It was by faith that...Part One

It was by faith that...

I am reading through the Bible this year. My reading this morning takes me to Hebrews 11. Many of us know this chapter of Hebrews as the "Hall of Faith." If you were to walk down this hall you would see the pictures of men and women who truly exemplified faith. You would see Abel, Enoch, Noah, Abraham, Sarah, Isaac, Jacob, Moses and his parents, the people of Israel, Rahab the prostitute (yes...she WAS a prostitute) and so many, many more. And those are just people who lived during the time of the Old Testament.

I was supposed to move on and read Hebrews 12 and 13, but I couldn't. I felt the Holy Spirit stop me and tell me to linger for just a bit. Reread the chapter. Look at each word that was intentionally penned thousands of years ago.

So I paused...and I lingered.

IT WAS BY FAITH THAT...

Five words in the New Living Translation. In other translations it is only 2...By Faith...

The first man listed in the Hebrews Hall of Faith is Abel:

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

It was by faith that Abel offered a better sacrifice. It is interesting that it says that even though he is long dead, he still speaks to us by his example of faith.

Abel has been dead for a long long time but his faith still speaks to me...to you...

I can't help but wonder what kind of faith still speaks thousands of years after a person is dead? So, I turned back to Genesis 4 to read about Abel's story.

Abel is born in Genesis 4:1 and he is murdered by his brother in Genesis 4:8. 8 verses. And you know what I did not see? I did not see one word that Abel spoke. His brother Cain spoke but not one word of Abel's is recorded in Scripture.

This is what I do see: Cain and Abel both brought gifts to God. Abel was a shepherd and Cain was a farmer. When it was time for the harvest (and I am going to directly quote here), "Cain presented some of his crops as a gift to the LORD. Abel also brought a gift--the best portions of the firstborn lambs from his flock."

So they both brought gifts to the LORD. They both brought God something from the work they had done. But when I read on I find out that, "The LORD accepted Abel AND his gift, but He did not accept Cain AND his gift.

It think it is important to understand why the LORD accepted Abel and his gift but did not accept Cain and his gift. Why is this important? Well...

Abel is listed in the Hall of Faith.

Abel's faith still speaks to us today.

Abel never spoke a word.

So there must be some connection between the gift he brought the LORD and his faith.

Stick with me for just a bit...

Could it be that God had spoken to the two brothers at an earlier time and told them what kind of sacrifice He required? If you read back to Adam and Eve you see that while they used fig leaves to cover their nakedness, God killed an animal and used the skin from that to cover them. Thus we have the first shedding of blood to cover sin, the first sacrifice.

I feel certain that Adam and Eve also told their sons all about how they sinned and what God did and what God required (This is first generation from the event here...it is fresh on their minds).

So if Cain and Abel both knew what God required to please Him then we can see why God accepted Abel and not Cain.

Abel brought what pleased God.

Abel was focused on God.

Cain brought was pleased himself.

Cain was focused on himself and not on God.

Abel's sacrifice was better than Cain's because he offered it in obedient faith to what God had clearly revealed. Cain's sacrifice was rejected because he did not offer it by faith and "without faith it is impossible to please God."

So, how does Abel faith still speak to us today?

First, Abel's murder shows us that God is aware of and will ultimately judge those who harm us. After Cain murders Abel, God says, "What have you done? Listen! Your brother's blood cries out to Me from the ground!"
Second, Abel speak to us with his life, not his words. As I said earlier, there are no recorded words that Abel spoke and yet thousands of years after his death, he still speaks. This shows how much living a godly life can speak to those who come after us.
Finally, Abel's life speaks to us about how the measure of the impact of our life is not just during our brief time here on earth, but over history. Abel was murdered at a young age so he did not have time to stack up great accomplishments like Noah or Moses. Viewed from his lifetime, his life was wasted. But viewed from history his life continues to impact us today as we look to his example of faith and obedience.