SCRIPTURE: Genesis 4
OBSERVATION/APPLICATION:
(Read my Genesis 4 reflection from 2008)
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 rule over it.” [Genesis 4:6-7]
We do not know how Cain’s offering differed from Abel’s, but we can assume that it had to do with the heart behind it, and not the form it took (crops vs. animal).
This passage reveals something of Cain’s heart, and also the destructive effects of sin.
Going against God does not just mess us up, it affects others too; Adam and Eve are about to experience the horror of a sin-filled world.
But the Lord gives us hope – He urges us to fight it.
Don’t settle for this – humble your hearts before the Lord, and take a stand against sin.
If your right eye causes you to stumble, gouge it out and throw it away. It is better for you to lose one part of your body than for your whole body to be thrown into hell. And if your right hand causes you to stumble, cut it off and throw it away. It is better for you to lose one part of your body than for your whole body to go into hell. [Matthew 5:29-30]
We daily face the temptation to do what is wrong; sin (and Satan) crouches at the door of our heart, looking for a way to bring us down.
But we can fight it, and with God’s help we can beat it.
We must take a firm and decisive stand against the lusts of the flesh, with a seriousness and intensity that may seem extreme, but it is not.
If we know what is at stake, and consider the misery that is unleashed by sin, then cutting off our hands and gouging out our eyes will be worth it.
Yes, this is hyperbole (an extreme statement to make a point), but it is that serious!
Cain becomes a restless wanderer because of his sin, but we are all restless wanderers.
We all experience alienation from ourselves, from God and from others; we are all desperately seeking hope and love and peace and security.
But we also continue to be tempted, and the consequences of sinful choices remain.
If we become like Lamech, and delight in our sin, we will reap the results.
But we can also become like Seth (who replaces Abel), and like the people who started calling on the Name of the Lord.
The meaning here seems to be that in their lost, desperate condition, people started realizing their need for God and began praying for mercy and help.
Today again we have a choice – the resist sin by clinging to God, or to cling to sin and resist God.
We know what sin wants, and we know what God wants – what do you want?
Are you willing to fight for it?
PRAYER:
Lord, forgive me for not taking sin seriously enough. Not ready to cut off my hands yet, but there are some things I need to cut out of my life. Will I?