the stone that I have laid before Joshua, upon one stone shall be seven eyes: behold, I will engrave the graving thereof, saith the Lord of hosts, and I will remove the iniquity of that land in one day.
The Word of God uses many expressions for the forgiveness of sins. In the promise here the Lord says that He will remove the sin of the land in one day. “Remove,” or take away, the iniquity simply means remove from sight, put behind the back, cast into the depths of the sea, and remove as far as the east from the west. In other words, our sins are gone from us. “That land” symbolizes the kingdom of God, all the believers in Christ who will dwell in the eternal life of heaven in God’s Presence. The land is the Promised Land of the people of God. “In one day” is the event of the death of Jesus Christ on Good Friday. That Friday is the one day. That one day in time affects all of time and eternity. The Infinite God died for infinite sin for all people for all time. What a day that was. We are still living with the wonderful effects of that one day.
The “stone” is Jesus, the rejected stone that became the cornerstone. The “seven eyes” symbolize the all-seeing and all-knowing God. Jesus is God. The stone is engraved with the seal and guarantee that, because of what happened on that one day, all sins for all time are forgiven. We have not a smidgeon of doubt that our sins are really gone, removed forever.
“Removing iniquity” actually has the power to change lives. It is not just that past sins are forgiven, or even that both past and future sins are forgiven; it is an unassailable truth that I, the whole person, am forgiven. “Lord, forgive me.” I do not need to confess each and every sin, but I do need to confess that I am the sinner. I live a sinful life at the same time that I live a forgiven life. When I consciously focus my attention of the forgiven self I will receive the power to actually live a better life. For this reason, I will daily repent and believe the gospel.