Gen. 4:3 And in process of time it came to pass, that Cain brought of the fruit of the ground an offering unto the LORD.
4And Abel, he also brought of the firstlings of his flock and of the fat thereof. And the LORD had respect unto Abel and to his offering:
5But unto Cain and to his offering he had not respect. And Cain was very wroth, and his countenance fell.
6And the LORD said unto Cain, Why art thou wroth? and why is thy countenance fallen?
7If thou doest well, shalt thou not be accepted? and if thou doest not well, sin lieth at the door. And unto thee shall be his desire, and thou shalt rule over him.
And you're right, DontHit... whatever Cain did was disobedient and not an acceptable form of worship or an acceptable way to give an offering... And we don't know exactly why that is because the Bible doesn't tell us =)
Without the shedding of blood, there is no forgiveness: the blood of Jesus Christ cleanses us from all sin.
February 17, 2010 Genesis 4:1-5
The name of Abel appears among �the heroes of the faith�(Hebrews 11:14). The story of Abel is a story of grace, faith and obedience. Abel�s sacrifice was a blood sacrifice while Cain�s was a fruit sacrifice (3-4). The blood sacrifice points forward � via the Old Testament sacrificial system � to the greatest sacrifice of all � �the blood of Jesus Christ cleanses us from all sin�(1 John 1:7; Hebrews 9:12). The blood sacrifice points to salvation by grace � �without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness�(Hebrews 9:22). Abel�s sacrifice was an act of faith: �By faith Abel offered a better sacrifice than Cain did�(Hebrews 11:4). The blood reminds us that true faith is always faith in Christ and never �faith� in anything we can ever offer to God. Abel was obedient, bringing �the firstborn�to God. �In the course of time Cain brought some��.
So I do not get in trouble, here is the link if ya want to read rest of the article.
Mmm...but I don't think we get to do whatever we want when it comes to God. There are too many examples of people doing it the wrong way. I mean, we should say..."God has lined out His will....I should follow it to the best of my ability...and make my ability better along the way...".
Matthew 25:14-30 (King James Version)
14For the kingdom of heaven is as a man travelling into a far country, who called his own servants, and delivered unto them his goods.
15And unto one he gave five talents, to another two, and to another one; to every man according to his several ability; and straightway took his journey.
16Then he that had received the five talents went and traded with the same, and made them other five talents.
17And likewise he that had received two, he also gained other two.
18But he that had received one went and digged in the earth, and hid his lord's money.
19After a long time the lord of those servants cometh, and reckoneth with them.
20And so he that had received five talents came and brought other five talents, saying, Lord, thou deliveredst unto me five talents: behold, I have gained beside them five talents more.
21His lord said unto him, Well done, thou good and faithful servant: thou hast been faithful over a few things, I will make thee ruler over many things: enter thou into the joy of thy lord.
22He also that had received two talents came and said, Lord, thou deliveredst unto me two talents: behold, I have gained two other talents beside them.
23His lord said unto him, Well done, good and faithful servant; thou hast been faithful over a few things, I will make thee ruler over many things: enter thou into the joy of thy lord.
24Then he which had received the one talent came and said, Lord, I knew thee that thou art an hard man, reaping where thou hast not sown, and gathering where thou hast not strawed:
25And I was afraid, and went and hid thy talent in the earth: lo, there thou hast that is thine.
26His lord answered and said unto him, Thou wicked and slothful servant, thou knewest that I reap where I sowed not, and gather where I have not strawed:
27Thou oughtest therefore to have put my money to the exchangers, and then at my coming I should have received mine own with usury.
28Take therefore the talent from him, and give it unto him which hath ten talents.
29For unto every one that hath shall be given, and he shall have abundance: but from him that hath not shall be taken away even that which he hath.
30And cast ye the unprofitable servant into outer darkness: there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth.
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We should be searching for and trying to do what God wants if we're faithful obedient servants. If we can honestly do that, then you're right...whatever we offer God in worship is good enough, even if it's not exactly what God wants(i.e. something done in ignorance of God's will), even if it's just the "interest" on our "talent". God gives us knowledge and power according to our ability, and we're only expected to live up to what He gives us. But...my point is...there is no excuse when we disregard what God shows us He wants us to do, in order to do things the way we want to do them or to keep doing things the way we always have been. If God shows up and finds us burying our knowledge in the ground...not cool...
As I said, I'm not disputing that blood must be shed for forgiveness of sin. What I am attempting to point out is that not all offerings are for that purpose. It is possible (and my personal opinion) that Cain's offering was not for forgiveness.
As long as the way we worship stays in the guidelines of thw word of god it is ok. If you like to sing and dance become pentacostal, if not you can become Lutherern or Catholic. The particlar form is not always called out but the way not to do it is.
We need to have a clean heart before the lord.Dennis
Only those who are, "saved by grace, through faith and not of works" can I call brothers. Catholicism is a work righteous religion and will excommunicate you from the church if you say salvation is grace alone by faith alone.
Well, there are those that try to persuade some that, Jesus forgot that he died for all mankind. Now what, back to the drawing board, let God be true and every man a liar.
It certainly does matter. First off, we should make sure that we are following God's Law in Worship.
We see Rome, violating the second commandment in the most gross way possible by not only having statues, but putting them in the sanctuary and bowing and praying to them.
During the Reformation this question on how to worship God properly was debated very carefully, and there are basically two views that Protestants have on worship.
1. That which is not forbidden is allowed.
2. that which is not expressly commanded is forbidden.
This second view has led to No musical instruments in worship.
Singing of the Psalms only. No entertainment on the Lord's Day.
The regulatory principle is an idea that came from the second view.
And when I say Protestants, I mean historic denominations that actually have worship methods, and not non-denominational charismatic churches where who knows what they will do.
And when I say Protestants, I mean historic denominations that actually have worship methods, and not non-denominational charismatic churches where who knows what they will do.
I am glad you said that. Non-denominational churches have actually become a denomination of their own if they like it or not, they are with no accountability and no doctrinal statements of faith and they wear that proudly.
I can't say all the denominational church follow their statements of faith either, but some do. Some I don't think know they have a statement of faith. And I can't say all non-denominational churches are not orthodox either. I know some are cause I have listened to sermons off internet. But I personally have yet to be in one that didn't have some kookiness or silliness going on inside.
I heard a commentary on what happens to a church after main preacher dies or leaves the church he started. Usually within 2 to 3 generations if not sooner they have forgotten what they were fighting for and have swung so far to liberal side they are not even a shadow of what they were when they started out.
Want proof of this? Look at the ivy league schools like Princeton, Harvard and Yale they all started out as Christian colleges that are so atheistic bent now you could not squeeze out a hint of Christianity.
A preacher I sat under once would say: What does non mean? non means nothing! If you don't stand for something you will fall for anything!
If you are in a doctrinally sound non-denominational church, GREAT!!! Nothin wrong with that at all!
My disclaimer: I could be wrong!
Got a question: What does "full gospel" mean? I thought it meant, the good news of the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus Christ for salvation.
