Cain & Abel & Seth (Genesis 4)

Masters

I got 2 tickets for the 2024 Masters for Christmas, both top hospitality admissions. The person that got them for me didn’t realize it was going to be on the same day as my wedding. If you are interested, I’m looking for someone to take my place…It’s at St. Michaels Church in Orlando, at 3pm. The bride’s name is Nicole, she’s 5’4”, about 115 lbs, good cook too. She’ll be the one in the white dress.

black screen

punchline of joke or point of story is the ending

parable of Prodigal Son

focus on younger brother but parable ends with older brother

how many times do we miss the point in Scripture by not considering the ending?

why stop with Cain & Abel when Bible ends with Seth?

Cain & Abel & Seth

pew Bible # 4

4:1-5

birth (4:1)

not boy

not child

but man

will he be the fulfillment of 3:15?

all eyes are on Cain

setting (4:2)

another son, Abel

Abel is shepherd

Cain is farmer

pre-tension (4:3-4a)

both offered offerings

Cain—an offering of the fruit of the ground (4:3)

Abel—firstborn of his flock and of their fat portions (4:4a)

tension (4:4b-5)

God accepted Abel and his offering; but not Cain and his offering

why?

blood (Abel) vs. fruit (Cain)???

NO both permitted later

firstborn vs. fruit

Abel—firstborn of his flock and of their fat portions (4:4)

Cain—the fruit of the ground (4:3)

“firstfruits” is notably absent

Jewish person pick up on this quickly

but even then sacrifices are not the end goal—the glory of God is

which is why the condition of the heart is so important

no different today

sacrifice of praise

gathering with God’s people

doesn’t automatically mean you worship (music too different to worship)

we don’t want to get in the trap of worshiping our preferences

we want to worship the Lord

just because you are here

doesn’t automatically mean your heart is in the right place

sacrifices never worked automatically

1 Samuel 15:22 Samuel to Saul—Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice, and to listen than the fat of rams.

heart more important than sacrifice

God looks at the heart before he looks at the gift

And the Lord had regard for Abel and his offering (4:4)

but for Cain and his offering he had no regard (4:5)

faith (help from NT)

Hebrews 11:4

black screen

even OT saints were saved by faith

Cain’s response of jealousy can be a terrible cancer

and the Lord warned him

4:6-7 height of tension

God warned Cain

much like James 1:14-15

black screen

what will Cain do? will Cain listen to the Lord?

4:8 fulfillment of dilemma

in the field

a crime committed in the field was considered premeditated

far away in the field muffles victim’s screams for help

leaves no witnesses

this is no accident

Cain murdered Abel intentionally

7x = Abel is described as Cain’s brother

not an enemy…not a stranger

Cain kills his very own brother!

Adam and Eve’s sin leads to fratricide (murder of a brother) in only the second generation

what is next?

no witnesses…except One

4:9-16

God confronts Cain

Cain doesn’t really answer

then God drops the hammer…of mercy

God doesn’t act like we think He should

God doesn’t take Cain’s life

God curses Cain

Cain cannot handle curse

so God graciously marked Cain and promised 7-fold vengeance

Cain is much more hardened sinner than his father, Adam

Adam ate of fruit given to him by his wife

Cain murdered his brother

Adam accepted the judgment of God for his sin

Cain rejects the judgment and grumbles about the sentence

humanity is spiraling out of control

conclusion: moral models to follow or avoid

don’t be like Cain

don’t be jealous

jealousy is a haunting sin

follow God’s promptings/warnings

today, while there is time

be like Abel

true worship comes from a pure heart

give your very best to the Lord

later, only unblemished animals are to be sacrificed to God

BUT THAT IS NOT THE HEALTHIEST WAY TO READ THE OT

much to learn

but not main point

Cain is not over…so is that the real meaning we are to take home?

by God’s grace, Cain has descendants that are very successful in life (4:17-22)

even people that don’t follow the Lord can have “successful” lives

and be productive in this life

then comes Lamech (4:23-24)

7th generation—Lamech is special

7 = perfect…or complete

something is complete with Lamech

but surely not his morals

sin has come to full fruition (completeness)

Lamech

boasting in self

boasting in power to defend self

killed a man for striking me

and wants a greater curse on avenger

doesn’t need God or His laws

disregarded 2:24

decide what is good and what is evil

can be god himself

same sin as Adam and Eve

yet far more defiant

in 7 generations

humanity has disintegrated

from world where God was worshiped

to a world where humans think they can live without God

BUT chapter 4 doesn’t end with Cain or Lamech but Seth

4:25-26

Eve now knows that Can was not promised seed of the woman

Abel was…

and Cain killed him

if God doesn’t step in

Satan wins

BUT God gave her another son in place of Abel…Seth

clear that the line of the seed of the woman

began to call upon the name of the Lord (4:26)

now we understand more

despite Cain’s murder and Lamech’s boasting

God preserves His promise through Seth…who worshiped the Lord

a war is being waged between the children of God and the children of the devil

1 John 3:9-10

1 John 3:11-13

John 15:18-19

prior slide—a war is being waged between the children of God and the children of the devil

martyrs

Abel first of many martyrs

Egyptians drowned Israelite boys in the Nile

Jezebel killed so many prophets that Elijah thought he was the only one left

BUT GOD kept seed of the woman alive until the Messiah could be born

finally Satan managed to kill THE Seed of the woman, Jesus the Christ

but the persecution didn’t stop there

Jesus even warned

You will be hated by all because of my name (Matt 10:22)

early church

mob stoned the deacon Stephen

Herod Agrippa killed James

Romans killed Peter and Paul

the early church suffered great persecution

which resulted in many Christian martyrs

but the early church rightly understood

the blood of the martyrs was the seed of the church

don’t be deceived into thinking you are not in this war

the American church has primarily lived in peace for most of your life

even though Christians are martyred every day around the world

2021 statistics

360M Christians suffered significant persecution

50,000-60,000 Christians in prison and labor camps in North Korea

16 believers killed every day for following Jesus

close to 6,000 martyrs

while America not in martyrdom statistic

threat is louder and more aggressive opposition against Christianity than ever in America

push towards secularization is fierce

attack on marriage between man and woman

attack on babies in the womb

attack on gender as God made you

attack on Jesus as being only way to the Father

BUT remember Who is greater

1 John 4:2-4

it would be comforting to know you are children of God through Jesus

but is that what Jesus wanted His followers to do?

sit in comfort?

we are to engage in this war with the gospel of Jesus Christ in the power of the Holy Spirit

2 Corinthians 4:4 “In their case the god of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelievers, to keep them from seeing the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God.”

2 Corinthians 3:16 But when one turns to the Lord, the veil is removed.

warning for today from 1836

in 1836 in Scotland

Alexander Duff came home on furlough from India as a missionary

to find the church had lost her focus on the mission to make disciples

preached 2 hours in General Assembly

went around preaching in churches

“When a Church ceases to be evangelistic, it must cease to be evangelical; and when it ceases to be evangelical, it must cease to exist as a true Church of God, however primitive or apostolic it may be in its outward form and constitution!”

former slide—we are to engage in this war with the gospel of Jesus Christ in the power of the Holy Spirit

2 Corinthians 5:16-21 pew Bible # 1,148

Evangelism Training (Tuesday @ 6)

training ground

workers of the harvest

Kindness Outreach—$1 Car Wash (Sat from 10-12)

prayer warriors

gospel witnesses

oh and…car washers

present Randy and Jana Ivy

picnic instructions

prayer—Thad Floyd