The Faith of Abel. Continues Heb. 11:4-7. (141)
“By faith Abel offered unto God a more excellent sacrifice than Cain. Let us now consider wherein it was “more excellent” than Cain’s.
- “Gen 4:3 says, “Cain brought of the fruit of the ground an offering unto the Lord.” Cain came before Him as a worshipper; but he refused to conform to the Divine appointment. We may observe four things. First, it was a bloodless one, and “without shedding of blood is no remission” Heb. 9:22. Second, it was merely the fruit of his toils, the product of his labors. Third, he deliberately ignored the sentence of God in Gen. 3:17: “Cursed is the ground.” Fourth, he despised the grace made known in Gen. 3:21.
- Thus, in Cain we behold the first hypocrite. He refused to comply with the revealed will of God. He would not obey the Divine appointment yet brought an offering to the Lord. He believed not that death was his due and could only be escaped by a substitute; yet he sought to approach the Lord. This is the “way of Cain” spoken of by Jude 11. It is the way of self-will, of unbelief, of disobedience, and of religious hypocrisy. Cain, the elder, Gen. 4 represents a company who honor God with their lips, but whose hearts are far from Him; who pose as worshippers but live to please themselves. Abel, on the other hand, hated by Cain, foreshadowed that “little flock,” who bow to God’s will, comply with His commandments, fly to Christ for refuge, and are accepted by God.
- Both of them were “shapen in iniquity and conceived in sin,” they were the fallen sons of fallen parents, and were born outside of Eden; yet one was “of that Wicked one” 1Jn. 3:12, while the other was one of God’s elects. The sovereign grace is “no respecter of persons, Abel was inferior in dignity; God Himself said to Cain, “Thou shalt rule over him” (Gen. 4:7). But spiritual blessings do not follow the order of external privileges: Shem is preferred before Japheth Gen. 5:32, 10:2, 21; Isaac before Ishmael, Jacob before Esau.” Pink Arthur W.
- “By faith, Abel offered unto God a more excellent sacrifice than Cain.” The superiority of Abel’s worship may, perhaps, be set forth thus. Heb. 9:22, Pr. 15:8; 21:27, Tit. 1:16, Jude 11.
- First, it was offered in obedience to God’s revealed will. This lies at the very foundation of all actions which are acceptable unto God: nothing can be pleasing unto Him except that which He has stipulated: everything else is “will worship” Col. 2:23.
- Second, it was offered “by faith”: this tells us that there was something more than the mere performance of an outward duty; only that is approved of God which proceeds from the living principle of faith, kindled in the heart by the Holy Spirit. True obedience and faith are never apart: therefore, we read of “the obedience of faith” Rom. 1:5. Yet though inseparable, they are distinguishable in thought: faith respects the word of promise; obedience the word of command, for promises and precepts go hand in hand. We act in obedience, when the commandment is uppermost in our minds and hearts, which puts us to the performing of duties; we act in faith, when the promise is looked at and the reward is counted upon.
- Third, Abel had a “willing mind” 2Cor. 8:12. Faith works by “love” Gal. 5:6. This is seen in the fact that he brought of his best: it was “of the firstlings of his flock,” which God afterwards took as His portion Ex. 13:12; when slain, it was the “fat” which he presented which later God also claimed as His own Lev. 3:16; 7:25. Thus, it was of the most precious and valuable things on earth which Abel brought to God. So, it is our best which He requires of us: “Son, give Me thine heart” Prov. 23:26; it is “with the heart man believeth unto righteousness” Rom. 10:10.
- Fourth, his sacrificial offering looked forward to and adumbrated the great sacrifice, the Lamb of God which taketh away the sin of the world. In all these four things Abel excelled Cain. Cain did not act in obedience, for he disregarded the Divine appointment. He did not offer in faith. Nothing is said of any choice of excellent fruit: it was as though he brought the first which came to hand. His offering contained no foreshadowment of Christ.
- Let us see the practical teaching here. 1. To serve God acceptably we must disregard all human inventions, lean not unto our own understandings and adhere strictly to the revelation which He made of His will. 2. All obedience, service, and worship, must proceed from faith, for “without faith it is impossible to please Him” Heb. 11:6 3. We are to serve God with the best that we have: with the best of our abilities, and with the best of our substance. 4. In all our religious exercises Christ must be before us, for only as they are perfumed with His merits can they meet with God’s acceptance.” Pink Arthur W
