Legitimate Sacrifice

Genesis 4:2b-7 {selected}

2 Then she bore again, this time his brother Abel. Now Abel was a keeper of sheep, but Cain was a tiller of the ground. 3 And in the process of time it came to pass that Cain brought an offering of the fruit of the ground to the LORD. 4 Abel also brought of the firstborn of his flock and of their fat. And the LORD respected Abel and his offering, 5 but He did not respect Cain and his offering. And Cain was very angry, and his countenance fell. 6 So the LORD said to Cain, "Why are you angry? And why has your countenance fallen? 7 "If you do well, will you not be accepted? And if you do not do well, sin lies at the door. And its desire is for you, but you should rule over it."

Over the years I have heard a few people ask questions concerning the text before us. They range from, “Didn’t Cain do his best, and if so, why did God reject his offering?” to “I simply don’t understand what the big deal was.” Well, there are a few things to point out in this portion of Scripture which might help with our own understanding.

First, we have to go back a chapter to see the beginning of the problem here in chapter four. Genesis 3:21 says, “Also for Adam and his wife the LORD God made tunics of skin, and clothed them.” This was the skin of animals which the Lord took to cover the nakedness of Adam and Eve. If you have not yet seen the comparison, with this verse we can see the beginning of the redemption story. It took the death of an innocent, the shedding of blood, to cover the shame and sin of man. Here we see a type or figure of what Jesus is going to do when He comes. It is here that we first recognize the necessity of an innocent blood sacrifice to atone for sin.

Moving to the text for this entry, we find Cain and Abel, two of the sons of Adam and Eve, we find the boys grown, their careers respectable and necessary for life: farmer and shepherd. Both recognized their need to offer a sacrifice to God, but one failed to see what was truly needed. Cain gave an offering of his crops. There was no blood involved, nor does the text say the offering was of his best. Abel, on the other hand, gave the best that he had, and his was a blood sacrifice. Abel’s sacrifice was about respect and obedience. Cain’s was about formality and self.

We are reminded of two characters from the New Testament who seem similar to one another, but in reality, they are more spiritually related to Cain and Abel. Those characters are the rich young ruler and the Philippian jailer. The older of the two (at least chronologically in the Bible), the rich young ruler was like Cain, approaching Jesus with the question, “What must I do to have eternal life?” He had everything this world had to offer, had gone through the rituals, had followed the rules. But we see the selfishness of the question by the response Jesus gave him: sell everything, give it too the poor, and he would have treasure in heaven. However, the young man was not willing to pay the price.

On the other hand, we see the Philippian jailer (the younger of the two, again chronologically speaking) ask another question, different in its substance: “What must I do to be saved?” This man wanted salvation, while the young ruler wanted another possession, something else to “brag” about. The jailer was saved because of his sincerity and because he was willing to do what was necessary. Hence, we see why Cain’s offering was rejected, while his younger brother Abel’s sacrifice was accepted. (Notice offering verses sacrifice, and which is required.)

The reaction of Cain also reveals his selfish nature, that he became angry because his offering was not accepted. This was personal; he blamed everyone but himself, including his brother and God. So, to hide his own shame and guilt, he took it out on everyone else, eventually killing his brother and mocking God, saying, “What do I look like? A babysitter? You want to find my brother, then You look for Him.” A selfish and proud attitude will get you nowhere. Plus we see that one sin begets more sin. Disobedience, pride and selfishness led to anger, anger led to murder, which led to lying. Cain set out on a path that he didn’t think was all that big of a deal, but it took him further than he ever wanted to go. Such is the pattern of sin . . .every time.

Perhaps, though, the most telling verse of the passage under discussion is the final verse. God is not telling Cain (and us) that if you do your best things are okay. When He says, “If you do well . . .” the Lord is saying that if we do what is required, what is necessary. Atonement for sins comes only through the shedding of innocent blood. Anything short of that is sin. Sin is selfish, it robs us of victory, it separates us from the Father. The only innocent blood capable of being shed as a sacrifice and an atonement for our sin was the blood of Jesus.

In order to be saved, to find salvation, we must accept the sacrifice of Jesus as being for us. It is only through Him that we find salvation. And the Lord requires our best for Him. Remember that we are called upon to be “living sacrifices,” so in a sense we are giving our own blood, our lifeblood, to the Lord for His use. And what else? Giving ourselves as living sacrifices is our “reasonable service.” It is not unreasonable for God to demand that we gain salvation through His Son alone, nor is it unreasonable for Him to require our very best, our all, for Him. It doesn’t say, “Present part of your bodies as a living sacrifice,” nor does the Word say, “If you don’t want to give your bodies as a living sacrifice, something else will be sufficient.”

Still, the greatest truth to be found in this entry’s text (and the verse from chapter three) is the picture of Jesus and His sacrificial death for us. There need be no doubt nor fear, no questioning the reality or purpose of Jesus Christ. Yet we are compelled to evaluate our lives. Whom do we resemble, Cain or Abel? Do we resemble the rich young ruler or the Philippian jailer? Are we more interested in self, or in doing what the Lord requires, which is both reasonable and a blessing? Answering these questions now will help get us to where we truly want to be.

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