"'If you do well, will not your countenance be lifted up? And if you do not do well, sin is crouching at the door; and its desire is for you, but you must master it.'"
-Genesis 4:7
This is a very sad story, as it shows a very serious and deadly (literally) sin. After Adam and Eve sin against God by eating the fruit from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, we see how sin can spread. Cain and Abel offer up a gift to God, but Abel's gift is superior to Cain's gift. This stirs up jealousy in Cain, and he murders his own brother in cold blood, even after God warns him not to. This again is very unfortunate, because we see how sin spread from Adam and Eve to their son Cain. Sin indeed is a very powerful enemy, and is very difficult to prevent, especially if you allow it to enter your life even once.
In this passage I noticed people's capacity to do great evil. Although people are made in the image of God, because of sin people have done very bad things. Adam was made from the image of God, but he sinned, therefore passing the sinful nature to his son, Cain. Adam's sin was bad, but Cain's sin was very extreme and evil. He murdered his own brother out of jealousy and anger, and then lies to God about it. His murder was premeditated, as we see that he calls Abel out into the field in order to kill him there.
The good news is that people are also capable of doing great good. In chapter five Enoch walks with God his entire life, and God rewards him by taking him into heaven. Another example is Job, who despite being afflicted with many misfortunes is able to live a faithful life. Paul is a great example of both evil and good; before knowing Christ he persecuted the church, but after he preaches the gospel and suffers for Christ.
One thing that determines if someone does good or evil is how much they value God. In Genesis 4, it is clear that Cain has no regard or respect for God. Cain probably only thinks about himself, and doesn't care about God. This is seen when he does not offer God his best, and when he does not listen to God's attempts to help him. Cain is more concerned with his life and his emotions than what God has to say. In other words, Cain does not give God his due worth.
Something to keep in mind is that God believes that we are worth it all. He sent Jesus to die for our sins, because He cares about us and He values us. No one dies for someone else unless they believe they are worth something. In this passage, God wants Cain to repent and do good things, but Cain does not accept God's offer. Cain rejects God and does not think listening to God is worth his effort. God does not need us to give Him anything, but He wants us to love Him with all our heart. When Abel offers God his best, God is not only pleased in the offering but in Abel. For reasons I don't know, God loves us and wants us to be saved. He doesn't need anything from us, but He wants us to follow Him because that's how we can get eternal life with Him. He believes that we are worth saving. How much is God worth to you?
-Smart
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