Could it be that it was not offered in faith or because the fruits of the ground had no blood?
Anybody out there who might clarify this?
@"ByGrace" @Butterfly @Pearl ...
'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.'
(Hebrews 11:4)
Hello
@Nancy,
The verse (
above) tells us that Abel offered his sacrifice, 'by faith': and we know that faith comes by
'hearing' -
'and hearing by the word of God'. So, Abel had heard the means of approach that would be acceptable to God, and so also must Cain, but Abel exercised,
'faith obedience', by bringing a lamb: and obtained witness that he was righteous in so doing by the acceptance of his gift; which would have been by fire.
* Each man desired to approach God, and to gain His favour, but one gift was accepted the other not.
* Cain brought what he had grown in the soil, the fruit of his own labour, labour on a ground that had been cursed by God, in which weeds and thistles now grew, making the job so much harder physically, and affecting it's yield. Yes, Cain came his own way, not God's way; seeking to establish his own righteousness by his own efforts, and so his offering was not accepted. It was the offering that was made by faith, in obedience to the word heard from God, that was accepted.
'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.'
(Gen 4:7)
* This verse (
above) is a strange little verse at first sight, and yet it does add a little more insight to the question you pose. For God is speaking to Cain, and the margin of my Bible tells me in relation to the words,
'sin lieth at the door', that
'sin' =
'sin offering'. In the Hebrew it reads, '
at the entrance (
a male)
is lying, a sin offering'. So a sin offering was provided for Cain, it was at the entrance, and at his disposal to use as he desired. He could also thereby have gained God's favour. Yet Cain chose not to avail himself of the opportunity afforded him; instead he went out and spoke to his brother, which led to him taking Abel's life.
'For this is the message that ye heard from the beginning,
that we should love one another.
Not as Cain, who was of that wicked one, and slew his brother.
And wherefore slew he him?
Because his own works were evil, and his brother's righteous.
Marvel not, my brethren, if the world hate you.
We know that we have passed from death unto life,
because we love the brethren.
He that loveth not his brother abideth in death.
Whosoever hateth his brother is a murderer:
and ye know that no murderer hath eternal life abiding in him.
(1 John 3:11-15)
Praise God! For His mercy and His grace.
Thank you.
In Christ Jesus
Chris