Posted on by Abe Austin · 2 Comments

Scriptural Analysis- Genesis 4:3-5

3 And in process of time it came to pass, that Cain brought of the fruit of the ground an offering unto the Lord.

4 And 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 coffering:

5 But unto Cain and to his offering he had not respect. And Cain was very wroth, and his countenance fell.

This account doesn’t give an explanation for why God respected Abel’s offering but not Cain’s. Several theories have been made, each seeming credible in their own way, but there is no telling which—if any—of them are the actual real reason why. And I don’t think it really matters.

As I have mentioned before, what is useful to me is how this story resonates with similar experiences of my own life. I ask myself what it teaches about me, more than what it teaches about Cain. And this account reminds me of how I used to make sacrifices of time and energy to try and offset all the wrong things I was doing in my addictions. I was fundamentally warped inside, harming myself and those around me, but devoting hours of service to my church in the hope that I could tip the scales in my favor.

And you know what? It never worked. Just like in Cain’s story, I felt like God had no respect for my offerings. All of that effort and it just wasn’t going anywhere, I was running in place without ever moving forward. And like Cain I felt angry about it. It seemed cruel to me that God just wouldn’t care about what I did. I was trying so hard, why wasn’t He seeing that and fixing me?!

In hindsight, though, it would have been immensely cruel for God to have supported me in that moment. If He had done so, it would have affirmed all my broken philosophies. It would have led me to believe that I really could offset all my sins if I just did enough other works that were good. There would have been no grace in my life, no inviting God to come into my heart as it was now to heal it, no coming to see Him as He really is.

So yes, I have been Cain, rejected and angry, but I know now that when God rejects an offering it is meant only as a kindness to His child.

Posted on by Abe Austin

The Nature of Sacrifice- Galatians 2:20, Matthew 10:38-39

I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me.

And he that taketh not his cross, and followeth after me, is not worthy of me.
He that findeth his life shall lose it: and he that loseth his life for my sake shall find it.

COMMENTARY

I am crucified with Christ, but Christ liveth in me
I have already discussed how the nature of our sacrifice is to reform us to be in the image of Christ. This passage from Paul further stresses that Christ is also our exemplar in that sacrifice. Yes, he performed his atonement to cleanse our sins, but he also did it to demonstrate for us what we must do.
There is a beautiful intersection here of Christ’s sacrifice and our own. We sacrifice to become like him, and he sacrifices so that that is even possible. Were it not for his atonement, then it wouldn’t matter what we tried to sacrifice, we wouldn’t be able to experience the necessary change of heart. We might take a leap of faith, but there would be nothing to catch us on the other side.
This signifies that there is an order to sacrifice. Christ’s is the first, the prerequisite that allows us to make our own. Strange as it might sound, the freedom that Christ wins for us is the freedom to sacrifice; the freedom to not have to hold onto the old.

And he that taketh not his cross is not worthy of me
He that loseth his life for my sake shall find it
And now consider Christ’s famous pronouncement that only those who are willing to lose their life shall find it. He is not telling us that if we give up our old life then we’ll get it back again later. That wouldn’t be a sacrifice, after all, that would be a loan. No, what we give up will truly be given up, and the life that he promises we will find is not our old one back again. The life that we find will be an entirely new one: his life. We are to bear our cross, be “crucified with Christ,” and trust that as we do this new life will emerge.

Posted on by Abe Austin

The Nature of Sacrifice- 1 Corinthians 5:7, 1 Peter 2:5

Purge out therefore the old leaven, that ye may be a new lump, as ye are unleavened. For even Christ our passover is sacrificed for us:

Ye also, as lively stones, are built up a spiritual house, an holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices, acceptable to God by Jesus Christ.

COMMENTARY

Purge out therefore the old leaven, that ye may be a new lump
To offer up spiritual sacrifices, acceptable to God by Jesus Christ
Continuing the point from before, this new verse also speaks of how we are meant to change our old nature to align with Christ. And this change necessarily requires some sort of sacrifice. Quite simply we cannot put on a new piece of our Savior, until we have first made space for it by getting rid of something else. Thus, sacrifice.
This is why animal sacrifice was never sufficient to save souls, for it did not require any actual change. Those that came to the temple to only give up an animal missed the whole point of it. That offering was always meant to be coupled with one of these “spiritual sacrifices” that Peter mentions.

Even Christ our passover is sacrificed for us
When we see the sacrament prepared on the altar, we are witnessing what God is willing to offer to save us: the life of His son. But if we eat and drink, say “thank you,” and leave, then we, too, are missing the entire point. Because God’s offering was always meant to be matched with another…the “spiritual sacrifice” that we bring in return. The ancient Israelites never came to the altar empty handed, and neither should we.
Of course what we offer will not be on the same order of magnitude as what God has. That’s alright, it doesn’t have to be equal. But we should be offering something. Perhaps we could be giving up an old sin? Perhaps we could be making a new commitment for good? Just so long as it is something which states “I see what you have given up for me, God, and I will honor it by giving up my own inferior part, and taking the better one that you offer to replace it.”