March 1, 2010
One of my prayers recently is that I desire God to help me understand His Word more, know how to apply it to my life, and remember it well so that I can share it with others when appropriate. After a conversation with a friend, I was inspired to partner with this prayer by taking some action. I have the choice to ask God for help and either expect Him to do all the work for me or put a plan together that will help with this and ask for God's blessing along the way. I like the second option better. :)
So, one of my current plans to help me with is to 1) Read & study the Bible diligently; 2) Blog about what I'm learning; and 3) Talk about it with my friends. Oh, and, 4) Put into practice what I'm learning (James 1:22 - "But be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves."). Hear goes for #2 - Blog about it...
Genesis 4: 1-15
Verse 1 - I love how Eve praises God for giving her a son--right away, she acknowledges God's hand in this blessing. Babies are gifts from the Lord! (Proverbs 127:3 says, Children are a gift from the Lord; they are a reward from him. James 1:17 says, Every good and perfect gift is from above, and comes down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow of turning.)
Verse 3 - Both Cain and Abel gave of their labor to God. Cain presented "some of his crops." Abel gave the "best" of the firstborn lambs.
Verse 4, 7 - God rebuked Cain's offering. Yikes! Don't know exactly what was wrong, but I'm guessin' he didn't bring the best of his crops. In any case, God wasn't happy and he let Cain know. Hebrews 12:6 says that God disciplines those who He loves, and Hebrews 12:10 continues by saying God's discipline is always good for us and that it will result in right living. God doesn't discipline us to be mean. It's because He loves us and desires good things for us! God wasn't rebuking Cain to make him mad--God was trying to teach him what was right. God tells Cain that if he does what is right he will be accepted, but if not, sin is knocking on his door, eager to control him.
Verse 5, 8 - And how does Cain react??? Not so graciously or obediently... he gets angry. And then he lets his anger control him to murder his own brother. Cain did not heed God's instruction--instead, he did what he wanted to do.
Verse 10-12 - God obviously saw what Cain did (God sees everything), He called Cain out on his sin, and then determines the consequences for his disobedience. Sin always has consequences! Sin can never stay hidden forever. Psalm 90:8 says, "You spread out our sins before you--our secret sins—and you see them all." Cain's punishment was to be banished from his home and from God's presence. Cain's work would not yield good crops. And he was to be a 'homeless wanderer.'
Verse 13 - Again, how does Cain react??? He argues with God. He pleads with Him for mercy, saying that his punishment was too difficult for him to bear and that he was afraid for his life. He was afraid that someone might kill him. Pretty bold move for someone on trial for murder!
Verse 15 - What's God's reaction to Cain's plea? I love this!!! God has MERCY on Cain. He graciously listens and then sets up a decree to protect Cain's life. WOW! Doesn't this sum up the greatness of God?
...All of us used to live that way, following the passionate desires and inclinations of our sinful nature. By our very nature we were subject to God’s anger, just like everyone else. But God is so rich in mercy, and he loved us so much, that even though we were dead because of our sins, he gave us life when he raised Christ from the dead. (It is only by God’s grace that you have been saved!) -Ephesians 2:3-5
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