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 master it. Genesis 4:7 (Genesis chapters 3 & 4)
The serpent, crafty as he was/is, brought into question the goodness of God. Does God really have our best interest at heart? Or is He just being a tormenting, lying bully? Satan was successful and brought sin, pain, toil and death to mankind. Creation was reversed, harmony disrupted. With banishment from the garden, Adam and Eve were cut off from ‘the tree of life’. Without God’s intervention, immediate separation for all eternity was man’s fate.
Cain brought a sacrifice to God, but something about this act of worship didn’t ring true. The sin in Cain’s heart became the sin in Cain’s action and his offering was rejected. He is reminded of God’s omnipotent knowledge and authority and implored to resist rebellion and simply obey.
The Bible story reveals over and over that God’s plan is Grace and Mercy and the restoration of man to the likeness of God. Sin has come, but it’s not the end of the story by any means! Man’s natural state is driven to self centered behavior, but God calls us to choose obedience. It is not impossible, but a choice, a very, very important, deliberate choice.
Love,
Gretchen