When talking about the murder of Abel, by his brother Cain. Even people not acquainted with the Bible make references to Cain and Abel’s conflict, or they quote Cain’s sarcastic response to God, “Am I my brother’s keeper?” Yet few really know the actual story. Something this lesson will help to rectify.
Second, like Christ, Abel was an innocent whose blood was unjustly shed by the guilty, but the difference was that when God came near the guilty Abel’s blood shouted out for justice, while Jesus’ blood shouted out for mercy. We already know we are guilty, but Adam and Eve, Cain and Abel, put our guilt in context. It is not just to point out and identify our guilt but to point out that apart from God we would perish, all of us. Perish at each other’s hand, perish from our own evil, but perish nonetheless, and that it is not God’s fault. We can stop “blaming the gods.” We can stop blaming our neighbor, our wife, our brother.
Actually, this text is about much more than the murder of Abel, it tells us about worship, it tells about the heart of God and God’s mercy, and it hints to us things about creation that are not spelled out, but are helpful nonetheless.
Genesis 4.1-16
Now Adam knew Eve his wife, and she conceived and bore Cain, saying, “I have gotten a man with the help of the Lord.” And again, she bore his brother Abel. Now Abel was a keeper of sheep, and Cain a worker of the ground. In the course of time Cain brought to the Lord an offering of the fruit of the ground, and Abel also brought of the firstborn of his flock and of their fat portions. And the Lord had regard for Abel and his offering, but for Cain and his offering he had no regard. So Cain was very angry, and his face fell. The Lord said to Cain, “Why are you angry, and why has your face fallen? If you do well, will you not be accepted? And if you do not do well, sin is crouching at the door. Its desire is for you, but you must rule over it.”
Cain spoke to Abel his brother. And when they were in the field, Cain rose up against his brother Abel and killed him. Then the Lord said to Cain, “Where is Abel your brother?” He said, “I do not know; am I my brother's keeper?” And the Lord said, “What have you done? The voice of your brother's blood is crying to me from the ground. And now you are cursed from the ground, which has opened its mouth to receive your brother's blood from your hand. When you work the ground, it shall no longer yield to you its strength. You shall be a fugitive and a wanderer on the earth.” Cain said to the Lord, “My punishment is greater than I can bear. Behold, you have driven me today away from the ground, and from your face I shall be hidden. I shall be a fugitive and a wanderer on the earth, and whoever finds me will kill me.” Then the Lord said to him, “Not so! If anyone kills Cain, vengeance shall be taken on him sevenfold.” And the Lord put a mark on Cain, lest any who found him should attack him. Then Cain went away from the presence of the Lord and settled in the land of Nod, east of Eden.
What then is an acceptable Sacrifice? The first people born into the fallen world are Cain and Abel. When they reached adulthood, whatever that age was to the early people, one cannot be sure since it is not spelled out, these two brothers went in different directions. One son became a rancher and the other a farmer. Then in the course of time each brought their own offering to the Lord. For whatever reason, unstated in the text, Cain’s offering was not accepted by the Lord, but in the dialogue between Cain and God it becomes clear that Cain actually knows why his offering is unacceptable.
It is a curious thing about us as human beings and the development of religion in the world, that people knew the Lord, and yet developed other religions, we see this even in the history of Israel. We see it in quasi-Christian cults as well, where people know what is right, and then depart from what they know to do whatever they want to do, and take an attitude toward God that says, God should like what he gets, and when people call that kind of thinking into question, those who ask the questions are then viewed as being narrow, mean-spirited, and intolerant. Never mind that it violates what God spelled out.
A few years ago a public service announcement ran in which a child wants a specific brand-name mp3 player (presumably an iPod) for Christmas but instead was given an old-school circa 1980‘s tape-player like a Sony Walkman and was told by the parent that it was the same thing. The child’s protests were highlighted as being given something that you do not want and compared the event to equal housing rights for those who want to choose their own housing rather than being told where they will live, and with whom. The ad reminds also that getting what you want is better than getting what someone gives you just to fulfill an obligation. This is also true in worship. Many people want God to accept their crumby imitation obligatory gift (like their left over, used Walkman) rather than give God what he wants which is worship from the heart.
So what makes an offering acceptable? Is it just that we do it? Is it like checking off the boxes, and saying I did it? Or is it an exchange, one of respect, love and admiration, that expresses from the heart of the worshiper, to God, that God is worthy of that affection?
Some have suggested that maybe it was because Cain’s offering was not an animal sacrifice, but the word for his offering, is that same word used for the grain or cereal offering in Leviticus, which was not just acceptable but commanded in the Old Testament. So it is not likely that the issue was one of meat or grain, because God is not asking for what we do not have, God always asks for us to give of what we do have. In contrast various world religions the worshiper must come up with huge material gifts, often very exotic, expensive, and extravagant but in the Bible, the worshiper is given many options, from large animals to small ones, from grain to cakes. As well, Jesus praised the widow for her two small coins in Mark 12 not because she gave out of her vast wealth, but she gave out of the little she did have. He said, that she gave all that she had, making her two small coins the finest gift of all. Even King David refused to offer a sacrifice from animals given him as a gift. Instead he paid for the animals to be sacrificed because he said it was inappropriate to give God something that was not his own. Because God does not need anything, God is not needing us to feed him, instead he feeds us. God does not need us but enjoys our company, and when God told Cain that his offering was not acceptable, God also reminded Cain that his offering would be acceptable if he offered it well, but God also warned Cain, that sin was crouching at the door waiting to dominate him. Obviously, Cain let sin dominate him, rather than make an acceptable offering.
In the New Testament we are given some insight as to why Cain’s offering was not acceptable. In Hebrews 11.4 we are told that Abel made his offering by faith. “By faith Abel offered to God a more acceptable sacrifice than Cain, through which he was commended as righteous, God commending him by accepting his gifts. And through his faith, though he died, he still speaks.” (Hebrews 11.4) Second, we are told in 1 John 3.12 that Cain’s deeds were evil, “We should not be like Cain, who was of the evil one and murdered his brother. And why did he murder him? Because his own deeds were evil and his brother's righteous.” (1 John 3.12)
It does not say that his deeds were than ideal, but his deeds were evil, meaning that his offering flowed not out of misunderstanding, or even ignorance, but out of willful action to do what he wanted, regardless of what God wanted . In contrast, what made King David’s offering, and the widow’s coins acceptable, was that they brought God what God wanted, not so much the offering, but the heart of worship. Remember, God does not need anything, but God has made it clear from the very beginning that his desire above all else is our hearts, relationship, connection, love, and affection. God is love! The ultimate end of his plan is that we would love him freely, and that we would live and reign with him forever.
If you think about who God is, if you think about what you know of God from the Bible, you ought to know this intuitively. God isn’t about check lists. Even if Cain was never taught how to worship God, as a human being, he would know instinctively how to please those he loves. Children want to give Mommy what she wants. They want to express love. They want to give Mommy flowers. They want to tell Daddy that they admire him. The difference is that as children they give him a tie, and as an adult they give him something more meaningful, but both are given from the heart.
Does it really matter what Cain’s offering was? Isn’t it true that even if they had offered the same gift, that Cain’s offering wouldn’t be right even still? Do not miss the point in the jumble of details. An acceptable offering is the one that is from the heart, and in accord with God’s word. Do what the Word says, and do it with a joyful heart. Songs, money, service, sacrifice, whatever it is, seek to please God not just check off your list.
Next, then we must ask, “Why Do Humans Always Blame God and Others?” First, let’s begin with Cain’s anger at God. Notice how the kindness of the Lord is evident even in Cain’s anger. Do not let sin dominate you, you defeat it, but don’t let it get you. God is also clear, “your offering will be accepted if you do what is right.” Cain knows what the problem is. Cain can fix the problem, but it is easier, like his Daddy, Adam, to blame God. This time its not that tree you put here and that woman you gave me. Its you did not accept, and its that brother you put gave my folks, but Cain will not take the blame. Cain left the presence of God that day angry, unwilling to accept responsibility. Over the last three weeks, I do not know how many times I have pointed this out, but it is a theme that will not go away. Cain is a blamer who cannot accept that what he did was the issue. He feels the need to blame Able. Maybe he believes that if Able was not around that God would be forced to accept his offering.
On the heals of God’s instructions to Cain, he then goes out and kills his brother Abel. What is up with that? Cain knows what is lacking, and surely what he is lacking is not the fault of Abel. Really, how can Abel’s love for God be such a problem for Cain? Without agreeing with Cain, from a human perspective, as a fallen person, it is understandable, Cain’s blaming God, after all, it is God who rejects his offering. But why be mad at Cain? Its like being mad at the kid who loves school? Or like being mad at Tim Tebow for praying?
At the Chick-Fil-A Leader Cast Coach Urban Meyer, the former head coach of the University of Florida Gators spoke of his relationship with Tim Tebow. He said, that when he first met Tim he did not like him, then went on to say that, the reason people don’t like Tebow is that Tim makes them look inward at themselves. What they really do not like, is not about Tebow, but it is about what they don’t like in themselves. Maybe that is what Cain did not like about Abel? Maybe that is why people don’t like the smart kid, and feel the need to have bumper stickers that say their dog is smarter than my honor student. Maybe, when we don’t do well, we feel the need to blame those that do well because inherently our dislike is little more than projected self-hatred? Cain knew that his offering was less than acceptable, yet he was still jealous of Abel. So he killed him.
Regardless of the why, we see the pattern repeat, don’t we? Cain is like Adam. He blames the other person, he blames God, and in the end, he ends up cast from the presence of God because he cannot accept responsibility for himself, and he gives into sin, and destroys other people, so that he can do what he wants to do, which is nothing. Adam said nothing, Cain, does nothing. Cain only brings God what he absolutely must, but he neither offers it in faith, nor makes the effort to do what is righteous, but he acts out of evil. That has echoed through history as the nature of mankind. Rather than being the noble children of God made in God’s image, man's history has been the ignoble brats who have blamed everyone else and never owned up to anything. The Bible identifies that history, not to rub our nose in it, but speaks of it in the hope that humanity would recognize it, and seize the moment to escape, to become mature, to identify sin, to embrace what is noble, and then to do good for the glory of God, and for personal benefit.
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