Cain missed it
He didn’t listen
Didn’t care what the Lord thought or wanted or asked for
The Lord made it clear what He was looking for
Although I can’t find the scripture that has God’s direction
They both knew
Abel pleased the Lord
Cain thought he’d do what he wanted instead
So, he put together a lovely plant offering
There was no blood sacrifice
That was what God wanted
By faith Abel offered unto God a more excellent sacrifice than Cain,
by which he obtained witness that he was righteous,
God testifying of his gifts: and by it he being dead yet speaketh. Hebrews 11:4
The offering of Abel was given by faith
He gave God what He asked for and didn’t question it
With a lack of faith, we can displease God
We can’t just generate faith, make it happen
We must humble ourselves before the Lord and trust
Faith is something God gives, it is not something we take
God will be pleased with us if we obey what He has put in His word
Abel knew what God wanted, Cain knew as well,
The scripture does not explain how they knew
but Cain changed what God wanted to give Him plants instead
This was a conscious choice Cain made, to do things his own way
God responded to Cain after he gave God his unacceptable offering
If thou doest well, shalt thou not be accepted?
and if thou doest not well, sin lieth at the door.
And unto thee shall be his desire, and thou shalt rule over him. Genesis 4:7
Cain was angry and jealous and killed his brother, as we know
We have to be careful that we are following Jesus’ directives
We need to study what He said in His word
and make sure we follow His commands
Many think we don’t have to do much after we have said we believe
That’s not the case, there is much to do, specifically, obey God
Otherwise, we risk failing to please God
Anytime the bible gives a direction, it should not be ignored
>Bear ye one another’s burdens, and so fulfil the law of Christ. Galatians 6:2
>Give to him that asketh thee,
and from him that would borrow of thee turn not thou away. Matthew 5:42
>If there be among you a poor man
of one of thy brethren within any of thy gates
in thy land which the Lord thy God giveth thee,
thou shalt not harden thine heart,
nor shut thine hand from thy poor brother: Deuteronomy 15:7
>But if ye forgive not men their trespasses,
neither will your Father forgive your trespasses. Matthew 6:15
There are so many directives in the bible
that it would take years to write them all down
The point is that God’s heart is easy to see if you look for it
He is looking for those who are interested in pleasing Him,
whose hearts are turned toward Him
We can bicker and complain that the Old Testament said this and that
and that now we are in the New Testament
Or that Paul’s restrictions are too difficult to follow
and don’t fit in with today’s world and we don’t have to obey Paul
All scripture is given by inspiration of God,
and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction,
for instruction in righteousness: 2 Timothy 3:15
If you disagree with something in the bible, take it to Jesus,
but don’t ignore it
He is perfectly capable to explain it to you, be patient,
He will help you understand it
Humility before the Lord is an acceptable offering