It was by faith that Abel brought a more acceptable offering to God than Cain did. Abel’s offering gave evidence that he was a righteous man, and God showed his approval of his gifts. Although Abel is long dead, he still speaks to us by his example of faith.
Hebrews 11:4 NLT
Yesterday we looked at the way of Cain. He was a man that God talked to personally, yet he was a man with no faith. This illustrates so clearly that faith is not just belief that God exists. Cain knew that God existed. God talked to him, and he answered God! They had a conversation, just like Adam and Eve had conversations with God. Faith in God is so very much more than belief in His existence. It’s fascinating to see that there is no record of God speaking directly to Abel, yet the Bible records that Abel was a man of faith.
Faith is always demonstrated through action. It is not merely an inward contemplation. Abel knew that God was to be worshipped through animal sacrifice, so he chose the best of the firstborn lambs to bring to God. It is so interesting to see how even at this early stage of history the picture is being painted of the perfect, spotless Lamb of God that would come to take away the sins of the world. Abel chose carefully and gave his finest to God, knowing that God was so very worthy of the best that he could bring. In contrast, Scripture tells us that Cain presented some of his crops. There is no mention of careful selection.
Abel placed great importance on bringing the right sacrifice in his worship of God. He knew that he was living in a sinful state. No doubt his father and mother had told both boys about the paradise of Eden that they had lost through their disobedience and doubt. They would have talked about the close fellowship they had had with God each evening. They would have talked about the sacrifice that God made on their behalf to clothe them. I’m sure that there would have been a yearning for that close relationship with God again, and the hope that He would soon send the promised seed who would crush the head of the serpent, the one who had deceived them. These testimonies must have created faith in the heart of Abel, and he sought to worship this wonderful Creator God and walk in His ways.
There are no details of how Abel lived his life, no good deeds or heroic acts recorded. All we know about him is that he brought the right sacrifice to God and this was credited to him as faith and righteousness. Abel was a faithful and righteous man because he knew there was a correct way to approach God.
Cain presented his crops. Abel brought his offering. I see a distinction being made here. Usually when we make a presentation of some kind, we are showing all our hard work and the skill that has gone into compiling whatever it is that is being presented. When we come before God all our good works, all of our skill and talent that we have worked so hard to perfect is worth less than nothing. The Bible compares all of our good deeds as filthy bloodstained rags. Imagine bringing that as an offering to an earthly king, let alone the King of Kings! It would be considered an insult.
A life of faith is always doing things God’s way for God’s glory. That is what Abel did. He showed his faith through bringing an atoning sacrifice to God as an act of worship. This sacrifice glorified God as it was showing an understanding of the need for atonement for sin, not reward for hard work.
We cannot earn our salvation through good works. God is pleased with faithful obedience, but he knows that as humans we will often fall into sin. We are all still in the process of learning to walk the walk and fight the good fight. We will not be perfected until we get to heaven. The important message we can learn from the lives of Cain and Abel is that the only way to approach God is by faith in the shed blood of Jesus. He is the atoning sacrifice. He alone can take away the penalty for our sin and bring us back into close fellowship with God again.
