Genesis 4
Birth and occupation of Cain and Abelverses 1-5
And Adam knew Eve his wife – and she conceived and bare Cain
and said – I have gotten a man from the LORD
And she again bore his brother Abel
and Abel was a keeper of sheep
BUT Cain was a tiller of the ground
And in the process of time it came to pass
that Cain brought of the fruit of the ground an offering
to the LORD
And Abel – he also brought of the firstlings of his flock
and of the fat thereof
And the LORD had respect to Abel and to his offering
but to Cain and his offering HE had not respect
And Cain was very angry and his countenance fell
God dealing with Cain regarding his sacrificeverses 6-7
And the LORD said to Cain – Why are you angry?
and Why is your countenance fallen?
If you do well shall you not be accepted?
and if you do not well SIN lies at the door
And to you shall be his desire – and you shall rule over him
Cain killed Abelverses 8-14
And Cain talked with Abel his brother – and it came to pass
when they were in the field – that Cain rose up against
Abel his brother and SLEW him
And the LORD said unto Cain
Where is Abel your brother?
And he said
I know not – Am I my brother’s keeper?
And HE said – What have you done?
the voice of your brother’s BLOOD cries
to ME from the ground
and now are you cursed from the earth
which has opened her mouth to receive your
brother’s BLOOD from your hand
when you till the ground
it shall not henceforth yield to you its strength
a fugitive and a vagabond shalt you
be in the earth
And Cain said unto the LORD
My punishment is greater than I can bear – BEHOLD
YOU have driven me out this day
from the face of the earth
from YOUR face shall I be hidden
And I shall be a fugitive and a vagabond in the earth
And it shall come to pass that anyone that finds me shall
slay me
LORD puts mark of protection on Cainverse 15
And the LORD said to him
Therefore whosoever slays Cain
vengeance shall be taken on him sevenfold
AND the LORD set a MARK on Cain
lest any finding him should kill him
Cain’s descendantsverses 16-18
And Cain went out from the PRESENCE of the LORD
and dwelt in the land of Nod – on the east of Eden
And Cain knew his wife and she conceived and bore Enoch
and he built a city – and called the name of the city
after the name of his son Enoch
And to Enoch was born Irad – and Irad begot Mehjael
and Mehjael begot Methushael
and Methushael begot Lamech
Polygamy started by descendant of Cainverses 19-24
And Lamech took unto him TWO WIVES
the name of the one was Adah
and the name of the other Zillah
and Adah bore Jabel
he was the father of such as dwell in tents
and of such as have cattle
and his brother’s name was Jubal
he was the father of all such as handle
the harp and pipe
and Zillah – she also bore Tubalcain
an instructor of every craftsman in bronze and iron
and the sister of Tubalcain was Naamah
And Lamech said to his wives – Adah and Zillah
Hear my voice – you wives of Lamech – hearken to my speech
for I have slain a man to my wounding
and a young man to my hurting
IF Cain shall be avenged sevenfold
truly Lamech seventy and sevenfold
Seth third son of Adam and Eveverses 25-26
And Adam knew his wife again – and she bore a son
and called his name Seth – FOR God – said she
has appointed me another seed instead of Abel
whom Cain slew
And to Seth – to him also there was born a son
and he called his name Enos – THEN began men to
CALL upon the name of the LORD
COMMENTARY:
DAILY SPIRITUAL BREAKFAST: Young Believers
: 7 If you do well, shall you not be accepted? and if you do not well, sin lies at the door. And to you shall be his desire, and you shall rule over him. (7613 “accepted” [sa’eth] means raised up, elevation, lifted up, pardoned, forgiven, honored, or removal of guilt)
DEVOTION: Here we find God talking directly with Cain concerning his sacrifice. Cain had to be taught by his father that God only accepted blood sacrifices for sin. He had the ability to go to his brother Abel and purchase a lamb for the sacrifice.
The thought that comes to mind is that Cain thought his fresh vegetables were just as good as a lamb. He worked hard to plant and harvest his crop. God should have been happy with whatever he brought to HIM.
Cain was not thinking straight. Christians today could fall into the same category.
They could bring God the leftovers and HE should be happy with what they bring. After all they worked hard for their money and should be able to spend their money any way they pleased. God should be happy that they gave HIM any part of their income. Again this is wrong thinking.
God taught Abraham later in the Bible to give a tenth of whatever to HIM for a offering to show his love for God’s provision in his life. This same teaching could have been given to Adam who would teach his sons the same truth.
God has been consistent throughout HIS word regarding giving of our tithes and offerings to HIM. Ten percent should be given each paycheck to the LORD as a thank offering for all the blessings HE has sent our way. Sometime we go through time periods where we don’t think we are too blessed of the LORD. Again this is wrong thinking. If we have the provision of salvation through Christ we have eternity waiting for us with HIM.
Our attitude is important in our giving to the LORD. Cain had a poor attitude even after the LORD spoke with him personally about HIS expectations of him. Most of us know what is expected regarding our offerings to the LORD. We can have the same attitude as Cain.
If Cain corrected his attitude he would be exalted before the LORD instead of downcast. One offering didn’t make a lifetime of rejection. A proper offering would bring him into favor with God and the family. We can change our ways and become exalted in God’s eyes with a proper sacrifice with a proper attitude. Change is possible.
CHALLENGE: Our giving each paycheck is a test of how much we really trust and love the LORD.
: 7 If you do well, shall you not be accepted? and if you do not well, sin lies at the door. And to you shall be his desire, and you shall rule over him. (8669 “desire” [tâshuwqah] means 1 desire, longing, craving. 1a of man for woman. 1b of woman for man. 1c of beast to devour. [Strong, J. (1995). Enhanced Strong’s Lexicon. Woodside Bible Fellowship])
DEVOTION: There are differences between wants and cravings. I first learned this from my wife when she taught me about comfort foods shortly after we were married. There were special foods that she wanted when she was having a hard day. This is often also the case with women who are pregnant.
On the other hand, there are wants that are legitimate desires and yet can be postponed by us. This is the case with many of the things that we exchange as gifts at Christmas-time. We are able to separate these wants from our desires the rest of the year (although the purpose of advertising during Christmas is to attempt to get us to spend money on things we do not really need!).
The desire mentioned here is the same desire that is mentioned in Genesis 3:16. It is a desire which has turned toxic, but which needs to be resisted. It is a desire for power and authority over someone or something. Rather than being in rightful submission to God, it is the desire to be independent of God and be the one who makes the rules. God wants both Eve and Cain about the consequences of this kind of desire in order to help them choose to follow Him. Unfortunately, Cain ultimately caves into his desire to sin and murders his brother (making Cain the first “cave man”).
This should warn us about the need to be on the alert to sin and its desires in our own lives. We need to be moment by moment following God and obeying His instructions.
CHALLENGE: Is there any area of your life where you are resisting God’s direction and instruction? If so, confess this, and ask Him to give you back the godly desire to obey and follow Him. (MW)
DAILY SPIRITUAL LUNCH: Transitional Believers
: 13 And Cain said to the LORD, my punishment is greater than I can bear. (5771 “punishment” [avon] means iniquity, fault, mischief, sin, perversity, depravity, consequence of, punishment for guilt, or activity that is crooked or wrong)
DEVOTION: Cain killed his brother. He knew he was going to face God for his crime. God told him what was going to happen to him. He didn’t like it. He thought it was too harsh a punishment.
God put a mark on him to prevent people from killing him. God treated him with mercy. He still walked out of the presence of the LORD. He never asked for forgiveness of the LORD just a better sentence.
There are not too many people who want to face the consequences for their sin. They want to be able to get away with it without any judgment. God doesn’t work that way. HE either judges right away or for eternity or somewhere in between. There are consequences to our sins. HE can forgive us but HE states in HIS Word that whatever we sow we will also reap.
Do we always get the punishment we deserve? The answer is no. HE shows mercy by not giving us what we desire. That happened in this case. It will not happen in every case.
Throughout the Bible God informs us that HE is going to correct those who are HIS followers to make them better followers. HE also tells us that HE is longsuffering with sinners and giving them every chance to repent of their sins before they face judgment.
Some people think that they can wait till they are on their death bed to repent but most of the time that never happens. Most of them know they are headed to hell and don’t want to change.
If you think you are following the LORD and you sin and HE sends a judgment or correction you think is too cruel think again – eternity in hell is the final judgment for those who reject Christ. We will be in heaven.
CHALLENGE: Remember if you sin and there is no correction that might be a sign that you have never committed your life to Christ. Change your ways through repentance!!!
: 21 And his brother’s name was Jubal: he was the father of all such as handle the harp and organ. (5748 “organ” [uwgab] means long flute, pipe, a musical instrument, a tubular wind instrument, or an instrument composed of many pipes)
DEVOTION: It is thought that culture began with these sons born to Lamech’s wife. This son was called the father of musical instruments. So we find that musical instruments were part of the culture of the descendants of Cain who didn’t honor the LORD. Does this mean that music is of the devil? NO!! Like anything in our society music can be used for good or for evil. We have many individuals who love the LORD playing musical instruments for HIS glory.
Many times the church has taken tunes from the secular society and put Biblical words to them. When I was growing up they made choruses out of television commercials. One that sticks with me was made from a shaving cream commercial: “to be sharp read God’s word and pray” was part of it.
Music was used by David when he was writing the Psalms that the early church sang. The music that we worship with should be done in a way that glorifies the LORD. There is some Christian music that doesn’t bring glory to the LORD.
Our responsibility is to study the words of a song to see if brings glory to the LORD. Just because music is loud doesn’t mean it is good.
CHALLENGE: We are to make a joyful noise unto the LORD when we sing. There is going to a singing in heaven. That will be glorious!!!
DAILY SPIRITUAL SUPPER: Mature Believers
: 26 And to Seth, to him also there was born a son; and he called his name Enos: then began men to call upon the name of the LORD. (7121 “call” [qara] means cry, invite, mention, name, preach, proclaim, publish, or say)
DEVOTION: We move from the fall of Adam and Eve to the conflict between their two sons. Cain was born first and was a tiller of the ground and Abel was born next and cared for sheep.
When it came time to offer sacrifices to the LORD, Cain offered the fruit of the earth and Abel offered a blood sacrifice. The blood sacrifice is what the LORD wanted and so HE honored Abel for bring the right offering. Cain was mad and later killed his brother. The LORD judged him for the killing. Cain started his own line of descendants which ended with Lamech in this chapter.
Lamech had two wives. He also was guilty of murder. This showed the continued downfall of the descendents of Cain.
Adam and Eve had a third son named Seth. From the time of the birth of his son, Enos, there was the proclamation of the name of the LORD. This was a time when people began to witness to others about who the LORD was and how to worship HIM. This had been lost in the descendents of Cain.
The name Jehovah is used mostly in this chapter. Remember Jehovah was the name that spoke of God being a personal God. The LORD had a personal relationship with Adam and Eve. Adam taught his sons what God expected of them regarding sacrifice of worship. The LORD required a blood sacrifice. Cain brought a sacrifice of the fruit of the ground. It was an unacceptable sacrifice. Cain went from the presence of the LORD after his judgment for murder. He started his own civilization. His descendents lived away from true worship of the LORD.
The LORD gave Adam and Eve another son that would worship HIM correctly. It is thought that during Enos’ time the name “LORD” which is the same as JEHOVAH started to be called upon for worship. This name Jehovah was spread to all those who would hear the name.
Are we depending on the LORD? Are we praying to HIM for help for our daily needs? Remember we are to address the Father in prayer through the ministry of the Holy Spirit and close in Jesus name. Are we spreading the name of the LORD?
CHALLENGE: The world we live in doesn’t want to hear about the LORD today. That should not matter to us. We are to witness until we die or the LORD takes us home.
DISCIPLINES OF THE FAITH:
BODY
Chastity (Purity in living)
Fasting (Time alone with LORD without eating or drinking)
Sacrifice (Giving up something we want to serve the LORD)
Submission (Willing to listen to others and LORD)
Solitude (Going to a quiet place without anyone)
SOUL
Fellowship (Gathering together around the Word of God)
Frugality (wise use of resources)
Journalizing (Writing down what you have learned from the LORD)
Study and Meditation (Thinking through your study in the Word)
Secrecy (Doing your good deeds without others knowing but God)
SPIRIT
Celebration (Gathering around a special occasion to worship LORD)
Confession (Tell the LORD we are sorry for our sins on a daily basis)
Prayer (Conversation with God on a personal level)
Silence (Letting the LORD deal with some problems and needs)
Worship (Time to praise the LORD alone or in a group)
Offering to the LORDverse 3
DOCTRINES OF THE FAITH:
Scripture (66 inerrant books of the Bible)
God the Father (First person of the Godhead)
LORD (Jehovah)verses 1, 3, 4, 6, 9, 13, 15, 16, 26
Offering unto the LORDverse 3
LORD responds to Cainverses 6, 7, 9, 10-16
Why is your countenance fallen?
Sin lies at the door
Where is Abel your brother?
What have you done Cain?
Voice of your brother’s blood cries
You are cursed from the earth
Ground will not yield her strength to you
A fugitive and vagabond shall you be
Anyone killing Cain vengeance sevenfold
Set a mark on Cain
Went out from presence of the LORD
Presence of the LORDverse 16
God (Elohim)verse 25
Name of the LORDverse 26
God the Son (Second person of the Godhead –God/man, Messiah)
God the Holy Spirit (Third person of the Godhead – our comforter)
Trinity (Three persons of the Godhead who are co-equal = ONE God)
Angels (Created before the foundation of the world – Good and Evil)
Man (Created on the sixth twenty-four hour period of creation)
Adam knew Eve and produced a babyverse 1
First farmer: Cainverses 3-6
Brought offering of fruit of ground
Cain’s offering not respected
Very wroth
Countenance fell
First shepherd: Abelverse 4
Brought offering of firstling of flock
LORD respected his offering
Sacrifice needed to be blood of animalverse 4
First angerverse 5
First murder: Cain killed brother Abelverse 8
Cain’s response to LORD:
Am I my brother’s keeper?verse 9
My punishment is greater than I can bearverse 13
I am a fugitive and vagabondverse 14
Everyone who finds me shall kill meverse 14
Cain when out from the presence of the LORDverses 16-24
Land of Nod – east of Eden
Knew his wife: Enoch
Build a city named Enoch
Enoch begat Mehujael
Methusael begat Lamech
Lamech took two wives
Adah –bare Jabal – dweller in tents
Zillah –bare Jubal – music
harp and organ
-Tubal-cain
Instructor of every artificer
in brass and iron
Naamah – sister
Lamech slew a man
Adam knew Eve and produced Seth
Seth had son named Enos
then men began to call on name of LORD
Sin (Missing the mark set by God on man and angels)
Wroth verses 5, 6
Countenance fellverse 6
Sinverse 7
Murderverses 8, 14, 15, 23, 25
Shedding bloodverse 10
Fugitiveverses 12, 14
Vagabondverses 12, 14
Punishmentverse 13
Going out of the presence of the LORDverse 16
Two wivesverse 19
Salvation (Provided by Christ’s death on the cross for our sins)
Respectverse 4
Doing wellverse 7
Acceptedverse 7
Ruleverse 7
Brother’s keeperverse 9
Presence of the LORDverse 16
Call upon the name of the LORDverse 26
Israel (Old Testament people of God)
Church (New Testament people of God)
Last Things (Future Events)
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QUOTES regarding passage
5–7 Rather than attempting to discover what was wrong with Cain’s offering, we would be better advised simply to take notice that the author has omitted any explanation. He was apparently less concerned about Cain’s offering than he was Cain’s response to the Lord’s rejection of his offering. Whatever the cause of God’s rejection of Cain’s offering, the narrative itself focuses our attention to Cain’s response. It is there that the narrative seeks to make its point. Cain’s response was twofold: (1) anger against God (v.4b) and (2) anger against his brother (v.8). By stating the problem in this way, the author surrounds his lesson on “pleasing offerings” with a subtle narrative warning: “by their fruit you will recognize them” (Matt 7:20). In his understanding of the importance of a pure heart in worship, the author is very close in his ideas to those expressed by Jeremiah against the false and hypocritical worshipers in his day. Just as Jeremiah pleaded with his people “to do well [ʾim-hêṭêḇ têṭîḇû, NIV, ‘if you really change’] … and do not shed innocent blood,” lest they be exiled from their land (Jer 7:5–7), so God pleaded with Cain to “do what is right” (ʾim-têṭiḇ) or face the consequences of shedding innocent blood and exile from the land (v.7; cf. v.12). (Sailhamer, J. H. (1990). Genesis. In F. E. Gaebelein (Ed.), The Expositor’s Bible Commentary: Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers (Vol. 2, pp. 61–62). Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan Publishing House.)
The nature of rebellious man unfolds in the person of Cain who had an auspicious beginning as the child of hope. But the narrative lines him up with the curse; he worked the soil (lit., ground, ’ăḏāmâh, Gen. 4:2; cf. 3:17). Abel, however, seems to be lined up with man’s original purpose, to have dominion over life (cf. 1:28); he kept flocks. These coincidental descriptions are enhanced with their actions in worship. Abel went out of his way to please God (which meant he had faith in God, Heb. 11:6), whereas Cain was simply discharging a duty. Abel’s actions were righteous, whereas Cain’s were evil (1 John 3:12). These two types of people are still present.
Cain’s lack of faith shows up in his response to God’s rejection of his offering of fruit (Gen. 4:5). Rather than being concerned about remedying the situation and pleasing God, he was very angry. (Ross, A. P. (1985). Genesis. In J. F. Walvoord & R. B. Zuck (Eds.), The Bible Knowledge Commentary: An Exposition of the Scriptures (Vol. 1, p. 34). Wheaton, IL: Victor Books.)
When God clothed Adam and Eve with the skins of animals (Gen. 3:21), perhaps He taught them about sacrifices and the shedding of blood; and they would have passed this truth along to their children. True worship is something we must learn from God Himself, for He alone has the right to lay down the rules for approaching Him and pleasing Him in worship.
God accepted Abel and his sacrifice, and perhaps indicated this by sending fire from heaven to consume the animals (Lev. 9:24; 1 Kings 18:38; 1 Chron. 21:28); but He rejected Cain and his sacrifice. Cain wasn’t rejected because of his offering, but his offering was rejected because of Cain: his heart wasn’t right with God. It was “by faith” that Abel offered a more acceptable sacrifice than Cain (Heb. 11:4), which means that he had faith in God and was right with God. (Wiersbe, W. W. (1998). Be basic (pp. 74–75). Colorado Springs, CO: Chariot Victor Pub.)
4:5, 6 angry. Rather than being repentant for his sinful disobedience, he was hostile toward God, whom he could not kill, and jealous of his brother, whom he could kill (cf. 1Jn 3:12; Jude 11). (MacArthur, J. F., Jr. (2006). The MacArthur study Bible: New American Standard Bible. (Ge 4:5). Nashville, TN: Thomas Nelson Publishers.)
And the Lord had respect unto Habel and his offering, but not unto Cain. We have now the simple facts before us. Let us hear the inspired comment. “Πίστει by faith Abel offered unto God πλείονα θυσίαν a more excellent sacrifice than Cain.” (Heb. 11:4.) There was, then, clearly an internal moral distinction in the intention or disposition of the offerers. Habel had faith, that confiding in God which is not bare and cold, but is accompanied with confession of sin, and a sense of gratitude for his mercy, and followed by obedience to his will. Cain had not this faith. He may have had a faith in the existence, power, and bounty of God; but it wanted that penitent returning to God, that humble acceptance of his mercy, and submission to his will, which constitute true faith. It must be admitted the faith of the offerer is essential to the acceptableness of the offering, even though other things were equal.
But, in this case, there is a difference in the things offered. The one is a vegetable offering; the other an animal: the one a presentation of things without life; the other a sacrifice of life. Hence the latter is called πλείων θυσία: there is more in it than in the former. The two offerings are therefore expressive of the different kinds of faith in the offerers. They are the excogitation and exhibition in outward symbol of the faith of each. The fruit of the soil offered to God is an acknowledgment that the means of this earthly life are due to him. This expresses the barren faith of Cain; but not the living faith of Habel. The latter has entered deeply into the thought that life itself is forfeited to God by transgression, and that only by an act of mercy can the Author of life restore it to the penitent, trusting, submissive, loving heart. He has pondered on the intimations of relenting mercy and love that have come from the Lord to the fallen race, and cast himself upon them without reserve. He slays the animal, of which he is the lawful owner, as a victim, thereby acknowledging that his life is due for sin; he offers the life of the animal, not as though it were of equal value with his own, but in token that another life, equivalent to his own, is due to justice if he is to go free by the as yet inscrutable mercy of God.
Such a thought as this is fairly deducible from the facts on the surface of our record. It seems necessary in order to account for the first slaying of an animal under an economy where vegetable diet was alone permitted. We may go farther. It is hard to suppose the slaying of an animal acceptable, if not previously allowed. The coats of skin seem to involve a practical allowance of the killing of animals for certain purposes. Thus we arrive at the conclusion that there was more in the animal than in the vegetable offering, and that more essential to the full expression of a right faith in the mercy of God, without borrowing the light of future revelation. Hence the nature of Habel’s sacrifice was the index of the genuineness of his faith. And the Lord had respect unto him and his offering; thereby intimating that his heart was right, and his offering suitable to the expression of his feelings. This finding is also in keeping with the manner of Scripture, which takes the outward act as the simple and spontaneous exponent of the inward feeling. The mode of testifying his respect to Habel was by consuming his offering with fire or some other way equally open to observation. (Murphy, J. G. (1863). A Critical and Exegetical Commentary on the Book of Genesis (pp. 166–167). Edinburgh: T&T Clark.)
Ver. 5. But unto Cain and to his offering he had not respect, &c.] Not because of the matter of it, as some have thought; but because it was not offered in faith and sincerity, but in a formal and hypocritical manner, without any regard to the Messiah and his sacrifice, and without any view to the glory of God: no notice was taken, no approbation was given of it by the above token, or any other; so that it was manifest to Cain himself, that God did not approve of it, or was well-pleased with it, as with his brother’s: and Cain was very wroth; with God, to whom he offered it, because he did not accept of it, and with his brother, because he and his sacrifice were preferred to him and his: and his countenance fell; the briskness and cheerfulness of his countenance went off, and he looked dejected; and instead of lifting up his face towards heaven; he looked with a down look to the earth; he looked churlish, morose, and sullen, ill-natured, full of malice and revenge, and as if he was studying which way to vent it; he knit his brows and gnashed his teeth, put on a surly countenance; and there might be seen in his face all the signs, not only of grief and disappointment, but of rage and fury; though some interpret it of shame and confusion. (Gill, J. (1810). An Exposition of the Old Testament (Vol. 1, p. 33). London: Mathews and Leigh.)
The third false point in Cain’s system lay in the fact that it ignored the witness of the Spirit. Instead, it had as its focus a purely human satisfaction. Cain could stand back and survey his altar with pride, justified for all his efforts in the beautiful offering heaped up before God. “There! That should please Him. That cost me a great deal. It’s beautiful! I’ve done my best! Even God couldn’t expect more than that!” It was a purely human satisfaction. He did not have the witness from God that Abel had, that he was accepted. On the contrary although the Lord “had respect unto Abel and to his offering … unto Cain and to his offering he had not respect.”
Cain’s feeling of satisfaction and well-being did not last. It turned in a flash to resentment and rage. “And Cain was very wroth, and his countenance fell. And the Lord said unto Cain, Why art thou wroth? and why is thy countenance fallen? If thou doest well, shalt thou not be accepted? and if thou doest not well, sin [or a sin offering] lieth at the door.” Cain was invited by God to come the right way, Abel’s way, to bring the only kind of sin offering God can accept—Christ! The difference between Cain and Abel, between the believer and the religious person, lies not in the person himself but in the object of his trust. The one provides for himself, the other accepts what God has provided. God will accept us only in Christ. Like so many religious people today, Cain, the founder of the world’s false religion, was infuriated at what he heard. (Phillips, J. (2009). Exploring Genesis: An Expository Commentary (Ge 4:5–7). Kregel Publications; WORDsearch Corp.)
FROM MY READING:
(Remember the only author that I totally agree with is the HOLY SPIRIT in the inerrant WORD OF GOD called THE BIBLE! All other I try to gleam what I can to help me grow in the LORD!!)
IMPOSSIBLE PEOPLE by Os Guinness IVP press
But that world has gone, At the heart of modernity are the two processes of pluralization and differentiation, the former being the throwing up of endless others, choices and alternatives, and the latter being the throwing up of all sorts of complex and different spheres in life as cities explode, travel reaches further and further, and communications are faster and more inclusive all the time. (p. 76)
This means that lives integrated throughout by faith are harder to live and rarer to find than ever, so if there is to be integration, it will now be difficult and will have to be self-conscious and deliberate. For, the obvious tendency, or temptation, in a fragmented world is to go with the flow and to accept all the different places and the separate issues in life as natural. (p. 77)
The seen was only part of the world, and the unseen was in fact the more real. Whereas for us the unseen is generally unreal and largely irrelevant. (p. 78)
Slowly the next centuries showed discernible trends that steadily reduced the earlier reliance on the power of the Spirit, so that as we move closer to our own day it becomes clear that in much of the church the unseen is no more real for Christians than it is for atheists, and many otherwise orthodox Christians ae in effect operational atheists or atheists unawares. (p. 83-4)
In sum, secularization has not meant that religion has disappeared in the modern world. Far from it. But it has meant that for many believers the supernatural has disappeared for all practical purposes from their day-to-day awareness. The unseen has become unreal. Many churches have been lobotomized but carry on as if nothing has changed. (p.87)
Surprising Book Facts: 33% of High School Graduates never read another book the rest of their lives. 42% of college grads never read another book after college. 57% of new books are not read to completion. 70% of US adults have not been in a bookstore the last five years. 80% of US families did not buy or read a book last year. The more a child reads the likelier they are able to understand the emotions of others. FROM Vintage Books & Anchor Books
God’s Rest Day
“Remember the sabbath day, to keep it holy.” (Exodus 20:8)
The Hebrew word shabbat is found 108 times in the Old Testament. The basic meaning is “intermission” or “break.” The term never means “Saturday” or “seven.”
The pattern of resting every seventh day–night cycle was established by God at creation (Genesis 2:1-3; Exodus 20:11). God “made” (performed activity) for six days and rested and ended His work on the seventh day.
Therefore, God blessed and “hallowed” the resting day to commemorate His initial work and rest cycle. There is no other basis for this pattern. There is no relationship for the seven-day week in any astronomical clock reference: solar, stellar, or lunar. In fact, the Lord Jesus clearly told us that He made the sabbath for humanity (Mark 2:27). Apart from God’s specific design, we would have no reason to observe the seven-day week, which is common to all cultures.
All humanity observes the seven-day cycle from a practical and physiological need. Christians, however, should acknowledge that the sabbath was dedicated by God at creation to be a day of “sanctification.”
God’s people should follow the pattern He set (Genesis 2:1-3) and recognize the wonder and majesty of the creation (Exodus 20:11). We should cease from our own profitable employment (Exodus 20:9-10) and, more importantly, concentrate on the worship of our Creator (Psalm 92).
This commandment is the only command listed with a specific reason, and the precise wording should forever settle the argument about a “day age” interpretation of creation. In Exodus 20:11, the wording can only mean a “regular” day. There is no linguistic excuse for long ages anywhere.
(HMM III, The Institute for Creation Research)
HINDRANCES TO REVIVAL
For I bear them witness that they have a zeal for God, but not according to knowledge.
Romans 10:2
The Apostle’s particular concern here is to explain why the Jews were, in the main, outside the Christian church, whereas the Gentiles had been coming in. The general trouble was that the Jews had a zeal for God but it was “not according to knowledge.”
Now the word that Paul uses here which is translated “knowledge” is very interesting. It is the strongest word used in the Scriptures with regard to knowing. It does not merely mean a general acquaintance with something. It goes beyond that. It means a full, a correct, a precise and a vital knowledge, and the trouble with the Jews, says the Apostle Paul, is that they lacked it. And there is one further idea in the word. It refers to a knowledge which has been arrived at as the result of a good deal of investigation and effort.
So then, Paul says, the Jews lacked that full apprehension, that certain knowledge which is the result of a careful and a thorough examination of a teaching. They had a zeal, but not such a knowledge.
Here, then, Paul again puts before us a most important principle, which is that an exact knowledge of the truth is essential to salvation. The Jews had not got it, so they were outside; they were lost and he prays and longs for their salvation. Now this matter of knowledge is most important. I am of the opinion that the greatest danger confronting the Christian church and every individual Christian at this moment is to fail to understand and appreciate the absolute necessity of a precise, clear knowledge of the truth. I say this because we are living in days when there is a powerful reaction against all this.
A Thought to Ponder: The greatest danger confronting the Christian church…is to fail to understand the absolute necessity of a precise, clear knowledge of the truth.
(From Saving Faith, a sermon on Romans 10:3 by Martyn Lloyd-Jones)
Honoring Parents
“Honour thy father and thy mother: that thy days may be long upon the land which the LORD thy God giveth thee.” (Exodus 20:12)
This is the “first commandment with promise” (Ephesians 6:2) and starts the second set of instructions in Exodus 20 for godly living. While the first four commandments focus on our relationship with God Himself, the last six are designed to protect and enhance our relationship with each other.
Among all human relationships, the family becomes the primary sphere (Genesis 1:26-28; 2:21-25; Ephesians 6:1-2) for learning. Human government and nationality have their place in our relationships between and among each other, but the home is the basic training station (Genesis 18:19; Ephesians 6:4) to establish functional authority.
The home is the place to exercise the discipline that will instill respect for authority (Hebrews 12:5-11). Such discipline may involve corporal punishment (Proverbs 22:15; 23:13-14) or verbal rebuke (1 Thessalonians 2:11-12) or even involve the withholding of reward or privilege (Genesis 49:1-26). Government struggles and society reels when homes are negligent in establishing obedience to rules.
The promise of a long life is based upon children obeying their parents (Proverbs 6:20) and helping their parents as they require care or assistance in their later years (1 Timothy 5:8, 16).
The Lord Jesus submitted Himself to this authority (Luke 2:51). Since He lived a sinless life (Hebrews 4:15), it would follow that He upheld this commandment and honored His earthly parents just as He honored His heavenly Father.
The honor given to parents is even extended to all elderly people (Leviticus 19:32). Would God these instructions were followed by all families.
(HMM III, The Institute for Creation Research)
1 Kings 11
Solomon takes wives from (and makes allegiances with) foreigners, and God judges him.
INSIGHT
Not long after the Lord reminds Solomon of the blessings of obedience and the cataclysmic consequences of disobedience, Solomon disobeys. After taking foreign wives who turn his heart from the Lord, Solomon begins to worship Ashtoreth and builds a “high place” of worship for Chemosh and Molech, detestable pagan gods. True to His word, the Lord raises up an adversary, Hadad, to plague Solomon. God’s purpose is not to punish. He wants the adversity to turn Solomon’s heart back to Him. When you suffer adversity, examine yourself to see if there is sin in your life. That is not always true, but it is something to which we must be sensitive. (Quiet Walk)
Because the small church has a strong sense of tradition, we tend to focus on what has worked well in the past and seek to duplicate it rather than developing clear goals that move us into the future.
(p. 149, Developing Leaders for the Small Church by Glenn C. Daman)
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