23rd October 2021

Checking into His Presence… By faith, Abel offered God a better sacrifice than that of Cain, his brother. And by faith, he was commended as a righteous man when God spoke well of his offerings. Abel's offering was very selective, and Cain's was not of his best. Under this interpretation, we can conclude that Abel considered God well worthy of special honour, and this was associated with the sincere love through worship, trust and faith which Abel had for God. On the other hand, Cain may have viewed his sacrifice as a necessity and without the attached notion that surrounds the whole produce coming from God and unto him in the first place. As well, Abel's offering of "firstlings" may also have given him the understanding that the produce of his flock was a gift from God, and he became the custodian of such heritage. God's favour here did not take into consideration what Cain and Abel had offered to Him in the choice of their offerings. Instead, the general message from the Scripture is that God "looks at the heart", and this was stated in 1 Samuel16:7-"But the Lord said unto Samuel, Look not on his countenance, or on the height of his stature; because I have refused him: for the Lord seeth not as man seeth; for man looketh on the outward appearance, but the Lord looketh on the heart". It will be uncommon for anyone to assume that God's favour and His kind acceptance of Abel's offering coincided with Abel's loving and faithful heart. Let me state in line with the scriptures that God does not benefit from such sacrifices except those from the spirits. This was made evident in Psalm 50:9. "I have no need of a bull from your stall or of goats from your pens," but seek a heart sacrifice. The same message echoes in Psalm 51:17 -"The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit; a broken and contrite heart, O God, you will not despise." Overall, an outward sacrifice should be seen more like a fruit that may not display our genuine intent to the outside world. Apostle Paul in Hebrews 11:4 declares, "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. An indication that the offering resulted from faith, a trait of the heart without which "it is impossible to please God."  Empower us, oh God, let us be able to build our thoughts around Your holiness. Give us hearts that are willing to carry out Your dictates in Jesus name. Amen Http://testimony-times.blogspot.co.uk Just Checking into His Presence…