Hebrews 11:5,6 By faith Enoch was translated that he should not see death; and was not found, because God had translated him: for before his translation he had this testimony, that he pleased God. But without faith [it is] impossible to please [him]: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and [that] he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him. (Hebrews 11:5-6)
Before we can understand the “Faith of Enoch” we must first meet the man. The Word of God speaks just a few words about him; however, there are many words spoken about his generation. It is that journey to discover the conditions and responses during his time that will lead us to a deeper place of understanding of Enoch’s faith.
We do know who the man is exactly through an examination of three Scriptures. Hebrews 11:5-6 identifies him as the one that had testimony before his “translation”. Genesis 5:21-24 identifies him as the father of Methuselah that was taken by God and in Jude 1:14 he is identified as seventh from Adam. Putting this evidence together in the genealogy table we can pinpoint his generation specifically.
The son of Cain is often mistaken by many to be the same Enoch based upon Genesis 4:17:
Genesis 4:17 “And Cain knew his wife; and she conceived, and bare Enoch: and he builded a city, and called the name of the city, after the name of his son, Enoch.” (Genesis 4:17 AV)
The Enoch of our study is NOT the direct descendent of Cain, named Enoch, who had a city named after him.
There are five Enoch’s mentioned in the Word of God…
1. Eldest son of Cain 2. Son of Jared and father of Methuselah whom God took home to Heaven without dying 3. The city which Cain built and named after his son Enoch 4. A son of Midian, the third child 5. The eldest son of Reuben
Take care in your study that you are studying the correct Enoch in correlation with Hebrews 11:5, 6! (See Adam to Abraham Genealogies for a concise list of generations that identifies Enoch perfectly)
Enoch of Hebrews 11:5, 6
Genesis 5:21-24 “And Enoch lived sixty and five years, and begat Methuselah: And Enoch walked with God after he begat Methuselah three hundred years, and begat sons and daughters: And all the days of Enoch were three hundred sixty and five years: And Enoch walked with God: and he was not; for God took him.” (Genesis 5:21-24)
1. Enoch was sixty-five years old when he begat Methuselah. 2. He walked with God after he begat Methuselah for three hundred years 3. He begat other sons and daughters during this time 4. Enoch lived three hundred and sixty five years 5. Enoch was taken up by God instantly because he walked with him.
He did not die! He was translated because of his faith in the LORD God. He could not be found upon this earth after he was translated, because God had taken him up to Heaven.
Hebrews 11:5,6 “By faith Enoch was translated that he should not see death; and was not found, because God had translated him: for before his translation he had this testimony, that he pleased God. But without faith [it is] impossible to please [him]: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and [that] he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him.” (Hebrews 11:5, 6)
6. The LORD God chose to translate Enoch because of his testimony.
7. His testimony pleased the LORD God. 8. Enoch’s testimony was a reflection of his faith, because it pleased the LORD God. 9. It is impossible to please the LORD God without faith. 10. The Faith of Enoch was confident that the LORD God was who He is. 11. The Faith of Enoch knew that the LORD God would reward those who diligently sought Him.
The faith of Enoch was given to him in a time when many were going the “Way of Cain.” We studied the error of the way Cain thought about the LORD God in our last study. In our study of The Faith of Enoch, we’re going to learn how that error was introduced into the common way of thinking in the generations to come, and the results that this error led to.
We are going to study the environment that enveloped the world that Enoch lived in. We will be talking about the “Way of Cain”, and the “Error of Balaam” and the “Gainsaying of Core.” We cannot know the Faith of Enoch, without knowing the Errors of the World, for it was within this sin that the faith of Enoch shined forth to the LORD God!
We’re going to delve into some deep and descriptive characteristics of the people that lived during this time and connect these same errors in thinking to the carnal generations that live today. Some of these colorful descriptions of wrong thinking are “spots in your feasts of charity”, “feeding themselves without fear”, “clouds without water”, “carried by the winds” and “trees without fruit” to list just a few.
We will learn the things that Enoch did during this time to express his faith fully to the sinful people, and the prophesy he spoke to them. We will take a look at the translation of his live body into Heaven and discuss the things of death that the rest of the culture was experiencing at that time.
The Faith of Enoch will be applied to your own spiritual confidence in the LORD God. We will make a connection between the things of this world of error that try to remove the “Faith of Enoch” from us, and identify the pitfalls that the demons lay to prevent us from knowing these Truths of God.
Finally, we will study the deep typology of “translation” and connect it to the resurrection of baptized Christians into Heaven upon their physical death. It promises to be an enlightening and deep journey into the spiritual things of God, as we look to the Faith of Enoch to speak of the special mysteries of the LORD God that only His people understand completely!
Genesis 6:11-14 “The earth also was corrupt before God, and the earth was filled with violence. And God looked upon the earth, and, behold, it was corrupt; for all flesh had corrupted his way upon the earth. And God said unto Noah, The end of all flesh is come before me; for the earth is filled with violence through them; and, behold, I will destroy them with the earth. Make thee an ark of gopher wood; rooms shalt thou make in the ark, and shalt pitch it within and without with pitch.” (Genesis 6:11-14)
The LORD God saw righteousness in Noah as he lived among wickedness. It was only Noah that had successfully maintained a righteous relationship with the LORD God, and it was only Noah and his family and a sampling of beasts that the LORD God chose to save. The LORD God gave measurements for an Ark to be built, to save the best of His creation from annihilation.
Genesis 7:15-16 “And they went in unto Noah into the ark, two and two of all flesh, wherein [is] the breath of life. And they that went in, went in male and female of all flesh, as God had commanded him: and the LORD shut him in.” (Genesis 7:15- 16)
The LORD God “shut” Noah in the ark that he had built according to blueprint given to him. Another word for “shut” in context to this action is “sealed”. Noah and his family and the selected beasts were rescued and preserved by the ark as the waters prevailed upon the cursed earth.
Genesis 7:21-23 ”And all flesh died that moved upon the earth, both of fowl, and of cattle, and of beast, and of every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth, and every man: All in whose nostrils [was] the breath of life, of all that [was] in the dry [land], died. And every living substance was destroyed which was upon the face of the ground, both man, and cattle, and the creeping things, and the fowl of the heaven; and they were destroyed from the earth: and Noah only remained [alive], and they that [were] with him in the ark.” (Genesis 7:21-23)
Only those lives that were “sealed” in the ark were saved. All other life forms were destroyed by the flood of waters sent by the LORD God.
The LORD God remembered the life sealed in the Ark, and blew the waters away. He blessed Noah and his sons, gave him dominion over beasts, and established shed blood as the sacrifice required for life to proceed, be fruitful and multiply. Then the LORD God made an everlasting covenant with Noah, signified by a rainbow that promised mankind that He would no longer destroy mankind by the waters of a flood.
Genesis 9:12-17 ”And God said, This [is] the token of the covenant which I make between me and you and every living creature that [is] with you, for perpetual generations: I do set my bow in the cloud, and it shall be for a token of a covenant between me and the earth. And it shall come to pass, when I bring a cloud over the earth, that the bow shall be seen in the cloud: And I will remember my covenant, which [is] between me and you and every living creature of all flesh; and the waters shall no more become a flood to destroy all flesh. And the bow shall be in the cloud; and I will look upon it, that I may remember the everlasting covenant between God and every living creature of all flesh that [is] upon the earth. And God said unto Noah, This [is] the token of the covenant, which I have established between me and all flesh that [is] upon the earth.” (Genesis 9:12-17)
That salvation of mankind had been sealed inside the Ark and given the most sacred promise of the LORD God. The first Ark of Noah begins the shadow of the wooden container that is present throughout the Word of God. How appropriate it was that the mother of Moses used the same type container to save her son from death by placing him in the Ark of the Bulrushes.
Exodus 2:1-5 “And there went a man of the house of Levi, and took [to wife] a daughter of Levi. And the woman conceived, and bare a son: and when she saw him that he [was a] goodly [child], she hid him three months. And when she could not longer hide him, she took for him an ark of bulrushes, and daubed it with slime and with pitch, and put the child therein; and she laid [it] in the flags by the river’s brink. And his sister stood afar off, to wit what would be done to him. And the daughter of Pharaoh came down to wash [herself] at the river; and her maidens walked along by the river’s side; and when she saw the ark among the flags, she sent her maid to fetch it.” (Exodus 2:1-5)
Moses grew to become a great leader of the people of Israel, and pleasing to the LORD God. He saved the Israelites from Egyptian control through the moving of God, and escorted the Tribes of Israel through the wilderness and toward the Promised Land. The Ark of the Bulrushes had saved the man set to lead God’s chosen people. If not for the Ark of the Bulrushes, Moses would not have received the Ten Commandments from the LORD God! Hold on to that thought as we catch up to the history of the Ark in the Word of God.
The Ark of the Covenant was made to specific instructions by the LORD God, to house the laws of the LORD God within the Tabernacle. It was made of shittim wood with golden rings attached to its side so staves could be used to carry it as the Israelites traveled through the wilderness. The wooden ark had Cherubims stretching forth their rings above it, covering the mercy seat that set upon the Ark. It was that place that the LORD God met with them, and communed with them, in the back of the tabernacle, in the holiest of holies rooms, that only a sanctified priest could enter.
Exodus 25:21-22 ”And thou shalt put the mercy seat above upon the ark; and in the ark thou shalt put the testimony that I shall give thee. And there I will meet with thee, and I will commune with thee from above the mercy seat, from between the two cherubims which [are] upon the ark of the testimony, of all [things] which I will give thee in commandment unto the children of Israel.” (Exodus 25:21-22)
Aaron was made high priest to come into the Holiest of Holies, and into the place where the mercy seat set upon the Ark of the Testimony within the Tabernacle. He was instructed to bring a young bullock for a sin offering, and a ram for a burnt offering, and the LORD God promised to appear to Him in a cloud upon the mercy seat, which set upon the Ark. Thus, the shedding of innocent blood for the cleansing of sin was accepted at the Ark, and became the tool of salvation for obedient men.
Leviticus 16:1–5 (KJV 1900) And the LORD spake unto Moses after the death of the two sons of Aaron, when they offered before the LORD, and died; 2 And the LORD said unto Moses, Speak unto Aaron thy brother, that he come not at all times into the holy place within the vail before the mercy seat, which is upon the ark; that he die not: for I will appear in the cloud upon the mercy seat. 3 Thus shall Aaron come into the holy place: with a young bullock for a sin offering, and a ram for a burnt offering. 4 He shall put on the holy linen coat, and he shall have the linen breeches upon his flesh, and shall be girded with a linen girdle, and with the linen mitre shall he be attired: these are holy garments; therefore shall he wash his flesh in water, and so put them on. 5 And he shall take of the congregation of the children of Israel two kids of the goats for a sin offering, and one ram for a burnt offering. (Leviticus 16:1-5)
Now back to the Ten Commandments: Moses was instructed to hew two tablets of stone like the first Ten Commandments that had been broken. He took these two new tablets up to the mountain, and the LORD God wrote on them the same commandments, and instructed Moses to put them in the Ark of Testimony made with shittim wood.
Deuteronomy 10:1-5 ”At that time the LORD said unto me, Hew thee two tables of stone like unto the first, and come up unto me into the mount, and make thee an ark of wood. And I will write on the tables the words that were in the first tables which thou brakest and thou shalt put them in the ark. A d I made an ark [of] shittim wood, and hewed two tables of stone like unto the first, and went up into the mount, having the two tables in mine hand. And he wrote on the tables, according to the first writing, the ten commandments, which the LORD spake unto you in the mount out of the midst of the fire in the day of the assembly: and the LORD gave them unto me. And I turned myself and came down from the mount, and put the tables in the ark which I had made; and there they be, as the LORD commanded me.” (Deuteronomy 10:1-5)
The Ark of the Covenant held the book of law. The LORD God promised the Israelites to be their LORD God and make them prosper. But, He required them to follow His law, and that law was placed in the Ark to convict those who did not obey Him.
Deuteronomy 31:25-26 “That Moses commanded the Levites, which bare the ark of the covenant of the LORD, saying, Take this book of the law, and put it in the side of the ark of the covenant of the LORD your God, that it may be there for a witness against thee.” (Deuteronomy 31:25-26)
The Ark filled with the presence of the LORD God traveled through the wilderness with the Israelites, and led them across the Jordan. When finally the Temple of the LORD God was built in Jerusalem, the Ark was moved inside; while not always located in that place, it figures greatly in the salvation of men through the LORD God’s covenant, and the accounts of David’s dance and Solomon’s Temple.
David danced before the LORD with all [his] might!
2 Samuel 6:1–17 (KJV 1900) Again, David gathered together all the chosen men of Israel, thirty thousand. 2 And David arose, and went with all the people that were with him from Baale of Judah, to bring up from thence the ark of God, whose name is called by the name of the LORD of hosts that dwelleth between the cherubims. 3 And they set the ark of God upon a new cart, and brought it out of the house of Abinadab that was in Gibeah: and Uzzah and Ahio, the sons of Abinadab, drave the new cart. 4 And they brought it out of the house of Abinadab which was at Gibeah, accompanying the ark of God: and Ahio went before the ark. 5 And David and all the house of Israel played before the LORD on all manner of instruments made of fir wood, even on harps, and on psalteries, and on timbrels, and on cornets, and on cymbals. 6 And when they came to Nachon’s threshingfloor, Uzzah put forth his hand to the ark of God, and took hold of it; for the oxen shook it. 7 And the anger of the LORD was kindled against Uzzah; and God smote him there for his error; and there he died by the ark of God. 8 And David was displeased, because the LORD had made a breach upon Uzzah: and he called the name of the place Perez-uzzah to this day. 9 And David was afraid of the LORD that day, and said, How shall the ark of the LORD come to me? 10 So David would not remove the ark of the LORD unto him into the city of David: but David carried it aside into the house of Obed-edom the Gittite. 11 And the ark of the LORD continued in the house of Obed-edom the Gittite three months: and the LORD blessed Obed-edom, and all his household. 12 And it was told king David, saying, The LORD hath blessed the house of Obed-edom, and all that pertaineth unto him, because of the ark of God. So David went and brought up the ark of God from the house of Obed-edom into the city of David with gladness. 13 And it was so, that when they that bare the ark of the LORD had gone six paces, he sacrificed oxen and fatlings. 14 And David danced before the LORD with all his might; and David was girded with a linen ephod. 15 So David and all the house of Israel brought up the ark of the LORD with shouting, and with the sound of the trumpet. 16 And as the ark of the LORD came into the city of David, Michal Saul’s daughter looked through a window, and saw king David leaping and dancing before the LORD; and she despised him in her heart. 17 And they brought in the ark of the LORD, and set it in his place, in the midst of the tabernacle that David had pitched for it: and David offered burnt offerings and peace offerings before the LORD. (2 Samuel 6:1-17)
Take a moment, open your Bibles and read as the Ark is brought to Solomon’s Temple in 1 Kings 8.
Now to the deep part that directly touches faithful Christians today:
Matthew 24:37–44 (KJV 1900) 37 But as the days of Noe were, so shall also the coming of the Son of man be. 38 For as in the days that were before the flood they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noe entered into the ark, 39 And knew not until the flood came, and took them all away; so shall also the coming of the Son of man be. 40 Then shall two be in the field; the one shall be taken, and the other left. 41 Two women shall be grinding at the mill; the one shall be taken, and the other left. 42 Watch therefore: for ye know not what hour your Lord doth come. 43 But know this, that if the goodman of the house had known in what watch the thief would come, he would have watched, and would not have suffered his house to be broken up. 44 Therefore be ye also ready: for in such an hour as ye think not the Son of man cometh. (Matthew 24:37-44)
We are instructed to be ready and watchful for our Lord Jesus Christ to come. Just as the times when Noah entered the Ark, faithful Christians watch expectantly for the coming destruction of the earth, preceded by the Son of Man coming for them in rapture.
Open your Bibles to Hebrews 9, and read the progression of the Ark as it seals the Covenant of the LORD God throughout the Word of God. Pay particular attention to the plan of salvation through the shed blood of Jesus Christ as High Priest, as mediator of the New Testament, and as Purger of bad conscience from dead works to serve the living God. The Ark was the pattern from the start that represented the sealing of men through the redemption of the sacrificed blood of the Lord Jesus Christ, through the covenant of the LORD God.
Hebrews 9:23-28 “[It was] therefore necessary that the patterns of things in the heavens should be_purified with these; but the heavenly thzngs themselves with better sacrifices than these. For Christ is not entered into the holy places made with hands [which are] the figures of the true· bui into heaven itself, now to appear i the presence of God for us: Nor yet that he should offer himself often, as the high priest entereth into the holy place every year with blood of others; For then must he often have suffered since the foundation of the world: but now once in the end of the world hath he appeared to put away sin by the sacrifice of himself. And as it is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment: So Christ was once offered to bear the sins of many; and unto them that look for him shall he appear the second time without sin unto salvation.” (Hebrews 9:23-28)
Stand in awe of the full revelation of your Lord Jesus Christ!
Hebrews 11:7 (KJV 1900) 7 By faith Noah, being warned of God of things not seen as yet, moved with fear, prepared an ark to the saving of his house; by the which he condemned the world, and became heir of the righteousness which is by faith. (Hebrews 11:7)
Just as faithful Christians are heir to the righteousness by faith! It was always planned, from the time that Noah was saved by the Ark through the flowing waters of the LORD God. Baptism of the Lord Jesus Christ saves faithful Christians as they are able to have good conscience toward the LORD God. The Lord Jesus Christ is the Ark of the Covenant, the High Priest that administers salvation, and our Savior!
1 Peter 3:18–22 (KJV 1900) 18 For Christ also hath once suffered for sins, the just for the unjust, that he might bring us to God, being put to death in the flesh, but quickened by the Spirit: 19 By which also he went and preached unto the spirits in prison; 20 Which sometime were disobedient, when once the longsuffering of God waited in the days of Noah, while the ark was a preparing, wherein few, that is, eight souls were saved by water. 21 The like figure whereunto even baptism doth also now save us (not the putting away of the filth of the flesh, but the answer of a good conscience toward God,) by the resurrection of Jesus Christ: 22 Who is gone into heaven, and is on the right hand of God; angels and authorities and powers being made subject unto him. (1 Peter 3:18-22)
Our times are similar to Noah’s day. Great wickedness prevails at every darkened corner in people’s frequently chosen lifestyles of carnal pleasure. Lust runs rampant and controls human sexuality, as well as guides breathing creatures to every form of deviant expression to raise the bar even higher with perverse doings.
While liberal do-gooders espouse the hope of change on our planet with ecological developments, life creation and control measures, and one world government, life has become almost intolerable for faithful Christians. At every turn, Christians are bombarded with real-life promotion of things that only Satan could originate. Babies are killed as birth control and the convenience of society. Old people are cast away, as the government develops programs to end their lives quietly with socialized medicine that favors the young. Prisons are filled with addictions that were first created by government supported drug cartels. War and threats of war are not based on righteous cause, but rather world control of products and profits.
Scientists promote shaky theories as fact, and campaign vigorously to prevent the Truth of God from entering the classroom. Political correctness standards prevent the Christian from speaking fully, while vile spokespeople mock the Lord Jesus Christ regularly in skits, cartoons, editorials and free speech. Honor is given to false gods and idols, and false religions elevated to hold legitimate rights to exist, while disdain is cast upon Christians who pronounce the Word of God to be Truth.
Courts cast their verdicts to prosper the liberal guilty, and hold Christian activism to a higher standard. Often rapists and murderers are set free before those standing for the cause of Christ against wicked rule are given a hearing. Dank and darkened jail cells hold the persecuted and oppressed people belonging to Jesus Christ because they disregard their government’s prohibition’s to faith.
Soldiers are forced to fight for wicked cause while bearing the weight of national pride directed by corrupt political fervor. Governments are established to control people rather than represent them. Christian causes are placed on the back burner, while Islamic principles are recited and implemented daily to improve relations of the oil producing third world nations. Israel is under attack by those who wish her destruction, and government officials turn their backs, as her existence becomes more threatened. One-World policy is developed that quietly removes the Jews right to own the Promised Land given to them by the LORD God, as Palestinian thugs persuade support with threats, terrorism, and murder.
Life is nasty. The televisions, movies and internet sites pummel the senses of viewers with profane images of perversions and pornography. Sexual abuse is not only prevalent behind the closed doors of perverse parents and pretenders of faith but out in the open and practiced with great fervor by evil minions seeking their self-pleasured lusts, captured by the cameras to sway support. Homosexual relations are pronounced equal to God-blessed marriages in dramatic parades and policies, and those who honestly question the moral decline are tagged with words of blasphemous insult. Mind control is conducted daily through the mass media of the masses, and young children are led to the perverse ways of the devil by casually watching his works unfold.
Laws are made to control people, and beasts are raised up to be free and prosperous. Human life has lost dignity, and animal life has gained support above them. The world moves away from being subdued by God’s Creation, and is gaining momentum of controlling those He created to watch over and guide His handiwork. Worms and fish and horned owls are protected, while the helpless life inside a womb allowed to be murdered at mother’s choice.
Evil religious institutions teach the traditions of mankind in spite of the Word of God, and create new ways for people to be saved without bowing a knee to Jesus Christ. Liberal people of faith vote against God in their gathered conferences, and uphold the ways of man as they institute and water down government of the souls they are tasked with shepherding. Conservative people of faith support a pretender that evokes Messianic overtones that comes close to a false Christ, seeking to overthrow democracy in favor of armed rebellion. The Word of God is falsely declared a historical government and disregarded as a book with error; some religions go as far as writing a “better book” for their people to follow because the Way of God seems unfair, unflattering, or unobtainable.
The LORD God, the all-powerful, all knowing God of all Gods is prayed to by the pretenders of faith as a genie who grants wishes to those that ask. The Lord Jesus Christ is profanely taunted and blasphemed by a world of spite and hatred, and His followers persecuted and oppressed at every turn. Even the Holy Spirit is mocked, as pretend faithful manipulate religious fervor to their advantage, to gain power and prestige among the religious worshippers who cannot see or hear. People of faith have mixed their seed with people of evil heart for so long, that the God’s breath is no longer seen inside the products of their union.
Sadly, these words just touch the tip of the absolute wickedness that our generation lives within. These times are no different than the times of Noah, as every imagination of wickedness fills the people. Christians wait expectantly for the Lord Jesus Christ to return, and unleash His tribulation and judgment upon wicked and perverse generations. We watch as the sign of the times reveals the promises of Christ’s return to be close, and we try to hold firm in faith and safe from persecution, without falling to the traps set before us.
We gather in churches and fellowships. We study our Bibles. We sing our hymns and offer our times and talents to advance the LORD God’s Word when we can. Yet, no matter how much we do, it cannot hold back the perfect storm tide of wicked man. Times are unfolding as we watch the profane dance in the street. The faithful Christian waits and watches and wonders when their hope will come.
Will the Lord find us ready to receive Him? Will we be shouting from the housetops and the mountains and the ships of the salvation of the Lord Jesus Christ and His coming rule, or will we be hiding in the darkened caves and whispering to each other as the world goes mad? Noah was found righteous and perfect when the LORD God chose to destroy the wicked world of old. He built an ark, unknowing of the time or process, but knowing His God perfectly, and obeying His Word. It is that unflinching confidence in the knowledge of the LORD God saved Noah and his family, and it is the same confidence we must hold in these times, as the clouds begin to roll and thunder above us with the signs of His coming drawing near.
We now know a little bit more about the environment Noah lived within. It was a mess. The different people, those of the world and those belonging to God, intermingled. They no longer maintained that separation that God had demanded from them; they chose instead to mingle their bloods and create flesh that was impure to both races. The Profane were mixed with holy, natural desires mixed with spiritual hunger, and the LORD God became irrelevant to everyone.
It wasn’t just that mankind was doing a lot of transgressions against the LORD God in an active way. They had the putrid sin flowing through every pore of their body, and they liked it! They liked that feeling of sinful abandonment so much, when they weren’t actively sinning, they were thinking about sinning!
Genesis 6:5 “And GOD saw that the wickedness of man [was] great in the earth, and [that] every imagination of the thoughts of his heart [was] only evil continually.” (Genesis 6:5)
It almost seems as if the wicked things in their imagination were even greater than the potential their mortal bodies had to carry out their sins! They were polluted with darkness completely and so engulfed with sin that they were pleasured by their thoughts.
The LORD God regretted ever creating Human Beings. Often times in religious theory, an attempt is made to make the LORD God without the ability to make mistake, regret an action, or correct a wrong; this view suggests that His Perfection must remain untouched, or He cannot be above all gods. Yet, we see in Genesis 6:6, that the LORD God repented of his creation of mankind; both the profane and the once holy.
Genesis 6:6 ”And it repented the LORD that he had made man on the earth, and it grieved him at his heart.”(Genesis 6:6)
The LORD God suffered GRIEF! He cried. He sobbed. He shuddered. He regretted. He grieved. He mourned. His heart broke. He had wanted His creations to achieve great things. He had planned a perfect world, with a perfect plan, but something had gone horribly wrong. The evolved and the imaged were both corrupted from the mingling with each other and shared their ever increasing sins.
There was no purity in either of them. The whole of created mankind was corrupted as a direct result of the free choice He had given to man; they were free to choose and they chose to mingle with the dirty rather than stay pure, clean and separated to God’s purpose. It broke the LORD God’s heart!
There was only one solution to the utter failure of mankind to embrace the LORD God’s will and ways. He had to destroy His creations. It was not just the evolved creation that had gone bad, but the imaged creation also. The common and the separated, the profane and the once holy were all filled with the same creeping darkness of absolute sin. There was no hope in spiritual restoration, or chance of making good and honest people out of them. They were dead way before they were removed from the earth, by their poor choosing. But the LORD God chose to destroy every living thing of creation from the face of the earth, because He was sorry He had ever tried to create them in the first place.
Genesis 6:7 ”And the LORD said, I will destroy man whom I have created from the face of the earth; both man, and beast, and the creeping thing, and the fowls of the air; for it repenteth me that I have made them.” (Genesis 6:7)
Everyone, that is, except for Noah! While the wickedness of mankind reached proportions that totally engulfed mankind with evil doings against the things of God, Noah remained faithful to Him!
Genesis 6:8 “But Noah found grace in the eyes of the LORD.” (Genesis 6:8)
The LORD God looked at Noah, and favored Him.
The LORD God favored Noah because he was just and perfect and walked with Him. Note those three characteristics of Noah well, because they become a pattern for you to focus upon in these days when wickedness seems to permeate every corner of life.
Genesis 6:9 “These [are] the generations of Noah: Noah was a just man [and] perfect in his generations, [and] Noah walked with God.” (Genesis 6:9)
Noah was just. He was righteous in his conduct in life. He was also righteous in his innermost being. He was virtuous, moral, honest, fair, and great inside and out. Noah was a wonderful man that lived his life fully with the nature of holiness that the LORD God created him to be.
Noah was “perfect in his generations,” which suggests his blood was pure and contained the “created in His Image” blood throughout his lineage. He did not have any blemish upon him. He walked upright, even in the midst of wickedness that surrounded him. He was sincere, healthy and whole. He did not have any brokenness within him.
Noah walked with God. He was one of those created in His image. He was obedient to the LORD God with all things. Noah emulated the things of God that were given him, and he always sought to do His Will and Ways. In fact, it is that characteristic that caused Him to help keep a chance for you and me to live one day. It is also the reason why Noah is mentioned in Hebrews 11:7 as an example of great faith.
Hebrews 11:7 “By faith Noah, being warned of God of things not seen as yet, moved with fear, prepared an ark to the saving of his house; by the which he condemned the world, and became heir of the righteousness which is by faith.” (Hebrews 11:7)
Then the LORD God looked upon the results of mankind sins upon the earth and He was horrified. All the flesh of mankind had corrupted His things that He had created, and violence was everywhere.
Genesis 6:11-13 “The earth also was corrupt before God, and the earth was filled with violence. And God looked upon the earth, and, behold, it was corrupt; for all flesh had corrupted his way upon the earth. And God said unto Noah, The end of all flesh is come before me; for the earth is filled with violence through them; and, behold, I will destroy them with the earth.” (Genesis 6:11-13)
They lived the way of the cursed earth, and embraced the wickedness of fallen mankind, over the holiness of the righteous LORD God. The LORD God committed to destroying them, save Noah and his family, with the same earth they wickedly embraced. The LORD God instructed Noah:
Genesis 6:14 “Make thee an ark of gopher wood; rooms shalt thou make in the ark, and shalt pitch it within and without with pitch.” (Genesis 6:14)
In the midst of all of the troubles that mankind had visited upon the earth, and taken within themselves, stood Noah, at odds with the rest of the world. The LORD God instructed him to make a giant ark and gave him implicit instructions to carry out His plan. Noah obeyed. He was uncertain of the future plans of God, but he trusted His Will and Ways. He built the boat.
And that action displayed the greatest of faiths of a man toward his God. He trusted his LORD God, and immediately reacted as one of great faith. More importantly, Noah feared the Judgment of the LORD GOD, a fear long lost to the rest of the wicked mankind. He had full confidence of the power of the LORD God to squish mankind at His will, and He quickly moved to build the ark according to God’s instructions.
Hebrews 11:7 “By faith Noah, being warned of God of things not seen as yet, moved with fear, prepared an ark to the saving of his house; by the which he condemned the world, and became heir of the righteousness which is by faith.” (Hebrews 11:7)
It is that belief that the LORD God has planned for our salvation and righteousness through His covenant, when His wrath comes against mankind. It is Noah’s faith that expresses the belief that God will prolong the days of those that fear Him by moving the faithful to the righteous places He has prepared for their protection and His good works, and will shorten the days of the wicked which do not fear Him. And it is Noah’s preparation that encourages our own, as we have confidence in our Lord Jesus Christ to provide survival instructions to us during these End Times as we watch and prepare; that will be our focus in our next lesson.
Genesis 6:4 “There were giants in the earth in those days; and also after that, when the sons of God came in unto the daughters of men, and they bare [children] to them, the same [became] mighty men which [were] of old, men of renown.”(Genesis 6:4)
Before we attempt to identify who the Daughters of men and the Sons of God, we must have a good understanding of the Creations accomplished by the LORD God. These next few lessons will be difficult for one very good reason. Mankind, guided by the devil’s hands, has done all it can to confuse the Creation of all things by the LORD God. It’s wicked attempts to remove God from the creation process has been effected through the use of words like “evolution” and “natural selection” while attempting to place an arbitrary, unproven date of that “big bang” that far exceeds the probable age of all things of the universe that God created.
First let’s define the worldly ideas of science so we are all on the same page.
Evolution, defined by Darwinism and Neo-Darwinism is the belief that all living organisms arose from one simple, living cell. This belief suggests that by chance, over a long period of time, these cells clumped together in spontaneous generation, and created life without the touch of God.
Natural Selection is the belief that only the best adapting life forms survive, forcing the deviant and weakened life forms to disappear from the chain of life without the direction of the LORD God.
The Big Bang “model” suggests that an extremely hot, dense and violent event occurred at the beginning of time, causing the universe to expand, and start the creation process of all living things without the presence of the LORD God.
Regrettably, people of faith have blindly argued against the scientist’s guesses of the origins of the Universe, by refusing to discuss these theoretical ideas. Rather, it seems that most believers are so fearful of the discussion, that the conversation is left unspoken, and their search of the Word of God, slanted to support a very limited and unrealistic idea of Creation by God.
Today, you are going to learn about Theistic Evolution that is supported by the Word of God, conforms to some of the scientific findings that are non-theoretical, but yet upholds that all things were created by the LORD God. (In-depth teachings on the Creations accomplished by the LORD God will be another course; however, you should be able to gain some understanding of creation in this lesson that will help you understand Noah’s and your own time in depth).
The LORD God’s creation account can be found in the first chapter of the book of Genesis. This account speaks of seven days in the beginning of God’s time of Creation, and gives deep knowledge to searching believers on how His creation of all things was accomplished. A careful examination of the Word of God reveals the different types creations on different days that were tailored to the LORD God’s specific will for that creations’ nature.
For instance, the LORD God’s contemplation of the surging water influenced and moved Him to create. His first act of Creation, “light” was made to illuminate the surging waters so He might deeply understand. As a result of His creation, He was able to separate His created light from the existing darkness. From that moment on, the LORD God created because His Works were illuminated to Him as good and purposeful. Each movement made by Him resulted in new illumination and enlightenment and an opportunity for Him to respond with even higher levels of creation.
The Word of God reveals that there was no one Big Bang that created all things; each Creation was deliberately made by Him with specific techniques suited for the job at His hand. Of course, one can suppose that the biggest Creation process to have ever happened in our known realm included awesome displays of supernatural events that we cannot understand with our limited human minds. So we rely upon our reasoning ability to make sense of the scientific measurements and we are able to create theories that might fit.
Therefore, the one Big Bang theory as a singular event that created all things is shot out the window by the Word of God. Creation did not happen that way. However, a believer can conclude that both science and the Word of God agree that a supernatural event began the process of Creation, and the faithful know it was at the Hand of God. If there is to be a creation, there must be a Creator, and we know with certainty that it is the LORD God. How exciting it is for both the believer and the skeptic as the newly restored Hubble telescope peers deeper into the beginnings of the Creations by the LORD God!
From that very moment when light was created through the LORD God’s intense desire and effort to understand the surging waters, He became the Creator to everything mankind knows. At that very instant, when the light shined brightly in His Mind, He began the accomplishment of His Works to become our Creator, our LORD God, and truly the Master of our beginnings.
As the Creation process advanced He separated one thing from another (darkness), expanded His Creation (Heavens), gathered together different portions (seas), allowed the propagation of earth’s fruits to evolve (herbs, fruit and trees), spread His influence to regenerate strengthen and refresh (waters from Him), established the laws of nature to proceed in a natural way (mist), and then purposefully made new things through His direct effort (sun, moon and stars). Note how the Word of God reveals the different techniques the LORD God used to create His different designs.
Genesis 1:1-23 “In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth. And the earth was without form, and void; and darkness was upon the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters.”
”And God said, Let there be light: and there was light. And God saw the light, that it was good: and God divided the light from the darkness. And God called the light Day, and the darkness he called Night. And the evening and the morning were the.first day.” “And God said, Let there be a firmament in the midst of the waters, and let it divide the waters from the waters. And God made the firmament, and divided the waters which were under the firmament from the waters which were above the firmament: and it was so. And God called the firmament Heaven. And the evening and the morning were the second day.”
“And God said, Let the waters under the heaven be gathered together unto one place, and let the dry land appear: and it was so. And God called the dry land Earth; and the gathering together of the waters called he Seas: and God saw that it was good. And God said, Let the earth bring forth grass, the herb yielding seed, and the fruit tree yielding fruit after his kind, whose seed is in itself, upon the earth: and it was so. And the earth brought forth grass, and herb yielding seed after his kind, and the tree yielding fruit, whose seed was in itself, after his kind: and God saw that it was good. And the evening and the morning were the third day.”
”And God said, Let there be lights in the firmament of the heaven to divide the day from the night; and let them be for signs, and for seasons, and for days, and years: And let them be for lights in the firmament of the heaven to give light upon the earth: and it was so. And God made two great lights; the greater light to rule the day, and the lesser light to rule the night: he made the stars also. And God set them in the firmament of the heaven to give light upon the earth, And to rule over the day and over the night, and to divide the light from the darkness: and God saw that it was good. And the evening and the morning were the fourth day.”
”And God said, Let the waters bring forth abundantly the moving creature that hath life, and fowl that may fly above the earth in the open firmament of heaven. And God created great whales, and every living creature that moveth, which the waters broughtforth abundantly, after their kind, and every winged fowl after his kind: and God saw that it was good. And God blessed them, saying, Be fruitful, and multiply, and fill the waters in the seas, and let fowl multiply in the earth. And the evening and the morning were the fifth day.” (Genesis 1:1-23)
Now we come to the part that is critical for understanding those alive in the times of Noah. It centers upon the identity of the Daughters of men and Sons of God, which can only be understood through the steps of Creation, for it is through these different creation processes that different people were formed and created by the LORD God in the beginning.
Recall where our journey originated, how it has proceeded, and why we are at the place in this lesson today. Hebrews 11:7 extolled the faith of Noah in the midst of unrighteous mankind. Genesis 6:4 blames the union between the “daughters of men” and the “sons of God” as the reason for mankind’s wickedness. Now we turn to Genesis 1:24-26 to understand who these different people were through a study of the different creations of life that the LORD God made.
The deep revelation of specific Creation techniques is revealed in each verse. There are three different types spoken about in these verses, and we will examine each one individually.
Genesis 1:24 “And God said, Let the earth bring forth the living creature after his kind, cattle, and creeping thing, and beast of the earth after his kind: and it was so.” (Genesis 1:24)
This verse shows that the LORD God “LET” the earth bring forth cattle, creeping things, and beasts. A scientific name for this process might be the word “evolution”. It certainly shows that a Creation of the LORD God was allowed to evolve into a creation of life itself. Since all Creation was created by the LORD God, even evolution was created by Him. Allowing His creation to move forward was a choice He made.
After the LORD God saw the evolution of His Creation produce the cattle creeping things and beasts, He chose to make His own beasts, cattle and creeping things:
Genesis 1:25 ”And God made the beast of the earth after his kind, and cattle after their kind, and every thing that creepeth upon the earth after his kind: and God saw that [it was] good.” (Genesis 1:25)
Now, think upon this a moment. The LORD God allowed His creation to evolve, which produced cattle, and then He rolled up His sleeves and created some of His own. He used the pattern of Earth’s evolution, to create life. How did the purposefully created animals by the LORD God differ from the animals that evolved from the created earth? The secret can be found through the typological representation of the cattle, beasts and creeping things throughout the Word of God.
Prophesy of the LORD God is always rich in typology because it is given to only specific people of the LORD God to understand. Many words in the Word of God have meaning far beyond what is understood by common people of the world. Ezekiel 34:1-31 defines cattle, beasts, flocks and shepherds in detail, and gives Christians the ability to understand the deeper mysteries of the LORD GOD’s Creation.
Ezekiel 34:1-31 “And the word of the LORD came unto me, saying, Son of man, prophesy against the shepherds of Israel, prophesy, and say unto them, Thus saith the Lord GOD unto the shepherds; Woe be to the shepherds of Israel that do feed themselves! should not the shepherds feed the flocks? Ye eat the fat, and ye clothe you with the wool, ye kill them that are fed: but ye feed not the flock. The diseased have ye not strengthened, neither have ye healed that which was sick, neither have ye bound up that which was broken, neither have ye brought again that which was driven away, neither have ye sought that which was lost; but with force and with cruelty have ye ruled them. And they were scattered, because there is no shepherd: and they became meat to all the beasts of the field, when they were scattered. My sheep wandered through all the mountains, and upon every high hill: yea, my flock was scattered upon all the face of the earth, and none did search or seek after them.”
“Therefore, ye shepherds, hear the word of the LORD; As I live, saith the Lord GOD, surely because my flock became a prey, and my flock became meat to every beast of the field, because there was no shepherd, neither did my shepherds search for my flock, but the shepherds fed themselves, and fed not my flock; Therefore, 0 ye shepherds, hear the word of the LORD; Thus saith the Lord GOD; Behold, I am against the shepherds; and I will require my flock at their hand, and cause them to cease from feeding the flock; neither shall the shepherds feed themselves any more; for I will deliver my flock from their mouth, that they may not be meat for them. For thus saith the Lord GOD; Behold, I, even I, will both search my sheep, and seek them out. As a shepherd seeketh out his flock in the day that he is among his sheep that are scattered; so will I seek out my sheep, and will deliver them out of all places where they have been scattered in the cloudy and dark day. And I will bring them out from the people, and gather them from the countries, and will bring them to their own land, and feed them upon the mountains of Israel by the rivers, and in all the inhabited places of the country. I will feed them in a good pasture, and upon the high mountains of Israel shall their fold be: there shall they lie in a good fold, and in a fat pasture shall they feed upon the mountains of Israel. I will feed my flock, and I will cause them to lie down, saith the Lord GOD. I will seek that which was lost, and bring again that which was driven away, and will bind up that which was broken, and will strengthen that which was sick: but I will destroy the fat and the strong; I will feed them with judgment.”
‘And as for you, 0 my flock, thus saith the Lord GOD; Behold, I judge between cattle and cattle, between the rams and the he goats. Seemeth it a small thing unto you to have eaten up the good pasture, but ye must tread down with your feet the residue of your pastures? and to have drunk of the deep waters, but ye must foul the residue with your feet? And as for my flock, they eat that which ye have trodden with your feet; and they drink that which ye have fouled with your feet. Therefore thus saith the Lord GOD unto them; Behold, I, even I, will judge between the fat cattle and between the lean cattle. 21 Because ye have thrust with side and with shoulder, and pushed all the diseased with your horns, till ye have scattered them abroad; Therefore will I save my flock, and they shall no more be a prey; and I will judge between cattle and cattle. And I will set up one shepherd over them, and he shall feed them, even my servant David; he shall feed them, and he shall be their shepherd. And I the LORD will be their God, and my servant David a prince among them; I the LORD have spoken it. And I will make with them a covenant of peace, and will cause the evil beasts to cease out of the land: and they shall dwell safely in the wilderness, and sleep in the woods. And I will make them and the places round about my hill a blessing; and I will cause the shower to come down in his season; there shall be showers of blessing. And the tree of the field shall yield her fruit, and the earth shall yield her increase, and they shall be safe in their land, and shall know that I am the LORD, when I have broken the bands of their yoke, and delivered them out of the hand of those that served themselves of them. And they shall no more be a prey to the heathen, neither shall the beast of the land devour them; but they shall dwell safely, and none shall make them afraid. And I will raise up for them a plant of renown, and they shall be no more consumed with hunger in the land, neither bear the shame of the heathen any more. Thus shall they know that I the LORD their God am with them, and that they, even the house of Israel, are my people, saith the Lord GOD. And ye my flock, the flock of my pasture, are men, and I am your God, saith the Lord GOD.” (Ezekiel 34:1-31)
These verses, like many other throughout the Word of God, lead us to know that cattle, beasts and flocks represent peoples of the world, wild ones, common ones, abominable ones, always using the pattern of evolution to conform to His Laws of Creation. When this act of creating through the pattern of evolution was completed, He was not yet pleased with the results. It is at that moment that the LORD God chose to create man in His Image, after His own likeness!
When the LORD God created the common people of the world, he used the pattern of evolution to form these people. These people lived before the final creation of man by the LORD God. They formed themselves into families, and tribes and cities, and began civilization as generations reproduced.
After creating these common people of the field, He wanted to create a people that reflected His Image, and thus set out to make man from the pattern of Him mixed with the dust of the earth.
”And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness: and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth.” (Genesis1:26)
A man of God was created by Him after His Image. This created man of God, and his generations to come, were to have dominion over all other life, both the animals and the humans created after the pattern of His evolved Creation. The LORD God formed this man from the dust of the earth, and then breathed His breath of life into him. This man created in God’s image was a son of God.
The Word of God speaks of two distinct creations of people; one people were made as common mankind that were created by God from the pattern of evolution and the other were a people of God created from the pattern of His image. His creation was made from perfection in His Image, at the most advanced creation possible. (Evolution would NOT affect His people created in His Image; from that point on, all Imaged people would de-evolve from perfection when sin entered the world.)
This brings us to the place where we can now identify with some certainty the identity of the daughters of men and the sons of God. There is enough typological evidence within the Word of God to support two different types of mankind; those created after the evolution pattern and those created in the Image of God. This knowledge identifies the daughters of men as coming from the evolution pattern, and the sons of God as coming from the Image pattern of creation. When these two different life forms came together and reproduced, they created “Giants.”
“There were giants in the earth in those days; and also after that, when the sons of God came in unto the daughters of men, and they bare [children] to them, the same [became] mighty men which [were] of old, men of renown.”(Genesis 6:4)
You should be aware that there are many different interpretations of the identity of the daughter of men and the sons of God. I believe I have absolute support in the Word of God for my conclusion, and challenge those who support the other interpretations to find the same amount of valid support in defense. I think it to be impossible for critics to supply as much evidence from the Word of God as my theory supports.
Most wrong interpretations center upon the belief of two different ideas:
1) That the daughters of men were people of the earth, and the Sons of God were aliens come down from outer space to procreate
2) That the daughters of men were people of the earth, and the Sons of God were fallen angels that had sexual intercourse with mankind.
I believe these two conclusions to be preposterous and not supported by the Word of God.
Remember our study to this date that has been fully proven by the Word of God. The error of Abel had blossomed into a full-blown attack of people transgressing greatly against the LORD God. That attitude, coupled with the interracial coupling of two different types of life forms, created wickedness of great magnitude. The offspring of the cohabiters had the best of both worlds; they possessed the things of God and the things of mankind; thus, they were very, very powerful.
Genesis 6:5-7 ”And GOD saw that the wickedness of man [was] great in the earth, and [that] every imagination of the thoughts of his heart [was] only evil continually.”
”And it repented the LORD that he had made man on the earth, and it grieved him at his heart. And the LORD said, I will destroy man whom I have created from the face of the earth; both man, and beast, and the creeping thing, and the fowls of the air; for it repenteth me that I have made them.” (Genesis 6:5-7)
The LORD God set out to destroy all types of life that He had created because of their wickedness. The interrelations between life forms were the last straw, and brought the judgment of the LORD God fully against all life on earth.
“By faith Noah, being warned of God of things not seen as yet, moved with fear, prepared an ark to the saving of his house; by the which he condemned the world, and became heir of the righteousness which is by faith.” (Hebrews 11:7)
Hebrews 11 is richly laced with deep teachings of God, to help you know how to receive full benefit of faith. Through your study of the faith of Abel, you learned that your faith should be confident that you are both worthy and knowledgeable to offer acceptable works to the Lord as He leads you. The faith of Enoch should remind you that a stance against the wickedness of these terrible times is a reflection of your own faith. Also important was the teaching that God can supernaturally translate a life into the places He wills, without regard to the normal laws of Creation that are seen and understood by man.
In both of our previous studies of faith, we have learned that we should have great conviction that we can please the LORD God by coming to Him, knowing Him through our diligent study of His Word, and believing that He will reward us for our efforts. Hebrews 11 was written for you to know deep faith. Young Christians read the words and find hope and peace. Mature Christians discover deeper teachings to help them fully mature their faith to a place that can complete perfect works for the Lord.
The hidden gems of deep faith issues will come to the surface in our study of the Faith of Noah. Like you, he lived in a time where great wickedness was seeping into every crevice of the world. There was all manner of profane and lewd behaviors, and the disobedience to the LORD God’s Will and Ways was out of control. Remember, by the time of Enoch, the “Way of Cain” was fully developed into making disobedient and disrespectful, wicked people against God. Enoch saw the behavior swirling around him, and had watched the evil gain hold. At one point, God spoke through Enoch and warned the people of not only the Way of Cain, but also of the future disobedience that would come from its expression, to include the error of Balaam and the gainsaying of Core.
Noah was born in the mess of times. Interestingly, we find a connection to Cain and Abel’s time upon the time of the birth of the baby boy to Lamech and his wife. Lamech chose the name “Noach” which means “rest:”
Genesis 5:29 “…this [same] shall comfort us concerning our work and toil of our hands, because of the ground which the LORD hath cursed.” (Genesis 5:29)
Two generations after Enoch, the “Way of Cain” was permeating mankind. Again, Noah’s world was connected to the past, as the nastiness of profane people spread throughout his own time.
Genesis 6:5 ”And GOD saw that the wickedness of man [was] great in the earth, and [that] every imagination of the thoughts of his heart [was] only evil continually.” (Genesis 6:5)
In the next lesson, we are going to discover how really bad it was in the time of Noah. In fact, we’re going to tackle a piece of Scripture that has caused many to speculate and debate a bizarre event involving “giants” that possibly brought mankind to this place of utter wickedness. We’re going to learn the possible identity of the Daughters of Men and Sons of God, along with a little bit of creation and a little bit of evolution thrown in to make sense out of it all!
As you study and learn about the faith of Noah, it is important that you realize that his times differed little from your time today. If you are able to keep that realization close to your heart, the faith of Noah will begin to shine in your own, and you will know the Lord’s expectations for your walk in these times. Recognize the symptoms of past generations who were guided by carnal desires and wicked lusts, and consider your own time and place. It is this connection that will make you know how crucial it is to develop your faith fully in these dangerous times!
The Word of God powerfully expresses the Things of God in both literal interpretations as well as in its typological expression. This typological approach means that the LORD God reveals things to mankind in ever enlarging ideas that first begins with shadows of things to come. The “Faith of Abel” represents one of these many shadows that unfold from the beginning into the saving Grace through our Lord Jesus Christ.
Genesis 4:1–2 (KJV 1900) And Adam knew Eve his wife; and she conceived, and bare Cain, and said, I have gotten a man from the LORD. 2 And she again bare his brother Abel. And Abel was a keeper of sheep, but Cain was a tiller of the ground. (Genesis 4:1-2)
The keeper of sheep is given the responsibility to ensure that the livestock is protected. Abel was the first keeper of sheep. Note how Abel is described as simply being born as a brother to Cain, while Cain’s birth was announced dramatically as the parent’s receipt of a man from God.
The status of lesser presence is symbolically represented once again as the young lad David tends to his father’s sheep as the rest of his brothers march off to war. in fact, David arranges for another keeper for his father’s sheep before he goes into battle and confronts Goliath.
1 Samuel 17:20 (KJV 1900) 20 And David rose up early in the morning, and left the sheep with a keeper, and took, and went, as Jesse had commanded him; and he came to the trench, as the host was going forth to the fight, and shouted for the battle. (1 Samuel 17:20)
Later on, David was taken from the “sheepcote” by the LORD God, and made a great man and ruler to Israel.
1 Chronicles 17:7–8 (KJV 1900) 7 Now therefore thus shalt thou say unto my servant David, Thus saith the LORD of hosts, I took thee from the sheepcote, even from following the sheep, that thou shouldest be ruler over my people Israel: 8 And I have been with thee whithersoever thou hast walked, and have cut off all thine enemies from before thee, and have made thee a name like the name of the great men that are in the earth. (1 Chronicles 17:7-8)
Guilty David identifies the people of Israel that he rules as “sheep” to the LORD God, unawares of the sin he perpetrated as a result of taking census of His flock.
1 Chronicles 21:17 (KJV 1900) 17 And David said unto God, Is it not I that commanded the people to be numbered? even I it is that have sinned and done evil indeed; but as for these sheep, what have they done? let thine hand, I pray thee, O LORD my God, be on me, and on my father’s house; but not on thy people, that they should be plagued. (1 Chronicles 21:17)
Rachel, another noted keeper of sheep, was identified by Jacob when sighting her at the well giving drink to her charges.
Genesis 29:10 (KJV 1900) 10 And it came to pass, when Jacob saw Rachel the daughter of Laban his mother’s brother, and the sheep of Laban his mother’s brother, that Jacob went near, and rolled the stone from the well’s mouth, and watered the flock of Laban his mother’s brother. (Genesis 29:10)
A Psalmist extols the LORD God’s keeping of His people as sheep during the time of wandering in the desert.
Psalm 78:50 “He made a way to his anger; he spared not their soul from death, but gave their life over to the pestilence; And smote all the firstborn in Egypt; the chief of their strength in the tabernacles of Ham: But made his own people to go forth like sheep, and guided them in the wilderness like a flock. And he led them on safely, so that they feared not: but the sea overwhelmed their enemies.” (Psalm 78:50-53)
In the same manner, He protects protecting His sheep from evil and preserves their souls.
Psalm 121
“I will lift up mine eyes unto the hills, from whence cometh my help. My help cometh from the LORD, which made heaven and earth. He will not suffer thy foot to be moved: he that keepeth thee will not slumber. Behold, he that keepeth Israel shall neither slumber nor sleep. The LORD is thy keeper: the LORD is thy shade upon thy right hand. The sun shall not smite thee by day, nor the moon by night. The LORD shall preserve thee from all evil: he shall preserve thy soul. The LORD shall preserve thy going out and thy coming in from this time forth, and even for evermore.” (Psalm 121)
In fact, throughout the Psalms, the people of the LORD God are identified many times as being “sheep,” protected by Him in His pasture as Creator of His flock.
Psalm 100:3 “Know ye that the LORD he is God: it is he that hath made us, and not we ourselves; we are his people, and the sheep of his pasture.” (Psalm 100:3)
Dramatic prophesy from the LORD God includes the promise of retribution to the shepherds of Israel who abuse their position, as He declares His love for His scattered sheep that He will one day bring together as His flock once again.
Ezekiel 34:1-16 “And the word of the LORD came unto me, saying, Son of man, prophesy against the shepherds of Israel, prophesy, and say unto them, Thus saith the Lord GOD unto the shepherds; Woe be to the shepherds of Israel that do feed themselves! should not the shepherds feed the flocks? Ye eat the fat, and ye clothe you with the wool, ye kill them that are fed: but ye feed not the flock. The diseased have ye not strengthened, neither have ye healed that which was sick, neither have ye bound up that which was broken, neither have ye brought again that which was driven away, neither have ye sought that which was lost; but with force and with cruelty have ye ruled them. And they were scattered, because there is no shepherd: and they became meat to all the beasts of the field, when they were scattered. My sheep wandered through all the mountains, and upon every high hill: yea, my flock was scattered upon all the face of the earth, and none did search or seek after them.”
“ Therefore, ye shepherds, hear the word of the LORD; As I live, saith the Lord GOD, surely because my flock became a prey, and my flock became meat to every beast of the field, because there was no shepherd, neither did my shepherds search for my flock, but the shepherds fed themselves, and fed not my flock; Therefore, O ye shepherds, hear the word of the LORD; Thus saith the Lord GOD; Behold, I am against the shepherds; and I will require my flock at their hand, and cause them to cease from feeding the flock; neither shall the shepherds feed themselves any more; for I will deliver my flock from their mouth, that they may not be meat for them. For thus saith the Lord GOD; Behold, I, even I, will both search my sheep, and seek them out. As a shepherd seeketh out his flock in the day that he is among his sheep that are scattered; so will I seek out my sheep, and will deliver them out of all places where they have been scattered in the cloudy and dark day. And I will bring them out from the people, and gather them from the countries, and will bring them to their own land, and feed them upon the mountains of Israel by the rivers, and in all the inhabited places of the country. I will feed them in a good pasture, and upon the high mountains of Israel shall their fold be: there shall they lie in a good fold, and in a fat pasture shall they feed upon the mountains of Israel. I will feed my flock, and I will cause them to lie down, saith the Lord GOD. I will seek that which was lost, and bring again that which was driven away, and will bind up that which was broken, and will strengthen that which was sick: but I will destroy the fat and the strong; I will feed them with judgment.” (Ezekiel 34:1-16)
Then the Shepherd of the Sheep that changed the way man could approach God comes to the lost sheep, as the Lord Jesus Christ leads His people to follow Him. It is Jesus who defends breaking the law of Sabbath to preserve and heal the life of one lost sheep.
Matthew 12:12 “How much then is a man better than a sheep? Wherefore it is lawful to do well on the sabbath days.” (Matthew 12:12).
The Lord Jesus Christ first came for the lost sheep of Israel; yet, His glory fell upon even the Gentiles.
Matthew 15:24 “But he answered and said, I am not sent but unto the lost sheep of the house of Israel.” (Matthew 15:24)
The Messiah taught how important each of His sheep were important to Him, and how even the littlest of the flock who strays would be rejoiced when he comes back to the fold.
Matthew 18:13-14 “And if so be that he find it, verily I say unto you, he rejoiceth more of that sheep, than of the ninety and nine which went not astray. Even so it is not the will of your Father which is in heaven, that one of these little ones should perish.” (Matthew 18:13, 14)
And on that great Judgment Day, the Lord Jesus Christ will separate the righteous from the wicked, as the sheep from the goats; the sheep will be sorted to his right hand, and the goats to His left. It will be the sheep that inherit the kingdom prepared for them from the beginning.
Matthew 25:32-34 “And before him shall be gathered all nations: and he shall separate them one from another, as a shepherd divideth his sheep from the goats: And he shall set the sheep on his right hand, but the goats on the left. Then shall the King say unto them on his right hand, Come, ye blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world:” (Matthew 25:32-34)
The love of Christ shines through his compassion as he sees people without a shepherd, and begins teaching many things to lead them as well.
Mark 6:34 “And Jesus, when he came out, saw much people, and was moved with compassion toward them, because they were as sheep not having a shepherd: and he began to teach them many things.” (Mark 6:34)
What better understanding can a Christian receive of the relationship between the Lord Jesus Christ and them, than through the revealing Word that speaks of the relationship between the Shepherd and His sheep?
John 10:1-18 “Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that entereth not by the door into the sheepfold, but climbeth up some other way, the same is a thief and a robber. But he that entereth in by the door is the shepherd of the sheep. To him the porter openeth; and the sheep hear his voice: and he calleth his own sheep by name, and leadeth them out. And when he putteth forth his own sheep, he goeth before them, and the sheep follow him: for they know his voice. And a stranger will they not follow, but will flee from him: for they know not the voice of strangers. This parable spake Jesus unto them: but they understood not what things they were which he spake unto them. Then said Jesus unto them again, Verily, verily, I say unto you, I am the door of the sheep. All that ever came before me are thieves and robbers: but the sheep did not hear them. I am the door: by me if any man enter in, he shall be saved, and shall go in and out, and find pasture. The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy: I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly. I am the good shepherd: the good shepherd giveth his life for the sheep. But he that is an hireling, and not the shepherd, whose own the sheep are not, seeth the wolf coming, and leaveth the sheep, and fleeth: and the wolf catcheth them, and scattereth the sheep. The hireling fleeth, because he is an hireling, and careth not for the sheep. I am the good shepherd, and know my sheep, and am known of mine. As the Father knoweth me, even so know I the Father: and I lay down my life for the sheep. And other sheep I have, which are not of this fold: them also I must bring, and they shall hear my voice; and there shall be one fold, and one shepherd. Therefore doth my Father love me, because I lay down my life, that I might take it again. No man taketh it from me, but I lay it down of myself. I have power to lay it down, and I have power to take it again. This commandment have I received of my Father.” (John 10:1-18)
It is the voice of the Lord Jesus Christ that his sheep recognize and follow after, and He keeps them to eternal life!
John 10:27-28 “My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me: And I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand.” (John 10:27, 28)
The LORD God gave the Lord Jesus Christ to the sheep to keep them.
John 10:29 “My Father, which gave them me, is greater than all; and no man is able to pluck them out of my Father’s hand.” (John 10:29) And in the same way that David gave another keeper his father’s sheep before he went to battle in a shadow of things to come, the Lord Jesus Christ chose Simon Peter to feed his sheep while He was gone.
John 21:15-17 “So when they had dined, Jesus saith to Simon Peter, Simon, son of Jonas, lovest thou me more than these? He saith unto him, Yea, Lord; thou knowest that I love thee. He saith unto him, Feed my lambs. He saith to him again the second time, Simon, son of Jonas, lovest thou me? He saith unto him, Yea, Lord; thou knowest that I love thee. He saith unto him, Feed my sheep. He saith unto him the third time, Simon, son of Jonas, lovest thou me? Peter was grieved because he said unto him the third time, Lovest thou me? And he said unto him, Lord, thou knowest all things; thou knowest that I love thee. Jesus saith unto him, Feed my sheep.” (John 21:15-17)
Abel, keeper of sheep, was the shadow of our Shepherd Jesus Christ that would one day come to guide the people of God toward Him once again. From the beginning, the Faith of Abel, allowed him to represent the things of God that would unfold much later. Abel did not know of the coming revelations, yet, Abel walked intimately with His LORD God. He was not focused upon the harsh rule of God, but rather, upon the Creator whose Creations were worthy of the highest praise and worship, and fit for an offering to the LORD God. It was the perfect “Faith of Abel” that prepared the path for our Shepherd to come and gather His People and bring them to the Kingdom of God.
Up to this point, we have learned that if the LORD God is NOT directing the works of men, then they are NOT “living works.” The means that they are “Dead works” to the LORD God. No matter whether the works are grand and mighty, fully funded with the riches of the world, or the simple and humble acts of compassion and caring of the less fortunate; if the LORD God has NOT directed the works, they are NOT living.
We are reminded of this fact through our study of Cain’s error when he offered the works of his own hands from the cursed ground, rather than from the works from the LORD’s efforts instead. The LORD God told him specifically:
Genesis 4:6–7 (KJV 1900) 6 And the LORD said unto Cain, Why art thou wroth? and why is thy countenance fallen? 7 If 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. (Genesis 4:6-7)
The LORD God links Cain’s error to offering unworthy works to Him with being very near to sin that lies at his door. This link of sin to dead works is associated to many different teaching places in the Word of God.
In fact, it is one of the six principles that every Christian must be taught for the establishment of the Foundation of Jesus Christ within them:
Hebrews 6:1–3 (KJV 1900) Therefore leaving the principles of the doctrine of Christ, let us go on unto perfection; not laying again the foundation of repentance from dead works, and of faith toward God, 2 Of the doctrine of baptisms, and of laying on of hands, and of resurrection of the dead, and of eternal judgment. 3 And this will we do, if God permit. (Hebrews 6:1-3)
Note how the six principles of the doctrine of Christ for foundation building are listed exactly:
1. Repentance from dead works (sins)
2 Faith
3. Water Baptism
4. Holy Spirit Baptism
5. Resurrection
6. Judgement
Before we go any further, let us state a fact that you will hear us state over and over in your studies with us:
You are saved through belief in Jesus Christ! You can do nothing to bring salvation to yourself.
SALVATION IS BASED UPON BELIEF!
Now here is where it gets complicated for some sincere Christians because of their defense against false religions that wrongly believe works are necessary for salvation. As a result, many Christians often reject the discussion of works completely, in a false sense that belief is all you need to come close to the LORD God.
Ephesians 2:8–10 (KJV 1900) 8 For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: 9 Not of works, lest any man should boast. 10 For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them. (Ephesians 2:8-10)
This misguided belief prevents an intimate relationship with Him. The LORD God wills each of His people to do “Living Works” that are guided by Him. When a person is focused entirely on salvation, and does not place importance upon doing His works, then the plans that the LORD God has established are not fulfilled. It is prudent that we discuss the accomplishment of works, and there is no better time than right now, as we learn about the “dead works” that Cain tried to present to the LORD God.
As we study this important topic, keep this in the forefront of your mind:
SALVATION comes from belief in Him.
REWARD comes from works led by Him.
Living Works are acts performed in obedience to the law and movement of God. Those acts done by unbelievers and believers that are against His law, or do not contain His movement, are without life. Man cannot create living works by himself. Man cannot create living works if he is in sin.
Dead Works are just the opposite. They are acts performed in disobedience to the law of God that are without life and inanimate. At some point, every Christian will be judged for the works they do.
THIS IS IMPORTANT: A Christian’s salvation is not going to be judged; it is clear that a believer had faith if he is standing in the presence of the Lord in Heaven. Salvation is not something a person does, but something a person receives. If there had been no faith, there would be no judgment at the Glory Seat of Christ. Judgment of those without belief will happen later at the Final Judgment Seat of Christ; Faithful Christians receive their Judgment earlier from the Glory Seat of Christ in Heaven.
1 Corinthians 3:11-15 “For other foundation can no man lay than that is laid, which is Jesus Christ. Now if any man build upon this foundation gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, stubble; Every man’s work shall be made manifest: for the day shall declare it, because it shall be revealed by fire; and the fire shall try every man’s work of what sort it is. If any man’s work abide which he hath built thereupon, he shall receive a reward. If any man’s work shall be burned, he shall suffer loss: but he himself shall be saved; yet so as by fire.” (1 Corinthians 3:11-15)
The Glory Seat Judgment will be the place where Christians receive their rewards for the living works they have completed as moved by Him. There are different levels of living works, and different levels of rewards that the Lord will give to the deserving.
2 Timothy 2:19-21 “Nevertheless the foundation of God standeth sure, having this seal, The Lord knoweth them that are his. And, Let every one that nameth the name of Christ depart from iniquity. But in a great house there are not only vessels of gold and of silver, but also of wood and of earth; and some to honour, and some to dishonour. If a man therefore purge himself from these, he shall be a vessel unto honour, sanctified, and meet for the master’s use, and prepared unto every good work.” (2 Timothy 2:19-21 AV)
Note once again how a believer must purge himself of sin, in order to become sanctified and able to accomplish the living works of God.
There are many types of vessels in the great house of Jesus Christ. Each vessel represents the works of a person of Christ. Those works form the great house of Jesus Christ. The vessels of gold and silver bring honor. The vessels of wood and earth bring dishonor. Some works bring honor and some works bring dishonor to the great house of Jesus Christ. If a person purges himself from iniquity, his works shall bring honor to Jesus Christ. If a person is sin-free and does works of honor, he will be made holy and prepared to do even more honorable works for Jesus Christ.
Faith without works is dead. Dead Faith does nothing. Living Faith does works.
James 2:17-18 “Even so faith, if it hath not works, is dead, being alone. Yea, a man may say, Thou hast faith, and I have works: shew me thy faith without thy works, and I will shew thee my faith by my works.” (James 2:17-18 AV)
The Word of God furnishes all Christians to do the living works of God.
2 Timothy 3:16-17 “All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness: That the man of God may be perfect, thoroughly furnished unto all good works.” (2 Timothy 3:16-17)
Therefore, those who come closest to the LORD God through righteousness and perfection, void of sin, are in the position of doing the greatest works led by Him.
It is this reality that Cain failed to understand. He honored the works his own hands had produced above the works that the LORD God had made. At that very moment, sin was at Cain’s door. Dead works and sin go hand-in- hand, because it causes a man to think himself superior to the Lord. When a man thinks this, he is emulating the same wicked ways of Lucifer when he declares he is better than God.
Thus, it is profitable for a Christian to understand fully the importance of Living Works directed by God and to have the ability to distinguish dead works that are led by carnal man.
Concept #1 – If you are a sinner without grace, no amount of good works will be rewarded.
Concept #2 – If you are a sinner without grace, you do not get credit by the LORD GOD for any works that you have done in your life.
Concept #3 – If you are a sinner without grace, you cannot be saved by your works.
Concept #4 – A sinner can repent from dead works and be saved by grace of the LORD GOD by, accepting the Lord Jesus Christ as Savior.
Concept #5 – If your foundation is laid on Jesus Christ, but you have not produced good works that sustain the testing of fire, you will be saved, but will suffer loss.
Concept #6 – If your foundation is laid on Jesus Christ, and your good works sustain the testing of fire, you will be saved and rewarded.
Concept #7 – If sin is present in the midst of your good works, the fire of the Holy Spirit will burn away all impurities. The type of work is revealed by this fire and classified as gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, stubble.
Concept #8 – If impurity is present throughout your works, you will have stubble, hay or wood which will quickly be burnt away. You will suffer loss.
Concept #9 – If no impurity is present throughout your works, you will have gold, silver or precious stones. You will be rewarded.
Concept #10 – If your works are pure and complete and under the direction of the LORD GOD, the Lord Jesus Christ, or the Holy Spirit, the fire will reveal gold.
Concept #11 – It is very, very good if your works are classified as “gold”. You will receive great reward.
These concepts taken from Scripture make it clear for believers to know the differences, equipping them with the ability to honor the LORD God in the same way that Abel did in the first offering of Living Works!
Now it’s time for application of the “Faith of Abel” into your own spiritual walk with Jesus Christ! What can present-day, faithful Christians learn from the “Faith of Abel” that will change the way they approach the LORD God forever more?
Simply put, the “Faith of Abel” allowed him to know the works pleasing to the LORD God. That same faith principle can be applied to your offerings to Him, guaranteeing His pleasurable acceptance of your righteous worship and praise!
Where does that “faith of acceptable works” come from? Cain certainly didn’t have it. He was a intelligent as his brother, and had a higher status in the family, yet the works he offered the LORD God came from the cursed ground. Rather than learning the deeper things of God through a contemplation of spirit, he relied upon the work of his own hands. Cain’s hands presented gifts to the LORD God that reflected his efforts to produce fruits from the cursed land of the world.
Cain did not want to displease the LORD God. He was surely proud of his works that he had wrestled from the cursed ground with his own blood and sweat. He took that old ground that barely could grow food, and was able to make enough crops of good things to offer God. He did not approach God with a harsh heart; on the contrary, he was giving God the best he had produced with his own hands. Sadly for him, he did not reflect the spiritual nature of the LORD God, nor understand the will of Him, and he created a blunder that many make today.
This terrible mistake is made every time someone believes that the efforts made in this world by their own hands is worthy of offering to the LORD God. Those poor but good folk trying to make a living out of badland dirt; surely their efforts of living the hard-working, blood and sweat life, doing more good than bad in their time in this world must count for something in God’s judgment. Sadly for them, God is offended by the offering of gifts produced with the hands of man from the cursed ground.
Forget the honest offerings of a hardworking but poor and pathetic people. How about the millions and millions of dollars that the rich donate to build the temples and governments and hospitals and charities that bring a higher and better good to the lives of people within this world? The hearts of these benevolent people are real and true in their desires to bring the best of life to people with less to live for! Surely these offerings are accepted by the LORD God as worthy and give Him reason to pronounce them righteous saints!
Clearly, the offerings of Cain show us that these offerings to the LORD God are still offensive! If the works derive from the cursed world, and are accomplished through man’s efforts, they are NOT worthy to be offered to the LORD God.
What about the quiet efforts of simple cultures, who refuse to take life of even the smallest creatures, who walk with soft feet and try to leave as little evidence of their presence on this world while making it a little bit better for others to live? What about the “we are the world” crowd that joins hands across the oceans and gives serious effort to becoming one with all people, protesting war and big governments that separate the people, and supporting one world order united in common cause?
Let’s not forget the brave who fight for the just cause, who die for a nation’s beliefs, or join a group to protest wicked controls; their efforts must surely glorify God! What about the monks and the priests and the religious and the devout church goers who do good everyday with their charities and their prayers?
How about the complicated works of educated masses! Surely all the technology created by man has brought attention to them from an admiring LORD God, who sees them approach His Glory, with their own! Nope to all of them again! God is not interested in the fruits of mankind that come from their effort through the growth obtained in the cursed world!
It is a trap that Lucifer set from the beginning, for people to be tricked into thinking the efforts of human beings were restricted only by the heavy hand of the LORD God. Remember the encouragement the serpent gave Adam and Eve to reach out for the fruits with their own hands. While some truth lay in the potential of mankind to become godlike in their efforts should they ever obtain the ability to achieve eternal life on their own, the LORD God prevented it by placing a guard upon the Tree of Life. Yet, Lucifer has done everything in his power to encourage man to produce and discover and challenge the cursed ground, and make fruits prosper to man’s glory. Often, this message seems to be the only one embraced, as mankind drives harder and faster to figure out how to create life itself without the order established by God, while at the same time destroy the babes in the womb created by Him to live.
So, it should not surprise you that the offerings of mankind will be received with the same offense that the offerings of Cain were once received by the LORD God in the beginning. Either the works of man demand worship from the LORD God, or the LORD God demands the worship of man. It can’t be both ways! The “Faith of Abel” knew this well, and supplied the only offerings that glorified the LORD God fully. Abel was confident that the works must be created, directed, encouraged, placed, established, brought forth, charged, grown, and made fruitful by Him.
If the LORD Gods hands did not create the works, then it was dead, and unworthy to be returned onto Him!
Hebrews 9:14 “How much more shall the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself without spot to God, purge your conscience from dead works to serve the living God?” (Heb 9:14)
The living God can only be served by living works! Only the LORD God can create life! Only those with the “Faith of Abel” that have confidence in this absolute truth, and trust in Him to direct their ways, can have works created through them by Him! That is the “Faith of Abel” – to confidently know and be moved by the Living God to do the things He wills, even when there is no understanding or no knowledge of the outcome to be. It is through the “faith like Abel” that a Christian brings fruit back to the LORD God that was first planted by Him; and it is that faith that declares a Christian’s efforts righteous before the most Holy LORD God!
Genesis 4:1–5 (KJV 1900) And Adam knew Eve his wife; and she conceived, and bare Cain, and said, I have gotten a man from the LORD. 2 And she again bare his brother Abel. And Abel was a keeper of sheep, but Cain was a tiller of the ground. 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 offering: 5 But unto Cain and to his offering he had not respect. And Cain was very wroth, and his countenance fell.
Two brothers with two different gifts brought to their LORD God as offerings to honor Him. We already have seen how Cain’s gift was offered to God from the fruits of natural life labor from the cursed ground. Abel, however, brought a totally different type of offering to Him. His offering was the “firstlings” of his flock; the choicest of the herd of sheep that Abel watched over.
Abel was just as intelligent as his brother Cain. They were brothers, and they received the same amount of smarts from their parents. Yet Abel figured out the best gift to offer the LORD God, while his brother Cain figured out the absolutely worst gift to give to Him. What was the difference between the gifts? Abel’s gift was life created by the LORD God; Cain’s gift was fruit created by man from cursed ground.
When the offerings are defined as life from God in Heaven vs. fruit from man in cursed ground, the differences are profound! “No intelligent man would ever offer fruits from a cursed ground, when the choicest, most perfect gifts of God-created life are available. Yet that is exactly what happened (and something we see happens even in the offerings today!) One brother figured out what a perfect offering to God would be, and the other had a completely wrong idea about what would please God.
Since Abel and Cain both used intelligence to prepare their offerings to Him, and both desired to bring offerings to the LORD God, and both sought the LORD God’s pleasure, then what difference in their thought processes changed the offerings? The motive is apparent:
While Cain brought his personal works as a present to Him; Abel brought the works of God. Cain knew the LORD God as an oppressive master who had condemned mankind to toil and labor; his fruits came from the toil of his hands and were given in the most stubborn and arrogant way to his God in order to keep punishment away.
Abel knew the LORD God intimately. He knew the LORD God in his interior parts. Abel knew that he could not do one work, or create one thing from the cursed, dying ground that would be pleasing to the LORD God. Abel knew that it was only the creations of life by the LORD God that could honor Him. Products of the cursed, dying ground would never be worthy of a gift given to Him. Abel confidently knew that it could only be the purest forms of life, created by Him, that would magnify His glory, and be accepted as a blessing.
While Cain thought of the LORD God as an oppressive master who kept His thumb upon mankind to make their life tough, Abel looked upon Him as all-knowing, all-powerful, always present Creator of all things, filled with glory that mere man could never duplicate. Abel was filled with humbleness, awe, love, worship and respect toward the LORD God, while Cain’s heart flowed with resentment, fear, arrogance and entitlement.
Don’t ever be fooled with the nature of the gifts offered to the LORD God. Abel’s gift and Cain’s gift were purposely chosen, with full intelligence and intent. Abel chose to offer the only gift worthy to be given to the LORD God; it was only the perfect creation of life by the LORD God that was worthy to be given.
Abel did not assume all life to be equal in worth and glory, however. He chose from the “firstlings of the flock and the fat thereof.” It was the untainted, pure first creations of life that held the most potential to worshipful offering, and it was the first creatures of the created flock which were given back to God in awe-filled worship of Him by Abel.
This confident knowing of the offerings pleasing to the LORD God defines the “Faith of Abel.” There is only one way that anyone can have this type of faith. A true worshipper of the LORD God must worship Him from the inward parts, and know His nature intimately. Offerings given to the LORD God must always reflect His glory; only life works created by Him have this potential. Those with the “Faith of Abel” know that the gifts derived from the curse land and handiwork of man will never please the LORD God.
Hebrews 11:4 “By faith Abel offered unto God a more excellent sacrifice than Cain, by which he obtained witness that he was righteous, God testifying of his gifts: and by it he being dead yet speaketh.” (Hebrews 11:4)
It was this perfect offering to the LORD God, a more excellent sacrifice than Cain, which proved to the LORD God that Abel was righteous. Abel sacrificed the best of life given to him by his LORD God, by offering it back to Him in worship, and God knew him through his gift.
Abel loved the LORD God without promise of eternal life. Abel worshipped the LORD God with the awe and respect of a righteous man without regard to entitlement or promises that would benefit him. He worshipped God through his offerings of the best of life without expectations of anything to follow. Unlike Cain who expected reward from God for his hard work in the cursed ground, Abel gave back to Him because he intimately worshipped the LORD God.
It is that same “Faith of Abel” that gives believers today the ability to confidently offer the fruits of His works that will please the LORD God. It is these faithful offerings that reveal the righteousness of those whom offer the most excellent sacrifices, and offer the shadows of deeper faith that we will explore next.
