Outside the Camp

https://odb.org/MY/2021/09/14/outside-the-camp

In Hebrews 13:11, the author of Hebrews uses the phrase “outside the camp” and in verse 12, the author mentions that Jesus also suffered outside the city gates, in the sense that He was crucified “outside the camp”. It was the place where the sacrificial bodies of the animals are burnt while the high priest brings their spilled blood as a sin offering to God in the Most Holy Place in the Temple. It was also the place where lepers live in seclusion, isolated from the mainstream of society during ancient times and the time of Jesus. There was however an exception in a leper who thrived despite his condition as he was the commander of the powerful Assyrian army and God healed him through Elisha after he humbly obeyed the seemingly stupid instruction to wash in the Jordan river for seven times (see Naaman in 2 Kings 5). But generally and in most cases, lepers were isolated from society and this is true until perhaps 50 years ago even in Sungai Buloh, Malaysia (used to be the 2nd largest leprosy settlement centre in the world, see http://www.thewayhome.my/History.html)

Do we still have sections of our contemporary society banished to outside the camp? Perhaps the slums in the larger cities? People who live on the streets perhaps? Drug addicts, people of unsound mind, discards of society? In the time of Jesus, there was a demon possessed man living among the tombs (see the Gerasene in Mark 5:1-10). Will we reach out to such people and extend our love and have compassion for them?

In Hebrews 13:11, we are urged to go to Him outside the camp, bearing the disgrace He bore, to the place where our Lord was crucified, to the place where He died for our sins. Will we heed God’s call to go outside the camp? To reach out and have love and compassion for those society looks at in shame, in disgrace? To those in the slums, on the streets, or condemned in prison.

Even among our friends and colleagues amd relatives, there could be some who have somewhat been banished to “outside the camp”; not physically and perhaps not intentionally by society, but psychologically and in the social hierachy sense. Perhaps they lost their self esteem, confidence and status after losing their high paying, top of the line and powerful jobs due to the pandemic and are now surviving by their retrenchment payouts, life savings or by doing Grab or Food Panda. Or perhaps some had lost their businesses or are afflicted with a life threatening illness. Or some are just people who are retired and thus no longer command the status, power or influence they used to have. None of these people are physically outside the camp and yet they are now at the fringes in terms of the role they play in society. Can we reach out to them with compassion and love like Jesus did to the widows, the crippled and the tax collectors? Jesus Christ, our Lord and Saviour, the Son of God – died for our sins, crucified outside the gates of Jerusalem, banished and condemned outside the camp among the criminals, the scum and discards of society. Will we go to those outside the camp like Christ did?