BY THE REV. D. MACFARLANE, DINGWALL.
Preached on Sabbath Evening, 30th September, 1906.
(Taken down by a Hearer.)
THE preceding verse was the subject of our discourse this afternoon, and there is an intimate connection between that verse and what we have in these two verses. In the 12th verse we have an account of what Jesus did in correspondence to the ceremonial law. He “suffered without the gate;” and the design of His sufferings was that He might “sanctify” His people—save them from sin. That was one great reason why Christ came into the world and died. There was no way of sanctifying sinners but by the blood of Him who was God-man. The blood of bulls and of goats could not take away sins. Even although men were to shed their own blood it would be of no avail in this matter. Even although a perfectly holy man were to shed his blood it would not sanctify a single sinner. This required the blood which is called the blood of God: for we read that God “purchased the Church with his own blood;” and the blood which Christ shed belonged to God, inasmuch as He assumed our nature, and united it to His own divine person.
In these words we have three things to consider:—
I.—The duty here enjoined:—“Let us go forth unto him without the camp.”
II.—The reasons the apostle annexes to this exhortation.
III.—Those who comply with this command or exhortation of Christ’s shall have to bear His reproach, and they will do it willingly.
I.—The duty enjoined here:—“Let us go forth therefore unto him without the camp.”
You will observe that the drift of the apostle throughout this epistle is to draw people away from Judaism, or the way of serving God which was instituted in the wilderness. He wishes to call them away from those types and shadows to Jesus Christ and to His service as set forth in the Christian Church. This is the scope of the whole epistle, and unless we keep this in view, we cannot understand exactly what the apostle means by going forth without the camp. In speaking of the camp here, he has in view the camp in the wilderness, where the children of Israel encamped when brought out of Egypt. It was a large camp, the number of the people being so great that it would occupy miles of space. The temple service, as afterwards observed, was of the same nature as that which was conducted in the wilderness, the only difference being as to place, the one being in the wilderness and the other in the land of Caanan. And, substituting the temple for the tabernacle, the apostle exhorts, and that in the name of God Himself, the Hebrews to go outside the temple, or in other words, to leave that Church state which God set up at Mount Sinai, and which served its time, for Christ Himself had now come, and had cried “It is finished”—old things had passed away, behold, all things were made new. This explanation is necessary in order that we may understand what the apostle means when he exhorts the Hebrews to go forth unto Jesus without the camp. They were to leave the camp, and to receive Jesus, in whom they would find everything that was needful. They were to sustain no loss by leaving the camp or the temple behind them, but they were to gain much—very much. If you find Jesus, my friends, you are great gainers, no matter what you may leave behind you for His sake.
But we shall say a few words on what is implied in that temple or camp. In it there was the priesthood set up by God when He gave the law on Mount Sinai. There was a whole tribe—that of Levi—set apart to minister to God at the altar. Those were to be His ministers in offering up sacrifices, and they were to act as a sort of mediators between God and the people: and they were thus a type of Him who is the glorious Mediator, the Lord Jesus Christ. The services set up, the ceremonies performed, and everything about the worship of God at that time were significant of things to come; as the apostle says in the 9th chapter of this epistle, that Christ was come as an High Priest of good things to come. There were then those who stood as mediators between God and the people, but in a typical sense only, and in no other. For as there is but one God, so there is but one mediator between God and men—Jesus Christ. The apostle Paul takes care to point this out when he says that Christ was the angel who led the people in the wilderness. Christ was the rock; Christ was the great leader. From the first revelation of God’s scheme of salvation, Christ was the only Mediator, but at that time, in order to educate people in the knowledge of Christ’s mediation, there were typical mediators set up, and those taught of God might learn, and did learn, a great deal by means of those typical mediators. Not only were there priests to offer up sacrifices, but there were also bloody sacrifices to be offered up, for “without the shedding of blood” there could be “no remission of sins.” It was blood alone that could make atonement, and although at that time the blood of irrational creatures could not make atonement for sin, still it taught the people to look forward to Him who was to come, and to shed His own blood to make atonement. Thus the ceremonial law was full of instruction, and it was also a manifest token of God’s favour to the people, for by it the gospel was preached to them, as the apostle says in the 4th chapter of this epistle—the gospel was preached unto them as well as unto us.
There was but one gospel from the beginning. It is the same gospel we have now as they had in the wilderness and in the land of Caanan, in the tabernacle and in the temple, with this difference, that the revelation under the New Testament is much clearer and more easily understood than that which was given under the typical dispensation. Although the ceremonial law was abrogated by the death of Christ, that is, as to its observance, still it is not abrogated in the sense that it is of no use to us now. Though we are not to observe that law, it is left in the Bible for our instruction. We have not only one but two revelations of the covenant of grace. We have the old and we have the new, which is the complement of the old. We can look back and read the gospel concerning the Lord Jesus Christ more clearly, so that our privileges are much greater than were those of the people under the ceremonial law. You have your Bible with these things contained in the books of Moses. Read it, and seek that the Holy Spirit would anoint your eyes so that you may behold Christ, as the saints of old saw Him before He came in the flesh and finished the work His Father gave Him to do. Then turn from that to the words of the gospel. Incline your ear and hear His own voice declaring, “The Son of man is come to seek and to save that which was lost.” Woe unto us, my friends, if we perish in our sins, neglecting the great salvation while we have these two lights, the light of the ceremonial law, and the light of the gospel shining around us!
We are to leave behind us, not only the priests who served at the altar, and the sacrifices—for there is but one Priest now, the Lord Jesus Christ, there are no sacrifices now but His—we are also to leave behind us the mode of worship observed in the tabernacle and the temple.
If you lived in the days of Solomon, and entered the temple, you would notice the greatest difference between the way in which worship was conducted then and the way it is now, or ought to be, in the simplicity of the gospel. At the door of the temple you would see the laver, a vessel containing water, in which the priests when they entered washed their hands and their feet before they dared to take part in the service, for holiness became the house of God; and then to remind them of the fact, of which they themselves were conscious, being taught of God, that everything they did was mingled with sin, they must not leave the temple without again washing their hands and their feet. There was great instruction in these things. Well, we are to go forth from that and come to the blood of Jesus. That blood is still set before us, and before we begin worship we may “wash and be clean.” We may wash our hands in innocence and surround God’s altar; and when we are conscious of our imperfections in our endeavours to serve God, we may before we leave God’s house, wash ourselves in the blood of Jesus, and come to God with the prayer of the psalmist, “Purge me with hyssop and I shall be clean; wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow.” Ah, my friends, what are we doing with the provision which God made for us in the blood of Jesus? Why do we live for one moment under the guilt of sin, and under the sinfulness of our imperfections in holy things? Why not come to the blood of Jesus at once and be delivered from all these evils?
As you passed the laver there would meet you a brazen altar, upon which fire was kindled, and the beast, slain to make atonement, was burnt. You must leave that behind you too, for that was only a type of the sacrifice of Christ; and we read that He, by one sacrifice, made for ever perfect them that are sanctified. As you proceeded to walk through the temple you would find another altar. After passing through the first tabernacle you would find at the door of the Most Holy a golden altar, upon which incense was burning, in the smoke of which the High Priest was to go into the presence of God in the Most Holy place with the blood of the sacrifice, which he was to sprinkle seven times on the altar, signifying that atonement was made by blood. This was done in a typical sense at that time, but in due time atonement was to be accomplished by Jesus Christ, who was to shed His own blood, and thereby—as the Apostle tells us here—He sanctified His people. You are to leave behind you even this golden altar and the burning of incense. We know there are many in our day who profess to worship God, and yet they have never gone without the camp. They still burn incense. If you have read—and if not, you ought to read—what is taking place in the Church of England, you will see that many unscriptural rites are being introduced into it, such as the burning of incense and the sacrificing of Christ, as if He had not died at all. Well, those who do such things never went forth without the camp.
But you would notice another thing in the temple—a golden candlestick with six branches, the stem of the candlestick making the seventh, which number signifies perfection; and this lamp signified the light that God gives to His Church. This light He gives in two ways. (1) By the revelation of His Word. As we have seen, there were seven branches, which signifies perfection, so the revelation which He has given of Himself in Scripture is perfect; there is no defect in it. (2) By the work of the Holy Spirit in enlightening the souls of men in the knowledge of Christ and of divine things. The Spirit is all-sufficient for this work. It is not merely the aid of the Spirit that is required, as Arminians teach. From the time in which the soul is quickened to life, and awakened out of its spiritual slumber, the work of the Spirit is required. Yes, from the very beginning of the good work until the soul is made perfect in holiness, and immediately passes into glory at death. By denying this a defect is imputed to the Holy Ghost, who is equal with the Father in wisdom, power, and glory.
You would again observe in the temple the sounding of trumpets and the praising of God by instruments. We are also to leave that behind us, and we are to go to Jesus Christ, whose word is the perfect rule of faith and practice, and we are to look to the Holy Spirit as all-sufficient. There are very few churches in Scotland, England, or Ireland now which do not use instruments—dead instruments—to praise God; just as there are many who light candles during the day for religious purposes, not because the day is dark, but just because they refuse to comply with what God commands here. Why? They have never gone forth to Jesus without the camp; for if they had, what then is the meaning of what the apostle exhorts the Hebrews to here? And yet they tell us at the same time that religion never was so prosperous as it is now. Ah, how infatuated such men are! What a delusion they are under to think they have gone such a length after Jesus, whereas they have not moved a step outside the camp—not a foot from the state in which they were by nature. The Jews are less guilty for clinging to these things, for they were accustomed to them, than we who have received the gospel in its full revelation, if we turn back to these beggarly elements again. There is no excuse for us in this kingdom, to whom God has given the glorious gospel, if we go back to those types and shadows again. These, then, are some of the things we are to leave behind, and the meaning of the apostle is clear, for in speaking of the ceremonial law, he says, “Touch not, taste not, handle not.”
Another thing you would see in the sanctuary, or first tabernacle, is a table supplied with twelve loaves. What did that signify? Though some give a different meaning to that provision, I take it as a type of Christ—“the bread of life.” He says, “I am the bread of life.” You are now to go forth from that typical bread to Christ Himself; to feed on Him who gave His body to be broken and His blood to be shed, that His people might be reconciled to God, and live on Him as their spiritual food. “I am,” He says, “the living bread which came down from heaven; if any man eat of this bread he will live for ever: and the bread that I will give is my flesh, which I will give for the life of the world.”
Lastly, on this head, if you were permitted to enter the Most Holy place, you would see there the Ark of the Covenant, containing the law of the Ten Commandments, and covered by the Mercy Seat, on which God sat as the God of salvation, and where grace reigned through righteousness. You are now to go forth from that typical representation. The vail has been rent from top to bottom by the death of Christ, and we have now free access to the Father through His incarnate Son, who was typified by the Mercy Seat, and in whom God was reconciling the world unto Himself, not imputing their trespasses unto them.
We are not only to go forth without the camp, but we are exhorted to go unto Jesus. A person may leave the ceremonial law, and yet not come to Christ, and unless we come to Christ, we shall perish. We may leave one error and fly to another, we may leave one refuge of lies and remain in another. Although you leave the camp, there is no safety for you unless you come to Jesus. You should come to Christ alone, now, and leave all other sacrifices behind you; close with Christ and with His finished work as the only ground of your salvation. And if God is teaching you, that is just what you do, and although it is God alone who can teach you, still it is my duty and privilege to enjoin upon you that you come to Jesus Christ, and receive Him according to the revelation given of Him in the gospel—receive Him in His divine person, in His two-fold natures, in His three-fold offices, His finished work and His exaltation now at the right hand of the Father, and His continual intercession on behalf of His people, until He brings them to be with Himself at last. Christ must pray till He has with Himself the last individual of those for whom He shed His blood. As long as you have need you pray; when your needs are made up there is no necessity for prayer. Although Christ personally has no needs, yet we may say that He intercedes as long as there is need, and there is need as long as His mystical body is incomplete. “Prayer shall be made for him,” the psalmist says, and Christ prays Himself.
You must also go to Christ in the way of worship which is set up in the New Testament, such as reading, preaching and hearing the word of God, and the administration of the sacraments of baptism and the Lord’s Supper, prayer, and singing praise to His name; offering Him “the fruit of our lips.” This is the only kind of sacrifice now. We are to offer to God not carnal sacrifices as of old, but spiritual sacrifices. These, each and all of us are bound to offer up daily to God, as the apostle says in the verse following, we are to “offer up the sacrifice of praise to God continually,” but acceptable to Him only through Jesus Christ. We are to go forth unto Jesus and to His service; we are to observe all things appointed by Him in His service, and not to bring in anything not appointed by Him. He is the Head of His own Church, and has a right to ordain everything in His service and worship. He has done this, and given us a perfect rule in His own word and especially in the New Testament.
II.—Now we come to the second head, and that is, the reasons annexed to the exhortation to enforce the duty enjoined here by the apostle.
(1) The first reason why we should go forth without the camp is the example of Christ, who went forth himself. The word, “therefore,” here connects the words of the 13th verse with those of the 12th verse, where Paul says that Jesus—that He might sanctify the people—suffered without the gate, from which he infers the duty, “Let us also go forth.” Christ is the great Pattern to which His people shall be conformed, and surely we ought to follow His wonderful example. He went forth to suffer and to die: He turned His back on the ceremonial law and on the typical mode of worship so long observed. If Christ’s example does not prevail with you to obey the exhortation, I know not what to say to you. He took the lead, and he expects His disciples to follow Him, for He says, “My sheep follow me, and I give unto them eternal life, and they shall never perish, neither shall any pluck them out of my hand.” And those who do not follow Him show that they are disobedient, and that they are not His disciples at all.
(2) The second reason is that “here we have no continuing city.” The temple was within the city, and all the worship rendered to God at that time was conducted within the city. The apostle may have had in view the fact that the temple and the entire city of Jerusalem itself were soon after this to be destroyed by the Romans, and in that sense it was indeed time for them to leave the city, as it is time for us to leave behind us all that God has abolished in His own service. Christ left the city, and was crucified outside it on Mount Calvary. He left it both ecclesiastically and politically, for the old theocracy was to come to an end. But applying this to our life in this world, let us go forth unto Jesus without the camp, for here on earth we have no continuing city. We are pilgrims in this world—strangers in a strange land. “Arise, let us go hence,” for this is not our rest. We must all leave this world soon. True, this world shall last longer than we, but let us remember that the earthly house of this tabernacle shall be dissolved. Let this move us more and more to go forth unto Jesus. We are getting nearer death and eternity every day: let us redouble our efforts every day to go forth unto Jesus, for here we have no continuing city.
(3) The third reason advanced to enforce the duty inculcated here is that we seek a city to come. Surely those who expect to go to heaven—a city whose Builder and Maker is God—ought to be very willing to go forth unto Jesus, and to follow Him whither He went. Before leaving this world He told His disciples, “I go to prepare a place for you, and if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you unto myself: that where I am there ye may be also.” (John xiv. 2, 3.) There is a great difference between the state of God’s children in this world and their state in heaven; between the kingdom of grace here and the kingdom of glory above. In this world they are, as it were, from home. When you are from home, no matter how kind people may be to you, still you do not expect every comfort; you are a stranger, and you do not feel at rest till you get home. So it is with those here who seek another city. The citizens of heaven, my friends, are where the Triune God dwells; the citizens are myriads of holy angels, and a great multitude, which no man can number, of people redeemed by the blood of Christ: but while the latter are on earth the city is in futurity—it is still to come. When you expect a good thing, you are content to bear your present discomforts, and you console yourself with the thought of the good thing to come: so the apostle comforts himself and his fellow-believers who were sojourners in this world with the good hope of the city that was to come.
Another thing to be noticed on this point is the “seeking.” They make diligent use of the means of getting to the city: they give all diligence to make their calling and election sure. As they go forth they seek evidence of their interest in Christ, evidence of their title to the inheritance, proof that they are children; “and if children, then heirs—heirs of God and joint-heirs with Christ.” Have you ever spent even a few minutes examining yourself whether you were an heir of glory? If not, it is time for you to begin, and do not say, “What’s the use?” Ah, the city to come is worth all your self-examination. It is worth while to make diligent use of all the means God has given us. Indeed, the means of grace have been set up for this very purpose—to bring many sons to glory, to call His people to the fellowship of His Son, to regenerate them, to justify them, to sanctify them, and then to glorify them.
III.—But I must hasten to the last head—Those who go forth unto Jesus shall have to bear His reproach.
When the sinner is awakened to a sense of his lost condition he does not at all bargain with God as to what he may suffer. He does not say, “Save me, O Lord, give me an interest in Christ, but do not give me trouble.” There is no such bargain at all; only, “Lord, save my soul for Christ’s sake.” But those who go forth to Him must bear His reproach, and this just means all the reproach cast upon God’s people on account of their connection or relationship with Jesus Christ. The very death that Jesus died was, to the Jews, a stumbling-block, and to the Gentiles, foolishness: it was an accursed death. There was thus a reproach cast upon the very means which God provided for saving sinners. There is a reproach cast by the enemies of God on all who follow the Lord Jesus Christ: but believers who are taught of God soon come to reckon such things as Moses did, of whom it is said, that he esteemed the reproach of Christ greater riches than all the treasures of Egypt. The reproach is Christ’s, and far from being ashamed of it, believers consider it greater riches than all the applause showered upon the great ones of this world. There is great honour put upon those who are called upon to bear this reproach. It is a cause of glory. Of themselves and of their infirmities they are often ashamed, but the reproach of Christ is their glory.
In conclusion, my friends, how are you individually with regard to what we have been discoursing upon? You have been called again and again to go forth without the camp, not only in the sense explained, but from the camp of the fellowship of this world. Have you obeyed the call? It is once more put before you, and in speaking to you we include ourselves. Let us go forth from everything that is hurtful and sinful; let us go forth unto Jesus, and He will be all our salvation and all our desire.