LEARNING DAILY

 

Hebrews 11:4, By faith Abel offered to God a more excellent sacrifice than Cain, through which he obtained witness that he was righteous, God testifying of his gifts; and through it he being dead still speaks.

 

The story about Cain and his brother Abel is found in Genesis 4.  It is a story about an offering made to God – one He accepted and one He rejected.  It is a story about what kind of offering is acceptable to God and what is not. The sacrifice that Abel offered was accepted because he “came before God in true faith and dedication to righteousness” (LSSB).  Abel was a shepherd and was careful to give on the terms God had established; he gave from the firstborn of his flock, his best.  Cain’s offering was rejected because “he lacked a sincerely obedient faith and because his deeds were evil” (LSSB). Cain’s offering or sacrifice was more of a token, an offering of his own choosing; it was not given as a representation of his devotion to God.

 

Cain became angry when God rejected his offering.  That may be a human reaction to being corrected or rejected by one in authority.  Rejection often reveals the condition of one’s self-centered heart.  But God, in His grace, gave Cain an opportunity to make his offering right.  Read the invitation God gave to Cain in Genesis 4:6-7, “Why are you so angry?” the Lord asked him.  “Why do you look so dejected?  You will be accepted if you respond in the right way.  But if you refuse to respond correctly, then watch out!  Sin is waiting to attack and destroy you, and you must subdue it.” (New Living Translation).  God gave Cain an opportunity to make his offering right.  He made it clear that sin was there as a tempting force just waiting for the opportunity to attack and devour him.  Notice that God gave him a choice to submit to Him or yield to sin.  Cain ignored God, rejecting Him, and killed Abel, separating himself from God.

 

Why was Abel’s offering accepted and Cain’s rejected is the key to why Abel is in the Hall of Fame of Faith.  Romans 10:17 states, “So then faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.”  Do you get that?  Faith never comes from manmade ideas or programs.  “Cain and Abel represent every person’s choice regarding how to approach Almighty God.” (DJSB).  Faith is man’s response to God’s commands.  By faith, Abel obeyed God and it pleased Him.  The only way Abel and Cain knew how to approach God had to have been the teaching of Adam and Eve.

 

The only way your offering and my offering is acceptable to God is to come through the sacrifice of His only begotten Son.  Abel’s sacrifice was offered through the required shedding of blood; he knew he deserved to die for his sin.  Cain’s offering was offered with the thought he did not need the shedding of blood to approach God.  Abel shows each of us that faith is a response to God’s revelation.  God, through His Word, has revealed that Jesus’ sacrifice is the only way that sinners, you and me, can approach Him. Our response to who Jesus is and His death and resurrection for sinners is the beginning of a godly life and our walk on the narrow way that leads to eternal life in God’s kingdom.  That is why Abel is important to us!

 

From now on DJSB will be used to note information or quotes from the David Jeremiah Study Bible and LSSB will refer to information and quotes from the Life in the Spirit Study Bible.