04/02/2024
Love and blessing between siblings.
By
Sandile Swana
2024-02-03
Adam as a father had done his job of introducing godly worship to his sons, but was the job thorough and complete?? Adam had even trained his sons to live productive lifestyles- the one was a crop farmer working with plants, Cain the first born and Abel the second born was farming with sheep. But were both boys thoroughly groomed in the faith, were they taught to live by faith and by faith alone.
Genesis 4:1-8
Good News Translation
Cain and Abel
4 Then Adam had in*******se with his wife, and she became pregnant. She bore a son and said, “By the Lord's help I have gotten a son.” So she named him Cain.[a] 2 Later she gave birth to another son, Abel. Abel became a shepherd, but Cain was a farmer. 3 After some time Cain brought some of his harvest and gave it as an offering to the Lord. 4 Then Abel brought the first lamb born to one of his sheep, killed it, and gave the best parts of it as an offering. The Lord was pleased with Abel and his offering, 5 but he rejected Cain and his offering. Cain became furious, and he scowled in anger. 6 Then the Lord said to Cain, “Why are you angry? Why that scowl on your face? 7 If you had done the right thing, you would be smiling;[b] but because you have done evil, sin is crouching at your door. It wants to rule you, but you must overcome it.”
8 Then Cain said to his brother Abel, “Let's go out in the fields.”[c] When they were out in the fields, Cain turned on his brother and killed him.
God created humans and gave them commands and guidelines how to live a successful life on earth. The father is always supposed to teach his entire household so that they are aware of the commands of God, and are competent in carrying them out.
Everything in the kingdom of God is righteous only because it is done by faith and faith itself works by love. Adam taught his sons to live by faith and to do all things by faith – Abel is the first correct template of faith, quoted as such by Jesus Christ and by the book of Hebrews, but his elder brother did not take the lesson on faith in. So, any child needs to operate their profession and trade by faith- in the present case cain was a cropper or plant farmer and Abel a shepherd of the sheep or animal farmer. The giving of first fruits or offerings to God is part and parcel of the training of young workers and businessman and all of that must be done by faith. Only the best must be given to God by faith.
The bible is clear, anything that is not done by faith is sin.
Romans 14:23 AMP
But he who is uncertain [about eating a particular thing] is condemned if he eats, because he is not acting from faith. Whatever is not from faith is sin [whatever is done with doubt is sinful].
The fuel of faith and what compels us to act on the commands of God is love for God and love for our fellow human beings, nothing else. The kingdom of God is the kingdom of Love. Love energises and activates faith and faith energises action, both faith and love are demonstrated when our actions agree with the Word of God.
Galatians 5:6
Amplified Bible, Classic Edition
6 For [if we are] in Christ Jesus, neither circumcision nor uncircumcision counts for anything, but only faith activated and energized and expressed and working through love.
Faith comes when we hear the word of God, first and foremost the father must teach his children the undiluted Word of God. Teaching must be by both word and by correct example. The word of God when it is heard it produces faith and that is the gift of God to us. Faith itself is a gift from God.
Romans 10:17
Amplified Bible, Classic Edition
17 So faith comes by hearing [what is told], and what is heard comes by the preaching [of the message that came from the lips] of Christ (the Messiah Himself).
Romans 10:17
New International Version - UK
17 Consequently, faith comes from hearing the message, and the message is heard through the word about Christ.
So then it becomes clear that Abel became a hero of the faith, ahead of His elder brother , Cain, because he heard the Word of God from his father and continued to act on it. Cain heard the same word of God but never took action on it, the word of God never became the automatic lifestyle of Cain. So faith improves through regular use or regular practice and renewing of the mind.
Hebrews 11:4
4 [Prompted, actuated] by faith Abel brought God a better and more acceptable sacrifice than Cain, because of which it was testified of him that he was righteous [that he was upright and in right standing with God], and God bore witness by accepting and acknowledging his gifts. And though he died, yet [through the incident] he is still speaking.
So clearly Abel was able to prepare a pleasing sacrifice to God because his heart was aligned with that of God and hence he knew what it is that God calls an offering, a righteous offering. The Word of God must be believed and acted upon as it is , not diluted and without doubt and without hesitation.
Hebrews 4:2
Amplified Bible, Classic Edition
2 For indeed we have had the glad tidings [Gospel of God] proclaimed to us just as truly as they [the Israelites of old did when the good news of deliverance from bo***ge came to them]; but the message they heard did not benefit them, because it was not mixed with faith (with [a]the leaning of the entire personality on God in absolute trust and confidence in His power, wisdom, and goodness) by those who heard it; [b]neither were they united in faith with the ones [Joshua and Caleb] who heard (did believe).
So the pattern of scripture is that God has much greater and decisive preference for those who believe, those who have faith but God rejects those who do not have faith. So, Caleb and Joshua in essence had the spirit of faith just like Abel but the majority of the elder Israelites did not believe the report about the promised land and the promises of God they were rejected just like Cain.
Hebrews 4:2
New International Version - UK
2 For we also have had the good news proclaimed to us, just as they did; but the message they heard was of no value to them, because they did not share the faith of those who obeyed.[a
Jesus taught that Abel was righteous, because he had faith inside and his good deeds outside were prompted by faith and hence were righteous, but the teachers of the Jews always wanted to look good outside while they harboured murderous thoughts inside. So the teachers of the Jews were like Cain. We must also then teach our own children not to be double minded and two faced but to rely only on God by faith and by love.
Matthew 23:35
Amplified Bible, Classic Edition
35 So that upon your heads may come all the blood of the righteous ([a]those who correspond to the divine standard of right) shed on earth, from the blood of the righteous Abel to the blood of Zechariah son of Barachiah, whom you murdered between the sanctuary and the altar [of burnt offering].
1 John 3:12
Amplified Bible, Classic Edition
12 [And] not be like Cain who [took his nature and got his motivation] from the evil one and slew his brother. And why did he slay him? Because his deeds (activities, works) were wicked and malicious and his brother’s were righteous (virtuous).
Cain, had not benefited from the training of his father- and could not see that simply by correcting his attitude and practices he could also be on good terms with God. Cain ignored clear guidance from God, which was going to make him successful instead he decided to murder his successful brother out of jealousy. Jealousy must be rooted out of young children and never tolerated thereafter.
Genesis 4:6-8
New International Version - UK
6 Then the Lord said to Cain, ‘Why are you angry? Why is your face downcast? 7 If you do what is right, will you not be accepted? But if you do not do what is right, sin is crouching at your door; it desires to have you, but you must rule over it.’
8 Now Cain said to his brother Abel, ‘Let’s go out to the field.’[a] While they were in the field, Cain attacked his brother Abel and killed him.
Remember that no child becomes good by himself but the child must be trained and the child must obey the training.
‘ Give me a child till he is seven years old,’ said St Ignatius Loyola, ‘ and I will show you the man.’
The founder of the Jesuit Brotherhood was way ahead of his time. For most of human history, serious-minded adults paid scant attention to the under-sevens. After all, small children have no obvious economic worth. They’re also difficult to control and apparently impervious to reason…
But neuroscience has proved Loyola right. Children’s experiences in those first seven years – when formation of the neural networks is governed largely by emotion – will affect their behaviour throughout life. As an international organisation determined to mould human souls for its own purposes, the Jesuit Brotherhood was spot on in targeting the very young .
Proverbs 22:15
Good News Translation
15 Children just naturally do silly, careless things, but a good spanking will teach them how to behave.
God teaches us that training and development goes hand in glove correction and punishment, the very things Abel was hostile to. A wayward child must be corrected when they are still young, waywardness must not be regarded as cuteness or anything else, it must be corrected harshly.
Hebrews 12:7-11
Good News Translation
7 Endure what you suffer as being a father's punishment; your suffering shows that God is treating you as his children. Was there ever a child who was not punished by his father? 8 If you are not punished, as all his children are, it means you are not real children, but bastards. 9 In the case of our human fathers, they punished us and we respected them. How much more, then, should we submit to our spiritual Father and live! 10 Our human fathers punished us for a short time, as it seemed right to them; but God does it for our own good, so that we may share his holiness. 11 When we are punished, it seems to us at the time something to make us sad, not glad. Later, however, those who have been disciplined by such punishment reap the peaceful reward of a righteous life.
