Those Who Give God Their Best — Zac Poonen

Cain, Abel, and the Two Ways of Giving to God

I want to show you two streams in Genesis and let it flow all the way to all of us. See where the stream began, where both streams began. Sid entered into the world in Genesis chapter 3 and in the last verse of Genesis 3, driven out Adam and Eve, driven out of the garden and life outside the garden of Eden began in Genesis chapter 3.

Human life on this earth as we know it. And the very first thing you read there is Adam and Eve had two children, perhaps had many more, but two are mentioned here. I'm sure there were others also, but the two mentioned here are Cain and Abel.

And each had a different profession. Cain was a farmer, that's okay. And Abel was a keeper of flocks, two different professions. And they'd been taught by Adam that you must show your thankfulness to God by once in a while, coming and bringing an offering to him from the particular profession you are engaged in, from the prophets of that, come and bring an offering to God to show your gratitude to him.

So they decide to bring an offering. And Cain, we read in verse 3, brought an offering to the Lord from the fruit of the ground. Abel brought the firstlings of his flock. Now there are many Christians who teach.

And you know, it says that the Lord accepted Abel's offering, verse 5, but he did not accept Cain's offering. And there are many Christians who teach, and it's a false teaching, that the Lord accepted Abel's offering because there was blood in his offering.

He killed a lamb or something. And Cain's offering was just grain in which there was no blood. But that's not what the Bible says. Because this was not a sin offering. There were some offerings in Leviticus, which were thank, the offerings of thankfulness, thank offering.

So this was a thank offering. When people gave their tithes under the law, there was no blood in the tithe, but it was acceptable. So, and the tithe was, by the way, let me tell you, when the Old Testament tithe was, you know what tithe was?

It was grain or flocks. It was not money. Whatever you, whatever you worked in, and you brought 10 of that. So anyway, so the issue here was not who brought blood. So now the question comes, why did God accept Abel's offering and not accept Cain's offering?

If you read carefully, which is the way you should read the Bible, slowly, carefully, you'll find it right there. Read it again and see if you can make out. It's there. Cain brought an offering, not to some strange idol, to Jehovah, to the Lord.

And Abel brought on his part the firstlings of his flock and of their fat portions. Do you see a difference? The difference is Cain brought an offering. Abel brought the best of his flock. Here are the two streams in Christendom and in the Jewish community.

There are some who, when they come to the Lord, they give their very best to Him. There are others who, to ease their conscience, they give something. These are the two. That's why I told you all of us are in one of these streams.

Those who, when they come to the Lord, give Him the very best, because they know that God gave His very best for us. And there are others, I'm talking about so-called born-again Christians, they are giving to ease their conscience.

Oh, I have to give something to God, and let me give something. And they ease their conscience. Okay, I gave something. I'm not talking just about money. I'm talking about time, energy, our life, many, many things that God has given us that we give to Him out of gratitude.

And the Lord had regard for Abel and for his offering. So it was not the offering that made the difference. It was Abel's heart attitude that brought that very best. That's what you got to see. Because it says in verse 3, it doesn't say the Lord had regard for his offering and therefore for Abel.

Then we could say perhaps it was the blood. This is the advantage of reading scripture carefully. If it had said the Lord regarded His offering, therefore He accepted Abel, then you say, oh, that's because He brought blood.

And the Lord did not regard Cain's offering, therefore He didn't accept Cain. But read carefully what it says. The Lord had regard for Abel first, and therefore for His offering. And the Lord did not have regard for Cain, and therefore for His offering.

So the problem was not with the offering. So many people, their wrong doctrines come because they don't read the Bible properly. And such people deserve to go astray because they disregard God's Word.

They read a legal document with much more accuracy than they read the Bible. They deserve to go astray. If you don't read the Bible carefully, I'll tell you, you deserve to go astray. If you don't respect God's Word and say, this is the Word of God, I want to take every word seriously.

Here's one example. That's how this false teaching comes, that the Lord had regard for His offering, therefore He accepted Abel, even though that's exactly the opposite of what the Bible says. Just one classic example.

You'd be surprised to know how many people believe that the Lord accepted Abel's offering, therefore He accepted Abel. Go and look up any commentary. You'll see that. So when you read the scripture carefully, you'll find that a lot of these so-called Bible scholars are not really teaching the truth.

Anyway, here are two streams that began to flow from that. What is it that the Lord saw in Abel's heart? You know there are offerings that people can bring, which God doesn't accept. You remember that story, not story, the command Jesus gave in Matthew 5, He was speaking about anger.

In verse 22 onwards, He says, you should not be angry. Supposing you do get angry and you call your brother a fool, you're in danger. And then He says in the next verse, you come and bring an offering to God, next verse, and your brother is upset with you.

Why is he upset with you? Because you called him a fool. The Lord says, leave your offering there. Let me show you that. Sometimes I find people are not familiar with scripture. Turn with me to Matthew 5, verse 22.

I say to you, everyone who's angry with his brother will be guilty before the court. And whoever says to his brother, raka, which means something like, you empty head or something like that, you fool, and you empty head, you're good for nothing.

And then he goes further and calls him a fool as well. He'll be guilty. And then, what does he do next? He ignores the fact that he's hurt his brother, and he comes to present an offering at the altar.

And then he remembers, I call my brother a fool. Leave your offering there. God will not accept your offering. Go and be reconciled to your brother. Why can't he accept your offering? Because he can't accept you.

He could not accept Cain's offering because he could not accept Cain. That's what we see here. It's not the offering, it's the person. You are wrong. So however good your offering may be, God won't accept it.

And it says here, go and be reconciled to your brother, then come and present your offering. That's why we have a notice near our offering box in all of our churches, we keep it, saying if you got something unreconciled with your brother, please don't put money in that box.

You might as well put it down the toilet and flush it down. It's just as good. God won't accept it. Now, not many churches will teach that to you because they are covetous and they want your money. We are interested in your salvation, not your money.

That's why we put verses like that up there. If you're in debt to somebody, the Bible says don't owe anybody anything. I'll tell you why we put that thing up there saying if you're in debt, don't put your money there.

Because supposing you owe some money to Mr. X and you put money in the box to God, Mr. X says, God, how can you take his money? He owes me money. Tell him to pay my debt first before he gives you anything.

And that'd be right. And if the Lord comes and you're in debt to somebody, somebody will say, Lord, you can't take him. He's got to let him pay my money first before you take him to heaven. So it's a serious thing.

That's why we put those conditions up there so that you're calm because we are interested in your salvation, not your money. So here we have an example of where God would not accept a person's offering because he wouldn't accept the offering.

We wouldn't accept the person. So what we read there is God accepted Abel because he saw his heart attitude and his heart attitude was seen in one thing that he brought the very best to God. And Cain's heart attitude was seen in he brought the minimum required to God.

Malachi and the Danger of Routine Worship

Now the same thing you find in the last book of the Old Testament. You turn to Malachi. What you see in Genesis, you see in Malachi also. It's very interesting to compare scripture with scripture. You see in Malachi chapter one.

Now this is the end, almost the end of the Jewish age. And the Lord says in Malachi 1 verse 6, a son honors his father and a servant honors his master. If I am a father, where is my honor? Don't just say father, father.

Where do you honor me? If I am a master, don't say master, master. Where is my respect? You priests who despise my name. You say how have we despised your name? He says I'll tell you. Verse 8, you present the blind for sacrifice and you present the lame and the sick.

You know they had to bring certain offerings like sheep and oxen for sacrifice. But so this guy had to bring a sheep. He'd look around his sheep and say this one is lame. Been a bit of a nuisance for me in any case.

Let me offer it as sacrifice. So he would take that, you know just like Cain, an offering, not the best, an offering. And he'd offer it and he'd think it is okay. God said bring a sheep. But God didn't say just bring a sheep.

He said must be a sheep without any defect. They ignored that part. Another guy's got an ox which is blind and is a bit of a problem for him. Let's offer this. So they offered to God an offering but it was not the very best they had.

They gave that which was cheap and cost them nothing. The principle is when they gave a lame a sheep or a blind ox, it cost them nothing. God did not accept it. He says I wish you priests, verse 10, will shut the gates.

Don't allow these people to come in there with these sick sheep and blind oxen. Shut the gates and say no you can't bring your offering to the temple. I wish there were some priests like that. I read that Lord and those warnings inside the offering box are like shutting the gates.

Sorry you can't give your money. You haven't settled things with your brother. You're not born again. Sorry you can't give money. You owe that fellow some money. Go and pay back his debt. This is the principle there.

Oh that there were some servants of mine God says who will shut the gates when somebody brings an offering and say you can't bring that offering here. I'll tell you you won't find many churches like that.

They are eager. Come bring whatever you have. It doesn't matter what your heart attitude is. It doesn't matter if you have cheated people. It doesn't matter if you owe anybody anything. Come bring your offering.

Well whatever it is not the very best and that's why we have multitudes of Christians today who are offering like Cain. They are bringing the offering. They don't realize God is not accepting it and there's no servant of God to tell them the truth that God's not accepting your offering because they are eager for the money.

That's a tragedy in today's Christendom but the Lord says things are going to change. You Jewish people. He's telling them through Malachi. I think you're the only ones I accept. A surprise is coming up for you fellows.

It is about 300 years before Christ came. He says a day is coming and that is going to happen in another 300 years after the day of Pentecost. Something new is going to happen. Verse 11 from the east to the west from the rising of the sun to the setting.

It was all the way from Japan in the east or all the way to the other side to Hawaii on the west. All the way. My name will be great and people are going to bring an offering to me that is pure. Pure means with sacrifice.

They will give the best and my name will be great among all these nations and I'm not dependent on you Jews alone and that's what happened. God rejected that nation and whenever the same principle applies throughout the centuries.

Whenever God finds a church that started out well and then after a while it becomes a routine. The meetings become routine and dead and dull. They're not seeking for the anointing of the Holy Spirit and the people have come with a hot attitude which is not one of sacrifice but oh I have to go on Sunday.

Okay I gotta go. It's not with devotion to Jesus Christ. God rejects that church and starts another and throughout the 20 centuries of Christianity that has happened again and again and again and again and again and that's why you have so many hundreds of denominations today.

Something that started out very well and over a period of time usually 40, 50, 70 years it's dead because the new generation does not have the fervency and zeal and devotion that that first generation had.

So God has to pull them out. Now it doesn't have to be like that but very often it is like that. Timothy was second generation from Paul but he was just as fervent as Paul. So you can't be second generation and zealous.

Sure but it's more rare. Paul said among all the second generation Timothy is the only one. So the number is very little of those who are fervent and zealous. So God has to set aside. That's what's happened again and again and again.

Paul’s Warning to the Elders of Ephesus

Here's a church that started out with zealous people. Let me give you a practical example. One of the finest churches in Paul's day was the church in Ephesus and one way we know that is you read Paul's letter to the Ephesians there's hardly anything to correct there.

You read his letter to the Corinthians there's so many things to correct. It's a pretty pathetic church. You read his letter to the Galatians there are so many things he has to correct there. You read his letter to the Philippians there's he talks about people who are preaching to get honor and two sisters who can't get along with each other.

It's in Philippians but you read letter to the Ephesians there's nothing to correct. It's a wonderful church and one of the reasons was Paul stayed in Ephesus for three years. He was the elder there for three years and you get Paul as an elder in a church.

It'll be a pretty good church as long as he's there and so we read after three years he has to go. He can't be there forever. He calls all the elders in Ephesus. That's in Acts chapter 20. He called all the elders in Ephesus in Acts chapter 20 in verse 17.

From Miletus Paul sent to Ephesus and called all the elders of the church and then he gives a long lecture to them from verse 18 all the way to 35. It's really worth reading this Paul's message to the elders.

There are a number of things he says. First of all let me show you Paul was in this place for three years. Verse 31. Remember verse 31 night and day for a period of three years I did not cease to admonish you with tears.

He preached publicly and he preached from house to house. There were two places he had meetings but for three years he admonished them very often with tears. So there we know he preached for three years and if he was doing that night and day early morning meeting evening meeting for three years that's what about 2 ,000 sermons.

Can you imagine if you were sitting in a church where you had 2 ,000 sermons from the apostle Paul. Boy I would have loved to be in a church like that fiery zealous apostle who lived close to God and yet when he's about to leave them what does he tell them in verse 18.

He doesn't say remember all the sermons I preached on this subject or that subject. Remember what I taught you about grace or about anything. He says remember how I lived among you. The ultimate testimony of a man of God is not the sermons he preaches.

It is his way of life. Very important. He preached 2 ,000 sermons but he doesn't remind these elders about any of those subjects in those sermons. He says remember from the first day I set foot in Asia how I lived with you the whole time.

How I served the Lord with humility. Did you see my humility? Not did you remember my sermon on humility. Did you see my humility with tears and trials and all the persecution I endured the opposition of others and and how verse 20 I did not hesitate to proclaim everything that would be profitable for you whether you got offended or not.

I preached repentance verse 21 and I preached faith just like I said in the last session. Repentance and faith and now I know verse 25 that all of you will not see my face anymore. I'm leaving tomorrow.

I want you to know nobody's blood here in Ephesus is on my hands. Why? Because I proclaim the whole purpose of God to you. I didn't tell you only about forgiveness of sins. I preached victory over sin.

I told you about the body of Christ and the bride of Christ. I preached the whole thing to you so your blood is not on my hands. That means none of you can stand in the day of judgment before the Lord and say Paul never told us the whole truth.

I did tell you the whole truth. Now be on guard for yourselves. Be careful because the Lord the Holy Spirit verse 28 has appointed you as overseers to shepherd the flock of God but I know listen to verse 29 I know something the Lord has shown me that once I leave this place savage wolves will come in from outside to this church and destroy this flock.

What a message to lead with a church when you're leaving. Imagine telling the elders of a church, listen fellas I was with you for three years. I taught you, warned you, shed tears when preaching for to you and I labored night and day but I know something's going to happen when I go.

The wolves that are waiting outside the door will come right in destroy this flock. Why couldn't those wolves come in when Paul was there for those three years? Wolves are the agents of Satan because they knew we have no chance in this church as long as Paul is there.

He's a very strict elder. He's got the power of the Holy Spirit on him. We can have no foothold here but Paul can't be here forever. He's going to go. We'll wait for that time then we'll wreak havoc in this church.

What about all the other elders? They didn't have the spirit of Paul. Not even one of them. Supposing there were, I don't know, maybe there were five elders and imagine Paul sitting, picture this, Paul sitting before five elders in Ephesus.

I've been with you for three years and I want to tell you fellas the truth. None of you have the grace or the anointing to keep those wolves outside. Those fellows would think what an arrogant fellow Paul is as if he thinks he's the only one who can keep the devil outside but what Paul said was true.

It's exactly what happened. That church got destroyed because they didn't take that warning seriously. They could have taken it as a warning. See, God gives a warning doesn't mean it will happen. Jonah went into Nineveh and said in 40 days the city will be destroyed but it was not destroyed.

Why? Because they repented. They said we take it seriously what you say Jonah. We repent and if these fellows had taken that seriously said oh Paul you mean it after you go the wolves will come in. Well we're going to repent.

We're going to seek God for an anointing. We'll make sure the wolves are outside and he says some of you will speak perverse things verse 30 and draw away disciples after yourself. You'll form your own groups inside this church.

Thank you for that warning Paul. None of us will seek our own. We will not form groups after ourselves. We'll be concerned about the church. If they had repented and taken a warning seriously from a man of God they could have saved that church but they were too proud.

Who does this guy think he is? We also know the Lord. You take that attitude and you don't respect the maturity and knowledge of God that a man like Paul has. They destroyed themselves. I found that even today.

I've seen young people who are very zealous but they don't have maturity and they think they know so much. We don't have to listen to any older brother. We know exactly what we can do and I see them after some years wasted lives.

I've seen cases like that myself of people in our churches who would not listen to my warnings. They went in their own way and wasted their life and unfortunately they didn't have the humility to acknowledge their failure and come back.

They'll wake up one day at the judgment seat of Christ and see what they lost. It's sad. Well that's what happened here and Paul gives them his example. He says for example I want you to know I never were 33.

I never wanted anybody's money. What a testimony. How many preachers are there today on television or pastors who can say like Paul I was three years here or 30 years here and I never wanted one cent from any of you.

Not only that I didn't want any of you to come and give me clothes. You know a new suit or a shirt or a pan. I never wanted any of these things from you. I never worked for that but I showed you how we support ourselves and serve others to follow the example of Jesus who said it is more blessed to give than to receive and you know they heard all this and they acted very loving.

It says they began to weep aloud. Verse 37 you think these people are really wholehearted. They kissed him again and again and oh Paul we'll never see you again. What's the use of all that if they were not serious about following Jesus.

Ephesus, First Love, and the True Church

What happened? You know the story of the church in Ephesus in Revelation chapter 2. Same church and probably some of those elders Paul spoke to are alive now. This is 30 years later. 30 or 35 years after Paul spoke to them.

So if some of those people who are 40 years old then they are 75 years old now and to the church in Ephesus Revelation 2 the Lord says write this. I know your deeds, your toil, your perseverance and so many good things about you.

Very good but I've got something against you. You don't love me like you loved in those early days when Paul was here. You lost that love. You just got the routine meetings every Sunday and the conferences and your songs and you got better musicians and all that but I'm not interested in all that.

You don't love me like you loved me at first. What is the proof of love? It's not singing nice songs. Jesus said if you love me keep my commandments John 14 15. So we could read this like this. You stopped keeping my commandments.

That's what verse 4 means. You have left your first love means either you're not keeping the commandments now out of love it's out of fear and you're coming like Cain with an offering not the very best like Abel brought and is this a serious offense?

It is so serious verse 5 that if you don't repent I'll take away the lampstand. That means I will de-recognize you as a church. You will no longer be a church in my eyes even though you'll have the board outside your building first church in Ephesus and you got your 500 members there but Jesus is not there but there'll be a few overcomers verse 7 who overcome and when they see maybe there are 10 people in that 500 crowd who are overcomers and they see that Jesus has left they sense hey they talk to one another and say hey we feel the Lord has left the church what are we sitting here now when the bridegroom leaves the bridal wedding hall the bride leaves also so these 10 overcomers leave and they start another church out there say we want to build the body of Christ this is what's happening there in the big 500 church member the church is not the body of Christ it's just a gathering a congregation of people are going through the routine singing and they're majoring more on music and psychology type of teaching and all that stuff.

We're not interested in that. We're interested in taking up the cross and discipleship and we're coming out and meeting together. And when people what does the pastor in the church say when these 10 people have left fellas I want to tell you about 10 rebels who've left us.

They they don't know the ways of God. They've rebelled against God. They've gone out but the Lord was there with them. The Lord wasn't here. This pastor and elders didn't have a clue that Jesus had left because they didn't repent and he's with them.

That's how the second church in Ephesus started. There were only 10 people there despised rejected. They're called rebels heretics and whatnot. But that's where the Lord was. Okay. Give it another 50 70 years that church becomes 500 600 people and the young people who started it have all died and gone.

Another generation has come up. They begin to be like Cain. They bring an offering not the best. History is repeated again. Maybe there's nobody like Paul to tell them. Now after I go wolves will come in.

The wolves come in. But again there's a group of overcomers who move out with the Lord. And that starts the third church in Ephesus. Of course the second church didn't realize. We also started like this and they call this bunch of people heretics and rebels and all that.

Now you have three churches in Ephesus after 200 years. Now give 2000 years and you know how many there are. This is how there's a proliferation or multiplication of churches around the earth. God withdraws his presence.

And then there are overcomers who move out. That's not the only reason sometimes somebody wants to be the leader like you said there draw away some group after myself. That is also another evil reason with which they start a church that could also be there.

But sometimes there's a good reason with which some people start a new church because we say this church is not seeking to be built as a body. They're just going through a routine of meetings and activity.

We they don't want to be pure like the bride of Christ. They're not talking about purity and holiness. And being built together like a family. It's not there. There are so many Christians who are sitting in such churches and they're quite happy.

Like all those 500 people in that first church in Ephesus. Yeah we've always been here. We're not gonna rock the boat. I mean so what if Jesus has left. Let's let's continue with our meetings. It's very sad.

I really believe that many so-called Christian churches today where they say where two or three are gathered together I'm in the midst. He's not there. The Lord's not there. They quote a verse but the Lord is not there.

If the Lord is there you'll sense it. You go into a room where there's light you'll sense it. If the room is dark you'll sense it. And you can go to churches and you know whether when you go there whether God speaks to you or not or whether it's just a routine meeting just another dead meeting.

Maybe the music is very good but if you want want good music go to the rock rock stars. They can provide better music than any church. I'll tell you that if your aim is music and if you want to listen to good sermons listen to the politicians.

Some of your past U .S. presidents were first-class preachers. I mean political speeches. Amazing. They could grip people for one or two hours. So if you're only interested in good speeches go and listen to politicians.

If you listen to want to listen to music go and listen to the rock stars. But if you want godliness then you got to find a godly church. If you want to be built together as a family. I know when we started 42 years ago the reason we started was because I had moved around Christian circles and churches for 16 years and I was fed up with everything I saw.

I was fed up with myself also. I'm living such a defeated life. I'm not blaming the others but these guys are not helping me to overcome. You know how as a young man every young person when they are in their 20s and all they are struggling with sexual temptation and every every man a person who says he's not struggling is a liar.

Every young man in their 20s is struggling with sexual temptation. So I go to this church. I'm struggling like the others and they're talking about the tabernacle and my problem is not the tabernacle and its meaning my problem is something else.

They're not talking about my problem. It's like a doctor who cannot diagnose the problem of the patients and giving some other medicine doesn't cure them. So I understand all about the tabernacle but I'm still defeated in my sin.

This is what is happening in so many churches marriages that they they don't teach them how to live happily together how to live as husband and wife. They're discussing all types of things about the end time and what the antichrist is going to be like and the how the the beast with seven heads there's a beast in this family which they don't they don't talk about that all this type of thing.

You know this is what's happening in christendom today. The medicine is not being put where the sickness is. And I remember when I I suffered under this for so many years defeated defeated defeated defeated.

I was defeated just like all of you and I said lord if I ever build a church I'm going to put the medicine where the sickness is. I'm going to talk down to earth practical things where they are defeated where I know because I was defeated.

I've been through that route myself and so I can tell them and how God helped me. So that's the type of church you need to go to where you get some practical help to overcome and where you are built together with others.

Building a Practical Family Church

And so we even when we started we were only two families. That's all and then little by little some would come some would go they they would experiment. Is this the place some people would come and say uh do you have a marriage license to conduct marriages.

I say no. Do you have a burial place where we can bury when we're dead. No okay then you have to find another church. I mean they're all they're interested in is a marriage and funeral. So I say fine go somewhere else we are.

We are here trying to build the body of christ not for all these other things. So but gradually through all this sifting uh gradually a body began to be formed. It takes time. The bones began to come together flesh came sinews and the breath of the holy spirit.

We had wonderful prayer meetings and we began to be a family. And I'll tell you something. I had four sons they were all very small. Sandeep was only six months old when we started and I'm so thankful that my children grew up in this atmosphere of a living church which was like a family which was not a dead ritual every Sunday.

And it was not just a Sunday church. It was a seven day a week church. We were a family. Not that we had meetings seven days a week but we loved one another and we would love to meet together with others one another during the week.

And we were a family and our children knew we're part of a family. And it didn't matter if they didn't have other children of their own age. There there were older brothers who would humble themselves and come down to their level and become friends with them.

The 25 year olds could be friends with the 13 year old boy and lead them on. So I'm so thankful that and that's what I wish for every person. We are growing up in a very evil world. There's corruption all around the schools are full of corruption.

The type of influence children get when they go to schools. Boy I'm thankful if you have a church where they can be protected from all that where they can learn some values. And that is why it's my great burden wherever I go to build churches that are like a family like a body.

Not just members lying around but people who function together as one body as a family who have the spirit of the bride of Jesus Christ. What is the most important thing in a bride. She loves her bridegroom fervently.

It's not her. She may not be rich or anything but she loves the bridegroom. And I say we want to build a church which is like the bride of Christ. And the mark of the people in the bride of Christ will be they love Jesus fervently.

And because they love Jesus fervently they can love one another. They may not be qualified. They may not be great preachers. They may not be great singers. You know we met six years in my home because we couldn't afford even to rent a building.

We were very poor. I was. I had a because I was in the navy before coming out to serve the lord. I had a scooter and that is the best vehicle anybody had in that in that church. Most of the others had bicycles or came by bus.