Sermon Central
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Am I My Brothers Keeper? Series
Contributed by Charles Cockroft on Aug 11, 2007 (message contributor)
Summary: This is number 3 in a series about life changing Questions
Am I My Brothers Keeper?
3 And in process of time it came to pass, that Cain brought of the fruit of the ground an offering unto the LORD.
4 And Abel, he also brought of the firstlings of his flock and of the fat thereof. And the LORD had respect unto Abel and to his offering:
5 But unto Cain and to his offering he had not respect And Cain was very wroth and his countenance fell
6 And the LORD said unto Cain, Why art thou wroth and why is thy countenance fallen
7 If thou doest well shalt thou not be accepted? and if thou doest not well sin lieth at the door. And unto thee shall be his desire, and thou shalt rule over him.
8 And Cain talked with Abel his brother: and it came to pass, when they were in the field, that Cain rose up against Abel his brother, and slew him
9 And the LORD said unto Cain, Where is Abel thy brother? And he said I know not: Am I my brother’s keeper
10 And he said What hast thou done the voice of thy brother’s blood crieth unto me from the ground.
11 And now art thou cursed from the earth, which hath opened her mouth to receive thy brother’s blood from thy hand;
12 When thou tillest the ground, it shall not henceforth yield unto thee her strength; a fugitive and a vagabond shalt thou be in the earth.
13 And Cain said unto the LORD, My punishment is greater than I can bear
When Adam and Eve were driven from the Garden of Eden, God didn’t abandon them. He blessed them with many children; the first was Cain. Her second son was Abel. Cain was a farmer and Abel a herdsman.
Now there came a time when Cain and Abel brought offerings to the Lord,
Cain from the fruit of the ground and Abel the firstlings of his flock.
God accepted Abel’s offering but rejected Cain’s.
We are not told why God rejected Cain’s offering but He did.
Genesis 4:6-7, “And the LORD said unto Cain, Why art thou wroth? and why is thy countenance fallen? If thou doest well, shalt thou not be accepted? and if thou doest not well, sin lieth at the door. And unto thee shall be his desire, and thou shalt rule over him.
God was trying, just as he still does today, to get into the heart of Cain and reason with him concerning his mistake. God was giving Cain a time to confess and make it right but Cain would not.
God’s words to Cain carry a warning to each of us.
Don’t get mad if I reject your offering to me! Learn from it and do it right the next time and it will be all right. If you don’t learn from your mistakes, then sin hangs around the door to your heart, just waiting for you to open up and let him in.
He desires to rule over your heart and destroy your life. Don’t be angry with your brother. It’s not his fault that you were rejected.
Abel’s heart was right. He wanted to help Cain to please God.
If Cain had responded correctly to God’s words, he would have had an acceptable offering the next time. But Cain would not listen, just like so many people we know.
God knew what the problem was He asked Cain, “why are you angry and why has your countenance fallen?”
God will always give us an opportunity to explain why we are acting the way we are, even though He knows and there is a reason behind this.
Cain was wrong in what he was doing. He wasn’t admitting he was wrong instead he was following the example set by his father and mother, put the blame somewhere else.
Cain didn’t answer the question. God knew why Cain was angry and why his countenance was fallen.
Cain had a big attitude problem.
God asked Cain, “if you do well,” this is a promise of restored fellowship, “will not your countenance be lifted up?”
If you do what is right, will you not be accepted?
What God tells Cain and us, if what we do is the right thing to do we will find joy in it?
What Cain did was not fitting and proper. Then God told Cain, here comes a warning “if you do not do well sin is crouching at the door; and its desire is for you, but you must master it.”
God is trying to convince Cain either he must take control of his anger or his anger will take control.
Ever done something that was not the right thing to do and there seemed to be a voice inside you telling you it wasn’t the right thing to do.
