¡1 iL HEBREWS . . . B y J ohn C. P age
511
T h e
December 1932
K i n g ’ s
B u s i n e s s
GHudies in i\ie EPISTLE
their descendants at the time when this letter was written had the temple altar. The Hebrew Christians apparently had none, but, says the Apostle, “We have an altar, where of they have no right to eat which serve the tabernacle,” The argument follows in verses 11 and 12, and an exhorta tion in verses 13 to 16. In explanation of the altar and the sacrifice, we quote from C. E. Stuart: , Under the law, the sin offering whose blood was brought into the sanctuary for sin was burned without the camp, carried forth by the priests to a clean place, and there consumed by fire (Lev. 4:11, 12; 6:30; 16:27). O f those sin offerings, however, whose blood was not brought into the sanctuary, the priests were commanded to eat. It was part of their portion as ministering at the altar, being partakers of, or in communion with, the altar. The former sin offering was expressly withheld from them. Now it is o f that sin offering whose blood was carried into the heavenly sanctuary ( 9 :12) we can and do partake. W e feed on Christ, and our altar is the cross on which He died. Here is the only place where an altar for Christians on earth is mentioned . . . A visible altar, then, we Christians have not; nor had these Hebrews. Their altar and ours ever remains in remembrance—the cross on which our Lord Jesus Christ was crucified for us. S eparation W ithout th e C am p The exhortation to go forth unto Him without the camp assumes the necessity of separation as an underlying prin ciple. The camp is the place where the form of godliness is maintained, but where the power thereof is denied. At the time of writing, it represented Judaism, with all its re ligious formalities. The presence and power of God was not in it; no saving grace remained in a merely religious system of things. When Christ was rejected by the Jews, He said to them, “ Your house is left unto you desolate.” Notwithstanding this, they proceeded along the line of religious rites and observances as though nothing had hap pened. There was only one thing for the Jewish believer in the Messiah-Saviour to do, and that was to go forth unto Christ without the camp. Apostate Christendom to day is very much like Judaism. It is a form of godliness without saving power. Separation from it may involve reproach, but it is necessary if we are to know Christ as the center of worship and the only Saviour. This may in volve suffering, but if we suffer with Him, we shall also reign with Him. T he S acrifice of P raise The writer then proceeds to show that the place of our permanent abode is not here anyway—our home city is yet to come. Patient endurance and waiting expectation must characterize our present attitude. This attitude is a joyful one because o f the coming glory. Therefore, “ let us offer the sacrifice of praise to God continually.” This forms the closing appeal o f many scattered throughout this epistle, beginning with the words, “ let us.” Those who have followed these studies will recall many o f the exhorta tions. All that precedes this fifteenth verse is preparatory to it. The great priestly work of our Lord who appeared on earth “ to put away sin by the sacrifice of himself,” and His present appearance in heaven as our Representative is the basis of this sacrifice of praise. It is offered to God “ by him” who is the Way, the Truth, and the Life. This
Hebrews 13 h is closing chapter of the epistle contains a series of exhortations and admonitions on matters of special inter est to the Hebrew believers, and matters of general inter est to all Christians. Love is enjoined in verse 1, hospitality in verse 2, sym pathy in verse 3, purity in verse 4, contentment in verse 5, trust in verse 6, and so on to the end. F ollowing E xamples Verses 7 and 17 both deal with the authority o f spirit ual leaders. They are to be followed if their example is good. I f they deteriorate to the low level of religious poli ticians, as is often the case, then neither their faith nor their example can be followed or imitated. In verse 7, the past tense is used, for the men referred to were doubtless the martyrs of that time who “ loved not their lives unto the death.” Such heroism and sacrifice constitute real leadership, and obedience to such leaders is gladly rendered. Their convictions and courage are a most ,inspiring exam ple for others to follow. Whether men are faithful or faithless to their trust and their office, “ Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, and today, and for ever.” In other words, He is faithful, and in His faithfulness we can rest. The soul that on Jesus hath leaned for repose I will not, I will not, desert to its foes. That soul, though all hell should endeavor to shake, I’ll never, no never, no never forsake. Because o f this, we are n©t to be carried away with di verse and strange doctrines. There are very many “ isms” and “ ists” today, and some are surely “ strange.” A student of the religious cults in the city of Los Angeles alone re ported that he had tabulated twelve hundred different religious cults but had not, by any means, completed the task. These are days when believers established in Christ need to contend for the faith once delivered to the saints. Spiritual perception must be cultivated by diligent study of the Word of God, as the result of which one is able to distinguish between things that differ. T he O ld and th e N ew O rder At the time when this epistle was written, holiness of life was thought to be dependent on the observance of religious rites, the distinction between meats and the recog nition of certain special days. Verse 9 is intended to cor rect this false view. The heart is established in love and holiness by grace, not by meats; old things have passed away for those who are in Christ Jesus. It is no longer a matter of eating, or not eating, things clean or unclean. Re ligious faddists even now endeavor to fasten upon the con science o f the weak, religious sanction for certain foods they desire to sell. Care in eating and in that which is eaten is desirable for bodily health, but there is no spiritual value attached to this except that which is indirect, such as the influence of bodily health upon spiritual vitality. Verses 10 to 16 may be taken together as presenting another o f the many contrasts between the old and the new order o f things. The Hebrew patriarchs had their altars;
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