This morning we will be continuing the series I’m calling “Questions”
• We are looking at several famous questions that were asked in the Bible and what we can learn from them.
• Last week we discussed one of the very first questions in the Bible, “Did God Really Say…?”
• Just like us, once Satan got Eve to question God’s word. He had her right where he wanted her
• This led to the fall of man and the situation we find ourselves in today
• Satan is still effectively asking that very same question with alarmingly the same results!
Because of this Adam and Eve were driven from the Garden of Eden
• Even in their sin God didn’t abandon them.
• In fact, God took an animal and offered the first blood sacrifice as a covering for their sins
• God even blessed them with many children; the first was a son they named Cain.
• Her second son was Abel.
• Scripture tells us Cain became a farmer and Abel a herdsman.
Genesis 4:2-5 (NIV)
Later she gave birth to his brother Abel. Now Abel kept flocks, and Cain worked the soil. In the course of time Cain brought some of the fruits of the soil as an offering to the LORD. But Abel brought fat portions from some of the firstborn of his flock. The LORD looked with favor on Abel and his offering, but on Cain and his offering he did not look with favor. So Cain was very angry, and his face was downcast.
Cain and Abel brought offerings to the Lord
• Cain from the fruit of the ground and Abel the firstborn of his flock.
• God accepted Abel’s offering but rejected Cain’s.
• We are not told exactly why God rejected Cain’s offering but He did
• There is much speculation as to what the issue was but I believe the real clues are found in scripture
Hebrews 11:4 (NIV)
By faith Abel offered God a better sacrifice than Cain did. By faith he was commended as a righteous man, when God spoke well of his offerings. And by faith he still speaks, even though he is dead.
To God, true faith carries with it much favor (currency of Heaven)
2 Corinthians 5:7 (NIV)
We live by faith, not by sight.
So to God the opposite of by faith is by sight. (This is our struggle)
• Cain worshipped according to “sight” — according to what his own senses and wisdom dictated would be an honorable sacrifice to the Lord.
• No doubt, his produce was wonderful to the eye. (Israel)
• No doubt, he labored over those crops until the harvest.
• No doubt he anticipated that all the hard work, time, and care he had spent on those offerings would be acceptable.
• His expectation of acceptance is clearly demonstrated by his reaction to the Lord’s rejection of his sacrifice.
• His offering was rejected because it was offered according to his own presumption and not by faith.
• Faith is not simply a feeling of confident expectation. Cain had that.
True faith is the result of hearing God’s word, submitting our mind and body to His authority, and acting according to what the Lord has instructed.
Saul offered many sacrifices…
Samuel told King Saul, “Obedience is better than sacrifice”.
Abel offered his sacrifice by faith (Heb. 11:4).
• Abel offered his sacrifice by hearing and obeying the word of God.
o Disobedience brings death
o (Fig leaves) Produce from the ground will not cover sin
o Blood sacrifice was what was required
• Abel offered in true faith and obedience
Cain did not offer his sacrifice by faith filled obedience. Therefore, he did not worship according to the word of God. And God rejected his offering.
Cain brought the fruit of the cursed ground, the work of his hands.
• Here we have a contrast between the God-revealed doctrine of blood sacrifice versus humanity trying to please God with their own self-efforts.
• Cain's offering is reminiscent of Adam and Eve covering themselves with fig leaves after their sin in the Garden.
• It is our attempts to work our way into a relationship with God instead of leaning on God's grace that gets rejected.
We may not know all of the details, but we do know that God had demonstrated first-hand the correct sacrifice for sin when He provided the covering for Adam and Eve
Cain didn’t take his offering being rejected very well
Genesis 4:6-7 (NIV)
Then the LORD said to Cain, "Why are you angry? Why is your face downcast? If you do what is right, will you not be accepted? But if you do not do what is right, sin is crouching at your door; it desires to have you, but you must master it."
1) Why are you angry?
As I said last week, when God asks a question, the answer is for our benefit, not His. He doesn’t need the information, we do!
(Another version of, “Where are you”)
God was trying, just as he still does for us today.
He was trying to get into the heart of Cain and reason with him concerning the attitude of his heart and the foothold to sin he was allowing to grow.
• If Cain could clearly see where he was spiritually and truly why he was upset, there was still a chance
• God was giving him time to confess and make it right before it was too late but Cain refused
God’s words to Cain carry a warning to each of us.
• Don’t get mad at the blessings of someone else who does right.
• Learn from it and do it right the next time and all will be good!
• How many times have we wanted to get angry and blame others for our spiritual issues.
• I have seen people bounce from church to church getting angry everywhere they go, never getting that they are the problem!
• Don’t be angry with other Christians. It’s not their fault that you were rejected.
God always gives us an opportunity to explain why we are acting the way we are, even though He knows the real reason behind it already. He wants us to admit the truth to ourselves
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. (Why are you angry?)(Why is your face downcast?)
• Cain had a big attitude problem that was on the verge of destroying his life!
God clearly lays Cain’s options out for him
• “If you do right, will you too not be accepted?”
• But if you don’t, sin will devour you!
God is trying to convince Cain either he must take control of his anger or his anger will take control.
Let’s face it, we all have been there
• We want to do something and that still small voice says, “don’t do it” but we ignore it and do what we want
• Later, when it blows up in our face, we want to blame God or others in place of putting the blame on ourselves
• Just like Cain God gives us a chance to come to our senses, repent and change our attitude and all if forgiven
• The Holy Spirit will always ask us questions and show us the way out before it is too late, yet far too often we simply ignore and blow right past it in our rush to sin!
• The afterwards, we are good at being so full of pride that it can’t be our fault, so we focus our anger at the situation on an innocent bystander
Anger is a strong emotion.
• Emotions are not easy to control and can make it hard to see clearly.
• It takes the power of the Holy Spirit to overcome and help us see the truth
• If we listen in those moments, that still small voice is asking us the same questions
• “Where are you?” “Why are you really downcast?” “If you do right will you not be accepted?”
Cain’s anger burned to the point, he couldn’t see the truth. The one who was innocent received the wrath of the one in the wrong.
Genesis 4:8-9 (NIV)
Now Cain said to his brother Abel, "Let's go out to the field." And while they were in the field, Cain attacked his brother Abel and killed him. Then the LORD said to Cain, "Where is your brother Abel?" "I don't know," he replied. "Am I my brother's keeper?"
2) Am I My Brother’s Keeper?
It was a terrible crime, the first murder.
Shortly afterward God approached Cain with another question that the all-knowing one already knew the answer to.
• Once again, the question was for Cain to be brought back to the truth of his situation!
• He said, "Cain, where is your brother, Abel?"
• Cain’s response is a lie and he knew it "I don’t know! Am I my brother’s keeper?"
• Lying to God is stupid, yet us humans do it all the time!
The first lie was to God “I don’t know”
The second lie was to himself “Am I my brother’s keeper?”
This is the same excuse many of us use about those around us that are lost and headed to eternal death, "Hey, it’s not my responsibility! Am I my brother’s keeper?"
I heard a story about a guy who applied for a job as an usher at a theater in the mall.
• As a part of the interview process, the manager asked him, "What would you do in case a fire breaks out?"
• The young guy answered, "Don’t worry about me. I can get out fine."
• He didn’t get the job!
That’s exactly how way too many Christians respond to a lost and dying world around them.
• If you asked them "What would you do if Jesus came back tomorrow?"
• they would respond, "Oh, don’t worry about me. I’d be fine."
But what is all to easy to forget is that you’re an usher!
• It isn’t enough just to get out yourself.
• You are responsible for helping others know the way first.
We mentally point our finger of justice at Cain while secretly answering the same questions, the same way!
• “Where is your ________?” “I don’t know!” (Lying to ourselves)
• “Am I my _________ keeper?”
• Pastor, I don’t do that!
o (Will you be a witness?) I’m too shy to witness myself
o (Will you give to support those that have answered the call?) I can’t spare anything extra financially to possibly help someone else find the way
o (Will you find your roll to help us minister?) I don’t have any extra time to help work a ministry to help make sure people find Christ
I am so glad that there are some people are thrilled with the prospect of being their brother’s keeper and they do so with a right heart of love and compassion.
Then there is the other extreme
• Just the thought of getting to meddle in the affairs of others makes their pulse race with excitement.
• They can’t wait to identify a problem in the life of somebody so they can tell them how to take care of it.
• They like playing judge of everyone else while excusing their own flaws
(Make sure that the plank in your own eye is out of the way before you go trying to pick the speck of sawdust out of your neighbor’s eye.")
But far too many use those examples as their excuse
• "The way other people live their life is up to them."
• Those who follow this philosophy think it’s highly offensive to go sticking your nose into other people’s business.
• The whole idea is to have relationship to the point that you are expected to stick your nose into their business!
The key is relationship!
I have several relationships, where they have the right to ask me the tough questions and I to them
• Judgmentalism says “I’m better than you”
• Relationship says I have invested enough into your life, you know I love you and here is my concern!
Yes, You are your brother’s, sister’s, friend’s keeper…
Genesis 4:10 (NIV)
The LORD said, "What have you done? Listen! Your brother's blood cries out to me from the ground.
3) “What Have You Done?”
God asks, “What have you done?” Once more God gives Cain the opportunity to confess what he has done and Cain remains silent, a sign of rejecting the offer.
• Even in his condition as a murderer, God was giving Cain one last chance to turn around.
• The love of God for man knows no bounds but God knows when the heart of a man has gone too far and grown too hard to ever turn back to him in repentance.
• Cain had reached that point!
GOD’S JUDGMENT IS HANDED DOWN,
Genesis 4:11-12 (NIV)
Now you are under a curse and driven from the ground, which opened its mouth to receive your brother's blood from your hand. When you work the ground, it will no longer yield its crops for you. You will be a restless wanderer on the earth."
What a tragedy this was.
• This not only was the first murder
• This was the very first time that any man, made in the image of God, had died.
Because of a blood sacrifice that God provided for us all…
• One day that power of death shall be broken.
• One day there will be no more dying, no more graves, no more leaving our loved ones in a cemetery to never see them again. No!
• One day soon Jesus, who has already taken the keys of death and hell from the devil, will shake them in his face in victory.
• That’s when eternal life will reign forever under the power of the Resurrection!
Cain- “My punishment is greater than I can bear”
Was this part of God’s plan for Cain’s life?
• Cain was given the opportunity to be more than a vagrant and a wanderer.
• He chose his own way even though he was warned
• He had no one to blame but himself.
When it is all said and done, if you ignore God’s warnings along the way, you will regret it and the outcome of your life will be on you.
• Don’t blame God
• Don’t blame others
• You were warned!
Close:
I believe God is asking us the very same question today
“What did you do?”
Not just concerning our sin, but with judgment day coming when that question will look a little different
"What did you do with my Son Jesus and what did you do with the talents I gave to you?"
Don’t answer with “I don’t know” and “Am I my brother’s keeper?”
Wrong Answer!
Will you witness?
Will you give?
Will you serve?
