March 23 Daily Devotional

Bible Reading

John 19:23–24

Devotional

The Lord Jesus had all His clothing removed from Him and He was nailed naked to a cross. The Surety had no covering against the holy wrath of God. He was exposed in the nakedness of sin before God. He was made sin. Therefore, He could not hide Himself like the first Adam did. He could not secure fig leaves as a garment to cover His nakedness and shame. Laid bare before the Father, He was forsaken. He loses not only this gift of clothing but the greater gift of the Giver Himself. God is too holy to look on sin and turns His back on Christ. “He that spared not his own Son....” How shall He then spare us? How shall you be able to appear before God without Him?

Our garments have to be removed. We must lose the garment of pride, the garment of our own righteousness, the garment of our false security, the garment of our wisdom, the garment of our hardness, and the garment of our untruthfulness. We must lose our fig leaves. No garment of contrition, or of tears, or of obedience, or of prayer, and neither any garment of conversion can cover our guilt. Only a naked Christ can cover our shame. But what an unspeakable grace is here proclaimed for an uncovered sinner. Soldiers’ hands were used by God’s hand to display the redemption of a poor sinner. Here God calls to a sinner: “Come now, and let us reason together, saith the LORD: though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow.”

Here the Surety Himself also proclaims that there is still a covering for naked sinners, so that His poverty shall be your riches. He shall in no wise cast out any who come to Him. He calls to them, “I counsel thee to buy of me...white raiment...” The garment is free; the garment is not too small; neither is it too short. It does not cover many sins; it covers all sins. Then we see sinners without sin. They wanted to do everything to be delivered, but they couldn’t do anything. Their deliverance lies in Christ alone. All that Christ has been, He has been for them. Now He shall give grace and honor, but first grace, and then honor.

 

From The Everlasting Word by Frans Bakker, compiled and translated by Gerald R. Procee. Reformation Heritage Books and Free Reformed Publications, 2007. Used by permission. For further information, click here.