Adrian Rogers was a motivator, an encourager, and a leader of the faith. He was also passionate about presenting scriptural application to everyday life circumstances. And you'll hear that in today's message.
Now, let's join Adrian Rogers.
Now the central theme of Hebrews chapter 11. is that God is to be worshipped. And if God is to be worshipped, He must be worshipped in spirit and in truth. Let's read in verse four. By faith, Abel offered unto God a more excellent sacrifice Then Cain.
by which he obtained witness that he was righteous. God testifying of his gifts. and buy it. He being dead Yet speaketh. Beyond the shadow of any doubt.
One of the most interesting men I've ever met. was a man that I pastored. in Fort Pierce, Florida. His name? was Charlie Fisher.
We called him Uncle Charlie. He was no bigger than a minute. But he weighed two tons spiritually. He was a man that was fearless for the Lord Jesus Christ. Uncle Charlie had an old airplane.
With canvas sides. He'd written across the sides of that airplane, Christ is the answer. It had an open cockpit. He'd put his goggles on, get a basket full of tracks, and fly over county fairs and dump out the tracks on the people and circle around the field with that sign on there, Christ is the answer. I prayed with him so many times, and incredible individual.
Uncle Charlie finally died. He told his son Lee. Who was a dear friend of mine? He said, Don't worry about my funeral, just invite all my friends and take this tape recorder and push the button. That's all you have to do.
He said, I've already taken care of everything. And so the funeral came. And Uncle Charlie was there in the casket. All of his friends were there. Lee got up and pushed the button.
And it was Charlie. He said, hello, everybody. He said, I'm Charlie Fisher. I'm up here in heaven. It is wonderful up here in heaven.
And he began to tell everybody about how glorious heaven was. And he preached a sermon on how wonderful heaven is. And then he said, I want to tell all of you to come and meet me in heaven. The only man I ever knew who preached his own funeral. Charlie Fisher preached his own funeral.
He, being dead, was yet speaking.
Well, there's another man who has preached his own funeral, and that's a man named Abel, and we're going to learn about him today.
Now, what we see in Abel. Is a shadow of the crucifixion of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.
Now, the Old Testament is a book of shadows. That point to New Testament truths. For example, in Colossians chapter 2, verse 17, the Bible tells us that the Old Testament is a shadow of things to come.
Now, you think about shadows, a shadow, must have light. And it must have something to shine upon.
Now, the light is the Old Testament scripture, and the body that the shadow shines upon is the Lord Jesus Christ.
Now, the angle of the light determines the sharpness of the shadow. In the early morning, Shadows are not real clear and they're somewhat distorted. By mid-morning, the shadows become clearer. Then at high noon, there are no shadows at all.
Now, in the Old Testament, we had shadows that pointed toward the Lord Jesus Christ. But when Calvary came in the New Testament, then it's high noon. What we're going to see here in this story of Abel is the beginning of these shadows that are pointing to the coming of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.
Now, look again, if you will, in chapter 11, verse 4: by faith, Abel offered unto God a more excellent sacrifice.
Well, where is that story found? The story is found over here in the book of Genesis.
So turn, if you will, with me to Genesis now for a moment. Genesis chapter 4. Open your Bible, it's very important, or you won't understand Hebrews 11 if you don't understand Genesis chapter 4.
Now Adam knew Eve his wife. And conceived.
Now, Adam and Eve, obviously, the first humans here upon the earth, and she conceived. and bear Cain.
Now Cain was her firstborn and said, I have gotten a man from the Lord. And she again bare his brother, Abel. And Abel, that's the one we're talking about today, was a keeper of sheep. But Cain was a tiller. of the ground.
Want a shepherd? and won a farmer. And in the process of time, it came to pass that Cain brought of the fruit of the ground an offering unto the Lord. And Abel? He also brought of the firstlings of his flock.
and the fat thereof. And the Lord had respect unto Abel. and to his offering, but unto Cain and to his offering he had not respect. And Cain was very wroth. and his countenance Fell.
Now we're going to stop reading there, but keep your bookmark there in Hebrews chapter 11 and in Genesis chapter 4 because we're going to go back and forth so we can understand. What we have here is a shadow of the cross in the offering that Abel made: two offerings. Cain? offered the fruit of the ground. He offered vegetables to the Lord.
Abel offered to the Lord a slain lamb of the firstlings of the flock. The Bible says that God accepted the offering of Abel, but he did not accept. the offering of Cain. One, the offering from the ground, the fruit of the ground, the other, a spotless lamb.
Now, we're going to see in this chapter, Hebrews chapter 11 and Genesis chapter 4, some contrast. Are you ready? First of all, here was a contrast in their worship. Two boys. They're worshiping God.
One is worshiping in spirit and in truth. And the other is worshiping by his own ingenuity.
Now remember Hebrews chapter 11 and verse 4, by faith Abel offered unto God. A more excellent Now, what was the difference?
Well, may I say this, and listen to me very carefully. All religions are not of the same value. In America today, we're looked upon as politically incorrect and almost un-American if we don't put our arms around everybody else and say, Your religion's just as good as mine. It is not. True.
God had respect unto Abel's offering, to Cain's offering he did not.
Now we're supposed to be tolerant today. And I believe in tolerance in some areas. But I do not believe in tolerance that sacrifices truth. And there's nothing today so intolerant as the intolerance of those against those of us who say there is a fixed standard of right and wrong, there is a true religion, and there is a false religion. This world doesn't need religion.
If it has too much religion, this world needs Jesus.
Now may I tell you that David Barrett, Who is a scholar tells us that in the world today there are 9,900 different religions. 9,000 900, almost 10,000 different religions. But listen to me. There are only two religions in the entire world. The true and the false.
The true and the false. Now that may seem narrow to you, but that's what our lesson is all about. There's the religion of grace and the religion of works. There's the religion of Cain and there's the religion of Abel.
Now let's look at this.
Now I don't ask you to take my word for it. Let's just look at the Bible and see what the Bible has to say about it. Because I realize what I'm preaching today is politically incorrect.
So be it. Look at the worship of Cain. Hebrews chapter 11 and verse 4, By faith Abel offered to God a more excellent sacrifice than Cain. What was the way of Cain? The way of Cain was the way of good works.
It was salvation by his own effort. He was a tiller of the ground. And the Bible says that you're going to till the ground by the sweat of your brow. What Cain offered to God was his own toil, his own sweat, his own effort.
Now, when he came to God with this offering of vegetables and fruits, It must have been beautiful. I mean, it must have looked like a county fair. There's the most fragrant fruit. The most beautiful flowers, the most succulent vegetation. And he offers this to God because he's been out there plowing the ground.
But the Bible says, cursed is the ground. Of the sweat of your brow. Where you till the ground. And what he has done is he is offering his own work. Put in your margin, Jude, verse 11.
Woe unto them, for they have gone The way of Cain. What is the way of Cain? It is to try to save yourself by your own good works rather than by the grace of God. It represents culture rather than Calvary.
Now, you're in Hebrews chapter 11, in Hebrews chapter 9, verse 22, the Bible says. without shedding of blood. is no remission. There is no salvation apart from the shedding of blood. What did Cain offer?
Vegetables. You can't get blood from a turnip without shedding of blood. There is no Remission. What do you say, Adrian? That's what you say.
No, that's what God says.
Well, you say I have my own religion.
So did Cain. You say, well, I'm looking for a religion that suits me.
So did Cain. And Cain died and went to hell, woe unto them, for they have gone after the way of Cain. It is not salvation by works. And here Cain offered of the fruit of the ground.
Now what did Abel offer?
Well, the Bible says Abel offered of the firstling of his flock. Go back again, if you will, in Genesis chapter four and verse four, and Abel. He also brought of the firstlings of his flock. Abel's offering. was based on a blood atonement.
Now let me tell you the difference between these two. I said people need to turn from religion to Jesus Christ. Religion. is what sinful people do for a holy God. The gospel is the good news.
of what a holy God has already done. for sinful man. The Bible says in Hebrews chapter 11 and verse 4: by faith Abel offered unto God a more excellent. sacrifice.
Now where did Abel get the idea of bringing a blood offering to Almighty God?
Now remember, it was just a shadow of the Lord Jesus Christ. Where did he get that idea?
Well When Adam and Eve sinned against God. They tried to clothe themselves with fig leaves. What is that? The fruit of the ground. What did God do?
God came into the Garden of Eden and God made them coats of skin, animal skin. How do you get coats of skin? Blood had to be shed. Where did Abel learn the idea that it takes blood without shedding of blood? There's no remission?
He learned it from his parents. You say, did he really know this? Listen to me. Abel was a prophet of God, a prophet. You say, where do you get that?
Put in your margin, Luke 11. Begin in verse 49. Jesus is speaking. Therefore also said the wisdom of God, I will send them prophets and apostles. and some of them they shall slay and persecute.
That the blood of all the prophets, underscore that. that the blood of all the prophets, which was shed from the foundation of the world, may be required of this generation. From the blood of Abel? unto the blood of Zacharias. All of the prophets.
Abel is called a prophet of God. Abel was a martyr. Who died for his faith. Adam and Eve had two sons. Want a martyr?
One murderer. Abel was a prophet. He understood the word of God.
Now You say, did he really understand about the Lord Jesus Christ?
Well, if he was a prophet, put in your Bible Acts chapter 10, verse 43. To him, Jesus, give all the prophets witness. If Abel was a prophet, and he was, and the Bible says to Jesus, give all the prophets witness, back there in the garden of Eden, just outside the gates of Eden. was a man named Abel. who offered a spotless lamb.
That is a picture, a prophecy of Jesus who is to come. Isn't the Bible a wonderful book? The Bible is a wonderful book. Don't get the idea that these people out there were just plowing with sticks and didn't know anything. No.
And let me say something else. The blood of the Lord Jesus Christ was not an afterthought. It was not an emergency action. God had the redemption by blood in His heart before He ever made the world. Put in your margin.
Revelation chapter 13 and verse 8. The Bible says, and all that dwell upon the earth shall worship him whose names are not written in the book of life, from the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world. Before he swung this world into space, God had redemption by blood. in his mind. You take the Bible.
From Genesis to Revelation. And you cut it anywhere. and it will bleed. There is a red river of life. It begins to flow in the book of Genesis, and it flows all the way through to the book of the Revelation, the chapter I just read to you.
That river began to flow when God made coats of skin. for Adam and Eve. And then that river passed on down when Abel took of the firstlings of the flock. and offered a blood sacrifice to the Lord. The first act that Noah did when he came out of the ark after Genesis 6 and the flood came was to offer a blood sacrifice.
God called Abraham, and Abraham, the father of the faithful, God said to Abraham, Abraham, take your son up to Mount Moriah and sacrifice him. And at the last moment, when the knife was about to fall into the bosom of Isaac, God said, Abraham. Don't Hurt the lad. Don't harm the lad. Look over here.
Is a ram. Caught in a thicket. I like to think of it as a ram crowned with thorns, his horns locked in that thicket. Take that ram. And sacrifice him.
No wonder Jesus said, Abraham saw my day and was glad. Abraham, way back more than a millennium before Jesus ever came, knew something of the blood sacrifice. And then God called Moses, and God said to Moses, Moses, take my people from the land of Egypt, the land of sin and darkness and slavery, and bring them into the promised land. And God said, Moses, when you do this, in order to let the people go out. Tell every family, take a lamb.
And sacrifice that lamb and put the blood of that lamb on the doorpost of that house because my death angel is going to come through the land of Egypt and God says my death angel is going to be looking for something. He's going to be looking for the blood and if the blood is there upon the doorpost, watch it. When I see the blood, I'll pass over you. That's where we get the word Passover.
Now, friend, it was the blood that caused the death angel to Passover. I'm telling you, had they put rubies and diamonds and gold and emerald upon that door, the death angel would have come. Had they written beautiful poetry and put it upon that door and nailed it there, the death angel would have come. Had they taken a live and spotless lamb and set that live and spotless lamb there? The death angel would have come.
People say, Christ is my example. No, he has to be your Savior. You're not saved by learning lessons from the life of Christ, but by receiving life from the death of Christ. God says, when I see the what? The blood, I will pass over you.
Without shedding of blood is no remission of sins. And then after Moses, they got in the land, God gave them the Levitical law, and they were told how to make those sacrifices. And every smoking altar of every Jewish temple. At all points. To the coming of Jesus, and thousands and thousands of lambs and rams and turtle doves are offered, and blood is shed.
Why is this? The Bible says over here in Hebrews chapter 10, it's impossible that the blood of bulls and goats could take away sin. Why all of those sacrifices? God is just pointing toward Calvary. This red river of life begins to run.
I'm telling you, these are all shadows. These are all prophecies. These are all types. These are all lessons. And that river runs and runs and runs.
Till it finally comes. to Calvary. When Jesus bows his head and dies, and with the precious blood, the blood is shed, this is what God is getting people ready for. Pavlov. The Russian psychologist.
did experiments in what we call conditioned response. He got his dogs and he would ring a bell and feed the dogs, ring a bell, feed the dogs, ring a bell, feed the dogs. He got the dogs where all he had to do was just ring a bell and they began to drool. They begin to salivate because they knew that the bell meant food. What is God doing in the Old Testament with all of these sacrifices, beginning with the skins that clothed Adam and Eve, beginning with Abel's offering?
What is God doing with all of that? God is conditioning His people. There's a conditioned response. When they see the blood, they know that sin means death, sin means death, sin means death, sin means death. Therefore, people are ready.
For the death of the Lord Jesus Christ when He died upon the cross, for without shedding of blood is no remission. Don't think this was incidental, friend. This is fundamental. There was a contrast in their worship.
Now, secondly, not only is there a contrast in their worship, notice the consequences of their worship. the consequences of the worship. Look if you will. in Genesis 4, verses 5 and 6. But unto Cain and his offering, God had not respect.
And Cain was very wroth, plain English. He was ticked off, he's angry. And his countenance fell. And the Lord said unto Cain, Why art thou wroth? And why is thy countenance Fallen.
Now God did not have any respect. For Cain and all of his good intentions and all of his good works. The difference between Cain and Abel. is the difference between righteousness and unrighteousness.
Now you would say, well, God would Just say to Cain, well, you tried. And you didn't get 100% on the grade on this. Test, but I'm going to grade on the curve.
Now God doesn't grade on the curve and God doesn't just give A for effort. And God will not overlook sin. Put it down big, plain, and straight: God will not overlook sin. You know, there are people who say, well, God's too good. To punish sin.
You've got it backward. God is too good not to punish sin. If you had to go through all the lectionaries and dictionaries of the world to get a word that would describe God and put it into one word, of course, that would be impossible. But if you had to choose one word above all other words, it would be the word holy. Holy means that God never has, God never can, God never will overlook sin.
All sin must be punished. If God overlooks sin, God would topple from His throne of holiness. God would cease to be a righteous God. Put in your margin Romans chapter 3. Verse 23, for all have sinned and come short of the glory of God.
By the way, you want to know what definition of sin is? Coming short of the glory of God. Don't lie down in the gutter alongside some old hypocrite and say, I'm longer than he is. Don't measure yourself that way. Here's the glory of God.
Here you are. The gap between the glory of God and you, that sin. All have sinned and come short of the glory of God. All of us.
Now, notice verse 24: being justified freely by His grace, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, whom God hath set forth to be a propitiation through faith in His blood. to declare His righteousness for the remission of sins that are past. What does the word propitiation mean? It's a big word. It means satisfaction.
Nothing can satisfy the righteousness of God. The wholeness of God except the shed blood of the Lord Jesus Christ. God cannot God never has, God never will, let any sin go unpunished. Your sin will be pardoned in Christ or punished in hell, but it will never be overlooked. I frequently said when a guilty man is acquitted, the judge is condemned.
If God were to let sin go unpunished, God Himself would become a sinner. All Christianity is described in three sentences. I deserve. Hell. Jesus took my hell.
There's nothing left for me but his heaven. That's what it's all about. It is salvation by grace. And the consequences of that worship is lasting not only in time, but in eternity.
Now, Abel was killed. By Kane. But it didn't cease to exist. He being dead yet speaks. For the child of God, death is not a period, but a comma.
He still lives on.
Now here's the third and final thing. I want you to see not only the contrast in the worship and the consequences of the worship. But I want you to see the conflict of their worship. Look, if you will, now in Genesis 4. Verses five and eight.
But unto Cain and to his offering he had not respect. And Cain was very angry, wroth, and his countenance fell. And the LORD said unto Cain, Why art thou wroth? Why is thy countenance fallen? If thou doest well, Shalt thou not be accepted?
And if thou doest not well, sin. Liet at the door. Sin is like an animal crouching at the door. That's what that literally means. God says, if you do what I tell you to do, you'll do well.
God is no respecter of persons, and sin lieth at the door, and unto thee shall be His desire. That is, sin is ready to devour you. and thou shalt rule over him. That is, if you'll do right. And Cain talked with Abel his brother.
And it came to pass that while they were in the field, that Cain rose up against Abel his brother. and slew him.
Now I want you to listen very carefully. The first murder was over religion. And it was a religious crowd. that crucified The Lord Jesus Christ. As I say.
Adam and Eve had two sons. One was a murderer. The other was a martyr. Why did Cain kill Abel because his heart was not right with God. No man can be wrong with God and right with his fellow brother.
False religion. is characterized by force. Our faith is characterized By love.
Now you think of what is happening in the world today. You think of the people who are being murdered. In the name of religion. They're showing the love of the Lord Jesus Christ. Perhaps...
Cain was too refined to offer a blood sacrifice, but he was not too refined to plunge a knife or whatever. into his brother's bosom.
Now Listen to John 16 verses 1 through 4. Jesus said, these things have I spoken unto you. that ye should not be offended. They shall put you out of the synagogues. Yea, the time cometh that whosoever killeth you will think he doeth God service.
Does that sound contemporary? The time will come. that whosoever killeth you will think he doeth God service. And these things will they do unto you, because they have not known the Father nor me. But these things have I told you, that when the time shall come, that ye may remember that I told you of them.
And these things I said unto you at the beginning, because I was with you. Jesus said, no fine print in the contract. I'm going to tell you ahead of time. The time will come. When they who kill you We'll think they do God.
A service.
Now, friend, the word martyr And the word witness are the same word. in the Greek language. Death doesn't make martyrs, it just simply reveals them. What is our true faith? True faith is never based upon force.
One of the greatest mistakes The so-called Christian church ever made was the Crusades. when we tried by force. to spread our faith. You say, don't you believe in self-defense? I believe in it with all of my heart.
I believe there are times when we need to go to war. but not to spread the Christian faith. We spread the Christian faith with love. That's the difference, friend, between true religion and false religion. The salvation of Jesus Christ is by grace through faith.
Based on the shed blood of the Lord Jesus Christ. and it is never coerced. Never. Cain Saloo. Abel.
Kane was the loser. Not able. He won the martyr's cross. Wow. There are two religions in the world.
Only two. The true and the false. The difference between these two religions is the difference between heaven and hell. You say, well, Pastor Rogers. I believe there's another way other than the shed blood of the Lord Jesus Christ.
You do?
Well, let me ask you a question. If there's another way other than the shed blood of the Lord Jesus Christ, tell me why did Jesus die? The Bible says, if righteousness come by the law, Christ is dead in vain. If a man, a woman, a boy, a girl could be saved any other way. Then Calvary was a blunder.
Why did God let Jesus die on that cross if there's another way? Why not take the other way? Why did he allow his darling son to die in agony and blood? If there's Another way. There is no other way.
Hebrews 9, 22, without shedding of blood. Is no remission. There is a red river of blood that flows through all the Bible. What can wash away my sin? Nothing.
But the blood. of Jesus. What can make me whole again? Nothing. But the blood Of Jesus.
A preacher. A good man. As the world goes. A compassionate man as the world goes. had the religion of Cain.
Now a lot of preachers with the religion of Cain. He had the religion of Cain. He was from a very liberal denomination. He was in his study. There was a knock on the door.
He opened the door and there was a little girl. Just Poorly dressed. And he said, Little lady, what can I do for you? She said, can you help me get mother in?
Well, he thought perhaps her mother was drunk. The preacher said, Well, sweetheart. Where is your mother? How do you want me to get her in? She's at home, she's dying.
She sent me out to find a preacher. to help get her into heaven. Can you help get my mother in? Preacher said, yes, sweetheart, I'll go. And he put on his coat and got his hat and went with the little girl down to the poor section of town there.
In that little tenement, there was a woman on her deathbed, dying, not even with the doctors and the nurses to take care of her. He began to tell her about the Sermon on the Mount. And living right and doing good and kindness and all of these things. High, wonderful, platitudinous ideas. His was a religion of culture and good works, the religion of Cain.
The woman had a distraught look on her face. She said, you don't understand. I have lived a sinful and a wicked life. And now I'm dying. And all that you say sounds very good and very wonderful, but I'm dying.
I can't do any of that. Don't you have a message for a woman like me? And that preacher began to think and he realized I don't have a message for a woman like that. And then he remembered. The story that his mother told him before he'd gone off to the seminary and gotten educated.
about a Savior. Who took our sins and carried them to the cross and in agony and blood died and said it is finished and paid in full. And he went back and told her that old story, though he himself didn't really believe it. Told her about Jesus. Told her about the cross, told her about grace, told her about forgiveness, and led her to prayer.
And she prayed and asked Christ into her heart. was gloriously saved. Later on, that liberal preacher. stood up in another preacher's meeting and gave a testimony. And here's what he said.
He said, sirs. That night, That woman came in. And I came in too. I came in too. I gave my heart to Jesus.
And I got saved. What can wash away my sin? Nothing. Nothing. Nothing.
But the blood. of Jesus. Two religions? Two ways. Cain?
and able. Vegetables. And a lamb. Will you lay your pride in your good works in the dust? And will you today say just as I am without one plea?
But that thy blood was shed for me. O Lamb of God. I come to thee. I come. Where are you?
For your sake. For his sake? Will you trust him? If you're not certain that you're saved, I want to lead you in a prayer. And in this prayer, You can trust in Christ.
Repeating words won't save you. The Bible says it was by faith. that Abel offered a more excellent sacrifice. Therefore, being justified by faith, we have peace with God. Would you pray this prayer, dear God?
I'm a sinner. And I'm lost. And my good works cannot save me. Thank you that you sent Jesus. A spotless lamb.
who paid with his own blood my sin debt. And I receive you, Lord Jesus, into my heart now. as my Lord and Savior. Forgive my sin. Save me, Jesus.
Did you pray it? Then by an act of faith, claim it. Say thank you, Lord. I receive it by faith and that settles it. And Lord Jesus.
I will make it public. I will not be ashamed of you. Because you died for me. In your name I pray. Amen.
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