In the sermon 'The Way of Death' by Jason Dohm, the focus is on the story of Cain and Abel from Genesis 4:1-15, highlighting the theme of 'heart to hands' where internal corruption manifests in external actions. Jesus' words from Matthew 15:19-20 underscore that defilement comes from within, as seen in Cain's murder of Abel, driven by a stubborn and unrepentant heart. The sermon emphasizes that Cain's offering was not accepted by God due to a lack of faith, as explained in Hebrews 11:4. Abel offered his sacrifice in faith, reflecting righteousness, while Cain's was mere religious activity without genuine faith. The narrative shows how God cautions Cain about sin's lurking presence, urging repentance. The sermon further draws parallels between Cain's story and the New Testament teachings, stressing the importance of faith and genuine worship. It concludes with a reflection on the cleansing power of Jesus' blood, which speaks better things than Abel's, offering reconciliation with God.

The title of the sermon this morning is The Way of Death. Listen to the words of our Lord Jesus Christ from Matthew 15, verses 19 and 20. Jesus says this, 20, Jesus says this, for out of the heart proceed evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornications, thefts, false witness, blasphemies. These are the things which defile a man, but to eat with unwashed hands does not defile a man. The religious leaders were all concerned about defiling themselves by eating with unwashed hands and Jesus tells us this is the least of our problems and that the most of our problems are the corruptions that are are within us the seeds of murder is in the human heart the seeds of adulteries and fornications and blasphemy is in the human heart.

We see what Jesus said happen very literally in our text. It starts in the heart of Cain who rejects the warnings of God himself and murders his brother. Heart to hands. So that's what, just know, that's what we're watching in our text. Heart to hands.

We see it, actually, we see these seeds of bitterness and murder in the heart of Cain and then we see it work its way out into the hands of Cain. It wasn't the external circumstances. It wasn't really about the offering, God's accepting one, not accepting one, though external circumstances often inflame and draw out what is already in the heart. So When sin and bitterness and hate and pride rear their ugly heads in your life, the temptation is to think, it's that external circumstance. It's that thing or those circumstances or that person.

And it may very well be true that that thing or those circumstances or that person and it may very well be true that that thing or those circumstances or that person inflamed and drew out what was already in your heart but it was really a stubborn and unrepentant heart at the core of these things. Cain's problem is not Abel's offering, it's not what God says to him, it's his stubborn, unrepentant heart. The seeds are there, and then when God warns him, he won't listen and he won't repent. And it ends up that the murder in his heart works its way out to his hands. So let's ask God to come and use this text to help us.

God, please come. Please be present. May your spirit be here moving mightily to use your word to strengthen us to caution and warn us to teach us to build us up all these things may they be true because your spirit is here and working. We pray this in Jesus' name, amen. All right, to our text.

Hopefully your Bibles are still open to Genesis chapter four. Follow along as I reread verses one and two. Genesis four, verses one and two. Now Adam knew Eve his wife, she conceived and bore Cain and said, I have acquired a man from the Lord. Then she bore again, this time his brother Abel.

Now Abel was a keeper of sheep, but Cain was a tiller of the ground. Here in these two verses, we have the beginning of being fruitful and multiplying. If you're taking notes on the handout, fruitful fills in the blank. The beginning of being fruitful and multiplying. To know is the biblical language for physical union.

And that language is telling, We should actually look at that language and learn from it. It describes the closest, most physically transparent relationship. Kind of knowing on a whole other level. So describes the closest, most physically transparent relationship. Just look back briefly at Genesis 2 24, therefore a man shall leave his father a mother and be joined to his wife and they shall become one flesh.

Their marriage is described as as the most intimate, close, transparent of all human relationships. And so this phrase used for physical union is really a reflection of that, to know. So there is physical transparency as one expression of the intimacy and oneness that God intended in the marriage relationship. It is just depth of knowing, and this is a reflection of that. Adam knew Eve, his wife, physical union, and she conceived, she became pregnant, and bore Cain.

And she makes a declaration. She says something. She says, I have acquired a man from the Lord. I mean, You have to understand what's happening here. We're seeing the first baby ever born.

So in chapter one, God blessed them and said, be fruitful and multiply, fill the earth. But there's sin has come into the world but it hasn't headed that off God has still given them the blessing of having the task to be fruitful and multiply to fill the earth and in chapter 3 God promised that the seed of the woman would crush the head of the serpent. So there's a promise that there will be seed of the woman and this is fulfilled here. Now we have Eve acknowledging that God has done this good thing giving her a baby. I have acquired a man from the Lord.

I acquired a man, but the man is from the Lord. This baby is from the Lord. God gave me this blessing from the Lord. Cain, the Hebrew word translated Cain, actually means possession. I got this possession from the Lord.

God gave me the possession of a baby. Psalm 127 verse 3 says this. This is Solomon. Solomon wrote Psalm 127. Psalm 127 verse 3, behold, children are a heritage from the Lord.

The fruit of the womb is a reward. Children are a blessing. The fruit of the womb, babies, are a reward. It's like a gift from God. I think this is an early version of that.

I have acquired a man from the Lord. God has blessed me with children. He's given me a reward. And all this in spite of the fact that according to the penalty for their sin imposed in chapter 3, this pregnancy involved pain and sorrow. So this comes after sin and God's pronouncement that conception and pregnancy will come with pain and sorrow.

So this was Eve's experience. She experienced that and yet when she names her son she declares that she has acquired a man from the Lord. She looks to the Lord in these things and acknowledges it as a blessing. Then Eve had another baby this time named Abel. In time we have no idea how much time but we see probably decades passing here but definitely more than a decade.

We don't know how much time has passed but In time they came to maturity. Abel came to maturity. And scripture tells us their occupations. What were they doing with their lives? Scripture answers that question.

Abel was a keeper of sheep. Cain a tiller of the ground. So Abel was a shepherd and Cain was a farmer. Again, in chapter one, it was given to mankind to have dominion over the other creatures. So keeping sheep was a perfectly fine occupation we shouldn't read anything but good into that we've been as image bearers of God we've been given dominion over the other creatures So keeping sheep's a perfectly good occupation.

And because of the events of chapter three, sin coming into the world, man would have to cultivate crops. It's not gonna be as easy as just picking delicious fruit off of trees that You didn't even plant. Those days are gone. Now we're going to have to cultivate crops. So tilling the ground was a perfectly fine occupation.

Shepherding is perfectly fine. Farming is perfectly fine. In fact, necessary after sin came into the world. So far so good. Babies?

Good. Growing up? Good. Keeping sheep? Good.

Tilling ground? Good. Now to verses 3 through 7. Genesis chapter 4 verses 3 through 7. Follow along.

And in the process of time it came to pass that Cain brought an offering of the fruit of the ground to the Lord. Abel also brought of the firstborn of his flock and of their fat. And the Lord respected Abel and his offering, But he did not respect Cain and his offering. Cain was very angry and his countenance fell. So the Lord said to Cain, why are you angry?

And why has your countenance fallen? If you do well, will you not be accepted? And if you do not do well, sin lies at the door. And its desire is for you, but you should rule over it. Here in these verses we have two offerings judged by God.

On the handout judged fills in the blank. If you're taking notes that way. Two offerings judged by God. Something happens in this subsection. Two offerings are offered to the Lord.

Cain brought an offering from his crops. This is the farmer bringing from his crops the fruit of the ground. Cain is a tiller of the ground. His efforts bear fruit so he's working to plant harvest crops and his efforts bear fruit and he brings of the fruit to offer to the Lord Abel is a keeper of the sheep, so he brought an offering of the sheep. Abel brings of the firstborn and of their fat.

Now as centuries pass and the law of God is given on Mount Sinai after the exodus from Egypt, both of these kinds of offerings will be part of the worship that God requires. God was actually going to require of the things that you grow, or wave offering, first fruits offerings from the fields and of the firstborn of the flocks. Both of these are going to be requirements of the ceremonial law that's given on Mount Sinai. But that law, governing offerings, isn't in effect in the time of our text. We don't know what they know, we don't know what they don't know.

We don't know how they know it. It must not matter because God hasn't told us what they know, what they don't know, how they know it. And so we can't read any of this through the lens of Exodus, Leviticus, and Deuteronomy. You can't read through that lens because that hasn't happened yet. And you don't know that they know all that.

They probably don't. Probably most of that ceremonial law governing the offerings is revealed to them at that time and not before probably most of it. So don't read it through things that happen later that are given by God later. Here's what we do know. Both Cain and Abel bring an offering to the Lord from the labors of their respective occupations.

And God respects or regards or looks with favor on Abel and his offering. Now notice this, the person is named first and then their offering. That's a hint. It's the person that matters and the offering is secondary. So God respects or regards or looks with favor on Abel the person and his offering secondarily but he does not respect or does not regard or does not look with favor on Cain the person and his offering which is secondary Abel's is accepted Cain's is rejected Abel's pleases God Cain's does not please God.

Now why? Why? Why does God accept Abel in his offering but rejects Cain in his offering. The text doesn't say, ah but thankfully the Bible says. Listen to Hebrews 11 verse 4.

You can go there. I'm going to spend a minute in Hebrews 11. You can probably get there before I leave it. So if you'd like to follow along, you can go to Hebrews 11. Listen to Hebrews 11, verse 4 and the commentary on our text from Hebrews 11.

Hebrews 11 verse 4, By faith Abel offered to God a more excellent sacrifice than Cain. So what was the distinguishing factor? Faith. By faith Abel offered to God a more excellent sacrifice than Cain through which he, Abel, obtained witness that he, Abel, was righteous. God testifying of his gifts and through it he being dead still speaks Abel's offering was offered in faith and by faith so what you think about this What do I mean by saying Abel's offering was offered in faith and by faith?

I mean this. Abel was in faith. Abel had the status of being righteous because of his faith in God. That's the whole point of Hebrews 11. It's the great faith chapter.

They believed in God. Abel had the status of being righteous because of his faith in God and his offering was evidence of that status of righteousness before God. Not self-righteousness. Abel wasn't a naturally righteous God. He had faith in God and So he was in the status of righteousness accounted to him by faith.

And Abel's offering was offered by faith, Meaning Abel was looking to God in his offering. It was not about things that were happening here. It was about Abel's heart towards God. He was looking to God in his offering. Abel's offering was an expression of a heart set on God.

So he had the status of righteousness. He was in faith and he offered it by faith. The offering itself was an expression of a heart set on God. So he had the status of righteousness. He was in faith and he offered it by faith.

The offering itself was an expression of a heart set on God. Cain's offering by contrast was not offered in faith or by faith. Cain did not have the status of being righteous because of his faith in God. And Cain was not actually looking to God in his offering. His offering was not an expression of a heart set on God.

The virtue of Abel's offering was that it was offered in faith and by faith. So what was great about Abel's offering? It was offered in faith by a man in the status of righteousness because of his faith in God and by faith. It was an expression of his heart set on God. That was the beauty of the offering.

The vice of Cain's offering was that it was not offered in faith and by faith. So what was wrong with Cain's offering? That's what was wrong. He didn't he wasn't offering it in a status of righteousness before God because of his faith in God, faith being accounted as righteousness. He didn't have that status.

And it was not an expression of a heart set on God. So it was a problem with the person that meant there was a problem with the offering. A person in that state could not offer anything that was righteous. Look at the beginning of verse 6. We're still in Hebrews 11, the beginning of verse 6, but without faith it is impossible to please him.

So a man in that state could never offer any offering that would please God Because without faith it's impossible to please God. Abel had faith and offered by faith and it pleased God. Cain didn't have faith, he didn't trust God, and he didn't offer by faith as an expression of a heart set on God and so God didn't respect his offering. We do get a hint of this in our text. So if we go back To Genesis 4 We do get a hint of this in our text Abel's offering is described a little It is of the firstborn So Not an afterthought not leftovers the first one of the firstborn and he offers the fat, the richness.

Abel brings his best. So it means to bring the firstborn and offer the fat. It's to give the best. When you, nothing is said of Cain's at all. When you take our text altogether in its totality, it reads like Abel is worshipping and Cain is going through religious motions Hey Take the first God take the fat God.

I'm here to worship And Cain is an also ran. I'm here to offer to. What does this have to do with us here in this place at this time? Everything. This has everything to do with us.

Two people can engage in the exact same religious activities. Sing exactly the same songs. Say exactly the same words, listen to exactly the same sermon, eat exactly the same bread, drink exactly the same wine. And one does it in faith, in the status of trusting in God and by faith as an expression of a heart set on God and this pleases God and the person right next to him doing all the exact same things does not do it in faith and by faith and it displeases God and none of us can tell none of us can tell how would we know? They look the same You can engage in all the best, the most right, the most biblical religious activities with a smile on your face.

Your neighbor will never know that it's not done in faith and by faith. How would they know? So Cain's offering is not respected by the Lord. And Cain is very angry. So angry that you can see it on his face.

His countenance falls. God doesn't leave Cain in that condition. God asks two questions. Why are you angry? Why has your countenance fallen?

At this point we should be hearing the echoes of last chapter, God calling to Adam, where are you? God not needing the answer but Adam needing the answer to his own, needing to hear the answer to God's question. Adam needed to hear the answer to God's question. Here again, God doesn't need the answers. God knows why Cain is angry.

God knows why Cain's countenance has fallen. Cain needs the answers. God asked a third question. If you do well, will you not be accepted? The answer, and Cain knows it, is YES!

If he does well, he'll be accepted. It isn't that God can't be pleased. The fault isn't in God. It is that God can't be pleased by empty religious activity. And when you think it through, it makes perfect sense.

What does God in heaven need with empty religious activity? Only we would be impressed by such things. It is that the Lord does not see as man sees for a man looks at the outward appearance but the Lord looks at the heart. That's 1 Samuel 16 verse 7. Samuel is supposed to be identifying God's king for the nation and God warns him about what he's looking at And not to look at the biggest, tallest, strongest, because actually it's going to be David the youngest, the one who's not even on the guest list.

The Lord does not see as man sees, God says to Samuel. For a man looks at the outward appearance, you think the king ought to be the tallest, strongest, most handsome. We already had a king like that. That was Saul. The Lord looks at the heart.

So you have these two brothers, they're side by side, they're both offering to God, but God sees the hearts. And he knows that Abel is offering in faith and by faith and that Cain isn't offering either in faith or by faith. Without faith it is impossible to please God. With faith God is pleased because the activity comes to God through the person and work of His Son Jesus Christ. And now I'm preaching through the New Testament lens, no apologies here.

We've got the New Testament, we ought to make use of it and look back through the New Testament onto this text. And Here's what you'd say about this text now that we have the New Testament without faith It is impossible to please God Hebrews 11 6 with faith God is pleased Because the activity comes to God through the person and work of his son Jesus The person who is offering and the work that is offering is accepted in the beloved because of the person and work of Jesus Christ. Finally God says this to Cain, if you do not do well, so if you do well you'll be accepted. If you do not do well, so if you do well, you'll be accepted if you do not do well Sin lies at the door Its desire is for you, but you should rule over it since sin is put forward by God It's personified as an enemy at the gate. Some of the Translations say lurking.

One of them says crouching. Its desire is for you. It wants to conquer you and dominate you, but you should rule over it. There is going to be a ruler and there is going to be one who is ruled. So what shall it be?

Either Cain is going to turn around and go in the opposite direction than the direction he is currently going, and he is going to rule over the sin that desires to conquer and dominate him, or Cain is going to walk right into sin's grasp and be ruled by it. It's lurking, it's crouching, it lies at the door. So Cain is at the crossroads. Can you see it? It's just as clear as day.

It's a divergence. He will either go one way or he will go the other way and there's no third door. God is forced Cain to consider the two choices. Turn around, go in the opposite direction, and rule over sin, or keep going in his current direction and be conquered and dominated by sin. The roads diverge.

He must choose one. One will rule, one will be ruled, now Cain must choose. Before we move on to the next section, listen to Alan Ross in his commentary. I don't think I would have thought of this, but when I read it I thought, that's genius, I'll have to quote that. Alan Ross says, whereas Eve had to be talked into her sin by the serpent, It appears that Cain would not be talked out of his intended sin even by the Lord himself.

Eve had to be talked into her sin by the enemy of her soul. Cain can't even be talked out of his sin by the man's best friend God that is a sad true transition you see What corruption in the human heart has done? But please don't say this could never be me I could never do this That there's a giant chasm between eating forbidden fruit and murder. It's not It's just a number of little steps. And all of us have in our hearts what it takes to take the first step.

Back to our text. Follow along as I reread 8-12. Genesis 4, 8-12. Now, Cain talked with Abel his brother, And it came to pass when they were in the field that Cain rose up against his brother and killed him. Then the Lord said to Cain, Where is Abel your brother?

He said, I do not know. Am I my brother's keeper? And God said, What have you done? The voice of your brother's blood cries out to me from the ground. So now you are cursed from the earth which has opened its mouth to receive your brother's blood from your hand.

When you till the ground it shall no longer yield its strength to you. A fugitive and a vagabond you shall be on the earth. And here in these verses we have the first murder in God's verdict, murder and verdict, fill in the blanks. The first murder in God's verdict. Cain chooses.

And the murder that has been in his heart works its way out to his hands and he rises up against Abel his brother and kills him. Here's what Alan Ross says, Cain does not want the mastery over sin. God told him, it's at the door, you should rule over it. Alan Ross says, Cain doesn't want the mastery over sin. No sooner had the Lord's warning ended than Cain set upon his brother and murdered him.

Cain was angry with God because God would not accept his empty religious activity and he was envious of Abel because Abel enjoyed the status that Cain was prepared to insist on having with God. God you have to give me that status too. 1st John 3 says Cain was of the wicked one and murdered his brother. And why did he murder him? Because his works were evil and his brothers righteous.

So, 1 John 3 verse 12, I just read, 1 John 3 verse 12 tells us a couple of things. One, Cain was of the wicked one. Now, there's no serpent, there's no mention in our text, but the Apostle John looks back and says, the devil was there. You can believe that there was the influence of the wicked one. Cain was of the wicked one.

He murdered his brother. The other thing we learn from 1 John 3 verse 12 is that it was envy. It was because Cain's works were evil and his brothers were righteous. John actually in 1 John 3 is arguing that Christians love their brethren. It's actually a mark of a Christian.

You can, it's one of the ways you can tell a person is a Christian. They love their brethren. So yes, I am my brother's keeper. Am I my brother's keeper? Actually, if you're a Christian, you accept doing good to your brother, keeping your brother.

Starts with not killing, goes way beyond that, doesn't it? Cain was angry with God, but he couldn't kill God, so he killed Abel. Here God comes with another question. God asks Cain, where is Abel your brother? Cain lies to the all-knowing God.

I don't know where the body has got to. And then Cain tries to deflect by asking a question of his own. Am I my brother's keeper? God immediately lets Cain know that he knows. So God's not going to draw this thing out.

I don't know. I know, says God. He knows exactly what Cain did. He immediately lets Cain know that God knows exactly what Cain did. He says, what have you done?

That's exactly what God said to Eve. Eve, what have you done? Cain, what have you done? The voice of your brother's blood cries out to me from the ground. The spilled blood testifies to God.

The spilled blood is a witness in the court. God hears it. Numbers 32, 23b, just meaning the last part of the verse, Numbers 32, verse 23 is one of the most important verses in the Bible to understand. Children, here is what the last part of Numbers 32 verse 23 says. You must understand it.

Be sure your sin will find you out. Be sure. Though you deceive others, be sure not to deceive yourself. Your sin will find you out. It didn't find me out today.

Maybe it will never find me out. It didn't find me out this week. Maybe it will never find me out. It didn't find me out this month. Maybe it will never find me out.

Be sure your sin will find you out. Now God pronounces the verdict and the sentence, the penalty. Cain spilled innocent blood on the earth, now Cain is cursed from the earth and this tiller of the ground will no longer yield its strength to him. The ground will no longer yield its strength to this tiller of the ground. As his parents lost the paradise of the garden by their sin and were expelled from what God had designed to be their home, Cain will now be a fugitive and a vagabond.

It's a replay in that sense. Adam and Eve, paradise lost. Cain will now be expelled from what God designed to be his home. Cain will now be a fugitive and a vagabond. The NASB says a wanderer and a drifter.

That's what Cain will now be, a wanderer and a drifter, a fugitive and a vagabond. Cain loses his home among the other inhabitants of the earth. Wait a minute. What other inhabitants of the earth? Well, scripture has only given us visibility to the births of Cain and Abel, but other children have been born as well.

They just haven't been mentioned. In the next chapter, chapter 5 verse 3, Seth is born when Adam and Eve are 130 years old. That's the next birth that's mentioned. Seth, when Adam and Eve are 130 years old. So Eve is still in childbearing years at 130 years old.

We know that because she bears a child. Depending on when Adam and Eve were exiled from the garden, we don't know, but depending on when they were exiled from the garden And how soon after that Cain and Abel were born, there could be a very sizable population by the time Cain kills Abel. You can get a calculator and just make different scenarios, just put in some different assumptions and see if you can end up with some very sizable numbers. I think we have some aunts and uncles in this room who are younger than their nieces and nephews. Now think about that.

That's not supposed to work that way. At least we don't think so. Right? Ants and uncles are supposed to be older than their nieces and nephews. It's probably in this room there's instances where aunts and uncles are younger.

You could, you might be tasked with babysitting your aunt. That happens when the oldest children of a family marry and have their own children while their parents are still having children. You only need a gap of 18 to 20 years. If you get a gap of 30 years, you can definitely have an aunt who was babysat by a nephew. Bearing children to 130 and beyond that effect would be much greater still.

You can end up with a lot of people. Cain is now banished from that community, however sizable it is, he's not welcome in that community now. He has to be a fugitive and a bagabond, a wanderer and a drifter from that community. Okay, the final section, verses 13 through 15. Genesis four, verse 13, and Cain said to the Lord, "'My punishment is greater than I can bear.

"'Surely you have driven me out this day "'from the face of the ground. "'I shall be hidden from your face. I shall be a fugitive and vagabond on the earth and it will happen that anyone who finds me will kill me. And the Lord said to him, Therefore, whoever kills Cain, Vengeance shall be taken on him sevenfold and the Lord set a mark on Cain lest anyone finding him should kill him These verses we have Cain's complaint and God's response response fills in the blank. Cain's complaint, complaining to God, and God's response.

Ah, the murderer is now afraid of being murdered. Fine time to think of that. I want you to think of how radically different this is than King David's repentance in Psalm 51 when the prophet Nathan confronted him for murdering Uriah. So King David is a murderer. God sends the prophet Nathan to say, you are the man.

You did it. How does David respond? He begs God not to withdraw from him. Don't take your spirit from me. He repents.

He owns his sin and he repents and begs God not to take his presence away. Cain's response is so radically different in all the worst ways. The lesson for us is we should study Psalm 51 and when we're confronted in our sin, we should respond like David and beg God not to withdraw. Own it and beg God not to withdraw. Not to complain against God's righteous judgments.

God has been right on the whole text. He knew what was in Cain's heart. He was right not to respect him or his offering. He was right to warn Cain so dramatically about what would happen, about sin, lurking, crouching, lying at the door. He was right to banish him from the community.

Cain complains to God that his punishment for murdering his brother is unbearable. It is more than I can bear. Cain says, I shall be hidden from your face. I suppose by that Cain means God won't look out for him. I'll be hidden from your face.

You won't look out for me. God won't watch over him and help him in trouble and the irony Kane is worried that someone he encounters in his wanderings will kill him will kill him. Murderers make people nervous. People want to get rid of murdered. They don't want to be next.

God assures Cain that he will not hide his face from Cain. God will watch over Cain. And I'm saying that because of that God says He will exact terrible vengeance on anyone who kills him. Now you might think a lot of good that does Cain when he's been murdered. Great, you'll avenge me seven times when I'm dead.

Like, how does that help me? But the point is that God cares and God puts a mark on Cain so that no one will kill him. That's the point of what God is saying. What is this mark? What kind of mark would a person, would hold a person back from killing Kane?

Much ink has been spilled on this by commentators, but the text simply doesn't say. John Calvin does better than anybody I read on it so I'll give you John Calvin. Calvin says this, he really leaves it as a mystery which I appreciate because it's a mystery in the text that we don't know. Calvin says, a mark was set upon Cain which should strike terror into all because they might see as in a mirror the tremendous judgment of God against bloody men. There was some visible token which should repress in the spectators the desire and the audacity to inflict injury.

Lest you become like Cain the murderer. Some mark that would cause you to shrink back from doing it if you thought it. Applications, I'll give you four. I know that's an unsatisfying answer. The text doesn't say.

It would hold you back from killing him if you saw it. You might see as in a mirror the tremendous judgment of God against bloody men and say I will not become a bloody man Applications number one of four Jesus John Jude, and the author of Hebrews write of this as true, accurate history. This is so important. This might actually be the most important thing I'm saying in my sermon. Jesus, the Apostle John, Jude, author of Jude, and the author of Hebrews spoke of this as true, accurate history.

They write about this as things that have actually happened and apply it. When you turn the early chapters of Genesis into a morality play where it just is to teach us what we should do and shouldn't do, stories made up to teach us moral lessons, you undermine the view of Genesis held by the authors of Scripture in the New Testament. You undermine the New Testament. Number two, Religious activity does not obligate God. He doesn't need it.

And he doesn't honor empty religious activity. Cain by his response betrays that he thought his religious activity obligated God. You have to accept this! No he doesn't. In faith and by faith only, or I will not respect it.

Those who worship God must worship Him in spirit and in truth. That means from the heart, in spirit, and according to His Word, in truth. This is John 4, 24. This Is what Jesus says to the woman at the well Those who worship God must worship him in spirit and in truth from the heart and according to his word in faith by faith is such a deadly error to think that religious activity obligates God. I did this, now you owe me status, blessing.

Not true. God is God. You could never give him what he's worthy of. Three. God gives us so many clear warnings in His word.

We should study them and heed them. How many self-inflicted wounds would I have been held back in this short 50 years I've been alive 54 and counting if I would have just listened to his warnings what would Kane have been spared if he would have just listened to God and his warnings? God gives us many clear warnings in his word. We should study them. Better be reading your Bible.

You get good warnings that will keep you back, hold you back from all those self inflicted wounds that you've been inflicting upon yourself. Do yourself a favor. Read the Bible, study it, and heed the warnings. Number four. Number four.

There is blood that speaks better things than that of Abel's blood. Abel's blood. Crying out from the ground to God, guilty, he killed me. There is blood that speaks better things than that. Listen to Hebrews 12 22 through 24.

Hebrews 12 22 through 24. But you have come to Mount Zion and to the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, to an innumerable company of angels, to the general assembly and church of the firstborn who are registered in heaven, to God the judge of all, to the spirits of just men made perfect To Jesus the mediator of the new covenant and to the blood of sprinkling that speaks better things than that of Abel There's this this blood that cries out from the earth, this evidence, guilty, guilty, it speaks condemnation. There's another blood that's sprinkled, it's the blood of Jesus Christ that cleanses from every stain of sin. We should think about Abel's blood, how there's evidence of guilt and condemnation there, but there is a blood that washes over all of that, speaks better things than evidence of condemnation. Praise God for that spray.

God, thank you for cleansing blood, blood that speaks better things than the blood of Abel that cried out For his brother's guilt and his brother's condemnation, a blood that makes things right between us and you. How could things ever be right between us and you unless Jesus came and shed his blood. Thank you for this great way, this only way to the Father. We can be accepted in the beloved, in the son that you loved. We can enjoy your love by union with this son that you love by faith in him.

Thank you for salvation by grace alone, through faith alone, in Christ alone. We pray in Jesus' name, amen.