Hebrews 11 contains many examples of faith. The first individual mentioned is Abel. His faith was demonstrated through the sacrifice he offered to God.
“By faith Abel offered to God a better sacrifice than Cain, through which he obtained the testimony that he was righteous, God testifying about his gifts, and through faith, though he is dead, he still speaks” (Hebrews 11:4).
In Genesis 4, we read of the sacrifices of these two brothers.
“So it came about in the course of time that Cain brought an offering to the Lord of the fruit of the ground. Abel, on his part also brought of the firstlings of his flock and of their fat portions. And the Lord had regard for Abel and for his offering; but for Cain and for his offering He had no regard. So Cain became very angry and his countenance fell” (Genesis 4:3-5).
Why did God accept Abel’s offering but not Cain’s? We are not told in Genesis, but we were told in Hebrews 11:4. Abel’s offering was accepted because it was offered “by faith.”
What does it mean for something to be done by faith? “Faith comes from hearing, and hearing by the word of Christ” (Romans 10:17). So to do something by faith means that we do it according to what the word of God says. We are not told what Cain and Abel were commanded in regard to their offerings, but we do know that they received instructions. By faith, Abel offered a sacrifice to God that was according to the instructions that He revealed to them.
Conversely, Cain’s offering was not made by faith. This gives us in indication of the type of faith that God demands of us. It is more than a belief in God. After all, we know Cain believed in God or else he would not have made an offering in the first place. We also learn that we must follow God’s instructions. Cain made an offering – he did something. But just doing something for God or in the name of Christ is not enough. We must do what He has told us to do.
So in this example, we have two brothers who both believed in God and both made an offering in service to Him. But only one was accepted because only one offered his sacrifice by faith. Belief in God is not enough. Some form of religious service is not enough. We must obey God’s instructions.
