Bright and shining lights in the Bible #9

“By faith Abel offered unto God a more excellent sacrifice than Cain, by which he obtained witness that he was righteous, God testifying of his gifts: and by it he being dead yet speaketh.”
We have considered how that Abel’s sacrifice was deemed ‘more excellent’ than Cain’s and that because it was offered in OBEDIENCE to God and spoke of Christ the Lamb of God.
But learn also:
BY HIS SACRIFICE HE WAS TOLD HE WAS RIGHTEOUS
‘He obtained witness that he was righteous.’ How was that? It says that God testified of the fact that he was righteous. The word ‘testifying’ appears in Luke 4:22 and is translated as “and all bare him witness, and wondered at the gracious words which proceeded out of his mouth.”
The people testified of the Saviour’s gracious words. In like manner God spoke of the fact that Abel was righteous as a result of the sacrifice he had offered. Just how God ‘spoke’ we are not sure but it is very possible He did with Abel’s sacrifice what He did with Elijah’s on Mt Carmel. “Then the fire of the LORD fell, and consumed the burnt sacrifice, and the wood, and the stones, and the dust, and licked up the water that was in the trench,” 1 Kings 18:38. Most certainly Abel had the witness of God’s Spirit within him that he was accepted by God. Even so it is with every true Christian today. “And because ye are sons, God hath sent forth the Spirit of his Son into your hearts, crying, Abba, Father,” Galatians 4:6. “He that believeth on the Son of God hath the witness in himself,” 1 John 5:10.
ALSO NOTE THAT ABEL STILL SPEAKS TO US!
That is, what he did still testifies to us of how we too may be righteous before God. As it was with the words of Samuel the prophet – “And Samuel grew, and the LORD was with him, and did let none of his words fall to the ground,” 1 Sam 3:19 – so it is with the testimony of Abel. His faith and obedience to God speaks to us today from all those years ago, about 6000 years ago. He says to each one of you: “The way to get to heaven is to obey the gospel and trust in the offering God tells us to trust in, the Lord Jesus. Christ.”
Abel’s sacrifice spoke peace to Abel. Christ’s sacrifice speaks to us peace to us ALL!
“And to Jesus the mediator of the new covenant, and to the blood of sprinkling, that speaketh better things than that of Abel,”Hebs 12:24.
We have referred to three voices today.
1. God’s voice to Abel, 2. Abel’s voice to us and 3. Christ’s voice to us all. They are the 1. voice of personal assurance, 2. the voice of witness and 3. the voice of Calvary to those trusting in Christ’s sacrifice.