Encouragement and Help From the Epistle to the Hebrews
Clifford Henry Brown
Table of Contents
Encouragement and Help From the Epistle to the Hebrews
Shall we turn to the book of Hebrews? I have it in mind to select a few verses here and there, with emphasis on the exhortations that are there, rather than the doctrinal part.
In the first chapter we have a remarkable beginning. No Epistle begins so abruptly and so grandly as does Hebrews. There is no salutation. It begins with that startling word, "God." That arrests our attention immediately. "God, who at sundry times and in divers manners spake in time past unto the fathers by the prophets, hath in these last days spoken unto us by His Son, whom He hath appointed heir of all things, by whom also He made the worlds; who being the brightness of His glory, and the express image of His person, and upholding all things by the word of His power, when He had by Himself purged our sins, sat down on the right hand of the Majesty on high."
Now, if we were to put five words together, that we find in those verses, it would read like this: "God hath spoken unto us." Well, if He has, we ought to listen. Isn't that true? "God hath spoken unto us." How? The reading should be a little different here. Notice in the second verse, "spoken unto us by His son." The "His" is in italics. Let us omit that italicized word and read it like this: "God hath spoken unto us in Son." Oh, how wonderful—that God has been here in this world in Son, and it is God that is speaking to us! And, how marvelous are the communications. If we turn to 1 Tim. 3:16, we would read that, God was manifest in the flesh; God was seen of angels; God was believed on in the world; and He was received up into glory. Oh, the marvelous revelation as to the person of Christ. All your hopes and mine have to do with that blessed Person—"God has spoken unto us in Son."
What has He told us? Well, beloved, this whole Epistle to the Hebrews just unfolds one wonder after another. In these first three verses the Spirit of God sums up the work of that blessed One in His mission down to this earth. That One who was, "the brightness of His glory, and the express image of His person"—"when He had by Himself purged our sins." By Himself! No one aided Him. A lonely work: There, during those three hours of darkness, no profane eye was permitted to gaze upon Him—shut in—in absolute midnight darkness. What a time that was! No wonder that the mathematician down in Egypt made the remark, "Either the universe is falling to pieces, or the Creator must be suffering." Yes, the Creator was suffering, shut in there during those three hours when He was making purgation for sin. At the end He could bow His head, and say, "It is finished." Then, He goes back in His own power and dignity, and seats Himself at the right hand of the Majesty on high. What a Savior! That is the introduction to this book of Hebrews. In what follows, we have the ways and means by which this was all accomplished. We have the counsels of God unfolded as to it. Then, in the end of the book, we have some lovely exhortations based upon it.
Turn to Heb. 10:12: "But this man, after He had offered one sacrifice for sins, forever sat down on the right hand of God." Just one sacrifice paid the debt. And, when you and I find ourselves in that holy heaven above, our only title to be there will be based upon what that blessed One accomplished on the cross of Calvary for us. He paid the price; He made the purgation; He purchased our entrance into that holy, happy place, where we can be in the Father's house forever. Oh, beloved, what a wonderful thing to be a Christian! How wonderful it is to give all praise and adoration to the One who opened up the way for us. For, apart from Him, we were hopeless-no hope; without God, and without Christ-poor Gentile dogs! Yet here we are now, enjoying God's favor; accepted in the Beloved; brought nigh through the blood of Christ!
"This man, after He had offered one sacrifice for sins, forever sat down on the right hand of God." Heb. 10:14, "For by one offering He hath perfected forever (or, perfected in perpetuity) them that are sanctified." No half way salvation that! No trial and error there. Oh, no, we are not on probation; it is a settled thing, it is a finished work! If you and I have ever crossed the line, if we have ever come to Christ and a real work has been wrought in our souls—regardless of what happens, we will never find ourselves in outer darkness with the lost. Never! "He hath perfected forever them that are sanctified." Oh, believe it; let your soul rest upon it! There will never be a soul in hell who will be permitted to look up and say to the Lord Jesus, "Once I was safe in your arms." Never! Not one! Those blessed pierced hands of His have never lost a man!
Isn't that good news? Have you trusted yourself to Him? Relax in His arms; be sure He is never going to let you be lost. That is one side of the truth: We are going to take up another side presently. But we need to be firmly grounded on the work of Christ-that it is all of Himself; that it is final. There are no questions to be raised about it. He has given us His Word. He has shown His title to do that work. He had His credentials with Him when He came into this world. But now, He is going to talk to us about our part in showing our appreciation for what He has done for us. That is another line of things.
Let us go on in Heb. 10, verse 17: "And their sins and iniquities will I remember no more." Don't you wish that you were able to do that? Fellow Saint, wouldn't you like to forget all about your sins and iniquities? Some day you will. But, God is able to forget. And, in that coming day, He is not going to look at you and remember all your past record; He is going to, "remember to forget." Won't that be wonderful?—to stand in the presence of One who will not remember that sad record, but, who will see us there clad in all the loveliness of Christ. And, Oh! that ringing cry of victory from the lips of the Lord Himself in that day, when He says, "Behold, I and the children that God hath given me." All heaven will ring with that cry.
"Now where remission of these is, there is no more offering for sin." (Heb. 10:18.) No masses, no sacrifices, no self-affliction, no going out and sleeping on hard boards or nails, or prostrating ourselves upon the ground and crawling on our knees to the river Ganges, or something of this kind—"No more offering for sin." It is all settled to the glory of God, once and for all. Isn't that a grand truth? And isn't it simple and blessed? Why not rest our souls upon it?
Heb. 10:19: "Having therefore, brethren, boldness to enter into the holiest..." How? "By the blood of Jesus." Oh, precious, precious blood of Jesus! Beloved saints of God, we cannot make too much of the blood of Jesus. I was looking through our Little Flock hymn book a while back, and I found that precious blood mentioned over 150 times. It made my heart glad! So, here we have it, "Having therefore, brethren, boldness to enter into the holiest by the blood of Jesus." The only proper place to worship is in the Holiest. You know, in the old days of Jewish worship, they had the Court of the Tabernacle; next, the Holy Place, and then the Holy of Holies. The most that the ordinary individual could expect was to be in the Court. Only a few were permitted to go into the Holy Place. And, once a year, the High Priest was permitted to push aside that curtain and enter the Holy of Holies. But when he did, he took the blood of the offering with him. Yes, that was into the immediate presence of God—only once a year, and that not without blood. But, what a contrast now! After those three hours of darkness, when our Lord suffered for sin, He said, "It is finished;" and immediately on His death, the veil between the Holy Place and the Holy of Holies was rent from the top to the bottom, signifying that the way into the Holiest was now made open. God Himself gave witness to His eternal satisfaction with the work of Christ.
Now, as the result, "Having therefore, brethren, boldness to enter into the holiest by the blood of Jesus, by a new and living way, which He hath consecrated for us, through the veil, that is to say, His flesh; and having an high priest over the house of God; let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith." He wants you to come near to Him. Draw near—don't stand afar off. We read about those who stood afar off and cried for mercy. You don't have to do that. Come; get this sin question all cleared up, and then draw near—come into the Holy of Holies. There is no holier place than the Holiest, is there? It is in the Holiest we worship. Not the Holy Place, but the Holiest. We draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith. That is what worship is. You know, if you are not in the Holy of Holies, if you are not worshipping in the place that God has prepared for you to worship, you are dropping beneath your privileges.
It is a sad thing, when God says, "The way is opened right into My presence, and I want you to be there—the Holiest:" Then we say, "Well, that was not meant for me. I will be satisfied if I can get into the Court, or at the most I might venture into the Holy place. But the Holy of Holies, I shrink from that." Oh, dear Saint of God, why do you rob God that way? How can we rob God that way? Remember the price that was given that you might have that privilege—a new and living way into the presence of God Himself. "Let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith." Have you ever had any doubts about it? If you have been to Christ, if you have received the Lord Jesus as your Savior, and if you have any doubts about it, cease right now! Believe the Word of God! Believe that the question is settled, and that you have access into the Holy of Holies by the blood of Jesus. Nothing added! Nothing! The blood only. "The blood of Jesus Christ God's Son cleanses us from all sin."
Now that we are there and we have access into that place, we read in the 11th chapter of Hebrews, "Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen. For by it the elders obtained a good report." Then we have a sort of Honor Roll of God. The worthies of old, going back to the very beginning, Cain and Abel, and down thru the ages. A list of God's worthies—and that which gave them title to be in this chapter was the fact that they believed God, they took God at His Word. They believed what He said, regardless. So if we go down to the 13th verse: "These all died in faith, not having received the promises, but having seen them afar off, and were persuaded of them and embraced them, and confessed that they were strangers and pilgrims on the earth. For they that say such things declare plainly that they seek a country."
Let's analyze that a bit. All the worthies here in this chapter died in faith (except Enoch; he didn't die at all). "These all died in faith, not having received the promises, but having seen them afar off, and were persuaded of them and embraced them." That is just the way it is with us Christians. If you were challenged by an unsaved man, "I want to see something that you have because you are a Christian, that I don't have," I presume you would be pretty well perplexed to know what to show him, wouldn't you? You couldn't say, "Well I have a good bank account." He might say, "I have a better one." You might say, "I have a lovely house to live in." "Yes, so have I." And you could go right down the list of all the things that might be named—you couldn't show him one thing that you have as a Christian that he does not have. Why? Because our inheritance is a spiritual inheritance. It isn't a carnal, worldly inheritance. We are living on promise. Our portion lies beyond. We are just like these people here: "These all died in faith, not having received the promises, but having seen them afar off, and were persuaded of them and embraced them, and confessed that they were strangers and pilgrims on the earth." They saw them afar off, they embraced them, and then they confessed they were strangers and pilgrims on the earth.
Now, how about it? How about our confession? We talk about these things, we sing about them, and we go over and over them in our meetings. What is it that lies ahead? Beloved, we are waiting momentarily for His glorious return, and I could hope He would return before I get through this little address this afternoon. That is the blessed hope of the Church. But we can't demonstrate anything. We can't put on display what we have because we are Christians. But we see it, we embrace it, and we confess it! Now, what did they confess? "They confessed that they were strangers and pilgrims on the earth." How much of that is true of us—strangers and pilgrims? What is a stranger? He is a person who doesn't belong here. The moment that you receive Christ as your Savior, you are marked out as a candidate for heaven. You are a candidate for glory, and you become a stranger down here. There is something else about you—you become a pilgrim. You are on your way somewhere. You have a goal; you are pressing down to that goal. "Down to the goal I press:" that is the way the apostle Paul put it. There is a big difference between a tramp and a pilgrim. A tramp is just going. But a pilgrim is going somewhere—he has a goal before him.
Oh Christians, how earnest are we? Have we seen these promises? Have we embraced them? Have we confessed that we are strangers and pilgrims down here? Or, do our lives belie the fact that we are? Are we tempted to settle down as though this is where we belong, as though this is the end of the journey. May it not be so!
We have cut loose from where we were before; we have said "Farewell;" we have waved the hand and said, "Good bye, we are on the way to glory." That is what these people did. They said, "Good bye. We have heard the voice of Jehovah." Think what it meant to Abram—Abram over there in the Caldees. Think what it meant to him to pack up and start out for a place he had never seen. And, it took days and days, and weeks and months to get there. But he went out on faith —He believed God! Now you and I believe God, we start out on the journey of faith, and it completely revolutionizes our thinking. We weigh everything that comes into our lives in the balances of the Sanctuary to get the true evaluation of them. If we don't do that, we are just going to be tossed around like the poor world.
Was there ever an age in the history of the world when man was so utterly frustrated and bewildered as he is at the present time? It is really pathetic as you look out over the world today and see the confusion, contradiction and warring philosophy, and see so little that speaks of a settled condition anywhere. Where is there a firm spot on this world today? All is in a flux. Everything is subject to question. It is a process of change, of transmutation, even of ideas. How vain it all is! But the Christian can go through this world, with all its chaos, confusion and frustration—he can go through it with a quiet, godly peace in his soul. He can seek to go through it as quietly as possible, as not of it; and go through it to the honor and glory of God. Yes, he can! And, many a child of God is doing it! I know that there are Christians right here in this audience this afternoon who are living just that way. They are in the world, but they are not of it. They are finding their way through, but they are not co-mingling with the ambitions, and with all the schemes and plans of men. No, they are going through the world as strangers and pilgrims. Don't you want to join that company today? Don't you want to get a vision today and, by the grace of God, set your sights where God would have you set them? Oh, beloved, these folks did!
They, "confessed that they were strangers and pilgrims... And truly, if they had been mindful of the country from whence they came out, they might have had opportunity to have returned." Yes, you can go back into the world if you want to. But, Oh, how tragic! I have been in the Meeting for 57 years, and, Oh! the tragedies one has seen along the way of those who decided to go back. I am speaking of real Christians. They could have gone back—"If they had been mindful of that country from whence they came out, they might have had opportunity to have returned. But now they desire a better country, that is, an heavenly: wherefore God is not ashamed to be called their God; for He hath prepared for them a city." How sad it is when a Christian gets tired—gets weary of the path that is marked out in the Word of God for His children. How sad it is when we become weary of the companionship of Christ.
Remember those two on the way to Emmaus, in Luke 24? The Lord Jesus fell in step with them, and He journeyed along with them. And, how their hearts burned as He talked with them, and as He opened the Scriptures to them—as He took the Old Testament and showed them in all the Scriptures the things concerning Himself. They wanted Him to stay with them; they wanted to keep Him as long as they could. But He went on His way—He left them. Why? Because, beloved, they were headed in the wrong direction. And, though they were seven miles outside Jerusalem, and it was in the middle of the night: Immediately, as soon as He left them, they turned right around and went back to Jerusalem. They went back over their footsteps that took them in the wrong direction. They went right back to where He was, and there met Him again in the midst of His own. Oh, beloved, have you wandered? Have you gotten careless, or cold? Don't you want to come and go back to where He is? Don't you want to be found in that sweet, blessed communion with Himself? There is nothing that can take its place! You know, the happiest person in this room right now is the one who is enjoying the most of Christ. That is true happiness! The one who is enjoying Christ in his soul is the happiest person here.
In the same 11th chapter of Hebrews, verse 25 (speaking of Moses): "Choosing rather to suffer affliction with the people of God, than to enjoy the pleasures of sin for a season; esteeming the reproach of Christ greater riches than the treasures of Egypt." Are you after the treasures of Egypt? Well, it is like chasing the pot of gold at the foot of the rainbow. How disappointing it all is. How bitter the awakening at the end of the journey! But not so with Moses. Moses chose rather to suffer affliction with the people of God than to enjoy the pleasures of sin for a season. Ah, yes; that inscription is written on all the pleasures of sin—"For a season!" But, Oh! on the joys of heaven is written, "Forever!" Eternal joy!
Now, going on to Heb. 12, we have God's discipline with His people. He has various ways of leading us along—chastening. We all get it. It would be a sad thing for anyone here to say, "Well, I never get any of it." I trust you are not going to say that, because this 12th chapter, verse 8, says, "But if ye be without chastisement, whereof all are partakers, then are ye bastards, and not sons." It would be a terrible thing to say, "Well, I never get any chastening." No; you and I get chastening. And, we get it because we need it. Thank God, we have a faithful Father, and He chastens us for our good. "We have had fathers of our flesh which... chastened us after their own pleasure; but He for our profit, that we might be partakers of His holiness." Yes, God wants a holy people. Sometimes we are asked, "Do you believe in holiness?" Why, the idea of a Christian saying he doesn't believe in holiness! What is holiness? Holiness is separation from evil, with delight in good. "Wherefore, be ye holy for I am holy." That is the standard that God gives for you and for me.
Heb. 12:11: "Now no chastening for the present seemeth to be joyous, but grievous; nevertheless afterward it yieldeth the peaceable fruits of righteousness to them which are exercised thereby. Wherefore lift up the hands which hang down, and the feeble knees; and make straight paths for your feet, lest that which is lame be turned out of the way; but rather let it be healed." Now, you are passing thru the chastening, and you are learning lessons. God is assuring you that if you will bow to the chastening, it will not keep up forever. He is trying to work out in you, and in me, that appreciation of His holiness. Wherefore, lift up the hands that hang down, and strengthen the feeble knees; make straight paths for your feet. Oh, how anxious we are, and how ready we are, to make straight paths for the other persons feet. Oh, yes, we can tell him how to walk. But that is not what God is saying to us here. Make straight paths for your feet lest that which is lame—the man who is coming along behind you, watching—lest he be turned out of the way.
Dear fellow Christian, how are you living? Are you living a careless, free and easy life? If you are, what about those weaker Christians that are following after you? They are watching you. And, if they follow your footsteps, where are they going to land? Where does that road lead? It is a solemn thing. All of us here today have an influence. Yes, we do. Don't ever think you can escape it. Every life has an influence with every other life with whom it comes in contact. "Make straight paths for your feet, lest that which is lame be turned out of the way; but let it rather be healed." Do you have a healing ministry? Is the influence of your life, of your words and of your conversation, is it a healing ministry? Do others find their difficulties disappearing as they seek to walk in the steps that you are making before them? That is what this verse means. God would have us to be a help one to another—to strengthen one another in the journey. We are all brothers and sisters in the Lord. We need one another. I need you. We need one another, beloved. Won't you try and help make it easier for me? Oh, I would seek grace from God, out of an honest heart I would seek grace from God, to make it easier for you. That is the point here.
Now we go to Heb. 13: "Let brotherly love continue." It is a sweet and precious thing. I am overwhelmed by it sometimes; I feel so utterly unworthy of the love that I have received from my brethren. "Let brotherly love continue. Be not forgetful to entertain strangers; for thereby some have entertained angels unawares." Yes, hospitality is a nice thing. My wife and I are enjoying some of it right now—sweet, precious hospitality. It is a wonderful thing to be privileged to exercise it toward the members of Christ. "Thereby some have entertained angels unawares." Dear Samson's father and mother, you know, had a wonderful privilege to entertain that angel. I suppose that angel was the Lord Jesus Christ Himself, and they had the opportunity of preparing a meal for Him, and of having Him there in their home! They didn't realize who it was at the time.
"Remember them that are in bonds, as bound with them; and them which suffer adversity, as being yourselves also in the body." Oh, beloved, let us have a care for the trials and testings of our brethren. Let us share with them. Let us not pretend not to see their needs, lest we might be called upon to help them. You know, there is a great deal said in the Old Testament, under the old economy, about hiding yourself from your brother's need. Let us not be guilty of that! I saw a lovely thing; I cannot go into too great detail about it, because it is too personal. But I know a case where a dear, faithful family suffered a major catastrophe. There was such a long record of faithfulness and self-sacrifice on the part of that family that the dear Saints of God heard about it. And, from all over the country, United States and Canada, there flowed in letters of consolation, and good, generous checks. When the brother that was receiving them went to the bank to deposit these checks,—some of them for $50, some for $100, some for $500, and so on—the banker (who knew he wasn't a wealthy man, that he was limited) was utterly astonished at all this money flowing in, until it mounted up to thousands of dollars. What was it? Where did it come from? Ah, it was the fruit of this very thing working in the hearts of the Saints across the country. They heard of the need, they showed their consideration, and they came to the aid of that stricken family. Yes, "Remember them that are in bonds... and them which suffer adversity, as being yourselves also in the body." Maybe you are next.
Heb 13:4: "Marriage is honorable in all." I will read this a little differently; I think it is the way you will find it in other translations: "Let marriage be honorable in all things, and the bed undefiled; but whoremongers and adulterers God will judge." We have been up in the heavenlies; we have been in the Holy of Holies, and we have been enjoying the contemplation of what our portion is in the glory above. (And we may be up there before this day is over!) Now we just drop right down to a subject like this—such an exhortation as this, coming right in the same Book. Remember, there were no chapter divisions in Hebrews when it was written—no chapter divisions. But, just reading right along, we suddenly find ourselves being confronted with a thing like this: "Let marriage be honorable in all, and the bed undefiled; but whoremongers and adulterers God will judge." Why is that there? Because God knew what we were. He knew the kind of material we were made of. He knew what the flesh was. He knew the temptations that come along, and He put this warning here.
There is one thing that I want to emphasize: That is, that God does not lower His standards. We are living in a day when standards are going all to pieces. One wonders how far the thing is going to go. And, it is all through the whole nation. From the top echelon, right down thru all the ranks, the same spirit is loose. It is the spirit of, "Let us cast off their bonds." No restraint. "Let us do what we want to do." That is the spirit of today, and there is such a wholesale acquiescence in it that some have become utterly alarmed, if not in despair, over this horrible reversal in standards. I have lived to see tremendous changes (more than some of you younger ones), and it seems as though the end is not here yet. Oh, let us not be deceived. God's standards are as holy as they ever were! "Let marriage be honorable in all, and the bed undefiled; but whoremongers and adulterers God will judge." Beloved, God cannot deny Himself. Let God be true and every man a liar!
Turn to 1 Cor. 6:9, 10: "Know ye not that the unrighteous shall not inherit the kingdom of God? Be not deceived: neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor abusers of themselves with mankind, not thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners shall inherit the kingdom of God." That is strong language. To whom was it written? It was written to an Assembly.-it was written to the Corinthian Assembly. Solemn words!
Now, the Heb. 13:18: "Flee fornication. Every sin that a man doeth is without the body; but he that committeth fornication sinneth against his own body. What? Know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you, which ye have of God, and ye are not your own? For ye are bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body." (The rest of that verse is not there in the better texts. "Wherefore glorify God in your body.") Notice, it says, "Flee fornication." Remember dear Joseph down there in the house of Potiphar, subjected to the pressure of a temptation that was being forced upon him? It says, he fled. He fled! He ran away—literally got out, and ran away! "Flee fornication." God doesn't temporize. God doesn't change His standard! Let us not be guilty of thinking that just because the standards around the world are sinking daily, that we have any right to lower God's standard one notch. No! "Whoremongers and adulterers God will judge."
Now, back to our 13th chapter of Hebrews again, verse 5: "Let your conversation be without covetousness; and be content with such things as ye have: for He hath said, I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee." Oh, what an exhortation. We are living in an age of covetousness. We always have to get one thing more. The house isn't good enough, and we must have a better house. We must have a better automobile. And then, we have to get a camper; and, when we try that out, then we have to get a boat. And, when we try that out, then we have to get a private plane. So it goes—there is no end. Covetousness is the order of the day. "Let your conversation (or, your manner of life) be without covetousness; and be content with such things as ye have." No—"happiness is a state of soul." I am quoting a dear brother when I say that; I have heard him say it a hundred times: "Happiness is a state of soul."
It isn't a matter of how big checks you can write. No! Happiness is a state of soul!
Heb. 13:8: "Jesus Christ the Same yesterday, and today, and forever." Aren't you thankful that there is something accessible to us that is unchanging and unchangeable? The Same—capital "S." That is one of His titles—"The Same." He is the same blessed Jesus that He was when the dear disciples went up and down the paths of Galilee with Him. The same that was with those two on the way to Emmaus. The same that met Paul on the way to Damascus. The same that led them out to the Mount of Olives, and said farewell to them as He lifted up His pierced hands and bade them goodbye. He is the same up there as our great High Priest, living for us day by day—Jesus, "The Same." He doesn't change! His standards haven't changed, and He wants you and me to recognize the fact that He is just as ready to receive and bless us as He was to bless those in the day when Paul said, "For me to live is Christ, and to die is gain." Brethren, it is true! "For me to live is Christ, and to die is gain!" That is the standard.
Now, Heb. 13:12: "Wherefore Jesus also, that He might sanctify the people with His own blood (Ah, there is that precious blood of Christ again!), suffered without the gate." Not in Jerusalem, but outside Jerusalem. "Let us go forth therefore unto Him, outside the camp, bearing His reproach." Are you willing to bear reproach for Christ? Are you willing to share a bit of His shame? Ah, the world had no use for Him. They had no place for Him; they cast Him out. "Away with Him. He is not worthy to live." Are we willing to share that reproach? What was His reproach? He would not let this world appropriate Him. They would have been glad to have had Him, you know, if He had furthered their purposes. They would have been glad to have capitalized on His miraculous powers, and would have been glad to have Him destroy their enemies. But, Oh, they would not have Him as the Man out of heaven. They wouldn't have Him as the One who passed thru this scene as a Stranger. No, they didn't want Him, and they were eager to get rid of Him. Oh, how rejoiced they were when they had Him where they wanted Him—on the middle cross! Yes, that is the last place they ever saw Him—on the middle cross. You know, this ungodly world did not see Christ after He arose from the dead. They didn't see Him! He was seen of 500 brethren at once, but not by 500 sinners at once. No, He was through with that part. Now, He is known to faith, and you and I have the privilege of being identified with Him outside the camp, bearing His reproach. Have you taken the step? Are you willing? Why not take it? Why not identify yourself with the rejected Christ?
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