10 Weeks in Genesis: Lesson 3
WEEK THREE: WATCH EPISODE 4 FROM BIBLE IN A YEAR STUDY
CAIN AND ABEL:
If you grew up in church, the story of Cain and Abel was one of the first ones you were taught, but I think the depth of this story was left off our coloring pages and felt board Sunday school lessons.
The first question is, "Why did the Lord not regard Cain's offering?" I was always told it was because Cain did not give his best or offered the wrong type of sacrifice. At this point, we are more than 2500 years away from God's Law on the type and method of sacrifices pleasing to him.
Let's do the math. From the creation of Adam to the flood in Genesis 7, we have at least 1656 years. From the flood to Abram, another 292 years passed. From Abram to Isaac 100 years. From Isaac to Jacob, 60 years. Jacob enters Egypt when he is 130 years old, and the Israelites will live in Egypt for 430 years before they leave and receive the Law. So it could not be that Cain violated the rules of sacrifice, for there weren't any. At least not yet. We so often read the Bible from our perspective and worldview. We, as church-going people, know that the Law was a real thing and that there were actually rules for the sacrifices. Seldom do we take into account the timeline of the story. When we read carefully, we realize Cain was not in violation of the Mosaic Law.
The rest of the Bible gives us clues as to why God may hate a sacrifice. We see in Isaiah 1 and Amos 5 that God's chief concern was the giver's heart. In fact, in each of these texts, the Israelites offered the correct type of sacrifice and were still rejected by God since the heart of the one offering the sacrifice was far from God. In Isaiah, God says, "What to me is the multitude of your sacrifices? I have had enough of burnt offerings and rams and the fat of well-fed beasts; I do not delight in the blood of bulls, or of lambs, or of goats." Or consider Amos, "Even though you offer me your burnt offerings and grain offerings, I will not accept them; and the peace offerings of your fattened animals, I will not look upon them." It is very important for us to see that the Jews were offering the correct offerings to God in both texts. However, these offerings were rejected by God since the people's hearts were far from God, their maker and Savior.
A heart far from God seems to ring true when John condemns Cain's deeds as evil in 1 John 3:12. "We should not be like Cain, who was of the evil one and murdered his brother. And why did he murder him? Because his own deeds were evil and his brother's righteous." Or, to make the point from a different direction, consider 2 Corinthians 8:12. Let me set it up for you. Paul is rebuking the church in Corinth because though they had previously promised a financial gift to the saints in Jerusalem to give them aid in times of famine, they have decided to withdraw their gift since it wasn't as large as originally promised. Perhaps they were embarrassed they had overpromised. But Paul encourages them with this, "If the willingness is there, it is acceptable according to what a person has, not according to what he does not have." In other words, it is the willingness of the heart that makes a gift acceptable to God and not the size or shape of the gift. We tend to spiritualize this text and ask people, "Are you giving God your best today?" Then we add, "He won't accept anything less than your best." This is absolutely manipulation and gaslighting. If you and I are people of faith, then we are acceptable to God, not because of what we've done or failed to do, but because of the glorious work of Jesus. Please keep this in mind as you discuss these things. We were often taught from Romans 12:1, "Present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship." I can't tell you how many times I was encouraged/challenged to make sure I was holy and acceptable. "Be sure you're doing the right thing." Or "You want to be acceptable to God don't you?" The guilt I carried was overwhelming. How could I ever know if I was acceptable enough in God's sight? But Romans has been telling the story of salvation. When Paul says, "Offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable," he is not saying that we should try to be holy and acceptable, but that we ARE holy and acceptable. God has already made us new in Christ. That is why we should "Not be conformed to this world."
Furthermore, we see that the blood of Abel, his or that of his offering we don't know, speaks a great word, but the blood of Christ is better by far. (See Hebrews 12:24) So, as beautiful testimony as the blood of Abel bore on Abel's behalf, we find the blood of Jesus speaking a better testimony on our behalf. An interesting side note here is that "the blood of Abel" is disputed among Bible teachers. Some think it is a reference to the blood of Abel spilled on the ground by Cain and others think it is the blood that Abel offered to God via sacrifice. Let's consider them both. If it references the actual blood of Abel spilled on the ground, we are reminded that Abel's blood cried out to God from the ground. In this case, the author of Hebrews is saying that the blood of Jesus cries out to God a better thing on our behalf than did the blood of Abel. If, however, the author of Hebrews has Abel's sacrifice in mind, by which Abel was declared righteous, then the author is telling us that Jesus as a sacrifice imparts better righteousness than that of Abel's animal sacrifice. Either way, the point is that Christ is superior, and both views end up exalting our Savior. I have a particular leaning between these two options, but I hardly feel it is worth debate since the goal is the elevation of our Savior and King.
One final thought: Cain was to be avenged by God sevenfold if someone raised their hands against him. Lamech insisted he should be avenged seventy times seven times. These numbers in this form both deal with vengeance for wrongs done but occur in another conversation between Jesus and Peter where forgiveness is the topic of discussion. I don't think the numbers and their juxtaposition are by chance. God, in his mercy, was willing to avenge Cain seven times. Lamech, in his pride, wanted to be avenged 490 times over. Peter, in his ego, was sure that seven times of forgiveness would be sufficient to show grace, and Jesus raised the bar to 490 times. I have many more thoughts on this topic but now is not the right time. So, I leave you with this: whatever degree you consider forgiveness to be sufficient, it should probably go beyond that.
KEY TAKEAWAYS:
God always looks at the heart rather than the size or shape of the offering.
As to us bringing "acceptable offerings" to God: Jesus has made us acceptable.
Jesus is better than the blood of Abel. (either view you take)
Forgiveness is a beautiful mark of a follower of Christ.
DISCUSSION:
What, if anything, stood out to you today in the video? What thoughts were new or encouraging to you?
How was Cain's offering shaped for you as a young believer in church?
When you consider Isaiah, Amos, and 2 Corinthians, how do those texts help you frame the offering of Cain better?
Why do we struggle to see ourselves as "holy and acceptable?" How might we rectify that?
Take some time to discuss the two different views of the "blood of Abel." Which way do you lean? Talk about it while remembering it doesn't change the endpoint.
What is a key takeaway from today's lesson you hope to hold on to?
PRAYER:
God, we thank you for making us holy and acceptable in your sight through the work of Jesus on the cross. Thank you for your continued Grace to us. Help us to know and enjoy you more fully with each passing day. Use us for your glory. Amen.
