Much of what we understand about the family of Adam and Eve has come to us by way of latter-day revelation.

For example, from Moses 5 in the Pearl of Great Price, we know more than is contained in the Genesis account about why the Lord approved of Abel's sacrificial offering but not of Cain's. From verses 18 and 19, we learn that Satan put it into the heart of Cain to make an offering to the Lord and to do it contrary to the Lord's specific instructions (see Moses 5:5). We are told pointedly, regarding Cain's motivation, that he "loved Satan more than God."

Responding to Cain's anger at having his offering rejected, the Lord explained succinctly, "If thou doest well, thou shalt be accepted" (verse 23). He goes on to give a dire warning: "If thou doest not well, sin lieth at the door, and Satan desireth to have thee; and except thou shalt hearken unto my commandments, I will deliver thee up, and it shall be unto thee according to his desire."

True to the Lord's warning and Satan's desire, Cain persisted in his rebellion, later murdering his brother Abel and ultimately suffering utter spiritual death. He was called Perdition, which, according to a dictionary definition, means "complete and irreplaceable loss, ruin."

One of the lessons we might draw from this episode is that, in making offerings to the Lord, the content of the offering is not nearly so important as the motivation and attitude with which it is made. God is not so concerned about our material means as He is about our obedience and devotion.

This lesson is repeated later in the Old Testament. In chiding King Saul for his behavior, the prophet Samuel said, "Hath the Lord as great delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices as in obeying the voice of the Lord? Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice, and to hearken than the fat of rams" (1 Samuel 15:22).

Samuel quite correctly implies that such failure to observe the laws and commandments of God amounts to rebellion, when he remarks: "For rebellion is as the sin of witchcraft, and stubbornness is as iniquity and idolatry. Because thou hast rejected the word of the Lord, he hath also rejected thee from being king."

Unlike Cain, who persisted in his rebellion until he was utterly shut out from the presence and influence of God, Saul on this occasion repented and turned again to the Lord (see verses 24-31).

So what modern-day application can be drawn from these scriptural accounts? Are there occasions when men and women, in effect, second guess the Lord or substitute their own judgment and pursue their own course at the expense of what He has commanded?

Some might deem it a better use of their time to pursue other interests on the Sabbath instead of attending Church worship services and other meetings, perhaps engaging in ostensibly worthy endeavors. In this, they act contrary to the words of the Lord, who said: "If thou turn away thy foot from the sabbath, from doing thy pleasure on my holy day; and call the sabbath a delight, the holy of the Lord, honourable; and shalt honour him, not doing thine own ways, nor finding thine own pleasure, nor speaking thine own words,

"Then shalt thou delight thyself in the Lord" (Isaiah 58:13-14).

In a similar vein, some might decide, for whatever reason, that they can divert their funds reserved for the payment of tithing to a favorite cause or charity instead. Admirable though such a donation might be, it cannot be counted as obedience to the law of tithing, which the Lord through His servants has designated as being for the building and administration of His kingdom on the earth.

Latter-day Saints have always been counseled to help and serve the poor and needy. We are admonished, for example, to pay a generous fast offering. As recently as this month, the First Presidency has urged Church members to do what they can to help the suffering people in the earthquake-ravaged nation of Haiti.

Indeed, the Lord has said that His people "should be anxiously engaged in a good cause, and do many things of their own free will, and bring to pass much righteousness" (Doctrine and Covenants 58:27) and that we should not wait to be commanded in all things.

There are, however, specific commandments that must be obeyed with honor and exactness, and when one allows any motivation, however inherently good it might seem, to supplant obedience to those commandments, he is taking a wrong course.

Why would God require such strict obedience? One reason, perhaps is His omniscience. He who knows the end from the beginning can determine our needs better than we can ascertain them ourselves.

Another reason might be drawn from the experience of Cain. Deciding that one knows better than God how a thing should be done, or loving someone or something more than God puts one on a dangerous trajectory that, left unchecked, could put one in a state of apostasy or worse.

In all things, let us present to the Lord an acceptable offering, one that is purified by our own obedience to law and commandment.