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Firm Foundations

Creation to Christ

Lesson 13 - God Rejected Cain and His Offering,

but Accepted Abel and His Offering

Questions for the LFC Firm Foundations Coordinator may be emailed to firmfoundations@lenoxchurch.org

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REVIEW QUESTIONS:

1. Why did God refuse the clothes which Adam and Eve made? Because God wanted to teach Adam and Eve that they couldn’t do anything to make themselves acceptable to God.

2. Can a person make himself acceptable to God by putting on good clothes or by anything that he does? No.

3. What are some of the things you can think of that men do to try to make themselves acceptable to God?

4. Will God accept any of these things? No.

5. Who is the only one who could make Adam and Eve acceptable to God? God.

6. Why did God kill animals to make clothing for Adam and Eve? Because God was reminding Adam and Eve that the punishment for sin is death.

7. Why did God make them clothes? Because, even though they had sinned, He still loved them, and He wanted to show them that He was the only one who could make them acceptable to Him.

8. In what way did Adam and Eve become like God after they ate the fruit of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil? They now knew that there was evil as well as good.

9. Why did God put Adam and Eve out of the garden of Eden? So that they wouldn’t be able to eat the fruit from the tree of life and live forever in sin.

10. How did God make sure they wouldn’t be able to return? He placed angels called cherubim and a sword of fire flashing every direction to keep them away.

11. Can anyone trick or deceive God? No.

12. Who gives every person his life? God.

13. Where were Cain and Abel born? Outside of the garden of Eden.

14. Why were Cain and Abel born sinners and separated from God? Because of their father, Adam.

15. Why were we all born sinners and separated from God? Because Adam is also our father.

How serious is sin?

What if someone refuses to believe God and chooses to disobey Him?

Could you say, “Well, that’s his own business, if he wants to do that”?

Does a man’s sin affect other people?

Can a man work out some way to take care of his sins?

Is it true that each man can choose his own way to come to God?

Won’t God accept any sincere effort we make?

Let’s see what answers God gives us to these questions as we study the story of Adam and Eve’s sons, Cain and Abel, and their descendants.

There was no way that Adam and Eve or Cain and Abel could come to God.

- They were all sinners, and God hates sin.

- They were separated from God.

- The punishment for sin is death.

- They could not give anything to God to pay for their sins.

But God planned a way so they could come to Him.

- It was not man’s way.

- It was God who decided on this way.

- No one else could make a way for them. God made a way for them because He loved them.

God must have told Adam and Eve what they must do if they wanted to come to Him. Adam and Eve probably told Cain and Abel what God said they must do if they wished to come to God. The Bible gives us good reason to believe that God communicated these things to Adam and Eve and that Abel and Cain knew, too. Later in this lesson, we plan to talk about this subject in more detail.

Here is what God must have told them:

- When they came to Him, they had to bring a sheep as an offering to Him.

- They had to kill the animal in such a way that the animal’s blood would flow out. The blood of the animals could not pay for their sin; why then would God tell them to kill a sheep?

- Because God wanted them to remember that the punishment for sin is death.

- He wanted them to remember that they would die and go to everlasting punishment unless He saved them.

- If they agreed with God that they were sinners and that only He could save them from everlasting punishment, then they were to bring a sheep and kill it, as God had told them to.

- Explanation:

At the beginning of this course, we said that we would be studying the foundational issues and the main themes of the Bible. This is one of the wonderful things about God’s Word: these main themes are consistent all the way through the Bible. The fact that God is holy and righteous and demands death as the payment for sin is one of these foundational themes. And along with this, the Bible clearly states that blood must be shed for sin.

God promised that if they came by faith, offering to Him the blood of animals, He would accept them and forgive their sins.

”And according to the law almost all things are purified with blood, and without shedding of blood there is no remission.”

These are just two examples of this foundational principle that runs throughout the Bible. The blood sacrifice for sin was part of God’s gracious plan to deliver man from sin and Satan and death.

Both Cain and Abel believed in the existence of God, and both came to offer sacrifices to Him.

- Consider:

Cain and Abel remind us of two different classes of people who attend church: those who come to worship God according to man’s ideas and those who come in the way God has said.

- Consider:

Just believing in God and even offering to God what we think is very good will not make us acceptable to Him. The Bible says in James 2:19, “You believe that there is one God. You do well. Even the demons believe – and tremble!” (Demons—those spirit beings that participated with Satan [then called Lucifer] in his rebellion against God and who were cast out of Heaven with Satan.) But believing in God doesn’t make Satan’s demons acceptable to God. As we go on, we will see what happened to Cain and Abel.

Abel brought one of his sheep as an offering to God.

- It was the firstborn lamb of its mother.

- Abel killed the sheep so its blood ran out, and he offered the sheep, along with the fat, to God.

Why did Abel bring this offering to God?

- Because he agreed with God that he was a sinner and that only God could save him from everlasting punishment.

- Because he believed the promises God had given his parents while they were still in the garden of Eden. God had promised that He would send a great Deliverer. God promised that the Deliverer would destroy Satan and save man from Satan’s power. Was God pleased with Abel’s offering? Did God accept Abel? Yes, He did. God was very pleased with his offering, and He accepted Abel.

- Explanation:

It is important to understand that the blood of animals could never pay for sin. God did not accept Abel’s lamb as the payment for his sin. Sin must be paid for by the sinner being separated from God forever. But God forgave Abel’s sin and accepted him because Abel trusted, not in himself, but in God who had promised to send the Deliverer.

As an offering to God, Cain brought the things which he had grown. But God would not accept Cain or his offering.

Why not?

- Was it because the things Cain grew and brought to God were not good?

- Was it because God doesn’t like things grown from the ground?

- No, these are not the reasons.

- Did God reject Cain’s offering because Cain was a worse sinner than Abel?

- No, that wasn’t the reason why God would not accept him.

- Both Cain and Abel were born sinners. It is important that we are clear in our own minds why God rejected Cain and his offering but accepted Abel and his offering.

- Explanation:

The book of Hebrews gives us some clear insights. In Hebrews 11, God says that without faith it is impossible to please Him. He also tells us that Abel was a man of faith; Cain was not. Then, in the book of Romans, God tells us that faith is always based on the Word of God. Romans 10:17 says, “...faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.”

To approach God in any way except the way God has told us is presumption and sin. God will reject the man who tries to come to Him in his own way. Everything which originates with man is unacceptable to God. On this basis, we can be sure that Abel’s faith was dependent on a clear directive given by God. It must have been; otherwise, it would not have been acceptable to God. Another indication that Abel was following God’s command is emphasized through Abel’s action in bringing to God the fat of the lamb. Later in Scripture, God commands Israel, that is, the Hebrew people, to bring the fat to Him. To suggest that bringing the fat of animals to God originated with Abel is contrary to the whole emphasis of Scripture. God doesn’t accept anything which originates with man.

God rejected Cain and his offering because:

- Cain didn’t come to God admitting he was a sinner.

- He came to God in his own way, according to his own ideas, and not in the way which God had commanded.

- Cain did not believe God.

- He did not trust in the way which God had told them to come.

- That is why God rejected him.

- Consider:

Do you remember how God rejected the clothes which Adam and Eve made for themselves? Why did God refuse to accept the clothing they made? Because God wanted to show them that they couldn’t make themselves acceptable to God by anything they could do. It had to be done in God’s way. The animals had to die, and their blood had to be shed so that Adam and Eve could have clothes that were acceptable to God. Likewise with Cain and Abel. God would not accept them unless they trusted in Him and came to Him in the way He had said. God would only accept them if they brought a sheep and killed it, shedding its blood. Abel believed God and came God’s way, so God accepted him. Cain came trusting in his own way, so God refused him.

God has not changed; He is still the same today. Although He does not command us now to sacrifice sheep, He still does stipulate the only way anyone can come to Him. We too must come God’s way; otherwise, He will reject us as He rejected Cain.

- Illustration:

Take a look at a branch broken off from a tree. It died after a while because it was separated from the life it received from the tree .What if you tried to join this dead branch back onto the tree so that once again it would be able to receive the life from the tree? If you tied the branch back onto the tree, would it come back to life again? Would the leaves turn green once again and begin to grow? Do you think that you would be able to join the branch back on the tree so it would have life again? No, you cannot join a dead branch back onto the tree so that it will live once again. It was separated from the tree, and you cannot put it back.

- Consider:

It seems like many people spend a good part of their lives trying to find a way to “reattach” themselves to the source of spiritual life. Their efforts might include activities that seem very religious: going to church, giving money to the church, doing all sorts of “good deeds,” being a “good person,” or any number of things. Can you think of some examples of this type of self-effort to come to God?

Since we are all born sinners, we were all “detached” from our source of life, who is God. But there is absolutely nothing that we can do on our own that will restore us to God. Sin has broken us off from God, just like the limb was broken off from the tree.

- Consider:

That is how it was with Adam, Eve, Cain, and Abel. Because Adam and Eve disobeyed God, they were separated from God. Therefore, Cain and Abel were born outside of the garden and were also separated from God. They could not bring themselves back into fellowship with God. Adam and Eve made themselves clothes to try to make themselves acceptable to God, but He rejected their clothes. Cain came to God in his own way, and God rejected him and his offering. Only God was able to make a way so they could come back to Him and be His friends once again.

We, too, are all the descendants of Adam. We were all born sinners, separated from God because of our father Adam .We cannot make ourselves God’s friends. Only God could make a way for us to come back to Him.

Even though Cain refused to believe God and deliberately went his own way, God reasoned with him. Because of God’s love and mercy, He talked to Cain and tried to get him to come to God in the right way. God wanted Cain to know that he, too, would be accepted if he came as his brother came, believing God’s Word, offering the blood, and trusting in God and His promise of the Deliverer.

Cain was very angry. He would not listen to God. He was listening to Satan, just as his mother and father had done in the garden.

- Consider:

Many people today are just like Cain; they refuse to listen to God, and they end up hurting others. Sometimes their rebellion against God leads to violent crimes like Cain’s murder of his brother Abel. Sometimes the result is less violent—it may only show in bitter attitudes or selfish actions. But the result is always tragic and hurtful to others.

Who was leading Cain? To whom was Cain listening? Who do you think put it into Cain’s mind to kill his brother? Satan!

- Consider:

Remember that we talked about Satan’s deceitfulness? He wants us to think that we would never be like Cain; we would never hurt or kill someone. But look how quickly Cain’s anger flared! And look at the trail of sin and violence that has followed his rebellion!

One of the things that many people fail to look at is that the way of sin is death, whether it be a violent murder, or a slow process of simply living apart from God, and finally dying and going to an eternity spent away from God’s presence in the Lake of Fire.

Originally, Satan murdered Cain’s mother and father. He said to them, “You won’t die. You will be all right. Don’t listen to God. God is only trying to keep back some good fruit from you.” But Satan knew that, if Adam and Eve ate the fruit of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, they would die. He lied to them when he said, “You will not die.” Satan wanted Adam and Eve to die, and he wanted Cain to kill Abel. Satan is a murderer. Satan hates all people and will lie and deceive with the purpose of leading all of us to the place of everlasting punishment where he is going.

In John 8:44, the Bible calls Satan a “murderer.” Even right now, Satan is still telling people not to believe God; not to believe God’s Word, the Bible.

Although God asked this question, He already knew that Cain had killed Abel.

- God saw him do it.

- God is everywhere and knows everything.

God is the avenger of all sin.

- All sin against other people is also sin against God.

- God is the Creator of all people; therefore He punishes anyone who says or does anything harmful to another person.

- Consider:

Would you stand by and not do anything while someone attacked your wife, your child, or someone you loved? God is the Creator of all people. He gave Adam life, and He gave life to each one of us. Even though we are all born into this world separated from God, we still belong to Him. God is concerned about what happens to us, even though we are sinners. Just as we have concern for even our wayward family members, so God also has concern for us. And we rightfully belong to Him, because He made us.

What if someone came and stole your stereo equipment; would the stereo be the property of the thief, or would it still be yours? Of course, it would still belong to you. What if the person who stole the stereo ruined it? Still, it would belong to you, even though it had been ruined.

All people rightfully belong to God even though Satan stole Adam and all of us from God. God will punish those who hurt others because everyone rightfully belongs to Him. An offense is not just against an individual; it is against God, because He is the Giver of life to all people.

- This doesn’t mean that God will immediately avenge all evil, but the payment for all sin must be paid to God. The wages of sin is death. No other payment is acceptable.

- Giving money to a charity will not pay for our sins.

- Giving money to a church will not pay for our sin or satisfy God.

All sin will finally be punished by God, for He is the rightful owner of every person.

Cain still would not listen to God.

- He went away from God, following Satan’s ways. Cain would not repent; He refused to change his attitude toward God and toward his sin.

Cain’s descendants followed his example.

- They lived without thinking about God. Instead, they filled their lives with material and physical things. They built towns, raised cattle, and made tools and musical instruments. There is nothing wrong with these things in themselves; what was wrong was that they concerned themselves with these things and excluded God. They filled their minds and time doing the things they wanted to do. They had no interest or time for God and the things He wanted them to know.

- They were under the control of Satan.

- Consider:

See what a terrible effect disobedience to God had already brought into the world! Because Adam and Eve sinned, all of their descendants were born sinners, separated from God and without oneness of mind with God. Their first son, Cain, murdered their second son, Abel. Cain turned away from God and would not listen to His words. As a result, Cain’s children and their children also went their own way instead of God’s way. They lived according to their own sinful ways because they didn’t know God nor did they seek Him and His truth. They were guided by Satan and his lies. If parents turn away from God’s truth and refuse to listen to God, probably their children will not listen to the Word of God either. We are responsible, not only for ourselves, but for our children, too. We should listen to God’s Word and also make sure that our children are exposed to the Word of God.

God gave Adam and Eve another child in place of Abel who was killed by Cain. In the garden, God had promised that He would send a Deliverer who would overcome Satan.

- This one would have come through the line of Abel who had trusted in God.

- But Satan guided Cain to kill Abel. Satan tried in every way to hinder God’s plan to send the Deliverer.

- Consider:

Did this mean the end of God’s plan and promise to send the Deliverer? No! God always does what He promises. He doesn’t give up or change because of the things Satan does. In place of Abel, God gave Seth to Adam and Eve.

Seth was also born separated from God, but he trusted in God just as Abel did. God planned that the Deliverer would come into the world through the line of Seth.

QUESTIONS:

1. Why did God accept Abel and his offering?

a.

b.

c.

2. Why did God reject Cain and his offering?

a.

b.

c.

3. Why did God reason with Cain?

4. Did Cain believe and agree with God?

5. What did Cain do?

6. How did God know what Cain had done?

7. Why will God punish people for saying and doing evil things to others?

8. Does God forget about sin against others if the person makes it right with the one whom he wronged?

9. Did Cain finally change his mind?

10. What was the result?

11. Do you know of anything you can do to make payment for the sins you have committed?

12. What were the things for which Cain and his descendants lived?

13. Why did God give Seth to Adam and Eve.?

a..

b.

THE FOLLOWING IS AN OPTIONAL QUESTION:

14. What lessons can we learn from these stories of ancient men?

Suggested Daily Bible Readings:

Day 61: Numbers, Chapters 4 and 5

Day 62: Numbers, Chapters 6 and 7

Day 63: Numbers, Chapters 8 and 9

Day 64: Numbers, Chapters 10 and 11

Day 65: Numbers, Chapters 12 and 13