Day 10: Acceptance
Illustration
In Genesis 4, we learn that two sons were born to Adam and Eve, their names were Cain and Abel. These brothers had no doubt heard from their parents that to approach a holy God, in their sinful state, required a sacrifice. But the kinds of sacrifices these brothers brought teach us much about how we, ourselves, are accepted by God.
Genesis 4:3-5 (NIV) In the course of time Cain brought some of the fruits of the soil as an offering to the Lord. 4 And Abel also brought an offering—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.
Cain brought "some of the fruits of the soil." He was a hard worker in his fields, he planted and harvested, and from his labors, he brought God an offering. Cain thought the fruit of his hard work merited God's acceptance.
Abel, on the other hand, brought a sacrifice of blood, an offering from his flock that he had killed. Abel understood, probably from the sacrifice that God made for his parents (Genesis 3:21), the depths of his sin and the requirement for blood to be shed for forgiveness. Abel evidenced that he understood what would later be said clearly in Hebrews 9:22 "In fact, the law requires that nearly everything be cleansed with blood, and without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness."
And who received God's favor? "The Lord looked with favor on Abel and his offering." The Lord accepted Abel because the Lord accepted Abel's offering. There was blood in that offering, which pointed forward to the blood Jesus would shed on the cross, to forgive all who come to God through Him. Abel was accepted because of his sacrifice, and you and I are accepted because of the sacrifice of Jesus Christ in our place, for our sins, as our Substitute.