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HeBrews: A Better Blend

Hello!! It’s Monday again, and that means it is time for another post from the Hebrews Bible study I am writing. This year we have worked our way through the book of Hebrews and now we are in chapter 11….the Faith chapter. Last week we looked at the entire 11th chapter for context. Today we zero in on one particular example of faith. Warren Wiersbe said in Be Confident: “True Bible faith is confident obedience to God’s Word in spite of circumstances and consequences.” (P. 120-121) Let’s use this quote from Weirsbe as we look today at the first man of faith, Abel, the son of Adam and Eve.

Consider what Hebrews 11: 4 says of Abel.

By faith Abel offered God a better sacrifice than Cain did. By faith he was commended as a righteous man, when God spoke well of his offerings. And by faith he still speaks, even though he is dead.

Abel, as you will remember, was the son of that disobedient pair, Adam and Eve. Abel and his brother, Cain, were the first humans who did not have a face-to-face relationship with God. They would have to walk out their earthly journeys by faith.

We are told in Genesis 4 that Cain and Abel each chose professions and when it was time to bring a tithe to God, Cain chose to bring a sacrifice that was not pleasing to God. This requires that we make the assumption that God had provided instructions about what an acceptable offering should be.  This seems like an important piece of information that God might have placed in Holy Scripture, but we must trust that God has divulged exactly what we need to know.

Why was Abel’s offering acceptable and Cain’s was not? I read Genesis 4: 1-15 over and over again and asked the Lord for clarity. As a result, I want to suggest one possible reason why Abel’s offering was accepted and Cain’s was not.  Genesis 4: 3 says that Cain brought ‘some of the fruits of the soil’, while Abel brought ‘fat portions from some of the firstborn of his flock’.

Even though Moses and the Israelites lived hundreds of years after Abel, perhaps Exodus 34: 19 might shed light on the issue of Abel’s acceptable offering? Check it out:

The first offspring of every womb belongs to me, including all the firstborn males of your livestock, whether from herd or flock.

Hundreds of years later, God would tell the Israelites that every firstborn belongs to Him….their firstborn child, their firstborn animals…every firstborn was dedicated to the Lord.

Colossians 1: 15 may add another piece to the puzzle. What does it call Jesus, the Better Sacrifice?

 He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation.

 Could it have been that God had already made clear to Adam and his family that He expected the firstborn or first fruits to be offered to Him? I don’t know for sure, but if that was the case and Cain only brought ‘some’ of his fruits, rather than the first fruit of his labor, it would not have pleased God. In fact, it would have signaled that Cain, like his parents, was rebellious and eager to go his own way.

I’m partial to John MacArthur’s thoughts on this topic.

“There was nothing intrinsically wrong with a grain or fruit or vegetable offering. The Mosaic covenant included such offerings. But the blood offerings were always first, because only the blood offerings dealt with sin. P.299

He goes on to say, “In Abel’s sacrifice, the way of the cross was first prefigured. The first sacrifice was Abel’s lamb—one lamb for one person. Later came the Passover—with one lamb for one family. Then came the Day of Atonement—with one lamb for one nation. Finally came Good Friday—one Lamb for the whole world.” P.301

For all the unanswered questions we have about this story, we know that Abel offered his offering by faith and God accepted it. What difference did faith make in Abel’s life? It brought the smiling nod of God’s approval on his life. Did it save him from violence? No, but Abel has the honor of being the first martyr of the faith, a distinction that will earn him a special crown in heaven to cast at the feet of Jesus.

MEDITATION MOMENT: Being obedient to God is not always easy, as Abel found out. Can you share a time when you experienced a difficult obedience, yet you were blessed because you walked in faith and did what God asked. 

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