How It All Began: “The First Sibling Rivalry”

Why Genesis?

Genesis means “beginning”. And that’s what the book of Genesis is. It is the God given real life history of the beginning of all things.

In this series, we are going to be looking at the first 11 chapters of Genesis. In these chapters we will see why the world is the way that it is, why we are they way we are, and what Go’s purpose is in it all.

We will also clearly see God’s character, get to know Him better, better learn who we are, and why all that matters.

Genesis helps us make sense of the world while also helping us know what our place is in it.

There is much you will be reminded of, and that’s good. There will be some things you will learn for the first time, and that’s great. My primary hope and prayer is that through this study all of us will grow in our understanding of God and His purpose for us so that we will better love, serve and worship Him in His creation.

Last time we looked at chapter 3 and the fall of man. Today we are looking at the first ever family feud, why it happened and how it led to the first murder on the planet.

The title of the message is “The First Sibling Rivalry”.

Let’s read the text.

Genesis 4:1–26 (NASB)

1 Now the man had relations with his wife Eve, and she conceived and gave birth to Cain, and she said, “I have gotten a manchild with the help of the Lord.” 2 Again, she gave birth to his brother Abel. And Abel was a keeper of flocks, but Cain was a tiller of the ground. 3 So it came about in the course of time that Cain brought an offering to the Lord of the fruit of the ground. 4 Abel, on his part also brought of the firstlings of his flock and of their fat portions. And the Lord had regard for Abel and for his offering; 5 but for Cain and for his offering He had no regard. So Cain became very angry and his countenance fell. 6 Then the Lord said to Cain, “Why are you angry? And why has your countenance fallen? 7 “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.” 8 Cain told Abel his brother. And it came about when they were in the field, that Cain rose up against Abel his brother and killed him. 9 Then the Lord said to Cain, “Where is Abel your brother?” And he said, “I do not know. Am I my brother’s keeper?” 10 He said, “What have you done? The voice of your brother’s blood is crying to Me from the ground. 11 “Now you are cursed from the ground, which has opened its mouth to receive your brother’s blood from your hand. 12 “When you cultivate the ground, it will no longer yield its strength to you; you will be a vagrant and a wanderer on the earth.” 13 Cain said to the Lord, “My punishment is too great to bear! 14 “Behold, You have driven me this day from the face of the ground; and from Your face I will be hidden, and I will be a vagrant and a wanderer on the earth, and whoever finds me will kill me.” 15 So the Lord said to him, “Therefore whoever kills Cain, vengeance will be taken on him sevenfold.” And the Lord appointed a sign for Cain, so that no one finding him would slay him. 16 Then Cain went out from the presence of the Lord, and settled in the land of Nod, east of Eden. 17 Cain had relations with his wife and she conceived, and gave birth to Enoch; and he built a city, and called the name of the city Enoch, after the name of his son. 18 Now to Enoch was born Irad, and Irad became the father of Mehujael, and Mehujael became the father of Methushael, and Methushael became the father of Lamech. 19 Lamech took to himself two wives: the name of the one was Adah, and the name of the other, Zillah. 20 Adah gave birth to Jabal; he was the father of those who dwell in tents and have livestock. 21 His brother’s name was Jubal; he was the father of all those who play the lyre and pipe. 22 As for Zillah, she also gave birth to Tubal-cain, the forger of all implements of bronze and iron; and the sister of Tubal-cain was Naamah. 23 Lamech said to his wives, “Adah and Zillah, Listen to my voice, You wives of Lamech, Give heed to my speech, For I have killed a man for wounding me; And a boy for striking me; 24 If Cain is avenged sevenfold, Then Lamech seventy-sevenfold.” 25 Adam had relations with his wife again; and she gave birth to a son, and named him Seth, for, she said, “God has appointed me another offspring in place of Abel, for Cain killed him.” 26 To Seth, to him also a son was born; and he called his name Enosh. Then men began to call upon the name of the Lord.

We have a bunch of firsts here:

The first children.

1 Now the man had relations with his wife Eve, and she conceived and gave birth to Cain, and she said, “I have gotten a manchild with the help of the Lord.” 2 Again, she gave birth to his brother Abel…

The first shepherd.

2 …Abel was a keeper of flocks, but Cain was a tiller of the ground.

The first offerings/worship.

3 So it came about in the course of time that Cain brought an offering to the Lord of the fruit of the ground. 4 Abel, on his part also brought of the firstlings of his flock and of their fat portions.

The first city.

17 Cain had relations with his wife and she conceived, and gave birth to Enoch; and he built a city, and called the name of the city Enoch, after the name of his son.

The first polygamous marriage.

19 Lamech took to himself two wives:

The first instruments/music.

21 …Jubal; he was the father of all those who play the lyre and pipe.

The first blacksmith.

22 …Tubal-cain, the forger of all implements of bronze and iron;

The first time man began to pray.

26 To Seth, to him also a son was born; and he called his name Enosh. Then men began to call upon the name of the Lord.

The first time we see anger and hatred.

5 …Cain became very angry and his countenance fell.

The first murder.

8 Cain told Abel his brother. And it came about when they were in the field, that Cain rose up against Abel his brother and killed him.

Setting the Stage: The Context of Chapter 4

Sin has already entered the world. Adam and Eve lost their innocence when they ate from the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil. Everyone born on the planet would from then on be born with a sin nature. As a result, people are not inherently good. The sin nature of the children of men didn’t take long to rear its ugly head.

Cain, was the first child to be born on the planet. He was also the first human to be born with a sin nature. His brother, Abel, was the second child to be born on the planet making Cain and Abel the first ever siblings on the planet.

The first child to ever be born on the planet murdered the first ever sibling in existence. Now that is a major sibling rivalry. Ever since the first siblings, we’ve had trouble loving our brethren.

Cain should have loved his brother. Instead, he hated and killed him. Why did this happen? What went wrong? What causes people to hate other people? Why is it no different in families? Why is it seldom different in the church? It certainly isn’t what God called us to.

John 13:34–35 (NASB)

34 “A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another, even as I have loved you, that you also love one another. 35 “By this all men will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another.”

You might say, well, I might not love them but I don’t hate them. But we are commanded to love. Nothing loving a brother or sister in Christ is equally as sinful as hating them. Both or other than what God has called us to. Plus, love and hate are contrasts in the Scripture.

Romans 9:13 (NASB)

13 Just as it is written, “Jacob I loved, but Esau I hated.”

Luke 14:26 (NASB)

26 “If anyone comes to Me, and does not hate his own father and mother and wife and children and brothers and sisters, yes, and even his own life, he cannot be My disciple.

Matthew 6:24 (NASB)

24 “No one can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to one and despise the other…

Titus 3:3 (ESV)

3 For we ourselves were once foolish, disobedient, led astray, slaves to various passions and pleasures, passing our days in malice and envy, hated by others and hating one another…

1 John 2:9–11 (ESV)

9 Whoever says he is in the light and hates his brother is still in darkness. 10 Whoever loves his brother abides in the light, and in him there is no cause for stumbling. 11 But whoever hates his brother is in the darkness and walks in the darkness, and does not know where he is going, because the darkness has blinded his eyes.

1 John 4:20 (NASB)

20 If someone says, “I love God,” and hates his brother, he is a liar; for the one who does not love his brother whom he has seen, cannot love God whom he has not seen.

Why do we fail to love our brethren?

Aside from the obvious reason…we have a sin nature. If we claim Christ. If we are born again children of God, why do we, at times, fail to love one another like we should?

We care more about something else.

(v. 8-9) 8 …And it came about when they were in the field, that Cain rose up against Abel his brother and killed him. 9 Then the Lord said to Cain, “Where is Abel your brother?” And he said, “I do not know. Am I my brother’s keeper?”

Cain loved himself far more than he loved his brother Abel.

Matthew 22:39 (NASB)

39 “The second is like it, ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’

Philippians 2:3 (NASB)

3 Do nothing from selfishness or empty conceit, but with humility of mind regard one another as more important than yourselves…

Romans 12:10 (NASB)

10 Be devoted to one another in brotherly love; give preference to one another in honor;

1 John 2:15–16 (NASB)

15 Do not love the world nor the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. 16 For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh and the lust of the eyes and the boastful pride of life, is not from the Father, but is from the world.

Cain loved himself more than he loved God too!

4 Abel, on his part also brought of the firstlings of his flock and of their fat portions. And the Lord had regard for Abel and for his offering;

Luke 9:23 (NASB)

23 And He was saying to them all, “If anyone wishes to come after Me, he must deny himself, and take up his cross daily and follow Me.

We covet what they have.

(v. 4-5) 4 …the Lord had regard for Abel and for his offering; 5 but for Cain and for his offering He had no regard. So Cain became very angry and his countenance fell.

Hebrews 11:4 (NASB)

4 By faith Abel offered to God a better sacrifice than Cain, through which he obtained the testimony that he was righteous, God testifying about his gifts, and through faith, though he is dead, he still speaks.

Exodus 20:17 (NASB)

17 “You shall not covet your neighbor’s house; you shall not covet your neighbor’s wife or his male servant or his female servant or his ox or his donkey or anything that belongs to your neighbor.”

Romans 13:9 (NASB)

9 For this, “You shall not commit adultery, You shall not murder, You shall not steal, You shall not covet,” and if there is any other commandment, it is summed up in this saying, “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.”

Galatians 5:26 (NASB)

26 Let us not become boastful, challenging one another, envying one another.

James 3:16 (NASB)

16 For where jealousy and selfish ambition exist, there is disorder and every evil thing.

2 Corinthians 10:12 (NIV)

12 We do not dare to classify or compare ourselves with some who commend themselves. When they measure themselves by themselves and compare themselves with themselves, they are not wise.

Comparison kills contentment! And in this case, it killed Abel.

We choose our own interpretation over God’s instruction.

(v. 6-7) 6 Then the Lord said to Cain, “Why are you angry? And why has your countenance fallen? 7 “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.”

Jeremiah 17:9 (NASB)

9 “The heart is more deceitful than all else and is desperately sick; Who can understand it?

8 Cain told Abel his brother. And it came about when they were in the field, that Cain rose up against Abel his brother and killed him.

Leviticus 19:18 (ESV)

18 You shall not take vengeance or bear a grudge against the sons of your own people, but you shall love your neighbor as yourself: I am the Lord.

Hebrews 12:15 (NASB)

15 See to it that no one comes short of the grace of God; that no root of bitterness springing up causes trouble, and by it many be defiled…

James 1:20–21 (NASB)

20 for the anger of man does not achieve the righteousness of God. 21 Therefore, putting aside all filthiness and all that remains of wickedness, in humility receive the word implanted, which is able to save your souls.

(v. 6-7) 6 Then the Lord said to Cain, “Why are you angry? And why has your countenance fallen? 7 “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.”

In closing…

Consider the names of Cain and Abel.

Cain’s name means “acquired possession”. But not just something you own or possess, it is the kind one receives as a gift.

Cain’s name, the first child to ever be born, has a name that reminds us that life is a gift from God.

Abel means “breath”. It is not the same word used in Genesis 2 for breath that is synonymous with spirit. This word for breath is like a “short breath”. More like a gasp for air.

Abel’s name reminds us that life is short.

So life is a gift from God, but it is short. You never know when you or one of your brethren might take their last breath.

James 4:14 (NASB)

14 Yet you do not know what your life will be like tomorrow. You are just a vapor that appears for a little while and then vanishes away.

Don’t waste time loving things that don’t matter!

And don’t love yourself over God and your brethren either.

Matthew 22:37 (NASB)

37 And He said to him, “ ‘You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind.’

Matthew 22:39 (NASB)

39 “The second is like it, ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’

If your heart is loving the wrong things, ask th Lord to change your heart today! He will!

Let’s pray!

Memory Verse of the Month:

1 John 4:20 (NASB)

20 If someone says, “I love God,” and hates his brother, he is a liar; for the one who does not love his brother whom he has seen, cannot love God whom he has not seen.