A First Time Voyage....Genesis: A Brother's Offering

I remember a juncture in which their was this women that I enjoyed affection for and it was just the occasion to give her a gift I knew would bring delight to her heart. I spent much time in selecting this gift, taking care to see that its apparel was impeccable, and putting great effort into the words I wrote onto the card that would accompany this gift. These thoughtfully penned words reflected the truest expression of my own soul....

Strong will can stir the heart, but a will too strong can cut off the hearts visibility. The sorrow of a man bewreathed of his family turns to hate, which eventually metamorphoses into the intent to kill. The man’s finger reaches for the trigger. Sins change people. Sin begets sin. But still, I want to believe, I want to believe in the heart, the heart that feels the sin. Trigun: Goodbye for Now

It Crouches at Your Door
When they grew up, Abel became a shepherd, while Cain cultivated the ground. When it was time for the harvest, Cain presented some of his crops as a gift to the Lord. Abel also brought a gift—the best of the firstborn lambs from his flock. The Lord accepted Abel and his gift, but he did not accept Cain and his gift. This made Cain very angry, and he looked dejected.

“Why are you so angry?” the Lord asked Cain. “Why do you look so dejected? You will be accepted if you do what is right. But if you refuse to do what is right, then watch out! Sin is crouching at the door, eager to control you. But you must subdue it and be its master.”Genesis 4:1-7

I also remember an instance in which I received sundry gift in which a thank you card would have been appreciated. Thus, a thank you card was given....a token gift of gratitude.... yet, not with the same grandeur and passion in which I gave the former gift. Are you getting the picture here? Much could be written, but suffice to say that the former instance of giving reflected all my energy and resourcefulness and even help of the Lord; the latter, was a more obligatory response given in view of cultural expectations, or fear of what people would think if I did not send this token card.

When is the last time you offered something to the Lord? How often is it that we follow this same process. And we come up to the plate/alter/life.... and strike out. Why? jealously...competition...apathy...nonchalance...a flippant attitude...self focused...undisciplined...laxy...fear.... Perhaps we don't have our ducks in a nice cute row, or our priorities are out of line. I think we can relate to Cain in this way. We are out of line. We a missing the point. Perhaps many points.... This can make us angry, sulky people.

That's right. This sin,to be defined, is at the door and ready to jump out in front of you and me. When I think of Cain I have to appreciate his transparency...he was angry...then his face was downcast, his countenance fell, he began to sulk. He did not do well, and it was apparent. Why does Cain become angry? The Lord did not look on Cain's token offering with pleasure or acceptance, because he did not "do right (v7)"

How did Cain not do right? Two things come to mind:

Injured, Crippled and Diseased



You say, 'I am rich; I have acquired wealth and do not need a thing.' But you do not realize that you are wretched, pitiful, poor, blind and naked. I counsel you to buy from me gold refined in the fire, so you can become rich; and white clothes to wear, so you can cover your shameful nakedness; and salve to put on your eyes, so you can see. Those whom I love I rebuke and discipline. So be earnest, and repent. Revelation 3:17,18




1. There is a contrast between the offerings of these two brothers. Cain offered produce and Abel offered a lamb; however, I do not believe this is the issue unless they came before God for forgiveness. This does not fit the context though. So how was Abel's offering different? Abel offered the best lamb he had. Cain offered some of the crops from the field. A token gift. His offering reflected directly where his sulking heart really was. It demonstrates what he believed about God
   
   Doesn't how we live our lives(living in this contest meaning to give all of us to all of Him), give a vivid depiction of what we believe about God? Stick with me while I attempt to bring this full circle (rolls up sleeves) While we do not offer specifically the blood of animals or grain to the Lord any longer,we are asked to bring our lives to Him. To be a living sacrifice. Paul urges us, in view of God's mercy, to "offer our bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God -- this is your spiritual act of worship." This is a life that is radically set apart to Christ... and His gospel.
   
   Often, I aspire giving my life to this radical abandonment commanded by Christ.... yet my follow through is lacking. I follow Christ at such a distance. How often I consider these questions:
   
   
   
   • Lord, what is it to love You with all my heart, soul, mind and strength....and to love my neighbor?
   
   
   • How do I not passively waste my life
   
   
   • How do you want me to give my life to You?
   
   
   • How do I not give you what is my second best, what's left over, after I have done with my life what I want?
   
   
   
   Then...
   
   I have to ask, "Do I REALLY, I mean REALLY, want to know the answers to those questions?" If one can answer yes to this question then I think the process has begun toward this radical abandonment to Christ. If my answer is, "No" then what does this say about what I believe about God?
   
   

A half response is not worthy of the Son of God, nor will it be accepted my Him. What kind of life/offering do we bring before the our Great God and Saviour? Will the Lord look on us and our gift with pleasure? Is it our best?

A half response is not worthy of the Son of God, nor will it be accepted my Him. What kind of life/offering do we bring before the our Great God and Saviour? Will the Lord look on us and our gift with pleasure? Is it our best?

When you bring injured, crippled or diseased animals and offer them as sacrifices, should I accept them from your hands?" says the LORD. "Cursed is the cheat who has an acceptable male in his flock and vows to give it, but then sacrifices a blemished animal to the Lord. For I am a great king," says the LORD Almighty, "and my name is to be feared among the nations. Malachi 1:13,14

A Difference of Faith

By faith Abel offered God a better sacrifice than Cain did. By faith he was commended as a righteous man, when God spoke well of his offerings. And by faith he still speaks, even though he is dead. Hebrews 11:4

Not only was there a contrast between the giving of a token gift and the best gift of these brothers, but also in their imperative of their faith. Evidently, Cain offered his sacrifice without faith. It's impossible to please God apart from faith. And why? Because anyone who wants to approach God must believe both that he exists and that he rewards those who seek Him dilengently.(Heb 11:6)

Cain's gift reflects his heart and what he believes about God. For instance, if I really believe that God is holy, the I live my life within that internal reality. Practically, that means that I abstain from the things that would make me unholy, that is not set apart to Christ from the world. If I believe that God is holy then I am going to abide in Him daily, becoming holy as He is holy. This begs the question of me:

• Do I believe He is worthy of all my life?


• Do I trust that He knows what is best for me?


• Does He orchestrate my circumstances, experiences, education, personal development, emotions, mental and physical health, finances, intellect etc for His plan?


• Do I trust that He alone is more enough to satiate the lusts of my soul?

A Right, Obedient Sacrifice

Abel did not make an offering to achieve righteousness. He was righteous already because of his faith. God bore witness to that fact by accepting him and his offering. Conversely, Cain evidently sought to achieve righteousness by rituals of worship, going through the motions.

"That was a problem in Jesus' day also. Because of their obstinance, the Jews kept traditions which nullified laws, and then they had the audacity to worship. So, Jesus rebuked, "You hypocrites! Well did Isaiah prophesy of you, when he said, 'This people honors me with their lips, but their heart is far from me; in vain do they worship me, teaching as doctrine the precepts of men'" (Matt. 15:7).

The bottom line:

• How we live our lives, gives a vivid depiction of what we believe about God.


• We must take care to see that our hearts are being appraised before anything we could offer to God.


• We must imitate Christ's obedient sacrifice of giving His life, thereby becoming our life, as opposed to Cain's disobedient giving of a token second-rate life.


• Will we give only of our lives what we can spare, or what it is going to take to make Christ known to a lost world that desperately needs Him?

But you have come to Mount Zion, to the heavenly Jerusalem, the city of the living God. You have come to thousands upon thousands of angels in joyful assembly, to the church of the firstborn, whose names are written in heaven. You have come to God, the judge of all men, to the spirits of righteous men made perfect, to Jesus the mediator of a new covenant, and to the sprinkled blood that speaks a better word than the blood of Abel. Hebrews 12:22-24

We must not rest, indulge in personal comforts, or be diverted from finding a dwelling place for God among the Tuareg, the Baluchi, the Karalkapak, and all other people groups. - Jerry Rankin

A First Time Voyage....Genesis: A Day of Rest until the Fall

A First Time Voyage....Through the Old Testament.

People who sin say this, that they had to, to survive. People who sin say this, that it's too late now to stop. The shadow called Sin dogs them steadily from behind, silently, without a word. Remorse and Agony are repeated, only to end up at Despair in the end. But the sinners just don't know, that if they'd only turn around, there is a light there, a light which keeps shining on them ever so warmly. A light that will never fade. Trigun - B.N.D.

A Day of Rest

1. Life for Adam and Eve in God's Garden begins with a day of rest. God ceased the work he was doing and set the seventh day apart from the rest of the days on which He had done His work of creating. What does mean? Why did God set this day apart....? The synoptic gospels record this story.... Matthew's version follows:
   
   At that time Jesus went through the grainfields on the Sabbath. His disciples were hungry and began to pick some heads of grain and eat them. When the Pharisees saw this, they said to him, "Look! Your disciples are doing what is unlawful on the Sabbath."
   
   He answered, "Haven't you read what David did when he and his companions were hungry? He entered the house of God, and he and his companions ate the consecrated bread—which was not lawful for them to do, but only for the priests. Or haven't you read in the Law that on the Sabbath the priests in the temple desecrate the day and yet are innocent? I tell you that one greater than the temple is here. If you had known what these words mean, 'I desire mercy, not sacrifice,' you would not have condemned the innocent. For the Son of Man is Lord of the Sabbath." Matt 12:1-8
   
   Mark's gospel records:
   
   "The Sabbath was made to serve us; we weren't made to serve the Sabbath. The Son of Man is no lackey to the Sabbath. He's in charge!" Mark 2:27,28
   
   There are a few things we can learn about the Sabbath from Genesis and the gospels:
   
   
   
   • The Sabbath is for us. The term sabbath derives from the Hebrew shabbat (שבת), "to cease/rest". God didn't need to rest because He is the everlasting God who never grows faint or weary (Isa 40:28,29) however, He did cease from His work. He set the day apart as a day to cease from working. Exodus (31:12-17) tells us that this was a sign to set His people apart from the surrounding nations.
     
   • The Pharisees narrowly interpreted the law. They had developed these 'extra guidelines' or what they called the tradition of the elders (Matt 15:2) in keeping the law of God.. This was not the law of Moses, but rather an oral tradition based on interpretations of the law. Now at first this could have been an act of true worship...perhaps. What I mean is that that they may have justified having those "extra guidelines" as a way to not even get close to breaking God's law. If this is the case then what happened later is that the future generations lost sight of this intention, herein laying a heavy burden on the shoulders of men. (Matt 23:4)
     
     They missed the law's intention when speaking about the sabbath. Jesus challenged wittingly with, "Have you never read....," grating to the ears of men who were to be experts of the law, giving examples from the law and the prophets to illustrate God's desire for mercy, not sacrifice.
   
   
   • For I desire mercy(devotion), not sacrifice. This seems like a paradox to me. Radical devotion lends itself to radical sacrifice.(Luke 14:25-35) This devotion must be to God, however; not to self. Micah illustrates here:
     With what shall I come before the LORD
     and bow down before the exalted God?
     Shall I come before him with burnt offerings,
     with calves a year old?
     
     Will the LORD be pleased with thousands of rams,
     with ten thousand rivers of oil?
     Shall I offer my firstborn for my transgression,
     the fruit of my body for the sin of my soul?
     
     He has showed you, O man, what is good.
     And what does the LORD require of you?
     To act justly and to love mercy
     and to walk humbly with your God.
   
   
   • Jesus pointed out that those who perform temple service on that Sabbath are counted innocent. If the temple service warrants suspension of the sabbath, how much more the presence of one greater than the temple.
   
   
   • The bottom line: Suffice to say that the law's principles take precedence over its rituals. We can do good, save lives, feed the hungry and that sort of stuff and keep the day holy. How does this day of rest look in our busy lives today as Christ followers?
   
   
   
   
   The Fall
   
2. ... and enter in the Adversary, the serpent or nachash meaning "shining one". It is no surprise that this cunning and crafty one is indeed deceitfully shining. For some reason shining things seem to catch our eyes even today....new car, nice house, good wife/husband, family, friends, retirement, amenities..... they are quite alluring.
   
   He, with boldness and deception, tempts Eve, the beautiful crown of God's creation. Satan questions, "Did God really say...." We fall for this one even today:
   
   "I know the Bible says I should.... but.....?"
   "It is not really that bad....is it?"
   "God would not have given you this money if he didn't want you to spend it...(on something that "allures" we don't need)?
   
   

The allure...it's captivating!

A snippet: "Beauty is powerful, beauty speaks. Beauty invites. Beauty nourishes. Beauty comforts. Beauty inspires. Beauty is transcendent." Captivating by Eldredge
The beauty and image of a women points to the beauty and image of her Creator.

One thing I ask of the LORD, this is what I seek: that I may dwell in the house of the LORD all the days of my life, to gaze upon the beauty of the LORD and to seek him in his temple. Psalm 27:4

And then just when you are about to say "No" He comes on a little stronger, confronting even. He challenges Eve's stand on the words of God "You will not surely die..." Today He reassures us with thoughts like....

"It really is okay...."
"This is not the same times as when the Bible was written...."
"Other believers are doing it.... and they don't have a problem....."

At this point we often would continue to rationalize in the "theatre of war" found in battlefield of our human minds. "How can I get around this?" or "What is the loop hole, because I really want (or do not want) to do ___________"

Then we bite because we think we are missing out. The adversary, with seeming authority, says to Eve, "God knows that the moment you eat from that tree, you'll see what's really going on. You'll be just like God, knowing everything, ranging all the way from good to evil." a.k.a. Our will begins to sway... the battle at this point is intense.... the attraction and allure of sin is seemingly to great.

"Everybody's doing it,"
"If I do it this time then I will not what it is like, then I will not want to do it again"
"I really want ___________"
"I need this money"
"What will people think of me.... I have this image to keep?"

This is an enduring and typical tactic.... seems like after all this time we would have figured it out.....

Eve questioningly considers this quandary: It looks good....and it would be a good experience. Maybe she questions, "Is God holding out on me?" At any rate the bait is on the hook and presented as a deal to good to pass up: she bites... in complete rebellion to God's command. She gives the fruit to Adam, her husband who was with her, who passively follows along and also bites. And we have the fall. Wail aloud, tear your cloths, beat your chest, ask why, hang your head in despair....we now have this problem of sin...and like a fish who has been snagged by bait is still enticed by it:

....each one is tempted when, by his own evil desire, he is dragged away and enticed. Then, after desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, gives birth to death.

Don't be deceived, my dear brothers. Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows. He chose to give us birth through the word of truth, that we might be a kind of firstfruits of all he created. James 1:14-18

Every good and perfect gift is from above.... consider though that our perspective on good and perfect may not be our Creator's perspective. Let's stop painting pictures of Eqypt yeah? (Num 14:4)

Classic tactic.... like Nintendo, a car, or something from well before I was born; however, not classic for Adam and Eve I suppose.

The Grace of God

Let's not despair as a people without hope. Here we see a glimpse of the grace and mercy of God for all mankind. Without a doubt God could have taken Adam and Eve out because of their sin, but instead He presented a hope of reconciliation between himself and us. The Lord God says to the serpent:

"And I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and hers;
he will strike your head, and you will strike his heel."

This is often called the "Protoevangelium" i.e. the first gospel. The idea is that a wound to the heel is not fatal, but in contrast a would to the head would be. Christ has the 'bruised heel' and the nachash will in due time receive the fatal wound. God cursed the man and the women as well. Then God banished them from the Garden of Eden.

The gospel, that is good news, is that hope is given. Herein, the story of our life (Col 3:1-4) lies.