GOING FORTH TO JESUS

J.B. Ikin

Hebrews 13:10-14; Matthew 27:55-66; 28:1-20

I would seek to speak a little about going forth to Jesus, “let us go forth to him without the camp”, and what that means. We have been speaking about the attractiveness of what it is to go forth to Him as the bridegroom. He is the One who has the bride, He is the One who is seeking bridal affections for Himself, from His assembly, from the saints who love Him. But it involves too that we should bear His reproach, and this is the exhortation at the end of this epistle. This epistle, which we have good reason to believe was written by the apostle Paul, begins at the top and ends with this exhortation. In our experience, however, we have to work backwards, so that we start with this test, to “go forth to him without the camp”.

What is the camp? We read in Exodus 32 verse 6 about what the camp was. “To-morrow is a feast to Jehovah! And they rose up early on the morrow, and offered up burnt-offerings, and brought peace-offerings; and the people sat down to eat and to drink, and rose up to sport”. It was a mixture. It was nominally for God, but it was obnoxious to God because it was mixed with the mind and pleasure of man to satisfy the indulgence of man. That is in large measure the camp today, but there is a solution; the solution is to go forth to Him. He is the Bridegroom; He is the One who makes that movement so attractive, dear brethren. But it is a test. Some of our brethren who have gone away might have said ‘I want an easier path’. This is not an easy way, it is a separate path, but I would seek to show you that as taking this path, it has very great rewards from the Lord Jesus Himself.

We see that there are two things, “bearing his reproach” and “we seek the coming one”, that is the coming city. What is that city? It is the city that has foundations, it is the city, as Matthew says, “of the great King”, Matt.5:35. That is really a view of the assembly, “of which God is the artificer and constructor”, Heb.11:10. We will see it in its glory and its magnificence. So the objective is going forth to Jesus. However painful the experience may be of leaving the camp behind, leaving what is nominally for Christ but is obnoxious to God, we come to see that there are rich rewards. I was thinking a little about Moses, how “when he had become great, refused to be called son of Pharaoh’s daughter; choosing rather to suffer affliction along with the people of God than to have the temporary pleasure of sin; esteeming the reproach of the Christ greater riches than the treasures of Egypt, for he had respect to the recompense”, Heb.11:24-26. So we have an example of a man who had every opportunity that this world could offer. He had the opportunity of a place in the court of Egypt, yet he refused “to be called son of Pharaoh’s daughter”. You may say, How foolish he was to give all that up, to turn his back on all the offers that Egypt could give him, but what motivated him was “esteeming the reproach of the Christ greater riches than the treasures of Egypt”. It is there in that scripture as an incentive for us, that we might esteem the reproach of the Christ in this way. That is what motivated Moses to take this step, a very deliberate, definite decision to turn his back on the offers that Egypt could give him.

As we go back through Hebrews, we read about Abraham. He left his family in response to God’s call. That was a great test to him, but what motivated him? It says, “for he waited for the city which has foundations, of which God is the artificer and constructor”, Heb.11:10. What a great test it was for him. Mr Raven said that Christ is the test of every man ¹. Have you been tested in this way, or do you just drift in an aimless sort of way? These men did not; they were marked by faith. Do you have faith for the pathway? Mr Stoney was asked by Mr Darby when he sought fellowship ‘Have you the faith for it?’ Mr Stoney said ‘Faith or no faith, I cannot stay where I am’. You have to make that deliberate choice for yourself, to go forth to Jesus. Have you made that choice? Have you made that deliberate move for yourself?

As we move further back in Hebrews, we read about how Melchisedec met Abraham when he was wearied with the battle which he had fought and in which he had secured great victory. Melchisedec gave him a rich supply – in figure it was Christ. As we feel our weakness, we find that the Lord Jesus is the One who is our High Priest (Heb.4:14). When we feel weak in seeking to do the right thing, we find the Lord’s direct support; He is One who takes us by the hand and leads us through. He Himself knows what it is to be down here, and yet so perfect, fulfilling the will of God in adverse circumstances. Then, as we get back to chapter 2 of Hebrews, we come to the side of privilege, the Lord Jesus singing in the midst of His assembly (v.12). Think of Him there in the midst of that company which gives Him so much delight and pleasure that a response is drawn out which He can express. There is what is so pleasurable to Himself as amongst the saints, amongst those who have made this move, those who are precious to Him. He finds delight in being in the midst of His assembly. Then we see the Son shine out in chapter 1; we see Him in the fulness of His glory as the expression of God’s substance. Think of who He is in His greatness as the Sun of righteousness. We need all the saints to appreciate the love of Christ, to express the fulness of delight in Christ. But first we need to make this move in committal.

That leads me to Matthew, because there we see those women who bore His reproach. We were reading this section locally last Lord’s day, and were impressed by the way that these women were singled out in the view of heaven as standing in sympathy with the Lord Jesus in His sufferings. He suffered “without the gate”, Heb.13:12. He suffered outside Jerusalem. He was not wanted there, He was despised and He was rejected; think of Him in His sufferings there. Matthew emphasises especially the depth of the sufferings of the Lord Jesus at the hands of man. What it was for Him to be mocked; “He is King of Israel: let him descend now from the cross, and we will believe on him. He trusted upon God; let him save him now if he will have him. For he said, I am Son of God”, Matt.27:42,43. Think of the way the Lord Jesus was mocked and belittled! The attitude of the world was exposed there and it has not been reversed. I was particularly struck by the fact that later on in this chapter the verdict is “that deceiver” (v.63). Think of that, the Lord Jesus being labelled publicly as “that deceiver”! Sin began with the deceitfulness of Satan, the serpent; he began with a lie, and that very verdict was heaped upon my Saviour and your Saviour. That is the judgment of this world; is it not awful? Yet there were these women who aligned themselves with the Lord Jesus in their sympathy. And then there were those present who wondered at Him; the centurion wondered at the greatness of the power that was there with the Lord Jesus as He gave up His spirit. Think of how the Lord Jesus in His atoning sufferings for you and for me bore the judgment of God totally. We cannot fathom it. There was great darkness over the whole land; Jesus exhausted that judgment. Yet it was not in weakness that He gave up His Spirit. It says “And Jesus, having again cried with a loud voice, gave up the ghost”, Matt.27:50. “But the centurion, and they who were with him on guard over Jesus, seeing the earthquake and the things that took place, feared greatly, saying, Truly this man was Son of God”, Matt.27:54. This Gentile was converted and he acknowledged the greatness of the person of the Lord Jesus as Son of God. He wondered at Him.

Then we see in verses 57 through to 60 another man, Joseph, who sacrificed not only what he had by way of wealth but his reputation also to provide a tomb for the Lord Jesus. The Lord Jesus was placed in this tomb according to scripture, and He fulfilled the prophecy that is given in Isaiah “he was with the rich in his death”, Isa.53:9. Think of the place that the Lord Jesus took there for you and for me; not only that sin in myself should be judged and completely done away with, but that He went out of sight in that tomb. It was all part of His vicarious work; the shedding of His precious blood, which is the basis for the forgiveness of my sins; but also what was put out of sight there in the grave. So that great matter was completed, and Joseph was used to prepare this tomb. Later, as the disciples looked into the tomb, they saw that there was distinctiveness in the headship of Christ. What comes to light as a result of the death of Christ is that through the coming of the Holy Spirit, He is the Head and the body here is formed like Him. It is a wonderful thing to contemplate the sufferings and death of the Lord Jesus.

There were these women with Him who were identified with Him. “And there were many women beholding from afar off, who had followed Jesus”. They had followed Him from Galilee. We know that Galilee was a place that was of no account to the Jew. It was a place of great reproach. These women had come from Galilee, “bearing his reproach”. They were identified with the reproach of Christ. We know that He suffered alone, but there were those who were in sympathy with Him; they were identified by heaven and singled out as a distinctive group at the cross. They were with Him in their affections, and that is the place that belongs to you and me. That is the place, by the cross of Jesus, where the testimony is to be found now. It is not according to the greatness of man’s estimation, it is not according to the glory of man, it is a place that is of no account in this world. As being identified with Christ, we find ourselves in a place of great reproach, but it is not something to be ashamed of. We might feel reproach in going forth to Him, and the cost of doing that, but the rewards are wonderful as this passage goes on to show.

In chapter 27, we see that they stood their ground. In verse 61, Joseph had gone away but “Mary of Magdala was there, and the other Mary, sitting opposite the sepulchre”, and there we see them in chapter 28. It says (v.1), “Now late on sabbath, as it was the dusk of the next day after sabbath, came Mary of Magdala and the other Mary to look at the sepulchre”. What had happened meantime? The Father had come. The Father had acted in His own glory. The Lord Jesus was raised by the glory of the Father. Then what happened here is that “an angel of the Lord, descending out of heaven, came and rolled away the stone and sat upon it”. It had not been rolled away before this although Jesus was no longer in that tomb. The women were singled out by this great being, the angel, in his might, in his unassailable strength. The soldiers were there, armed with all that they had, with the authority of Pilate and with the might of Rome, but they could not do anything; they were as dead men in the presence of this angel. But since then, the Holy Spirit has come. How even greater is the power of the Holy Spirit to ensure that the testimony stands firm and true to the person of the Lord Jesus, as bearing His reproach.

So the angel said “Fear not ye, for I know”. He singled out these women; the angel said, “I know”. These women had the feelings of true believers on the Lord Jesus. The angel said “I know that ye seek Jesus the crucified one”. Who are you seeking? We are seeking Jesus the crucified One. We must stand firm in the place where He has been crucified, where He has been labelled as “that deceiver”. So the angel says to them “He is not here, for he is risen, as he said. Come, see the place where the Lord lay”. What a privilege was theirs as faithful and loyal in their affection for the Lord Jesus, and as going forth to Him figuratively in this great test. For them, the world was over, their reputation was gone, all opportunities were gone, all sense of favour according to the estimation of this world totally gone, but they were seeking Jesus “the crucified one”. What rich rewards there were, “behold, he goes before you into Galilee”. Think of the grace of the Lord Jesus that He should go before them into Galilee, so that they should see Him there. We see that the Lord Jesus met them personally – they “took him by the feet”. As being the first of His own to see Him, they were much in His affections. It says that “Jesus says to them, Fear not; go, bring word to my brethren”. There is a fresh relationship come to light; “my brethren”. John’s gospel brings out fully the meaning of “my brethren” (John 20:17); the privilege that Mary had in going to His brethren and giving that special message “I ascend to my Father and your Father, and to my God and your God”. Matthew emphasises the power for the testimony down here, but John speaks about what is privileged, what is heavenly; it is our access to heaven, to His Father and our Father. What a wonderful privilege that is, His God and our God. Matthew emphasises the power for the present testimony. You may say ‘We feel very weak’. I suppose the women never felt weaker, but they were strengthened by the Lord Jesus Himself. He said, “there they shall see me”. There was no confusion about that message.

Meanwhile we see that there was this mountain of appointment, “the mountain which Jesus had appointed them” and I think there is something very dignified about that. Think of how the Lord Jesus has appointed that which is elevated, even in a day of public shame outwardly and littleness and smallness and reproach. He appoints the mountain where He is going to meet us. It is the King in His glory; this is a summons, an appointment. Sometimes we think a lot about business appointments, but the Lord Jesus appointed this wonderful meeting place with Himself. Oh, is this not far greater? Think of how He said to them “All power has been given me in heaven and upon earth”. Who gave Him that power? The Father; the Father in His love for Him has given all into His hands. The Lord Jesus is so capable of administering that which is for God’s glory. The Lord Jesus would reassure us in a day of outward shame and outward smallness and littleness: He would assure us that the power is available as we tap into it, and as we rely upon Him. It says “Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptising them to the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit”. The whole divine economy of love is involved as we turn our back on the world. Each of us has been baptised, and we need to be true to our baptism, as turning our back on the world but finding that, as having done so, the whole of the resource of heaven, involving the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit, is available to each of us. I desire that we might prove what a blessing that is.

It involves being made disciples. Have you accepted that you need to be made a disciple? To be made a disciple is not an easy course. Paul brought the disciples into the school of Tyrannus and it was not an overnight thing. It was a course that involved committal and devotion and loyalty. But he opened up what was very precious, and ultimately we see the reality of assembly features coming to light amongst the saints. “Go therefore and make disciples” has in mind the functioning of the assembly, because Matthew writes in view of the assembly, in view of what is being formed down here, not in outward show, but in spiritual reality for the heart of Christ. So He says “teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have enjoined you”; that is the authority of the Lord Jesus. He is the King; He is the One who has the authority to carry out everything. We had a fine touch the other Lord’s day when a brother was speaking about the King; he said that many subjects have died for their King, but our King has died for His subjects. Think of what it is to have such a King, such a One who commands the blessing, “life for evermore”, Ps.133:3. What a blessing it is to come under the rule of Christ, that He might regulate our lives, that we might be here as proving the power of His testimony. It is not our testimony, although we have a privileged part in it, but it is His testimony and He is seeing it through to the end.

May He bless the word, for His name’s sake.

Address at Edinburgh
1 June 2013.