Bible Study Genesis Part 47-What's Wrong with Cain

Welcome to the program Study in the Chapel.

God's Word is supreme at Chapel Ministries.

We consider it absolutely essential to a proper relationship with God.

We study it, we love it, we rely on it every minute of every day.

The following program is an edited recording of the regular Bible studies we hold.

And we decided to share these with you in the hope that you too will be able to find inspiration, encouragement, and ultimately salvation through discovering Christ in Scripture.

Our intention is to travel all the way through the Bible.

It will be a challenging journey, but one that will undoubtedly bring you to a decision.

Through this study, you will be faced with either believing or rejecting what God has said to us.

It is our intention to provide you with enough knowledge to make an informed decision about God and his word.

We strongly encourage you to listen intently and diligently, because though at the moment you may not realize it, these things are truly a matter of life and death.

In fact, these are matters of eternal life and eternal death.

Never treat what God has said lightly.

There's truly nothing more important to you.

Now join us as we seek God's will through his inspired word.

Alright, thank God for his word.

As usual, we are trying to find more about him.

You know, we think about this all of the time.

Why do you spend so much time studying God's word?

I mean, when I went to church when I was a kid, we didn't study it all that much.

We did, we went to communion or we did some kneeling or some singing or some candlelighting.

But what's the what's the deal with all of this scripture stuff?

Well, this is where we learn about God.

Everybody says, Well, I love God.

Well, how do you know love you love God if you don't know anything about him?

God doesn't expect you to have blind love for him.

If he did, he would have never given us his word.

What we have to understand is he created us as sensitive beings, beings that are intelligent, beings that process things.

We're not automatic, we're not flowers, we're not animals, we're human beings, and he gave us the ability to learn.

And the one thing he wants us to learn the most is about him, and that's what this Bible study is all about.

So we are still in the book of Genesis, we are still in the fourth chapter.

We've actually just gotten started with the fourth chapter, so let's go ahead and jump in again.

And Adam knew his, knew Eve his wife, and she conceived and bare Cain and said, I have gotten a man from the Lord.

We talked about that last week.

And she again bare his brother Abel, and Abel was a keeper of sheep, but Cain was a tiller of the ground.

If you remember, we were saying that perhaps Cain and Abel were twins, and we figured that by the way those two verses are structured.

We are not going to go back there this time because really there is no solid evidence for it.

We're just kind of pulling things together.

So the two first people to be born on the earth have arrived, and through them, big surprise, God is going to continue to teach us the gospel.

Now, be prepared, people.

This is going to be the theme for 66 straight books.

Even though we're accustomed to calling Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John the gospel, in reality the whole thing is the gospel.

Verse 3, and in the process of time it came to pass that Cain brought of the fruit of the ground an offering unto the Lord.

And Abel he also brought of the firstlings of his flock and of the fat thereof.

And the Lord had respect unto Abel and to his offering, but unto Cain and to his offering he had not respect.

And Cain was very wroth, and his countenance fell.

I I feel a long, involved discussion coming on.

Now this is one of the most famous and subsequently one of the most famous.

I'm sorry, this is one of the most fascinating and subsequently one of the most famous sections of all the Bible.

I was thinking about Catherine teasing me.

She and I go over the notes together before we go on the air, and she was teasing me that I keep saying this is the most fascinating part of the Bible.

What it is, I can't help but they're all fascinating.

So this is one of the most fascinating and subsequently one of the most famous sections of all the Bible.

Hardly a person is unaware of it.

And I'm not just talking about churchgoers.

The story of Cain and Abel is just as well known among the outside of the congregation as it is among the inside.

Little wonder.

There are lots of things to talk about.

And for some, there are lots of things to argue about.

You see, here again, we see God calling someone out.

Here we get the distinct impression that God is displeased with someone.

And you know, that bothers a lot of people.

The majority think that God is being, I don't know if this is the right word, but people seem to consider God rude for pointing out when someone fails to meet his standard.

In fact, they think he's rude for having a standard.

Now, I must admit, I don't really know how anyone can deny that God has every right to have expectations and rules and boundaries.

So I'm a little foggy as to how to approach such an attitude, but nonetheless, it is pervasive.

I mean, look around.

Almost daily you can read.

Well, if you read the, if you read the things I read, let me put it this way: almost daily I'll read an article about a church or a denomination or some other form of Christian association that's in absolute uproar over some sort of worldly earthbound concern.

Take your pick.

There's lots of these sorts of things that come up and cause trouble among church members.

And very few of them have anything to do with the gospel.

So much energy is being expended in our churches on the most minor of issues.

And you know that the typical fight within the congregation is usually between the so-called hardliners on one side and the progressives on the other.

The hardliners are the ones that insist that God has said certain things are wrong and certain other things are acceptable, and that no one else has the power or the right or the authority to countermand those declarations.

The progressives, however, will argue that such unbending adherence to old, will the less contentious will call them traditions of men, while the less civil will label such things as bigoted repressions.

However, they label it, they claim that it's no longer relevant if it ever was.

Their argument is either God didn't really create these set of fun killing rules.

He was just a bunch of old white dudes who don't like to smile, or God did in fact set these parameters, but he was mistaken, and he did so only because, well, he doesn't know as much about us as we do.

Now, again, that may seem ludicrous to those that love God and his word, but that is the reality.

Increasingly, the world does not like God poking his nose into our business.

So they spend a lot of time telling him that he's not allowed to do this or that.

And that's exactly what we hear about his treatment of Cain.

Why does God think it's okay to speak so harshly to this poor farmer?

After all, he thought he was doing what he was supposed to be doing.

He thought God would be nicer to him because, well, at least he tried.

So some will attempt to use this story to point out that God is unfair, that he's repressive and frankly self-interested and has no regard for human beings.

And so, why should we put any effort into trying to please him, let alone worship him?

Believe me, that's how people see this part of Scripture.

They see God as being unfair, dark-minded, violent even.

Now, before continuing this discussion, I will admit that the vast majority of those who oppose God don't really think He exists.

That's actually the real reason they behave so boldly.

That's why they're so confident in their rebellion.

Very few would have the guts to stand up to a God who they think is real.

They don't want to do what their God wants them to do, so they just say he doesn't exist.

Ever see a parent chastising their little one, and the only reaction a child can muster to close their eyes or cover their eyes in a vain attempt to make a mad mommy go away?

Yeah, same thing here.

With about the same level of effectiveness and maturity.

Therefore, when I refer to those who oppose God, it's really more accurate to say those who oppose those who believe in God and are obedient to him.

That's really who we're talking about.

In other words, the rebellion is really toward the fools who think there's such a thing as God and who wish to honor him with their obedience.

So that's number one.

People zero in on this story to try to explain it away.

They'll highlight it as an example of the injustice of a higher power who tries to put boundaries around human behavior, someone who tries to limit our liberty.

We should be free, man.

We should be able to do whatever we want to.

That thing you call a God, all he wants to do is keep you down.

Or all of this, including God, is just an just an invention of nefarious men whose only real goal is to control the thoughts and behavior of others.

And then there are those who actually take a keen interest in this story and try to figure out what God expects from us.

They diligently analyze the facts to gain insight into how to avoid God's wrath.

Have any of you tried to do that?

Have any of you read the Bible and thought, well, this is the way God feels about this?

Perhaps I should work my way towards that.

Have you ever used the Bible to instruct you on how to live your life?

Do you take it that seriously?

Do you think it is literally the word of God and that he's trying to tell you something?

Because that's what it is.

Now, before going any further, I want to give you what I believe is the simple answer to this problem.

And by the way, this isn't my opinion, this is scriptural.

I'll explain it later.

For now, I just want to make a brief statement.

So let's real quick read the passage that is currently under consideration, the one we're trying to figure out.

Genesis starting at verse 3.

And in the process of time, it came to pass that Cain brought of the fruit of the ground an offering unto the Lord.

And Abel he also brought of the firstlings of his flock and of the fat thereof.

And the Lord had respect unto Abel and to his offering, but unto Cain and to his offering he had not respect.

And Cain was very wroth, and his countenance fell, his look dropped, he looked depressed.

As I said, a very famous and oft-discussed section of scripture.

And yes, honey, it is fascinating.

The question everyone wants answered.

Those that believe this happened, those that think this is a real event want to know why God didn't have respect for Cain's actions.

Why didn't God have respect unto Cain's offering?

Now there are lots of suggestions, but here is what the truth is.

You ready?

Cain was disobedient.

Abel was not disobedient.

God had some expectation of what the offering would be, and Cain did not fulfill that expectation, but Abel did.

And I'm going to prove that to you, but we're just making general statements now.

So God says Cain is disobedient, Abel is obedient.

But you know, for some that isn't enough.

Mainly because people don't like to think that God expects obedience from us.

In fact, they hate the word obedience.

Even people who call themselves Christians don't like the idea that we have to obey God, that He has set rules down for us.

They'll say, well, now wait a second, John.

You're preaching to me a works-oriented message.

God makes clear that we are saved by grace.

Yes, I totally agree with that.

I teach that all the time here.

That is unmistakably true.

If you're with us in Ephesians, we talked about that a lot.

Right?

That's salvation.

But we're not talking about salvation here.

This, listen to me, because this is important.

This is what God expects from his children.

Once we are saved, we are adopted into his family, right?

That's what we're told in Ephesians.

We are his children.

Though we're adopted, we're just as much as a child as anyone else as Jesus.

We are equally a child of God as Jesus.

So this is for God's children.

Once we are saved, God expects his children to be obedient.

Every one of you, parents, if you're not expecting your children to be obedient, I'm no prophet, but I'm going to predict that your home will be chaos, just like our world.

Now we've discussed this many times in this ministry.

I hope by now I'm preaching to the choir.

Bottom line, if you think God will allow us to do whatever we want, saved or not, you're sadly mistaken.

Cain was disobedient, and God, as was his right, pointed it out to him.

Now, not everyone agrees with me on that.

Not everyone thinks that the problem here is one of obedience.

Listen, there, as I've said, there are several other explanations, several other views of the situation.

There are those that say God is upset with what he sees as an attitude of ingratitude.

God was displeased because Cain was not sufficiently presenting a spirit of thankfulness for what God had done for the family of Adam and Eve.

Okay, that that might actually be true, but that's not what's spelled out in Scripture.

Not doing what God said is definitely a display of a lack of appreciation for God's blessings.

Never forget that.

Being disobedient to God means you do not appreciate the blessings that are in your life.

And trust me, every one of you, every single one of you can count the blessing or two.

Anyways, a lack of appreciation for God's blessings is definitely disobedience.

But is that what really God is upset with?

Is that really what God is upset with?

And then there are some who will, this one's a bit odd, and it takes a little bit of maybe head scratching to figure it out.

So I'll go slowly.

There are some who will tell you that Abel's sacrifice pleased God because he, Abel, slew the animal because he felt he himself, Abel himself, deserved sin for being a sinner.

So he killed an animal because he felt he needed death.

And since Cain did not slay an animal, he was somehow denying his own need for forgiveness.

Well, all I can say is Abel did deserve death as a result of being a sinner by birth, but I'm not certain he knew that.

And besides, why would he slay an animal and not himself if this hypothesis were true?

It just doesn't make logical sense.

Now I'm sure this exercise is getting tedious.

Instead of speculating, let's get on with it.

The Bible is very clear as to why God respected one offering and not the other.

This is going to take us a few weeks to unun.

So stay with me.

We're not going to solve it tonight.

It'll take a couple of weeks.

So why did God have respect for one offering and not the other?

But you have to take God at His word for you to really understand, to really accept the real reason.

You have to accept God at His Word as He expresses expresses it in Scripture.

And that's an obstacle for many.

Accepting Scripture as true, or at the very least, more true than my own opinion is difficult.

It's not a popular thing to do.

And again, unfortunately, that's becoming as increasingly evident within the church as it is without.

Now, at the risk of getting too far off track, let's quickly talk about this offering bit for a few minutes.

We discussed this in other contexts, but I want to talk more about it here because it has real impact on our understanding of the entire message of the Bible, not just chapter four.

And again, I'm not exaggerating, honey.

From here on out, the Bible seems to be obsessed with offerings.

Over and over and over again, God speaks of offerings.

And he does so for one and only one reason.

Hebrews 10:10, the letter to the Hebrews, chapter 10, verse 10.

Hebrews 10:10 Hebrews 10:10

We are sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all.

And every priest standeth daily ministering and offering oftentimes the same sacrifices, which can never take away sins.

But this man, after he had offered one sacrifice for sins forever, sat down on the right hand of God.

So since the Bible is the book of Jesus, offerings will take a prominent role, and so they do.

Now, quickly, let me remind you of what we're doing here.

We are pursuing the answer to the question: why did God respect Abel's actions and not Cain's?

This is a question that's confounded people from probably the first moment it was read aloud.

There are lots of theories as to why God preferred one over the other.

And can I say most of those theories have attached to them some of the personal motivation of the one who formulated them?

And I have to warn you, that's not what we're doing here.

We're not trying to help ourselves in the sense that I want to get myself out of trouble with God.

We're trying to understand what God was saying to Cain and Abel so that we can situate ourselves properly with respect to our Lord, our offering, our sacrifice.

If we can understand this very first offering as recorded in the Bible, trust me, you will understand the rest of the Bible all the way through Revelation.

You will understand why Jesus came to this earth.

If you can understand this part, this offering part, if you can understand why Abel was preferred and Cain was not, you will not have trouble throughout the rest of Scripture.

Trust me.

As I said, the real scriptural reason God was happy with Abel and unhappy with Cain is simply that Abel obeyed and Cain didn't.

But why?

We'll get to that.

But to think of it in any other way of obedience is to completely miss the point of the entire Bible and most importantly, the gospel.

This is so obvious that I have a hard time understanding how anyone can think otherwise.

Anyhow, as I said, let's do a little background first.

I'll repeat, we're not going to finish this tonight, but we're going to get started.

So I think to get to the bottom of this, it's best to go back one step and ask, why did Cain and Abel bring an offering?

That is the first thing we need to determine.

We have no record of God requiring one as yet.

Of course, the temptation is to assume that these two guys just kind of felt like it.

That somehow in their hearts they said to each other, you know, God has been, he's been so good to us.

We should give him something in return.

We'll just present God a nice present and he'll be so surprised.

Isn't that wouldn't that be nice?

And listen, by the way, can you tell by my sarcasm I don't agree with that?

There are a lot of prominent scholars that teach it just that way.

That is their explanation of this mystery.

To explain it that way means you don't understand grace.

Those two brought an offering because they wanted to is the answer.

That's what those scholars say.

That's just because they wanted to.

But you see, the problem with that is that a close reading of this entire passage reveals that there seems to be some expectation on God's part.

If this was just a nice gesture from the boys, wouldn't God just come off a little ungrateful if he favored one goodwilled gesture over the other?

Especially since he doesn't need anything from either of them.

He doesn't need anything from the flock, and he doesn't need anything from the farm.

Why would, if this was just a nice guy thing, why would guy say it, why would God say, I'll take that one, but not that one?

Are such arbitrary actions something that we've come to expect from God?

I mean, to this point, he's shown himself to be loving and just and forgiving.

Now, of course, I may get accused of this, but I'm not imposing my version of morality and good manners on God.

But from what we see from the rest of the Bible, this does not seem to be in the character of God to be an ingrate.

It doesn't seem to be in his character.

So that's just not what it looks like to me.

This doesn't look like a thank you card type of situation.

This wasn't, this did not seem like a spontaneous gesture on the part of Cain and Abel.

This offering looks like it was a requirement.

Now, the theological explanation of my position on this is simple.

God, as we've said all along, is interested in preparing the world for his son.

From the very moment, actually, from before the moment Adam sinned, God started revealing his redemptive plan.

But the manifestation of that plan only began when Adam sinned.

God from that instant wanted it known that he, a holy God, had been offended by an unholy people.

Listen to me, and the unholy people had to be made aware of their unholiness.

The very first statement of the ministry of Jesus was repent.

The first thing Jesus said as a preacher was repent, for the kingdom of God is at hand.

We must know and acknowledge our sinfulness before redemption is possible.

That just makes sense, doesn't it?

If I refuse to acknowledge that I have bad breath, I'll never brush my teeth.

And listen, I'm not being flippant with the gospel.

I'm just trying to make sure this message is brought to your front door.

You have to accept something is wrong with you before you'll do something to correct it.

And just being nice isn't going to correct anything.

Just saying thank you isn't going to cut it.

When Jesus called for mankind to repent, inherent in that message was the need, was the call to realize the need for repentance.

If I said to repent and you don't think you need to repent, you're walking by.

In other words, though we have no written record, I believe there were certain requirements.

The first being, of course, that a sacrifice was required, that a sacrifice must be brought before God.

But the biblical record makes clear, if you look closely enough at it, that there were other specifics that went along with it.

Now, this is vital to our understanding of God's plan.

So we're going to take our time going through it.

There's a lot more to talk about, about those requirements, etc.

So make sure you're here with us next time as we continue discussing this crucial topic from God's Word.

See you then.

God's Word is a great treasure, and it's our belief that a thorough, purposeful study of it will bring all of God's children to an understanding of his eternal plan of redemption.

It is our prayer that this will be so for all of our listeners.

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