Cain and Abel: Determine God’s framework for acceptance
Many a man has wondered what exactly pleases God. How is God pleased now? Was He pleased the same way in the Old Testament? Cain brought an offering, yet he was rejected, how is that fair? There is a plethora of questions arising from the history of Cain and Abel – Let’s dig in.
Genesis 4:3-5
And in process of time it came to pass, that Cain brought of the fruit of the ground an offering unto the LORD. And Abel, he also brought of the firstlings of his flock and of the fat thereof. And the LORD had respect unto Abel and to his offering: But unto Cain and to his offering he had not respect. And Cain was very wroth, and his countenance fell.
I want you to focus on every detail when doing a Bible study. Every single word and letter can carry meaning, because the Bible is written through the inspiration of God, therefore it is alive and sharper than a two-edged sword. If you look deeply into the first few verses you can already see a differentiator between the two brothers. The differentiator is the article used before the brothers’ different sacrifices, Cain brought “an offering” whereas Abel brought “of the firstlings of his flock and the fat thereof”. What can be derived from these articles are the fact that Cain brought any random fruit of the ground, in contrast with Abel that was specific about what he brought. That difference immediately shows us a lot about the character of the two brothers and their attitude towards pleasing God.
Many people conclude that the differentiator was the type of sacrifice, which could play a role, but remember the Levitical laws were not instituted yet, so the sacrifice was given from whatever the person tended or cultivated. Even so in the Levitical laws there are wheat and fruit offerings as well, not just blood offerings. Always remember to take the Bible as a whole.
God always looks at the heart and character of the person before He even sees the offering. Read verses 4 and 5 again, you will see that God first had respect (accepted) Abel and then after that his offering and the opposite with Cain. God first looked at the person and then the offering, even though it was Old Testament. In the New Testament it says:
2 Corinthians 9:7
Every man according as he purposeth in his heart, so let him give; not grudgingly, or of necessity: for God loveth a cheerful giver.
Back to Cian and Abel, I want to contrast two scriptures about the heart drenched in faith vs. the heart of a wicked man:
Hebrews 11:4
By faith Abel offered unto God a more excellent sacrifice than Cain, by which he obtained witness that he was righteous, God testifying of his gifts: and by it he being dead yet speaketh.
Proverbs 21:27
The sacrifice of the wicked is abomination: how much more, when he bringeth it with a wicked mind?
Remember this was Old Testament, but most people when you ask them will say that people were saved in the Old Testament by sacrifices, yet God detests a sacrifice done with the wrong heart. Sacrifices played an enormous role in Old Testament salvation, but it was not the only prerequisite. More on that later.
God sees the condition of the heart, not the amount or type of sacrifice. God is the same yesterday, today and tomorrow. Newer, more human-error sympathizing doctrine tend to create a gulf of difference between the God of the Old Testament vs. the God of the New Testament – He is the same.
Hebrews 13:8
Jesus Christ the same yesterday, and to day, and for ever.
In the church today we can find many correlations, but the one that I think is the most important to attend to first is the manner in which we worship God.
John 4:24
God is a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth.
When Christians worship God only in Spirit, they can easily be deceived with a false spirit and then you see disastrous movements where people slither around like snakes and make horrendous noises – a danger that can easily grasp the charismatic churches. Nonetheless the counterpart is also true, when you only worship God in truth (Word) you make it an academic feat and try to reason everything – a danger that can easily grasp reformed churches. Therefore, it is crucial to worship in the manner the Bible commands – in Spirit and in Truth.
Let’s move on to the next part of Cain and Abel:
Genesis 4:6
And the LORD said unto Cain, Why art thou wroth? and why is thy countenance fallen?
Do you see how the intentions of Cain’s heart is being revealed? Instead of doing self-examination and trembling before the Creator of the world, he puts his arrogance on display and turns his back upon God.
2 Corinthians 13:5
Examine yourselves, whether ye be in the faith; prove your own selves. Know ye not your own selves, how that Jesus Christ is in you, except ye be reprobates?
Lamentations 3:40
Let us search and try our ways, and turn again to the LORD.
Once again the New and Old Testament agrees with each other, about the need for self-examination. (Read the post on “Walk Worthy”) It boils down to the composition of your heart, is it filled with pride or humbleness? Do you serve God for Him or for yourself? Many people cannot take any form of correction from their brothers and sisters in Christ due to the pride in their lives, but what plain forward arrogance it is if you reject correction from God.
Psalms 51:15-17
O Lord, open thou my lips; and my mouth shall shew forth thy praise. For thou desirest not sacrifice; else would I give it: thou delightest not in burnt offering. The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit: a broken and a contrite heart, O God, thou wilt not despise.
I have a brother in Christ which told me the other day that God will not use Him because all the other people in our community is stronger in faith and have a better relationship with the Lord. Obviously the first words that came to mind was the same-old phrases, “Don’t let the devil lie to you” or “We are all equal before God”, but that day the Holy Spirit silenced me and put His words in my mouth. I quietly answered, ‘That perspective you have is exactly why God will use you”. Refer to above scripture again. God desires a man so meek and humble that He can form him into the perfect vessel fit for the job.
Cain was wroth, in other words he was past being angry. He was furious with God. That is how some confessing Christians react when they are being put through a test. They first attack God or their brothers and sisters in Christ.
Matthew 7:20
Wherefore by their fruits ye shall know them.
Genesis 4:7
If thou doest well, shalt thou not be accepted? and if thou doest not well, sin lieth at the door. And unto thee shall be his desire, and thou shalt rule over him.
The above verse, depicts once again the knowledge that it was Cain himself that was not accepted. over and above what has happened, God still tells him if he repents he will be accepted.
1 Corinthians 10:13
There hath no temptation taken you but such as is common to man: but God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able; but will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear it.
1 Samuel 15:22-23
And Samuel said, Hath the LORD as great delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices, as in obeying the voice of the LORD? Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice, and to hearken than the fat of rams. For rebellion is as the sin of witchcraft, and stubbornness is as iniquity and idolatry. Because thou hast rejected the word of the LORD, he hath also rejected thee from being king.
It is amazing to see that the Lord is always willing to forgive, but the person involved must be willing to repent. Back to Cain and Abel:
Genesis 4:8-13
And Cain talked with Abel his brother: and it came to pass, when they were in the field, that Cain rose up against Abel his brother, and slew him. (9) And the LORD said unto Cain, Where is Abel thy brother? And he said, I know not: Am I my brother’s keeper? (10) And he said, What hast thou done? the voice of thy brother’s blood crieth unto me from the ground. (11) And now art thou cursed from the earth, which hath opened her mouth to receive thy brother’s blood from thy hand; (12) When thou tillest the ground, it shall not henceforth yield unto thee her strength; a fugitive and a vagabond shalt thou be in the earth. (13) And Cain said unto the LORD, My punishment is greater than I can bear.
I am not going to go deep into the blood that crieth out from the ground, it is a topic for another day, but it stands as a typology of the blood of the righteous in the New Testament. The blood that Jesus will avenge with the wrath of God.
In verse 11 God punishes Cain severely, but what we must note from this part is that punishment does not equal repentance. Even though he was punished for his sins, he was not sorry for committing them, he was only sorry for being caught.
2 Corinthians 7:10
For godly sorrow worketh repentance to salvation not to be repented of: but the sorrow of the world worketh death.
We can choose today to either walk in the way of Cain or in the way of Abel. Let’s broaden our perspectives from that point of view, we can either walk in the way of Jesus or the way of Adam. It’s very simple, in essence the one way brings victory to satan and the other causes victory over satan.
| Adam | Person | Jesus |
| Sinless | Condition | Sinless |
| satan | Tempter | satan |
| Disobedience | Command from tempter | Disobedience |
| Disobedience | Action taken | Obedience |
| Death | Result | Life |
It shows us that disobedience is the root of the rebellion. God looks for faith and obedience in His followers, whether New or Old Testament, you need faith and obedience to please God.
Take the way of Jesus and Abel.
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