By David Shelby Corlett

Chapter 2

THE FACT

"Jesus ... suffered without the gate." This is a plain statement of a fact of history. A fact which is as substantial and as undeniable as is any other fact of history. For history actually proves that Jesus, the Nazarene, died on a Roman cross on a hill outside of the city of Jerusalem during the reign of the Roman Emperor Tiberius Caesar.

What makes this fact so outstanding? The Person involved in the statement; Jesus who suffered outside the gate.

Who is He? Let us permit the writer of this letter to the Hebrews to tell us who He is.

Who is He? He is the Son of God through whom God has spoken in these last days. The Revealer of God to men. He is the Heir of all things. By Him the ages have been fashioned. He is the brightness of the Father's glory, and the express image of His person. He upholds all things by the word of His power.

He is better than angels, having obtained a more excellent name than they; better than Moses, better than Joshua, better than Aaron.

He is all this, but this does not fully state the fact. Who is He? Jesus is a name of a man -Joshua was its Hebrew equivalent. He is the Man, the second Man, the man Christ Jesus, by whose righteousness the free gift came upon all men unto justification of life; by whose obedience many shall be made righteous. He who in His nature is better than angels, became for a little time lower than angels for the suffering of death, that He by the grace of God should taste death for every man.

The greatness of this historic fact consists in this; that this Jesus who suffered without the gate was the Son of God, the unique character of history, the Word who became flesh and dwelt among men -- the God-man. He suffered without the gate of the city of Jerusalem.

The historic fact that this Jesus, the Son of God, suffered.

No more cruel means of punishment has been invented than the Roman cross. Did not all suffer who died upon a cross? Most assuredly; it brought suffering of the intensest sort. But suffering of this kind does not fully describe what is stated in this text -- Jesus ... suffered. Just as He was unique in His nature, so were His sufferings unique. He suffered as any other man would suffer upon a cruel Roman cross; but He suffered as no other man could suffer.

It is significant to note that eye-witnesses of His crucifixion do not speak of the cross -they speak of His sufferings. The Apostle Paul speaks much of the cross; but Peter speaks always of His sufferings, of the fact that he was a witness of these sufferings. The fact about the scene on Calvary's hill that stamped itself most indelibly upon the mind of Peter and pierced most deeply into his consciousness was the sufferings that Jesus endured.

His sufferings were voluntary. He lovingly and willingly tasted death -- suffered for every man. Nothing but infinite love bound Him to the cross of suffering. He loved man and He would save him even if it meant suffering of this kind.

His sufferings were vicarious. He gave Himself for us. He suffered in our stead. The whole corrupt mass of our iniquities, the blackness of our guilt, the penalty of our sin, He took upon His own heart and suffered in our place. Because He suffered for us, we may be saved. He suffered the just for the unjust that He might bring us to God. He bore our sins in His own body upon the tree.

His sufferings were expiatory. He brought divine judgment upon all sin. Through His sufferings all barriers that stood between us and God have been broken down. That is why we sing so heartily:

"Just as I am, Thy love unknown Has broken every barrier down; Now to be Thine, yea Thine alone, O Lamb of God, I come, I come."

Through His sufferings, the shedding of His blood, a full atonement is made for all men. "Jesus suffered ... without the gate."

Note the place of His suffering. "Jesus ... suffered without the gate."

"Without the gate" -- the gate of the city of Jerusalem is the direct reference here. "Without the camp" is the statement made concerning the burning of the old sin offering. Does this mean only what some Bible teachers imply, that His death was outside Judaism and that those who would share its benefits must go without the camp of Judaism to obtain them? It means that, but it means more.

What does the city symbolize? It symbolizes man's supreme efforts for his own betterment, the co-operative endeavors of society in cultural and refining enterprises. It represents the highest attainments of organized society in seeking its own advancement. Nothing about this that of itself is evil. It is all good and beneficial as far as it goes. But it does not go far enough to save individuals from sin, or to purge society from moral corruption.

Most of the life of Jesus was lived within the circle of human society, within the realm which is symbolized by the city. Here He lived His spotless life which is forever an example of righteousness to all men. Here He gave forth many of His teachings which lift to the proper level the standard of all personal righteousness and human relationships. Here He wrought His mighty miracles which were manifestations of His power over the foes of mankind. Here His influence was felt in His associations with society in all of its moral stages. But as wonderful as are all of these, they are not sufficient to provide salvation for individuals or for society. We are not saved by His example, by His teachings, by His miracles, by His spotless life -- we are saved because He became a lonely sufferer outside the gate -- outside the very best of human effort in every realm. Alone, Jesus, that He might sanctify the people with His own blood, suffered without the gate.

Let us note further