"Now Abel kept flocks, and Cain worked the soil.  In the course of time Cain brought some of the fruits of the soil as an offering to the LORD, But Abel brought fat portions from some of the first-born of his flock.  The LORD looked with favor on Abel and his offering, but on Cain and his offering he did not look with favor.  So Cain was very angry, and his face was downcast.  Then the LORD said to Cain, "Why are you angry?  Why is your face downcast?  If you do what is right, will you not be accepted?  But if you do not do what is right, sin is crouching at your door, it desires to have you, but you must master it."  Genesis 4:2b-7  

You may be familiar with the age old story of Cain and Able.  How Cain slew his younger brother in the field out of jealousy.  There is some focus on the differences of the sacrifices presented.  Able's sacrifice some would say was honored because it was a blood sacrifice the first born, a type of Christ, whereas Cain's was not a blood sacrifice which God would not accept.  Although that is a very distinct possibility, I would like to focus on something a little more obvious.

Whatever God told Cain to do, Cain did not do.  Plain and simple Cain defied God's requirements.  Although Cain brought an offering as God told him to do he did not do exactly as God asked him to do.  Remember the verse in Joshua 1?  "Be careful to observe everythingthat I have commanded." Cain approached God on his own terms, kind of a revised sacrifice, which obviously displeased both God and Cain.  Cain's great sin was actually the same sin as his mother, his father and Lucifer, pride, and rebellion.  When we willingly disobey God and challenge His authority we become like Cain.  Even though Cain obeyed God, by bringing a sacrifice he did not follow the instructions that God gave.  He was like the cook who revised the recipe and tried to do what he thought was best rather than humbling himself and doing what ws required of him.  How many of us really do what God says?  You could say that Cain tried to bargain with God.  Cain's attitude was:  "I'll bring a sacrifice as you want God, but I want to bring it on my terms."  I think that if most of us were truly honest with ourselves, we all are guilty of the sin of Cain.  James writes in his epistle, "God resists the proud but gives grace to the humble."  James 4:6.  When we resist any part of the will of God, we resist God Himself.  When God commands us to do something, He expects us to do it fully and completely.  Ted Koppel the former anchor man for the ABC News "Nightline" was quoted as saying, "The 10 Commandments are not the 10 suggestions!"  How true that statement is!  When God tells us to do something He wants us to do it as directed.  When a doctor prescribes medicine he expects it to be taken as directed.  If his orders are not followed directly that which was meant for good, could cause harm if not followed exactly.  

All and Exactly!  Think about those two words.  James writes, "He who knows to do right and doesn't do it to him it is sin.  Partial obedience is disobedience.  My wife tells my children constantly, "A job half done is a job not done at all."  God does not bargain with us and we can not bargain with Him.  There are no negotiations allowed with God.  He gives the orders and we follow the orders.  What would happen if a soldier told his commanding officer, "uh sir, I don't want to do it that way, I think it would be best if I do it this way."  I am sure that soldier would be thrown in the brig!  i have a good friend who was working one evening at the grocery store and his store managers told him to clean the floor a certain way.  My friend, a very soft spoken person, said that he thought it would be done better if they did it his way."  They told my friend, "We don't mean to hurt your feelings, but we don't pay you to think.  Now do what we asked the way we asked."  Pretty harsh huh?  Not really, that was the agreement.  You are the boss and I am the employee.  I submit to you.  I do what you say.

If Cain had obeyed God and followed directions there would not have been any problems. For God even said to him, "If you do well, will you not be accepted?" Gen 4:7.  Obedience brings blessing whereas disobedience brings the wrath of God.  "God will by no means let the guilty go unpunished."  Exodus 34:7.  The interesting thing about what God told Cain was that "Sin was crouching at the door, and its desire is for you, but you should master it (rule over it)."  What God was saying to Cain was that, "You have an opportunity to do right.  You have the opportunity to get it right and follow my instructions, but if you don't , you run the risk of letting sin enter into your heart and it will take over and destroy you."  I think of what the Apostle Paul wrote to the Ephesians, "Do not let the sun go down on your wrath, neither give place to the devil."  Ephesians 4:26.  When any of us surrender any part of our heart to sin, we give place to the devil.  He will set up a stronghold in your life and operate from there.  Cain, chose not to humble himself and obey God and line up with His instructions, and so Cain surrendered his heart to sin and it cost him dearly not to mention Able and Adam and Eve. 

Many of us may wonder why we don't have the favor and blessings of God on our lives.  It is because God will not bless disobedience.  Many of us say, "But I am doing right, I am doing all the right things.  Are you?  Can any of us truly say that we are doing all that we know to do?  Can we say that we are obedient to the Holy Spirit all day every day?  We need to be careful that we don't deceive ourselves (Gal 6) because God is not mocked.  In other works, God won't be made out to be a liar, a weakling, one who will compromise with us.  God will not conform to us, or to our demands, rather we must conform to His.  If we choose not to humble ourselves before Him we will find ourselves kicking against the pricks (goads) as Jesus Christ told Saul of Tarsus Acts 9:5.  Like an animal that resists the prodding of its master, it only makes it more painful for the animal and not the master.  When we resit God and try to bargain with Him we only make it more difficult for us and not for Him.  He says to us as He said to Cain, "If you do well will you not be accepted?

My daughter recently said to me something that I think is at the heart of the human conditon.  My wife and I were talking about dressing nice for church as we said that when we go to God's house we want to give Him our best and present our best to Him.  My daughter said, and I quote, "God accepts me as I am."  Wow!  What a statement!  Who can argue with that?  God indeed accepts us as we are.  That was one of the messages of the Prodigal Son was that no matter where we have been and what we have done, the Father stands with open arms waiting for us to come home.  The Father lovingly accepts us as we are.  However, did you notice that the Father commanded his servants to bring out a robe to be put on his son?  The son did not remain in the same condition as He came to the Father.  The Father made sure His son conformed to His standard not his son's standard.  Like my daughter the human race has justified their behavior and said to themselves, "God accepts me as I am so why change?  Why should I conform to God's standard?  After all He loves me and forgives me, and knows my faults, and accepts me as I am."
Those are one of those half truths as I like to call them that Satan uses to deceive us.  Satan even tried that tactic with Jesus!  "Has not God said?"  Of course, He has said that, but what else has God said?  He has said all throughout Scripture, "Love me, obey me, keep my commandments, honor me, serve me."  yes, of course God accepts us, but if He has asked us to do something and we do it the way we want to do it He will not accept us.

Don't bargain with God like Cain.  If you fight with God, you will be like the song the Clash sang, "I fought the law and the law won."  If you fight with God  you will not win.  You have a choice, either humble yourself or be humbled. God says, that if we "humble ourselves in the sight of the Lord He will lift us up." James 4:10.  Don't be proud like Cain, for you will only wind up miserable, bound up in sin, and living under the chastisement of God. But, if you do right as God told Cain will you not be accepted?  Let's all be living sacrifices that are holy and acceptable to God.

Love all y'all
Grace and Peace,
Brother Todd