Did Jesus Redeem Mankind? — Page 82
ง 82 brought of the fruit of the ground an offering unto the Lord. . 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:. But unto Cain and to his offering he had no respect. . And Cain was very wroth, and his countenance fell. . And the Lord said unto Cain, Why art thou wroth? and why is thy countenance fallen?. 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, Ch. 4:3-7). . The above references show that (1) notwithstanding the sin of Adam (peace be on him), sacrificial offerings of some of his sons were accepted; as for instance, the offering of Abel was. . He became the favoured one of God the Almighty, it is said. . It is clear that acceptance of him by God would not mean that God made him His favoured one and took his offering as a living sacrifice which spirals a man's excellence to greater heights. For, acceptance of the offering has no meaning other than this that his reward from God had become a continued reality. Abel and Cain were both sons of Adam (peace be. Both should the fact that on him) and born after the incident of his sin. have inherited the father's sin. But in spite of both were born with sin, when they made the offering, it was accepted of one as against that of the other which was not. . Had they inherited sin, they would not make the offering and if they did, it should have been rejected of both. (2) The above reference carries the following words: "If thou doest well, shalt thou not be accepted?”. It means that "if thou cared to become righteous, would not the Father make thee His favoured one?" The clear