Part 5 (2/2)

11-14.)

Here, we have the full, explicit statement of the doctrine. The blood of goats and calves procured a temporary redemption: the blood of Christ procures eternal redemption. The former purified outwardly; the latter, inwardly. That purged the flesh for a time; this, the conscience forever. The whole question hinges, not upon the character or condition of the offerer, but upon the value of the offering. The question is not, by any means, whether a Christian is a better man than a Jew, but whether the blood of Christ is better than the blood of a bullock. a.s.suredly, it is better. How much better? Infinitely better. The Son of G.o.d imparts all the dignity of His own divine Person to the sacrifice which He offered; and if the blood of a bullock purified the flesh for a year, ”how much more” shall the blood of the Son of G.o.d purge the conscience forever?--if that took away _some_ sin, how much more shall this take away ”_all_”?

Now, why was the mind of a Jew set at rest, for the time being, when he had offered his sin-offering? How did he know that the special sin for which he had brought his sacrifice was forgiven? Because G.o.d had said, ”It shall be forgiven him.” His peace of heart, in reference to that particular sin, rested upon the testimony of the G.o.d of Israel and the blood of the victim. So now, the peace of the believer, in reference to ”ALL SIN,” rests upon the authority of G.o.d's word and ”the precious blood of Christ.” If a Jew had sinned, and neglected to bring his sin-offering, he should have been ”cut off from among his people;” but when he took his place as a sinner--when he laid his hand upon the head of a sin-offering, then the offering was ”cut off”

instead of him, and he was free, so far. The offering was treated as the offerer deserved; and hence, for him not to know that his sin was forgiven him, would have been to make G.o.d a liar, and to treat the blood of the divinely appointed sin-offering as nothing.

And if this were true in reference to one who had only the blood of a goat to rest upon, ”how much more” powerfully does it apply to one who has the precious blood of Christ to rest upon? The believer sees in Christ One who has been judged for all his sin--One who, when He hung upon the cross, sustained the entire burden of his sin--One who, having made Himself responsible for that sin, could not be where He now is if the whole question of sin had not been settled according to all the claims of Infinite Justice. So absolutely did Christ take the believer's place on the cross--so entirely was he identified with Him--so completely was all the believer's sin imputed to Him, there and then, that all question of the believer's liability--all thought of his guilt--all idea of his exposure to judgment and wrath, is eternally set aside.[15] It was all settled on the cursed tree, between Divine Justice and the spotless Victim. And now the believer is as absolutely identified with Christ on the throne, as Christ was identified with him on the cross. Justice has no charge to bring against the believer, because it has no charge to bring against Christ. Thus it stands forever. If a charge could be preferred against the believer, it would be calling in question the reality of Christ's identification with him on the cross, and the perfectness of Christ's work on his behalf. If, when the wors.h.i.+per of old was on his way back, after having offered his sin-offering, any one had charged him with that special sin for which his sacrifice had bled, what would have been his reply? Just this: The sin has been rolled away by the blood of the victim, and Jehovah has p.r.o.nounced the words, ”It shall be forgiven him.” The victim had died instead of him, and he lived instead of the victim.

[15] We have a singularly beautiful example of the divine accuracy of Scripture in 2 Cor. v. 21.--”He hath _made_ Him to be sin [aa?t?a?

ep???se?] for us, that we might _become_ [????e?a] the righteousness of G.o.d in Him.” The English reader might suppose tha the word which is rendered ”made” is the same in each clause of the pa.s.sage. This is not the case.

Such was the type. And as to the Ant.i.type, when the eye of faith rests on Christ as the Sin-offering, it beholds Him as One who having a.s.sumed a perfect human life, gave up that life on the cross, because sin was there and then attached to it by imputation. But it beholds Him also as One who having in Himself the power of divine and eternal life, rose from the tomb therein, and who now imparts this His risen, His divine, His eternal life to all who believe in His name. The sin is gone, because the life to which it was attached is gone. And now, instead of the life to which sin was attached, all true believers possess the life to which righteousness attaches. The question of sin can never once be raised, in reference to the risen and victorious life of Christ; but this is the life which believers possess. There is no other life. All beside is death, because all beside is under the power of sin. ”He that hath the Son hath life,” and he that hath life hath righteousness also. The two things are inseparable, because Christ is both the one and the other. If the judgment and death of Christ upon the cross were realities, then the life and righteousness of the believer are realities; if imputed sin was a reality to Christ, imputed righteousness is a reality to the believer. The one is as real as the other; for if not, Christ would have died in vain. The true and irrefragable ground of peace is this,--that the claims of G.o.d's nature have been perfectly met as to sin. The death of Jesus has satisfied them all--satisfied them forever. What is it that proves this to the satisfaction of the awakened conscience? The great fact of resurrection. A risen Christ declares the full deliverance of the believer--his perfect discharge from every possible demand.--”He was delivered for our offenses, and raised again for our justification.”

(Rom. iv. 25.) For a Christian not to know that his sin is gone, and gone forever, is to cast a slight upon the blood of his divine Sin-offering; it is to deny that there has been the perfect presentation--the sevenfold sprinkling of the blood before the Lord.

And now, ere turning from this fundamental point which has been occupying us, I would desire to make an earnest and a most solemn appeal to my reader's heart and conscience. Let me ask you, dear friend, have you been led to repose on this holy and happy foundation?

Do you know that the question of your sin has been forever disposed of? Have you laid your hand, by faith, on the head of the Sin-offering? Have you seen the atoning blood of Jesus rolling away all your guilt, and carrying it into the mighty waters of G.o.d's forgetfulness? Has Divine Justice any thing against you? Are you free from the unutterable horrors of a guilty conscience? Do not, I pray you, rest satisfied until you can give a joyous answer to these inquiries. Be a.s.sured of it, it is the happy privilege of the feeblest babe in Christ to rejoice in a full and everlasting remission of sins, on the ground of a finished atonement; and hence, for any to teach otherwise, is to lower the sacrifice of Christ to the level of ”goats and calves.” If we cannot know that our sins are forgiven, then where are the glad tidings of the gospel? Is a Christian in no wise better off, in the matter of a sin-offering, than a Jew? The latter was privileged to know that his matters were set straight for a year, by the blood of an annual sacrifice. Can the former not have any certainty at all? Unquestionably. Well, then, if there is any certainty, it must be eternal, inasmuch as it rests on an eternal sacrifice.

This, and this alone, is the basis of wors.h.i.+p. The full a.s.surance of sin put away ministers, not to a spirit of self-confidence, but to a spirit of praise, thankfulness, and wors.h.i.+p. It produces, not a spirit of self-complacency, but of Christ-complacency, which, blessed be G.o.d, is the spirit which shall characterize the redeemed throughout eternity. It does not lead one to think little of sin, but to think much of the grace which has perfectly pardoned it, and of the blood which has perfectly canceled it. It is impossible that any one can gaze on the cross--can see the place which Christ took--can meditate upon the sufferings which He endured--can ponder on those three terrible hours of darkness, and at the same time think lightly of sin. When all these things are entered into, in the power of the Holy Ghost, there are two results which must follow, namely, an abhorrence of sin in all its forms, and a genuine love to Christ, His people, and His cause.

Let us now consider what was done with the ”flesh,” or ”body,” of the sacrifice, in which, as has been stated, we have the true ground of disciples.h.i.+p. ”The whole bullock shall he carry forth, _without the camp_, unto a clean place, where the ashes are poured out, and burn him on the wood with fire.” (Chap. iv. 12.) This act is to be viewed in a double way; first, as expressing the place which the Lord Jesus took for us as bearing sin; secondly, as expressing the place into which He was cast by a world which had rejected Him. It is to this latter point that I would here call my reader's attention.

The use which the apostle, in Heb. xiii, makes of Christ's having ”suffered without the gate,” is deeply practical.--”Let us go forth therefore _unto Him_ without the camp, _bearing His reproach_.” If the sufferings of Christ have secured us an entrance into heaven, the place where He suffered expresses our rejection from earth. His death has procured us a city on high; the place where He died divests us of a city below.[16] ”He suffered without the gate,” and, in so doing, He set aside Jerusalem as the present centre of divine operation.

There is no such thing now as a consecrated spot on the earth. Christ has taken His place, as a suffering One, outside the range of this world's religion, its politics, and all that pertains to it. The world hated Him and cast Him out. Wherefore, the word is, ”_Go forth_.” This is the motto as regards every thing that men would set up here in the form of a ”camp,” no matter what that camp may be. If men set up ”a holy city,” you must look for a rejected Christ ”without the gate.” If men set up a religious camp, call it by what name you please, you must ”go forth” out of it, in order to find a rejected Christ. It is not that blind superst.i.tion will not grope amid the ruins of Jerusalem in search of relics of Christ. It a.s.suredly will do so, and has done so.

It will affect to find out and do honor to the site of His cross and to His sepulchre. Nature's covetousness, too, taking advantage of nature's superst.i.tion, has carried on for ages a lucrative traffic, under the crafty plea of doing honor to the so-called sacred localities of antiquity. But a single ray of light from Revelation's heavenly lamp is sufficient to enable us to say that you must ”go forth” of all these things, in order to find and enjoy communion with a rejected Christ.

[16] The epistle to the Ephesians furnishes the most elevated view of the Church's place above, and gives it to us, not merely as to the t.i.tle, but also as to the mode. The t.i.tle is a.s.suredly the blood; but the mode is thus stated: ”But G.o.d, who is rich in mercy, for His great love wherewith He loved us, even when we were dead in sins, hath quickened us together with Christ, (by grace ye are saved;) and hath raised us up together, and made us sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus.” (Eph. ii. 4-6.)

However, my reader will need to remember that there is far more involved in the soul-stirring call to ”go forth” than a mere escape from the gross absurdities of an ignorant superst.i.tion, or the designs of a crafty covetousness. There are many who can powerfully and eloquently expose all such things, who are very far indeed from any thought of responding to the apostolic summons. When men set up a ”camp,” and rally round a standard on which is emblazoned some important dogma of truth, or some valuable inst.i.tution--when they can appeal to an orthodox creed--an advanced and enlightened scheme of doctrine--a splendid ritual, capable of satisfying the most ardent aspirations of man's devotional nature--when any or all of these things exist, it demands much spiritual intelligence to discern the real force and proper application of the words, ”Let us go forth,” and much spiritual energy and decision to act upon them. They should, however, be discerned and acted upon, for it is perfectly certain that the atmosphere of a camp, let its ground or standard be what it may, is destructive of personal communion with a rejected Christ; and no so-called religious advantage can ever make up for the loss of that communion. It is the tendency of our hearts to drop into cold stereotyped forms. This has ever been the case in the professing church. These forms may have originated in real power; they may have resulted from positive visitations of the Spirit of G.o.d. The temptation is to stereotype the form when the spirit and power have all departed. This is, in principle, to set up a camp. The Jewish system could boast a divine origin. A Jew could triumphantly point to the temple, with its splendid system of wors.h.i.+p, its priesthood, its sacrifices, its entire furniture, and show that it had all been handed down from the G.o.d of Israel. He could give chapter and verse, as we say, for every thing connected with the system to which he was attached. Where is the system, ancient, medieval, or modern, that could put forth such lofty and powerful pretensions, or come down upon the heart with such an overwhelming weight of authority? And yet, the command was to ”GO FORTH.”

This is a deeply solemn matter. It concerns us all, because we are all p.r.o.ne to slip away from communion with a living Christ and sink into dead routine. Hence the practical power of the words, ”Go forth therefore unto _Him_.” It is not, Go forth from one system to another--from one set of opinions to another--from one company of people to another. No; but, Go forth from every thing that merits the appellation of a camp, ”_to Him_” who ”suffered without the gate.” The Lord Jesus is as thoroughly outside the gate now as He was when He suffered there eighteen centuries ago. What was it that put Him outside? ”The religious world” of that day; and the religious world of that day is, in spirit and principle, the religious world of the present moment. The world is the world still. ”There is nothing new under the sun.” Christ and the world are not one. The world has covered itself with the cloak of Christianity; but it is only in order that its hatred to Christ may work itself up into more deadly forms underneath. Let us not deceive ourselves. If we will walk with a rejected Christ, we must be a rejected people. If our Master ”suffered _without_ the gate,” we cannot expect to reign _within_ the gate. If we walk in His footsteps, whither will they lead us? Surely, not to the high places of this G.o.dless, Christless world.

”His path, uncheered by earthly smiles, Led only to the cross.”

He is a despised Christ--a rejected Christ--a Christ outside the camp.

Oh, then, dear Christian reader, let us go forth to Him, bearing His reproach. Let us not bask in the suns.h.i.+ne of this world's favor, seeing it crucified, and still hates with an unmitigated hatred, the beloved One to whom we owe our present and eternal all, and who loves us with a love which many waters cannot quench. Let us not, directly or indirectly, accredit that thing which calls itself by His sacred name, but, in reality, hates His Person, hates His ways, hates His truth, hates the bare mention of His advent. Let us be faithful to an absent Lord. Let us live for Him who died for us. While our consciences repose in His blood, let our heart's affections entwine themselves around His Person; so that our separation from ”this present evil world” may not be merely a matter of cold principle, but an affectionate separation, because the object of our affections is not here. May the Lord deliver us from the influence of that consecrated, prudential selfishness so common at the present time, which would not be without religiousness, but is the enemy of the cross of Christ. What we want, in order to make a successful stand against this terrible form of evil, is not peculiar views, or special principles, or curious theories, or cold intellectual accuracy: we want a deep-toned devotedness to the Person of the Son of G.o.d, a whole-hearted consecration of ourselves--body, soul, and spirit--to His service, an earnest longing for His glorious advent. These, my reader, are the special wants of the times in which you and I live.

Will you not, then, join in uttering, from the very depths of your heart, the cry, ”O Lord, revive Thy work!”--”Accomplish the number of Thine elect!”--”Hasten Thy kingdom!”--”Come, Lord Jesus, come!”

CHAPTER V. 14-VI. 7

These verses contain the doctrine of the trespa.s.s-offering, of which there were two distinct kinds, namely, trespa.s.s against _G.o.d_, and trespa.s.s against _man_. ”If a soul commit a trespa.s.s, and sin _through ignorance_, in the holy things of the Lord, then shall he bring for his trespa.s.s unto the Lord a ram without blemish out of the flocks, with thy estimation by shekels of silver, after the shekel of the sanctuary, for a trespa.s.s-offering.” Here we have a case in which a positive wrong was done, in the holy things which pertained unto the Lord; and, albeit this was done ”through ignorance,” yet could it not be pa.s.sed over. G.o.d can forgive all manner of trespa.s.s, but He cannot pa.s.s over a single jot or t.i.ttle. His grace is perfect, and therefore He can forgive _all_: His holiness is perfect, and therefore He cannot pa.s.s over any thing. He cannot sanction iniquity, but He can blot it out; and that, moreover, according to the perfection of His grace, and according to the perfect claims of His holiness.

It is a very grave error to suppose that, provided a man acts up to the dictates of his conscience, he is all right and safe. The peace which rests upon such a foundation as this will be eternally destroyed when the light of the judgment-seat s.h.i.+nes in upon the conscience. G.o.d could never lower His claim to such a level. The balances of the sanctuary are regulated by a very different scale from that afforded by the most sensitive conscience. We have had occasion to dwell upon this point before, in the notes on the sin-offering. It cannot be too strongly insisted upon. There are two things involved in it,--first, a just perception of what the holiness of G.o.d really is; and secondly, a clear sense of the ground of a believer's peace in the divine presence.

Whether it be a question of my condition or my conduct--my nature or my acts--G.o.d alone can be the Judge of what suits Himself, and of what befits His holy presence. Can human ignorance furnish a plea when divine requirements are in question? G.o.d forbid. A wrong has been done ”in the holy things of the Lord,” but man's conscience has not taken cognizance of it. What then? Is there to be nothing more about it? Are the claims of G.o.d to be thus lightly disposed of? a.s.suredly not. This would be subversive of every thing like divine relations.h.i.+p. The righteous are called to give thanks at the remembrance of G.o.d's holiness. (Ps. xcvii. 12.) How can they do this? Because their peace has been secured on the ground of the full vindication and perfect establishment of that holiness. Hence, the higher their sense of what that holiness is, the deeper and more settled must be their peace.

This is a truth of the most precious nature. The unregenerate man could never rejoice in the divine holiness. His aim would be to lower that holiness, if he could not ignore it altogether. Such an one will console himself with the thought that G.o.d is good, G.o.d is gracious, G.o.d is merciful; but you will never find him rejoicing in the thought that G.o.d is holy. He has unholy thoughts respecting G.o.d's goodness, His grace, and His mercy. He would fain find in those blessed attributes an excuse for his continuing in sin.

On the contrary, the renewed man exults in the holiness of G.o.d. He sees the full expression thereof in the cross of the Lord Jesus Christ. It is that holiness which has laid the foundation of his peace; and not only so, but he is made a partaker of it, and he delights in it, while he hates sin with a perfect hatred. The instincts of the divine nature shrink from it, and long after holiness. It would be impossible to enjoy true peace and liberty of heart if one did not know that all the claims connected with ”the holy things of the Lord” had been perfectly met by our divine Trespa.s.s-offering. There would ever be springing up in the heart the painful sense that those claims had been slighted, through our manifold infirmities and shortcomings. Our very best services, our holiest seasons, our most hallowed exercises, may present something of trespa.s.s ”in the holy things of the Lord”--”something that ought not to be done.” How often are our seasons of public wors.h.i.+p and private devotion infringed upon and marred by barrenness and distraction!

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