God is to be worshipped. There is a way God is to be approached. There is a way and the way is a person, the Lord Jesus Christ.

They both brought an offering. And before we go much further, one of the problems that we have when we consider these stories in the scriptures is that we often want to think, well, I'm not Cain. And that's why he came as a mercy beggar. Abel saw himself as a sinner. And if we think that we are in any way above those, except by what the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ has done in us, who makes you to differ? What have you done? What have you earned that God hasn't given you? Everything that we have has come from the hand of our God.

Our Lord had respect unto Abel and his offering. And why was Cain's offering not respected? And we've looked at that a little bit earlier. Cain's offering was not accepted because Cain's offering was in open disobedience to God. Cain's offering was not accepted because it was a bloodless offering, a bloodless offering. Abel believed God. He simply believed God. He believed in the character of God.

Cain's great sin is that he treated God as if God was not as holy as he really is, and he treated and came into the presence of God without an awareness of who he was as a sinner, and nothing but a sinner. What does God accept? What's the work of God? What's the work of God that God accepts? The Pharisees asked the Lord Jesus Christ that question. In John chapter six they asked, what must we do? What shall we do that we will do the works, we might do the works of God? That's a good question, isn't it? What must I do? What can I do that I can do the works of God? I'd love the Lord Jesus Christ's answer to them. He said, this

What's God's work in the hearts of his people? Why did Abel bring an offering in faith? Why did Abel bring the Lord Jesus Christ in faith? God gave him faith. That's where Abel's faith came from. It's the gift of God. This is the work of God.

Cain said, I'm coming to God with the works of my own hands, with the sweat of my own brow, with the best of my efforts, the sacrifice of my best produce. I'm bringing him back to God. and multitudes are encouraged to do that in so many millions of places. I told you earlier in the service that I checked out how many places that meetings like this are in the world. Four and a half million, I think the answer was. It's remarkable, isn't it? I think there are nearly 400,000 And I don't know, we are here and you and I are responsible. to each other for us, holding to the truth of the scriptures and holding to the truth of what God says about how to be accepted before him. And we would like and we pray that we have opportunity to talk to other people, but we're not responsible for what happens in other places. We are responsible for what lies before us. And it's a heavy responsibility. You will meet God. You will meet God.

Cain's act was an act of faithlessness. It was a religious ceremony. He showed up and he thought God would accept his religious activities. And in reality, in his heart, he had contempt for the character of God. God is holy. God is just. God will only accept into his presence that which is holy and just and perfect. And he's already accepted his son and he accepts everyone in his son. He made his son an offering for sin. He made his son an offering for sin on the cross of Calvary. And if anyone wants to put anything that they have done alongside the works of the Lord Jesus Christ, They are showing utter contempt for the character of God. There is acceptance, and that's what this passage is saying, there is acceptance and there is respect. But it's unto Abel and his sacrifice. Abel and the Lord Jesus Christ, in the eyes of God Almighty, are united as one. It's remarkable, that's just what the truth of this is.

Cain drew near with his lips, but his hearts were far from him. It's remarkable, the way of Cain. Lord Jesus Christ was there and he spoke to Cain twice in this story. He said to him, he says, if you do well, thou shalt not be accepted. You'll be accepted if you do well. Do well is to come the way I believe, to come in faith, to come and believe in God, to bring the sacrifice.

or respect. Even after the murder of Abel, Cain refused to hear the words of God. Cain debated with Abel and he didn't talk to God. Cain never asked for mercy, he never asked for forgiveness, he never asked for acceptance.

Isn't it remarkable when you read books like we have been reading in the book of Jude and the book of John and all of the letters which are written against the false teachers and the false activities in those churches, the people... that Jude is writing to and writing about as those creeping men that sneak into churches and turn the grace of God into lasciviousness and say that grace does not have the power to do what grace has promised to do, that we must add something like Cain did to our works. Those men read those letters. The Galatian false teachers read the letter. They heard from God Almighty, just as Cain did.

How can we be accepted with God exactly the way Abel was accepted with God? The blood of Abel speaks because the blood of Abel was shed in faith because Abel brought to God the blood of the Lord Jesus Christ. I love what 1 John chapter 3 says, and I can read it to you for want of time, but 1 John chapter 3, it says, Cain was the wicked one. It says, not as Cain, this is a message you've heard from the beginning, that we should love one another. Not as Cain, Cain had hatred in his heart. Not as Cain, who was of that wicked one, and slew his brother. Why did he slay him? Good question, God answers the question. Because his own works were evil, God said those works were evil. And Cain never sought mercy, and his brothers were righteous.

righteous. What were Abel's works? He brought the works of the Lord Jesus Christ to God Almighty. Abel is declared to be a righteous man and I love what we read Hebrews 11 for a couple of times but it's just lovely what it says isn't it? It says by faith. Abel offered by faith. Cain just didn't believe. He didn't believe God.

of Adam's children, you shall be as God's knowing good and evil. I can decide what is good and I can decide what is evil and I can do the good in my mind and in my estimation and I can avoid the evil. By faith Abel, faith that God gave him, Abel offered unto God a more excellent sacrifice than Cain, by which he obtained witness that he was righteous. Don't you love the fact that God testified? God testified of his gifts. What did he bring to God? He brought the lamb. He brought the lamb of God to God.

Abel's offering was in direct contrast to Cain. Abel believed God. He offered to God a lamb. And what Abel was saying by bringing that lamb, he says, I'm a sinner. And the only way I can be accepted by God is in a substitute, a substitute that bears my sins and takes them away by his own blood. Abel is saying to God, my wickedness is such that it deserves death. But my personal death does nothing for my sin. I need a substitute who dies. I need a lamb. I need the lamb of God, the Lord Jesus Christ, to bear my sin and to die in my blood. Abel is saying as he came to God, into the presence of God, he says, my only hope is in someone dying in my place. It's a more excellent sacrifice. He brought the Lamb of God.

And on that note, we have to say and we have to remind ourselves that the way of Cain in this religious world of ours is to bring all sorts of lambs. There are so many lambs being brought. There are so many Jesuses in this world. The true Jesus said that there were so many Jesus. They'll come into this world and they'll be prominent and they'll be believed. I heard a man say the other day in one of the, prominent conservative churches in this town, Jesus died for the sins of all mankind. That is the lamb he was encouraging those people in our church to bring to God. If the Lord Jesus Christ died for the sins of all mankind, then Cain was saved. And all mankind must be saved, or else salvation is by works.

There is just one Lamb. There is one Lamb that we can bring to God that God accepts. And that Lamb is the Lord Jesus Christ and Him crucified. The Lamb of universal redemption is a Lamb that doesn't save. If something has to be added to His blood to save me from my sins, then His blood is not enough and I need something plus His blood. That's the way of Cain. There is a Lamb that people say is offered to all mankind. If He's offered to all mankind, then man has to do something to accept the offer. God doesn't offer His Son to all mankind. Hebrews 9 makes it abundantly clear. He offered Himself. offering of the Lamb was to God. Abel brought the Lamb of God to God, and that's what caused Abel to be accepted and his offering. God accepts one offering, and that's His Son.

There is the Lamb of universal redemption, the Lamb that loves everyone and died for everyone and wants to save everyone. There's the Lamb offered for all to accept. There's the Lamb that requires you to do something, to add your works. to make the work of the Lamb successful. That's not a Lamb that got excess. This Lamb all of Abel's works. Abel was saying, as he brought that lamb, he was saying, all of my works, all of my works are filthy rags and I can only trust in the Lamb of God alone.

There is a lamb that's in part of the ritual of religion. Like Cain, he went through the process of religious activity and his heart was far from God.

There is the lamb that's It begins at work, and it needs the completion of man's activity. There is the Lamb of Legalism that requires you. The Lamb of Legalism says that the Lord Jesus Christ did not fulfill the law perfectly, and as Abel and his offering are united as one before God, Abel is saying to God that all of my righteousness before the law, that's what it is to be righteous, to perfectly obey the law of God.

Abel is saying that all the righteousness, the only righteousness that I have ever, is the Lord Jesus Christ and Him alone. Everything that I do is stained by what I did. There's a remarkable proverb that says, the ploughing of the wicked is an abomination to God. Why? He came out there to dig the row ground for his carrots and his zucchinis and his tomatoes and other things. God says it's an abomination. Why? Because man's hands are involved in it. That's how sinful they are. That's what Abel is saying.

I am so sinful. that the only hope for me, the only hope of acceptance, the only hope of God respecting me, is I bring the Lamb. I'm joined to the Lamb. Abel is saying, I cannot undo what I have done, and I cannot make up for what I am by my works. Abel is saying, sin is not just what I do, but what I am, and if sin is what I am, then I need a substitute, I need a sacrifice, I need someone to cover me for all of my sin. And that's what God says he accepts. God says he respects that. God says he accepts him.

Back into the very arms of God in the Lord Jesus Christ, able-believed God. The great issue of this story, the great issue of our lives, is what does God accept? What can God accept? What can a holy God accept? Well, firstly, it's got to be holy for him to accept it. He says in Leviticus 20, 21, it must be perfect to be accepted. There is just one perfect man who lived before God in this world, perfectly loving God with all of his heart, all of his soul, all of his mind, and all of his strength. One perfect substitute, one perfect lamb. Abel was saying, redemption, my redemption is completely accomplished in my substitute. Abel bowed and believed God. He believed the Lord Jesus Christ. There's one coming to cross the head of the serpent. There's one lamb to be slain who's going to cover the sins of his parents. And it's the lamb of God's providing. And that's what I pray that we come to God, just saying, I'm only coming on the basis and entirely upon the work of your dear and precious son.

The way of Cain is to come another way, and it doesn't matter which other way it is. You can name it any name you'd like. If it's not Abel's way, it's the way of Cain, and it's the way of everyone who is lost. Cain never cried for mercy. Cain never acknowledged his sin, even when God spoke to him. Cain's a great picture of how hard the hearts of fallen man are. There's only one thing that'll ever soften the hardened hearts of man, and that's the blood of the Lord Jesus Christ and the love of God that's shed abroad in our hearts. That can melt away our stony hearts and give us a love for Christ.

The love that he puts in our hearts Abel respected God. Abel accepted God's sacrifice and substitute and God accepted him. The first human blood shed on the earth outside of the garden was of blood grace of God, one who believed in the substitute that God accepts. and it was shared by a man trusting in his own works of righteousness. Nothing has changed. That is promised. That's the promised life of all believers until the Lord Jesus Christ returns.

They hated me without a cause. Was there any cause in Abel? What was Abel doing? He was preaching the gospel. He was preaching the gospel in words and he was preaching the gospel in action. But how many times prior to his murder had he discussed this with Cain and pleaded with him? Everyone who believes that they have something of their own works to bring is going to harden their hearts. and their hearts be hardened by God. May God give us a new heart. May God take away this heart of stone out of our lives.

There are, in this story, only two ways. Two religions. There is grace and works and there is nothing in between. Cain and Abel, as I said at the beginning, is a picture of all humanity. Christ is all. He is Abel. to the acceptance of God. Look unto me, says the Lord Jesus Christ, and don't look anywhere else. Look unto me and be ye saved, all ye ends of the earth, and don't go anywhere else. We don't need anyone else, we don't need, Christ is all, and you have Christ, you have everything.

And God is a giver. Don't you love what Romans 8 says, isn't it? Will not God give with him? He that spared not his own son, but delivered him up for us all, how shall he not with him? If you have Christ, you have with him. Also freely give us all things.

The cause of the giving is not in us. The cause of the giving is in God. Why did Abel go to heaven that day? Purely because of the Lord Jesus Christ. purely because of the Lord Jesus Christ. God did it all. God did it all. God is pleased with the lamb of his providing.

As I said to you young people, Christ is all. He is able. And how are we accepted? Don't you love what Ephesians 1 says? We're Able, kind, it's a mercy behavior. May we be made a mercy beggars. May the Lord make us to have the faith of Cain and may God continually, continually speak to us about Abel and his sacrifice.

Let's pray. Our Heavenly Father, we thank you. We thank you that there is forgiveness with thee Therefore, you are to be feared, we pray, Heavenly Father, that you would reveal yourself in the depths and wonders as much as we can bear of how extraordinarily holy and righteous you are, and that you've accepted that sitting right now on the throne of glory is your dear and precious Son, and he bears in that glorified body the forgiveness of our sins and Heavenly Father I pray that you would give us a simple childlike faith all of not looking to anything that we have, anything that we've done, anything that we might do in the future, but just continually look to your Lamb.

We praise you, Heavenly Father, there's acceptance with you. We praise you, Heavenly Father, that there's an offering that you have respect for, and we praise you particularly that there is an eternal union between your people and your dear and precious Son. May we be found in Him. Make it the desire of our hearts, Heavenly Father, that we be found in Him, not having any righteousness of our own, but simply trusting and looking to and living on the finished work of your dear and precious Son, the Lord Jesus Christ.

Bless these elements to our remembrance, Heavenly Father. May we eat And may we drink worthily. like Abel did by trusting the blood that was shed. Trusting the one who shed his blood and now lives to reign and rule. Rule in our hearts Heavenly Father, cause us to know your dear and precious Son and to love him, who he is and what he's done, how glorious he is. For we pray in his precious name. Amen.

Thanks God.