Genesis 4:2-7 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.” One day Cain suggested to his brother, “Let’s go out into the fields.” And while they were in the field, Cain attacked his brother, Abel, and killed him.
Do you see the progression? It began with what you might think of as a small matter – Abel gave back to Me the best of what I had given him, but his brother Cain gave Me lesser gifts. Small matter, you might think. But, was it? The gifts offered back to Me in gratitude for what I had been providing reflected the state of their hearts. Abel understood that all came from Me, and was honoring that by offering back the best of what I had given him. Cain wanted to keep the best for himself, and offered back lesser goods. Whose heart was a heart of gratitude? Who understood that everything he had came from Me-the gifts, the talents, the aptitudes, the knowledge? Abel understood that I am the great provider, the lover of man’s soul. Cain did not. Abel honored Me, Cain honored himself. And that opened the door to sin – crouching outside, eager to enter and control. So a “simple” act of ingratitude opened the door to the progression to murder. That is how sin works. Starts small, seemingly inconsequential actions/thoughts/attitudes. But the lesser leads to greater and greater acts, more egregiously prideful and boastful thoughts, greater attitudes of ingratitude and self-aggrandizement. And as it progresses, the sins increase in number and gravity, leading to death – death of conscience, death of relationship with Me, death of the promise of eternal life. It is like dropping a bit of dye in a glass of water. The dye does not maintain its shape – it diffuses into the water, slightly coloring the clear liquid. With each drop of dye, the water becomes less and less clear. So with sin. Each sin leads to more distance from Me. Until, soon enough, your ability to hear My voice, to understand My Word, to feel remorse or guilt over your actions – all of that slowly dies and you are alone. Because if there is one thing you need to understand clearly and never forget – your enemy, once he has enticed you to enter into a sin state, leaves you all alone to suffer the consequences. He does not stay around to keep you company or help you deal with your decisions. Oh no. You are left standing all alone out in the cold.
Amanuensis 