CAIN AND ABEL: DIVISION OF THE KINGDOM, Chapter 15 of Kingdom of God V1 P2

   CAIN AND ABEL: DIVISION OF THE KINGDOM, Chapter 15 of Kingdom of God V1 P2   Pages 151 to 159 http://ogdenkraut.com/?page_id=137 Abel’s Murder The prayers of all the ministers in the world can never close the gates of hell against a murderer. (TPJS, p. 189) As Cain began to apostatize, he lost the spirit of the Lord, “And Cain was very wroth, and his countenance fell.” (Gen. 4:5) The Spirit of the Lord was replaced by another spirit that filled Cain with jealousy, hate and greed–three things that usually precede a murder. Abel, on the other hand, was a righteous son, and Joseph Smith said he had been assured of this by God Himself: It is said by Paul in his letter to the Hebrew brethren, that Abel obtained witness that he was righteous, God testifying of his gifts. * * * We have very little on this important subject in the forepart of the Bible. But it is said that Abel himself obtained witness that he was righteous. Then certainly God spoke to him: indeed, it is said that God talked with him; and if He did, would He not, seeing that Abel was righteous deliver to him the whole plan of the Gospel? And is not the Gospel the news of the redemption? How could Abel offer a sacrifice and look forward with faith on the Son of God for a remission of his sins, and not understand the Gospel? The mere shedding of the blood of beasts or offering anything else in sacrifice, would not procure a remission of sins, except it were performed in faith of something to come; if it could, Cain’s offering must have been as good as Abel’s. And if Abel was taught of the coming of the Son of God, was he not taught also of His ordinances? We all admit that the Gospel has ordinances, and if so, had it not always ordinances, and were not its ordinances always the same? (TPJS, p. 59)