By and by God gave Adam and Eve two sons. The eldest was named Cain, who helped Adam till the ground; and the younger was named Abel, who was a keeper of sheep.
After a time, both these young men brought an offering to the Lord; and the Lord accepted the offering of Abel, which was a lamb from the flock, but He could not accept the offering of fruit which Cain brought.
Perhaps you wonder at that, dear children? But I will try to explain it to you. God looks on the heart, and Abel's heart was obedient. He brought that which God had appointed as the way to come to Him. But Cain was not obedient; he thought that the fruit of the ground which he had taken such trouble to grow, would do just as well!
So when he found that God did not accept his offering, he was very angry, and his countenance fell.
And the Lord said to him, "Why are you angry, Cain? If you do well, shall it not be accepted? And if you do not do well, a Sin-offering lies at the door."
I think that GOD meant Cain to understand that it was only by a Sacrifice that we can come near to Him. And when, all through the Old Testament, we read of the sacrifice of a lamb as an offering for sin, God accepted the lamb, because He looked on to the time when the Lord Jesus would be "The Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world."
But Cain did not heed God's gentle persuasion, that he too could bring a sin-offering; and presently, when he was alone with his brother, he got more and more angry, and at last rushed at him and struck him and killed him!
Oh, the misery of poor Cain! No one can tell how he longed to undo that cruel deed. No one knows the sorrow and punishment of his whole life.
Children, let it be a warning to us not to let anger and jealousy live in our hearts, but let us pray every day, "Deliver me from Satan, the Evil one, who would tempt me to sin against Thee, and accept me, for Jesus' sake!"