We are currently in the season of Lent, the forty days leading up to Good Friday. One important aspect of Lent is its emphasis on sacrifice.
It recognizes that choosing to do something out of the ordinary— restraining ourselves, setting aside a common pleasure, or adopting a new spiritual discipline—can help refocus our hearts and minds on the Lord.
By intentionally creating space through self-denial, we become more attentive to God’s presence and more aware of our dependence on Him.
Of course Lent is the period of time that also marks the last 40 days of Jesus ministry on earth.
So there is a certain seriousness and solemnity in this time when we choose to sacrifice something relatively small and simple compared to the ultimate and world-altering sacrifice of Jesus when he suffered and died for us on the cross.
So we’ve been looking at various Biblical characters and the sacrifices they made to God, all of which were, it could be said, indicators of the state of their hearts and their relationship to God.
Last week, Pastor Miguel walked us through Abram—later Abraham—and what his offering revealed about faith
And today as you’ve seen we’re going to focus on the story of Cain and Abel. Let’s read this again together:
Genesis 4:1 Adam lay with his wife Eve, and she became pregnant and gave birth to Cain. She said, "With the help of the LORD I have brought forth a man." 2 Later she gave birth to his brother Abel. Now Abel kept flocks, and Cain worked the soil. 3 In the course of time Cain brought some of the fruits of the soil as an offering to the LORD. 4 But Abel brought fat portions from some of the firstborn of his flock. The LORD looked with favor on Abel and his offering, 5 but on Cain and his offering he did not look with favor. So Cain was very angry, and his face was downcast.
As we read, Cain kills Abel and gets banished from the Garden of Eden. A bad day in anyone’s books.
As with a lot of important things, you’ve got to look at the details if you’re going to figure out what’s going on.
There was a distinct difference, a huge difference between the offerings and the attitudes of these two brothers. What kind of difference was it? It was a heart difference.
To put it simply, Cain brought some produce. Abel brought his best. Cain brought a casual offering to God. Abel put a lot more thought into it. I imagine these guys thinking to themselves.
Cain: “I’m really super-busy with these crops, but I'm supposed to bring something to God today. I’ll grab something from the field on the way. God will understand”.
Abel: “God is awfully good to me. How can I express my gratitude? What’s the best I can give my God?
“I know. I’ll take the firstborn, my first success among my flock this year.
“I’ll take it and sacrifice it and bring the tastiest portions to God. That might start to show a little of how grateful I am to God for all He’s given me”.
Abel brought a generous offering, one that reflected his hard labour in caring for his flock. He brought his firstborn. His firstfruits.
Cain fulfilled a duty and brought an obligatory or a ‘required’ offering to God. He brought what he had to bring. The sense I get is that for Abel, there was worship in the preparation and in his intention and in his following through with his plans.
Scripture often gives us “types”—real people whose lives become patterns. Adam points forward to Christ. Abel becomes the pattern of faithful worship and innocent suffering. Cain becomes the pattern of jealousy and unrepentant violence.
Their story isn’t just history. It’s a mirror.
Now, maybe you think this is being unfair to Cain. Maybe Cain’s attitude and intention was just as pure as Abel’s. We don’t need to look hard, though I think, to get a good look at Cain’s heart.
3 In the course of time Cain brought some of the fruits of the soil as an offering to the LORD. 4 But Abel brought fat portions from some of the firstborn of his flock. The LORD looked with favor on Abel and his offering, 5 but on Cain and his offering he did not look with favor. So Cain was very angry, and his face was downcast.
In his jealousy at God looking with favour at Abel’s offering and not his, what does he do? Does he reflect on WHY God saw Abel’s offering as favourable?
Does he take this as a learning opportunity? “Hmmm...Our Creator prefers that more thought and feeling be put into worship. Yeah, I guess I did just grab some veggies on the way to worship - my heart could have been in it more.
“After all Abel did sacrifice the firstborn of his flock and spent time preparing it...Next time I’ll do better”. That would have led to quite a different outcome”.
Instead, seeing Abel’s thoughtful offer - Abel’s willingness to go the extra mile to appreciate and worship the Lord, what does Cain do?
He doesn’t argue with him. He doesn’t have a thoughtful conversation with him to learn more about Abel and about himself. He doesn’t struggle through this tough scenario with him.
He kills him in cold blood.
So stepping back a bit, what happens here? The 3rd person on the planet kills the 4th person on the planet.
Humanity wasn’t able to make it to 3 people before somebody was a murderer.
Humanity did not progress far before violence entered the story. Before there were cities, governments, or systems—there was a brother raising his hand against a brother. Sin did not take centuries to develop. It was present from the beginning.
That tells us something sobering about the human heart. We were fractured early. The problem is not merely out there in society; it runs through us.
If someone insists that people are fundamentally good and only occasionally go wrong, Scripture gently but firmly disagrees.
Cain’s story reminds us that the roots of jealousy, pride, and violence lie deep within humanity. And unless the heart is changed, those roots bear fruit.
The story of Cain and Abel is in fact the first incident recorded in Scripture of the innocent dying at the hands of sinful man.
Abel’s story still echoes today in the news. Innocent blood is still spilled, and broken hearts still cry out for justice.
And we see the same dynamic closer to home, too—sin’s pull, resentment’s flare, and the consequences that follow when we don’t submit to God.”
Those are painful things to think about. “Thanks Pastor Matthew for bumming me out”. Well, my point isn’t to discourage.
It’s to help us to see what can happen, what can go wrong with the human heart when we do not truly submit to God.
We see this in our own lives in a relatively small way. We understand there are consequences to our sin.
What will happen if I have just one drink this time, if alcohol is a problem for you? Just one little sip or two? It will lead to something like the worst of what you’ve experienced before. Blackouts. Misery. Poverty.
Just one cigarette? I’m back to a pack a day. Just one peek at porn on the Internet? I’m back to my mind being enslaved by ungodly images that weaken me on every level.
Does this mean I should take great care with what God has entrusted me with?
Need I submit my will to His in order to live the best life I can live? Anyone want to answer? Yes. Yes, a thousand times yes.
We’ll get back to Abel in a moment, but it’s worth noting that in today’s Scripture we have verse 9: Then the Lord said to Cain, ‘Where is your brother Abel?’ ‘I don’t know,’ he replied. ‘Am I my brother’s keeper?’
So not only does Cain demonstrate that we weren’t able to make it to 3 people on the planet before somebody was a murderer.
When asked by God about the whereabouts of his brother, Cain doubles down, drills down on his contempt for Abel and his disrespect for God by replying: “Idonknow. Phdfff. Am I my bro’s keeper?
The Hebrew suggests more: “Am I expected to watch over, protect, to take care of my little brother?”
Was that a good answer Cain gave to God? Is it right that we aren’t expected to care for one another? Of course not.
Every time you get sick, you benefit from Canada’s health care system. It certainly needs reform and improvement, but if you have a baby, you are not handed a $30,000 bill for a normal delivery.
When our first grandson spent a week in the ICU at Sick Kids, the cost could have been around $100,000—enough to bankrupt our daughter and son-in-law.
Tommy Douglas—a pastor and later a politician, and grandfather of actor Kiefer Sutherland—believed deeply that we are our brother’s keeper.
That conviction—that a society has a moral responsibility to care for one another—led him to build Saskatchewan’s public health system, which became the foundation of Canada’s national Medicare.
So Cain is the archetype of the jealous murderer, the shadow brother, the one who refuses repentance. Basically the worst of humanity that shows up extremely early in the Bible.
He is the worst we can be. He points early to how essential, how critical it is that we have a Saviour, a Redeemer, to save us and heal us of our sin and its consequences.
Enough for now about Cain’s failings and about how his bad attitude is the type of attitude we want to entirely purge from our consciousnesses, from our hearts.
Let’s look at the offering of Cain. Today’s Scripture also gives us a look at the value of the notion of firstfruits, of offering God our best. Of how there is something honourable about spending time thinking about “How can I live my life in a way where I give my best to God?
How can my life reach its highest potential?” And along with that, “How can I stop wasting my time, wasting my life?”
Abel is one the one hand in today’s Scripture the archetype of the innocent, righteous victim. But he is so much more than that. He is a worshipper of God.
Abel is mentioned often elsewhere in Scripture.
Hebrews 11:4 By faith Abel brought God a better offering than Cain did. By faith he was commended as righteous, when God spoke well of his offerings. And by faith Abel still speaks, even though he is dead.
Abel represents the first human who, despite his lineage - that of Adam and Eve who sinned in an effort to be like God - does what is right. Abel isn’t perfect - the Bible doesn’t say that he is - but he is sincere.
Abel is then perhaps the first person that we can look to as a type of model or indicator of what we can become at our best.
So Abel still speaks, and the fact that he is included in Hebrews chapter 11, which Christians have for centuries called “The Hall of Faith”, points to how important even this earliest of humans is.
Hebrews chapter 11 reads like a gallery of portraits showing what real, lived-out faith looks like. That chapter lists the heroes of faith by name: women and men like Abel, Enoch, Noah, Abraham, Sarah, Moses, Rahab, David, Samuel, and others. And it invites us to see ourselves as part of that same story.
Very simply - Will I be like Cain, or will I be like Abel? Seems simple but if we think about it - if we think about our own pasts and the errors and corrections - the sins and the repentance in our own lives - we can get a glimpse of both Cain and Abel in ourselves.
That is not a comfortable inner journey, but it’s one that Christians have used in their pursuit of Jesus, of imitating Jesus, for a very long time.
Heb 12:23-24 You have come to God, the Judge of all, to the spirits of the righteous made perfect, 24 to Jesus the mediator of a new covenant, and to the sprinkled blood that speaks a better word than the blood of Abel.
Hebrews 12:23–24 takes the story of Cain and Abel and lifts it into a much larger, cosmic frame.
Where Hebrews 11 shows Abel as the first model of faith, Hebrews 12 shows Jesus as the One who completes what Abel could only begin.
Abel’s blood was the first human blood spilled in anger. It cried out from the ground for God to see, to notice, to act. Abel’s blood says, “This is wrong. Judge this. Set this right.” It is the cry of innocence wounded, of righteousness violated.
In that sense, Abel becomes the first witness in Scripture to the truth that sin has consequences and that God does not ignore injustice.
But Jesus’ blood speaks a better word—not because Abel was wrong, but because Jesus goes further. Abel’s blood calls for justice; Jesus’ blood brings mercy. Abel’s blood exposes guilt; Jesus’ blood removes guilt. Abel’s blood reveals what humans do to one another; Jesus’ blood reveals what God has done for us.
Abel’s blood says, “Sin must be judged.” Jesus’ blood says, “Sin can be forgiven.” Abel’s blood marks the beginning of human brokenness. Jesus’ blood marks the beginning of new creation.
And so Hebrews 12 is reminding us that we do not stand before God in Cain’s world anymore. We stand in Christ’s.
We do not come to God with the stain of our failures, our resentments, or our violence.
We come to God through the One who calls us brothers and sisters, who lays down His life for us, and whose blood speaks—not accusation, but grace.
You stand before God covered by the blood of the One who calls you brother and lays His life down for you.
That is simply what is true of all who are in Christ Jesus. All who have accepted Jesus as Lord and Saviour. All who have believed that the death Jesus Christ died was to cleanse us of our sin once and for all, that we might live to God.
As we wrap up, let’s look briefly at another New Testament passage that refers to Cain and Abel
1 John 3: 11 For this is the message you heard from the beginning: we should love one another. 12 Do not be like Cain, who belonged to the evil one and murdered his brother. And why did he murder him? Because his own actions were evil and his brother’s were righteous. 13 Do not be surprised, my brothers and sisters,[b] if the world hates you. 14 We know that we have passed from death to life, because we love each other. Anyone who does not love remains in death. 15 Anyone who hates a brother or sister is a murderer, and you know that no murderer has eternal life residing in him.
16 This is how we know what love is: Jesus Christ laid down his life for us. And we ought to lay down our lives for our brothers and sisters.
Again, we are of Christ’s world and not of Cain’s. Cain had 3 other people in his world. His mother Eve, his father Adam and his little brother Abel. Eventually there were obviously other children of Adam and Eve whom Cain married.
Early on in the genetic line this wasn’t just acceptable. It was necessary for the survival of the species.
Cain did not belong to God. And the proof of that is in his actions. The Black Death Plague in the 14th century killed up to 50% of the known world at the time. Cain himself killed 25% of the known world during his time. John asks: “Why did he murder him?”
And he answers his own question. V 12. Because his own actions were evil and his brother’s were righteous.
John harkens back to the proto message, the message heard from the beginning: We should love one another.
And he that we know that we have passed from death to life, because we love each other. And he says anyone who does not love remains.
Anyone who hates a brother or sister is a murderer, And you know that no murderer has eternal life residing in him.
So where does that leave us?
Cain stands as the warning. Abel stands as the witness. But Jesus stands as the Saviour.
Lent invites us to examine the heart behind the gift. Not merely what we bring to God—but how we bring it.
Not merely our actions—but our posture. Cain brought something. Abel brought his best. Cain protected himself. Abel trusted God. Cain resented righteousness. Abel worshipped in faith.
And if we are honest, both brothers live somewhere inside us.
There are moments when we bring God leftovers—our spare attention, our distracted prayers, our half-hearted obedience. And there are moments when grace awakens something better in us—when we want to give Him our firstfruits, our trust, our gratitude.
But here is the good news: our hope is not that we become perfect Abels.
Our hope is that we belong to Christ.
Because Jesus is the true and better Abel—the innocent One whose blood was shed. But unlike Abel’s blood that cried out for justice, Jesus’ blood speaks mercy. It does not cry, “Judge them.” It says, “Forgive them.” It does not expose guilt; it removes it.
And because of Him, we are no longer trapped in Cain’s world of rivalry and resentment. We are invited into Christ’s world of reconciliation and love.
1 John tells us plainly: “This is how we know what love is: Jesus Christ laid down his life for us. And we ought to lay down our lives for our brothers and sisters.”
That is the heart behind the gift. Not duty. Not comparison. Not jealousy. But love.
Love that flows from having first been loved.
So during this Lenten season, the question is not simply: What will I give up? The deeper question is: What kind of heart am I bringing to God?
Am I clinging to resentment? Guarding pride? Protecting ego? Or am I bringing Him my trust, my repentance, my gratitude—my best?
Because the God who looked with favour on Abel now looks on us through Christ. And in Him, we are accepted. In Him, we are forgiven. In Him, we are free.
So let us not love with words or speech, but with actions and in truth. Let us worship not casually, but gratefully.
