Cain and Able: The Natural and Spiritual Man

Cain and Abel: The Natural Man and the Spiritual Man

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By faith, Abel offered God a better sacrifice than Cain did. By faith he was commended as a righteous man, when God spoke well of his offerings. And by faith, he still speaks, even though he is dead. Hebrews 11:4

What do you suppose Adam and Eve told their children about God? Surely, they talked about the lovely garden and how God visited them there. They must have told their boys about the awful moment when they felt ashamed and afraid for the first time in their lives. And they must have cringed when describing how Jehovah cut the throat of one (or maybe two) of their beloved, innocent animals in order to make coverings for their shame and guilt. No blood had ever been shed before – it was a shocking display!

Adam and Eve talked to their sons about God’s mercy and grace. They explained that He desired fellowship with the human race, but a blood sacrifice was required as protection from Divine judgment. Abel clearly accepted these things; but Cain rebelled against them. Still, it would be wrong to characterize Cain as someone who ignored God or refused to worship Him. Cain worshipped, he acknowledged God, he gave gifts to God – yet his way was the way of death, for there was no deliverance in the way of Cain (Jude 10, 11).

God had made a way of deliverance from the wrath of God and from the self-nature that had become rooted in man’s character; Cain needed to acknowledge this and act upon it. Instead, he brought a bloodless sacrifice to God, one that represented his personal work. Cain was a tiller of the soil – in his mind, the fruit of his labor was valuable. However, it is the mind of God that matters, and Cain’s gift was not acceptable to Him. This gift represented his own effort and was not given with of a heart in subjection to God. God is holy and righteous, He requires a life poured out – every blood sacrifice is a testimony of the wrath of God against sin.

Cain’s refusal to bring the proper sacrifice to God reveals his refusal to receive the grace that would free him from the judgment of death. Cain was, in essence, saying, “I have something to offer God; there is nothing in me that should require the spilling of blood.” You see, God is not looking for us to give Him something; He is waiting for us to acknowledge that our sin requires death. When a sacrifice is humbly offered, God sees the blood that is poured out, and then He clothes the sinner with His grace and forgiveness. God is always the giver; man receives what God offers

We might ask, “Wasn’t Abel giving something to God in the sacrifice he offered?” The blood sacrifice was an acknowledgement that sin deserves death; it was not a gift to God. Abel believed that God was satisfied with the death of an innocent substitute as just payment for sin and he received what God was pleased to give: merciful forgiveness and freedom from judgment. Able was freed from personal guilt and understood that his sins were not counted against him.

Abel understood death and judgment – he raised and cared for sacrificial animals (men were vegetarians until after the flood, so Abel’s animals were not used for food). Wandering from pasture to pasture, he took care of his animals and offered up “the firstlings of his flock and of their fat portions” to God (fat portions are the excellent part of the animal). This is a picture of the believer who understands the magnitude of sin’s offense to God, yet has trusted in Him alone. While Abel enjoyed the peaceful assurance of His acceptance, Cain refused to receive the grace of God and therefore became more self-focused and independent. He is a picture of the fleshly man.

These two brothers are set before us as men in contrast. One understands God’s heart and mind, the other insists that God take him on his own terms. Even as God refused to accept Cain’s offering, He offered grace to him saying, “Why are you angry? . . . If you do what is right, will you not be accepted?”

Did Cain really want to be accepted? Or did he want God to overlook his fleshly nature – the very nature that makes him unfit for God’s presence? Cain believed in God – he knew that God was real – but he did not wish to accept God’s judgment against him or submit to Him. In the end, Cain acted according to his true nature when he vented his anger on the one who represented God on the earth – his brother Abel. And we should pay attention to the way he did it: 1John 3:12 tells us that he “slew” his brother. This word is a Greek term that means “cut the throat,” and is used when referring to Levitical sacrifices. Cain killed his own brother using the exact method he would have used if he were killing a sacrificial animal.

The Spirit of God has illustrated the character of a person who defies God and chooses darkness instead of light. Cain’s children will reflect this same character, passing it on to succeeding generations where it will continue to gain strength and express rebellion against God. Abel speaks to all the generations that followed after him – he speaks of deliverance from judgment and acceptance with God. The natural man and the spiritual man – the Bible repeatedly exposes the character of both, and clearly displays God’s thoughts about each. LJ 6/09