(Audio)
In the course of time Cain brought an offering to the LORD
from the fruit of the soil,
while Abel, for his part,
brought one of the best firstlings of his flock.
Do we offer God the leftovers or do we give him the best? God wasn't playing favorites with Cain and Abel. Rather God favored the one who made God his favorite. Cain apparently kept back the best of the fruit of the soil for himself. His livelihood was more important to him than God.
Cain's fault need not have consumed him.
If you do well, you can hold up your head;
but if not, sin is a demon lurking at the door:
his urge is toward you, yet you can be his master.
Cain's sin spiraled out of control precisely because he refused to own up to it. He blamed Abel for something which he himself caused.
Cain attacked his brother Abel and killed him.
All of this could have been averted if Cain had simply put God first. At any stage along his path to ruin he could have turned aside from his failings, own up to them, and decide to put God first in his life. For him to keep running the show eventually meant scapegoating and murder in order to ignore the feeling that he himself needed to change.
It may at first seem a loose connection, but we seek signs for the same reason Cain needed to kill Abel. We seek to distract ourselves from who God really is and what he says about us. Signs are in fact given to those who need them. But to those of us who know already and just want to argue with Jesus the only sign we are shown is the sign of Jonah, the person, death, and resurrection of Christ.
Cain could have mastered the impulse to sin. How much more can we who have grace and truth through Jesus Christ choose to place our trust fully in God and to offer him all that we have.
Offer to God a sacrifice of praise.
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