In the book of Hebrews in the Bible, the final chapter (13) we find these words,
11 The high priest carries the blood of animals into the Most Holy Place as a sin offering, but the bodies are burned outside the camp. 12 And so Jesus also suffered outside the city gate to make the people holy through his own blood.13 Let us, then, go to him outside the camp, bearing the disgrace he bore.14 For here we do not have an enduring city, but we are looking for the city that is to come.
Today as we listen to what the writer of Hebrews tells us about Jesus, we need to realize that Jesus is a man who was ostracized in order that the community he became a part of might be set free. He is the one who takes the guilt of all the others upon himself and he deals with it by paying the price that was on all the heads of the community he represented. In a North American idiom, Jesus becomes “the fall guy” for the world.
Each year in the Jewish calendar of the Old Testament times, as Yom Kippur (translated Day of Atonement) came around on the tenth day of the seventh month, the nation would gather and a very solemn assembly would be held. There was a very carefully prescribed ritual that was followed on Yom Kippur. First, the high priest would offer a bull in sacrifice for his own sin. Then he would take two goats and present them before the Lord. By casting lots, he would choose one of them to be killed in sacrifice and the other would be kept alive as the scapegoat.
Next the High Priest would sacrifice the goat along with a ram and take the blood of the bull, the ram and the goat, and he would go by himself into the Most Holy Place, the very sacred place in the inner temple area where God “lived” on the Ark of the Covenant. And there he would sprinkle the blood of the animals on the mercy seat. When that was accomplished, he would come out and again in a careful ceremony, he would lay his hands on the head of the living goat and confess all the sins of the people of Israel. Then a man who was appointed to the task would take that goat out into the wilderness to be let go. It was expected that the goat would die there outside the camp. The wonderful thing about it was that the goat symbolically carried with it all the sins of the people which had been confessed.
Then in the final ritual of the day, the priest would take all that was left of the sacrificed animals, and bring the remains outside the camp and there he would burn them. And in this way, God was teaching his people to see and experience the blessing of having all their sins forgiven.
That was the event that was in the mind of the author of Hebrews as he penned these words to the congregation to whom he was writing. He wanted them to see in their minds the fact that Jesus was the fulfillment of all that God had intended for the people in the annual Day of Atonement.
The Sins of Those who Believe Died Outside the Camp with Christ
He pictures for his readers, and for us, what happened on that day when Jesus was crucified. For on that day, the one who knew no sin, was condemned as a criminal. He was declared by a political ruler to be not fit for human society. He was cast outside the camp—outside the city, there to die. And even though his condemnation may be seen in any number of ways—a great tragedy of misguided jealousy on the part of the Jewish leaders, an act of political necessity by an unjust judge named Pilate, an awful act of a miscarriage of justice. However you may want to see it, however you may want to describe it, the writer to the Hebrews says, I have a vision of that day which needs to make its home in you. But this time, instead of a goat being led out into the wilderness with your sins on its head and then the animals being burned outside the camp, the author says to you and to me, see in your minds a vision of Jesus being led outside the city and there being crucified. All your sins were laid on his head. He is the scapegoat. In that vision you have a picture of what it means to have one who was innocent bear the sins of your life. He took them outside the camp and there they remain. You carry them no more.
The blood of Jesus is sprinkled on us like the blood of the animals was sprinkled on the worshipers at the great assemblies of the Old Testament people of God. The blood of Jesus is given to us in baptism to show us that we no longer carry our sins, but we are set free from them. God has acted in our lives and we are washed in the blood of the Lamb, we are cleansed in the blood of the scapegoat of history, Jesus Christ. We are set free by the blood of the one who bears the guilt of our sin — of our loving ourselves more than God, of serving ourselves rather than the great King. Of being totally convinced that we are the center of the universe and all that exists, exists for us. All the various ways we have offended God have been taken up by the one whose name is Jesus.
That is why the church throughout history as we stood before the Lord and said, I believe have always included from the very earliest of times the words I believe in Jesus. Oh, I believe in Jesus. As Carl, one of our students at CLI says, “It wasn’t until my mid-forties, after a succession of devastating personal, familial, financial and professional blows did I finally and unequivocally repent, state my belief in Him and ask Him to take charge of my life. From that day forward, I can say that I have a personal relationship with Jesus that sustains me and that I cherish above all else. I know that I am truly a child of God…” There is something about that one Name that, when we come to know that person, everything changes. We are from then on, children of the Most High God.
Christian Leaders Institute has many students in the country of South Africa. Because our online bible school is free and doesn’t require textbooks, English-speaking people in South Africa are able to obtain our training without having to relocate, quit their jobs, or come up with extraordinary amounts of money.
One of these students is Brian Govender, from Durban in South Africa. This is his story, in his own words.
My name is Brian Govender, and I am 48 years old. I am married to wonderful and beautiful God fearing woman who’s name is Vasie. We have two kids, a boy named Shannon and a girl named Nellisa, and not forgetting God’s great blessings to us in the form of two grandsons.I was born in Durban South Africa, and was raised by wonderful parents who were non believers until 2009, I praise God for their Salvation. I was employed in company that manufactured soft trim components for the motor industry as a Production Superintendent. I worked there for 26 years until I was retrenched in 2009 due the global recession.
My walk with the Lord Jesus Christ began in the year 2005. Being an idol worshiper, I was very much into the world and things of this world until God began to stir up my conscience and direct me according to His plan and purpose for my life into a new direction. I have embraced His direction wholeheartedly in August 2006 and still continue to do so. The very first week following mine and my families conversion, the desire to share, speak, and minister the Word of God was birthed in my heart. I became active in all the working departments of the church, but the area that interested me most was evangelism, which still remains my strong point. My desire to reach out to all of God’s created people and share the Word of Truth with them rest heavy within me. My wife shares the same desires as I do, and she is still very much active in the service of God period.
My heartfelt desire is to take the Word of God forward in a liberating way, in which the believer is no longer wallowing in spiritual darkness or blindness due to his or her inability to comprehend the deeper spiritual truths of the Word of God. To grow in the the Kingdom of God it is important for the believer to first know who he is in the Kingdom, what he has in the Kingdom, and what he can do with his or her faith in the kingdom for God. My desire is to see a new generation of disciples equipped with the Power of the Word of God go into their towns and cities, into the highways and byways of their cities and claim it, and all of it’s resident inhabitants for Christ Jesus for the Glory of God. I desire to see a spiritually enriched congregation who have a desire and passion for the work of the Kingdom and the Kingdoms forward march, ever moving forward for the Glory of God “Amen”.
Philippians 4:8 Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable–if anything is excellent or praiseworthy–think about such things. 9 Whatever you have learned or received or heard from me, or seen in me–put it into practice. And the God of peace will be with you.
I am convinced that this pair of sentences in Philippians 4 is one of the most helpful couplets for getting control of our minds. No matter where we live in the world today, we have many difficult things upon which we can focus. Our thoughts get dragged down, away from God. We find ourselves pondering evil and its effects in each of our cultures.
Just recall with me (but don’t dwell on these things!) how often we hear of murder, of starvation, of cheating, of corruption. We get a heavy dose of bad news as we simply go about our daily routines. Day after day, death, disease, danger, and distress all gnaw away at our hearts and our hopes. Until finally, these are the only things that occupy our thoughts.
In these few words which we find in one of his letters, Paul gives us a mind-full of things that can occupy us each day. God knows that evil stalks us. God knows we are caught up in the powerful sway of that which wants to destroy our peace. So God inspired the Apostle Paul to give us better things to ponder, to occupy our thoughts. He gives us instructions here because this is not what we find ourselves pursuing on our own.
Think on These Things – Changing Your Thought Patterns to Change Your Life
Think on these things: whatever is true. Do not give any credence to the lies we hear every day. Be done with shading the truth ourselves. Give the true things in life a chance to pervade our thought processes. This takes some effort. This takes a commitment to following God’s call to our minds. But the truth, says, Jesus will set you free!
Think on these things: whatever is noble. The word noble is one which refers to things which are worthy of our honor. In our world, no matter where we live, we discover that to be honorable and noble is to be considered strange. It is out of step with how life is. We are encouraged to go along to get along. Soon we find ourselves walking in places we should not go, speaking things we do not want to say, and doing things of which we are ashamed. God calls us to be thinking about honorable things. Then we will not be enamored of the sickly things that are all too common in our lives.
Think on these things: whatever is right. The pain of loss, the burden of work which dehumanizes us, the corruption of those who are supposed to work for our good, and the suffering that comes from fighting against that which is wrong all turn us into cynical people. Our thoughts become filled with the knowledge of evil and not of good. So, God calls us to get focused on the things that are right. In each of our lives, we can find something that is right. God says, ponder that. Ponder the good. Block out the wrong but fill your mind with the right.
Think on these things: whatever is pure. In our world today there seems to be nothing sacred anymore. Recently on American television a man many like to listen to went on a rant in which he declared that God was actually an evil being. And he cursed the idea of God. The Word of God calls us to not give the man a second thought. Instead let us focus on what is sacred and pure. We will never overcome evil by countering it with hatred and spite. But we can overcome evil with good. The only way for our minds to be prepared for such a battle is for us to ponder the pure and sacred things of God.
Think on these things: whatever is lovely. Our eyes are drawn to the ugly side of life. We see the wasted lives, the sadness in a grieving parent’s eyes, the hopelessness of those with no work, the hollow look of those addicted to a drug or to some other substance. God calls us to find something lovely to focus our eyes on. Find a tree and ponder it. A bush with a blossom bringing splash of color to your waiting eyes. A baby with fresh young skin that has not yet lost its tender luster in life. Look at and ponder these things says God. Let these lovely visions remind you of the creation God made before humanity corrupted it. Let your mind gain fresh hope from seeing a glimpse of God’s creative handiwork which draws you toward him every day.
Think on these things: whatever is admirable. The world is filled with the glory of God if we just stop to ponder the power of the creator who made the sun which blazes in the sky and gives energy to the earth. The earth is filled with the glory of God who has made us all with such a delicate balance in our very cellular structure that we can actually live! The sky is filled with the glory of God who made the moon and placed it in orbit around the earth. The earth is filled with the glory of God who gave us feelings to express, the words to do so, the love to bind us together, and the joy which radiates from one person to the next.
If anything is anything is excellent or praiseworthy, think on these things. Why? Because when we do, the peace of God will fill us. The peace of God will calm our worried souls. The peace of God that no one can understand will guard us when the times are terrible, when the pressures of life are unbearable, when the hope feels like it has drained away, then God will fill us with his hope, his love, his faith.