Life By Example

“By faith Abel offered God a better sacrifice than Cain did.” Hebrews 11:4

Examples are usually useful—or at least they were in math class. Verbal explanations, no matter how eloquent or intricate, were never as informative as the examples. The “worked for you” problems not only gave concrete illustration to abstract concepts but also helped with homework, for by looking back at the examples on the board or in my book (many times, I must add) and by tracing the clear (and correct) steps in the process, I could sometimes figure it out!

Hebrews 11 is a list of such examples. The first verse eloquently tells us what faith is. “Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see.” The rest of the chapter gives us examples—real life illustrations of ordinary people putting their faith in an extraordinary God. Delightfully, the stories are all different—a striking reminder that lived-out faith rarely looks alike.

After laying a faith foundation for creation, we step into the gory story of Cain and Abel—brothers bound by blood but not belief. Abel was a shepherd, and Cain was a farmer. “In the course of time,” Cain brought some produce to present to God. Abel slaughtered firstborn lambs and offered their fat. God approved of Abel’s offering, but He refused Cain’s. Why? Why did “Abel offer a better sacrifice than Cain”(Heb. 11:4)? The simple fact of faith. Abel’s offering came from his firstborn. He gave his initial profit up to God and trusted Him to provide for the future. Abel’s sacrifice showed that he understand correctly who God was and what He desired, and “by faith he was commended as a righteous man when God spoke well of his offerings”(Heb. 11:4). Genesis history doesn’t say that Cain brought the first fruits from his crops but merely “some of the fruits.” When you have plenty, you can always spare a few. Seems that Cain did just that.

The story only gets uglier. Cain was angry that his offering hadn’t been accepted and vented his rage on his brother. An open-field attack left Abel dead and Cain cursed, but, in spite of the violence, Abel’s example of obedient faith shows us that from the beginning God desired His children to trust. “And by faith Abel still speaks, even though he is dead”(Heb. 11:4).

Faith in action point from Abel: We show faith by giving God our first and best and trusting Him to provide the rest.

Examples help with more than math. They help with life. These figures of faith help us figure out faith. Look, listen, and learn.