“Am I my Brother’s Keeper?”

“Woe to them! For they have gone in the way of Cain…” Jude‬ ‭1:11‬ ‭

Hello, glad to come your way again. I had a good weekend, particularly watching last night’s Super Bowl. How was yours?

I read a disturbing article over the weekend, which forms the basis of this writeup. There are wicked people among our existence that we all need to know. Not everyone is as kind and gentle.

People normally become shocked at such revelation, but such is life, and we will have to learn how to deal with such people who will come our way.

This passage highlights a group of people who have gone in “the way of Cain”. What is that and what does it mean? Will refer to you another Bible passage for understanding.

“…Now 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 an offering of the fruit of the ground to the LORD. Abel also brought of the firstborn of his flock and of their fat. And the LORD respected Abel and his offering, but He did not respect Cain and his offering. And Cain was very angry, and his countenance fell. So the LORD said to Cain, “Why are you angry? And why has your countenance fallen? If you do well, will you not be accepted? And if you do not do well, sin lies at the door. And its desire is for you, but you should rule over it.” Now 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 killed him. Then the LORD said to Cain, “Where is Abel your brother?” He said, “I do not know. Am I my brother’s keeper?”” Genesis‬ ‭4:2-9‬ ‭

These were two brothers; Abel and Cain. The former was a shepherd, the latter, a farmer. According to their Hebraic culture, they had to bring an offering to the Lord.

Abel brought his sacrifice which was sheep and Cain, his produce. Abel’s offering was accepted, Cain’s wasn’t. He became wroth at his brother which showed in his countenance. I wonder, did Abel not see that?

The first lesson here is, learn to observe people carefully and watch their countenance. People’s moods and manners have a loud telling. Perhaps had Abel paid particular attention to that, he wouldn’t have been murdered. Too many people fall into the hands of wicked people, because they don’t discern and watch people.

From this story, you can see the Lord talking with Cain advising him to do right, and his offering will be accepted. The second lesson here, is evil people will always like to blame people for their predicament. It is never their fault, but the next person. Instead of Cain owning up and taking responsibility for his failure, he directed his anger at his brother, Abel. Some people get angry at their colleague’s promotion and favor with his superiors at work, why misdirect that energy, instead of focusing on your work ethic and attitude on the job.

The third lesson I learn from the Lord’s discourse with Cain, is sin abounds everywhere looking for the perfect opportunity. The Lord advised Cain that sin is lurking at his door, but he should master his desire over that. A study shows that man has 6,200 thoughts per day. Not all thoughts are good, you can’t help those thoughts racing through your mind, but you can control your response on capitulating to that. Cain bit into the bait and surrendered to his evil desires which led to him murdering his brother.

Now when the Lord asked of Abel from Cain, he responded, “Am I my brother’s keeper?”. This response shows that, not everyone will seek for your well-being or look out for your interests. Man without the love of God in his heart is worse than a brute beast.

“The human heart is the most deceitful of all things, and desperately wicked. Who really knows how bad it is?” Jeremiah‬ ‭17:9‬ ‭

I pray for you dear reader, that as you go about your day today and the weeks ahead, may God deliver you from every evil, wicked and unreasonable person. Be wise and circumspect in your dealings with people.

I hope you caught something today? What are your thoughts on this? Let me know. Will love to read your comments.

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Till I come your way again…

Peace & Love