Honey From The Rock

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Honey From The Rock
Psalm 81:16

"Sweet Stuff From God's Word"

A daily Bible study with Victor Knowles
Copyright 2007

THE FIRST OF THE FLOCK

This entry was posted on 01-18-2010 and is filed under STUDIES IN GENESIS.

Genesis is the book of beginnings. In chapter 3 we saw the beginning of sin. Now in chapter 4 we will see the beginning of sacrifices. Sin demands sacrifice. But it is not Adam who offers the first sacrifice, or even Eve. It is the sons of Adam and Eve, Cain and Abel, who brought offerings to the Lord. Were they required to do so? The Bible is silent on this matter. They may have been asked to do so or perhaps it was something they felt they should do. In any event, God did not respect Cain's offering (Cain was a farmer and brought an offering of the fruit of the ground). But God did accept Abel's offering. "Abel also brought of the firstlings of his flock and of their fat. And the LORD respected Abel and his offering" (Gen. 4:4). Somewhere in my college days I underlined that word firstlings ("firstborn" in the NIV).

To me this is the key word in understanding this story. Cain had an attitude problem after his offering was rejected (anger) and God had to address that problem (Gen. 4:6, 7). I wonder if his attitude in bringing the offering was not good either. We are warned in Scripture about giving "grudgingly" or "of necessity." Maybe that was Cain's problem too. But we want to focus on Abel's offering here today. His offering was not just a sheep (or a lamb) from his flock, it was the firstlings ~ and their fat. It was the finest he had to offer. Perhaps it was because it was a blood sacrifice that brought the approval of God. Much later God would tell Aaron, Israel's high priest, "You shall sprinkle their blood on the altar, and burn their fat as an offering made by fire for a sweet aroma to the LORD" (Lev. 18:17).

Another passage to consider is Proverbs 3:9, "Honor the LORD with your possessions, and with the firstfruits of all your increase." "Firstlings...firstborn...firstfruits." There is something about giving God that which is first or best or the finest that seems to be the secret of an offering that is acceptable to Him. Abel's offering may have cost him more, thus revealing a greater love for the Lord. David once said that he would not give anything to the Lord than did not cost him anything. There is an important lesson for us here in this text. God wants our very best.

Hymn: "Give of your best to the Master, give Him first place in your heart; Give him first place in your service, consecrate every part. Give, and to you shall be given, God His beloved Son gave; Gratefully seeking to serve Him, give Him the best that you have..."
(Howard B. Grose)