Patrick Jane Forums

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● Heb 11:4 . . By faith Abel offered God a better sacrifice than Cain did.

I'm going to edit the wording of that just a bit to bring out an important point.

"By faith Abel offered God a sacrifice"

The missing word "better" is a modifier; which serves to show that both men's offerings were sacrifices; only the quality of Abel's sacrifice was superior to the quality of Cain's.

Sacrifices should never be assumed always lethal and/or bloody. Take for example:

● Rom 12:1 . . I urge you, brothers, in view of God's mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices

● Heb 13:15-17 . .Through Him then, let us continually offer up a sacrifice of praise to God, that is, the fruit of lips that give thanks to His name. And do not neglect doing good and sharing; for with such sacrifices God is pleased.

Heb 11:4 also testifies that Abel's offerings were gifts. The very same Greek word is used at Matt 2:11 to categorize the treasures that the wise men left with baby Jesus.

Their gifts were not sin offerings; they were tributes: defined by Webster's as (1) something given or contributed voluntarily as due or deserved especially a gift or service showing respect, gratitude, or affection and (2) something (such as material evidence or a formal attestation) that indicates the worth, virtue, or effectiveness of the one in question

In other words "gifts" are acts of worship; which is the primary reason why Jehovah's Witnesses do not celebrate birthdays.
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I'm confident in my own mind that the Cain and Abel incident is unrelated to the plan of salvation as per Christ on the cross rather, it's a lesson about worship, i.e. church attendance.

Take for example Isa 1:11-20. Moses' people were offering all the covenanted sacrifices, they were praying up a storm, and observing all the God-given feasts and holy days. He rejected all of it, even though He himself required it, because the people's personal conduct was unbecoming.

● Prv 15:8 . .The sacrifice of the wicked is an abomination to Yhvh.

Perhaps the classic example is the one below.

● Ps 51:16 . .You do not delight in sacrifice, or I would bring it; you do not take pleasure in burnt offerings.

When David wrote that; he had only just committed the capital crimes of adultery and premeditated murder. There was just no way that God was going to accept his sacrifices and offerings on top of that; and David knew it too.

The principle shows up again in Jesus' teachings.

● Matt 9:13 . . Go and learn what this means: I desire mercy and not sacrifice.

Some folk honestly believe that Christ's statement, taken from Hosea 6:6, practically repealed the entire God-given book of Leviticus. But that's not what either Hosea or Jesus were saying. They meant that God much prefers that people be civil to each other rather than religious to their fingertips.

In other words; an ungracious person's lack of things like sympathy, patience, tolerance, lenience, helpfulness, pity, and common courtesy causes God to reject their worship just as thoroughly and bluntly as He rejected Cain's.

The principle didn't go away. It's still the Lord's way of doing business with people; including Christians.

● 1John 1:5-7 . . God is light, and in Him is no darkness at all. If we say that we have fellowship with him, and walk in darkness, we lie, and do not the truth: but if we walk in the light, as He is in the light, we have fellowship one with another.

It's likely a foregone conclusion that God is deeply insulted when people whose conduct is unbecoming all during the week come to church on Sunday actually thinking He's glad to see them show up for some quality time together.
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● Gen 4:7 . . If you do what is right, will you not be accepted?

FAQ: What do you suppose Cain would've had to do right in order for him to be accepted?

A: Judging from Gen 4:8 and 1John 3:14-15, and Cain would've, at the very least, had to stop hating his kid brother.

● Matt 5:22-24 . . I say to you that everyone who is angry with his brother shall be liable to judgment; whoever insults his brother shall be liable to the council, and whoever says "You fool" shall be liable to the hell of fire.

. . . So if you are offering your gift at the altar, and there remember that your brother has something against you; leave your gift there before the altar and go-- first be reconciled to your brother, and then come and offer your gift.

NOTE: Dysfunctional families really ought to stay home on Sundays and watch football or mow the lawn instead of coming to church till they resolve their differences and can all put on an honest happy face when they're together in public.
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● Jude 11 . . Woe to them. They have taken the way of Cain.

Cain's way began with Gen 4:16, which says:

"Cain went out from The Lord's presence"

Apparently Cain's departure was permanent because he's never again shown in contact with God for the remainder of the Bible. In other words; Cain's rapport with God ended abruptly that very day and was never restored.

During an evening service in church many years ago, the minister asked everyone to stand and promise God that they would make an effort to avoid sin. Well, my sister and I made the promise but my brother did not. When we got home I asked my brother why he didn't make the promise. He replied: "There's some things I want to do."

God had put that very same choice on the table for Cain to think about when He said:

"If you do what is right, will you not be accepted?" (Gen 4:7)

Well; neither my brother nor Cain were interested in doing what's right; they had other ideas.

The "woe" in Jude 11 isn't just an expression of sympathy; no, it's a reality. Here's the wording of it from Gen 4:7

"If you do not do what is right, sin is crouching at your door; it desires to have you, but you must master it."

Well; piety and self control were not Cain's highest priorities. He was determined to do as he pleased; viz; Cain stepped out on the road to depravity; and my brother did too.

Jude 3-4 warns that Christianity is infected with a number of people on Cain's path-- some are pastors, priests, and ministers, some are officers on church boards, some are deacons, some are elders, some are even Sunday school and catechism teachers; so be careful out there.

NOTE: People like Cain, and Jacob's uncle Laban, are curiosities. Neither man was an atheist, and both were privileged by personal encounters with the one true God; yet the encounters failed to motivate either to change his ways.
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