Daily Bible Study

Tweet

Day 4 Genesis 4:1 And Adam knew Eve his wife; and she conceived, and bare Cain, and said, I have gotten a man from the LORD. 2 And she again bore his brother Abel. And Abel was a keeper of sheep, but Cain was a tiller of the ground. 3 And in process of time it came to pass, that Cain brought of the fruit of the ground an offering unto the LORD. 4 And Abel, he also brought of the firstlings of his flock and of the fat thereof. And the LORD had respect unto Abel and to his offering: 5 But unto Cain and to his offering he had not respect. And Cain was wroth, and his countenance fell. 6 And the LORD said unto “Cain, why art thou wroth? And why is thy countenance fallen? 7 If thou do well, shalt thou not be accepted? And if thou do not well, sin lies at the door. And unto thee shall be his desire, and thou shalt rule over him. What controls you? When you feel slighted by something someone said or did, you want to take action against the person. Your thoughts control everything you say and do. Nothing a person says to you will affect your determination to set things straight. Cain and Abel brought offerings to God. God looked at the offerings and told Cain his offering was unacceptable. He told Cain sin lay at the door of his heart. He didn’t bring his offering to please God, but to please himself. As Christians, you know when you come to God in prayer, you need to focus on God, not yourself, not on your selfish desires. Cain’s focus was on what he brought for a sacrifice. It was not on the act of worship to God. There are two ways people pray. In one instance, a person gives God a litany of all the things he did to show he is worthy of God’s attention. In another instance, the person feels his guilt and shame and brings a heartfelt confession to God of his unworthiness. Jesus spoke a parable about two such men. Luke 18:9 And he spoke this parable unto certain which trusted in themselves that they were righteous, and despised others: 10 “Two men went up into the temple to pray; the one a Pharisee, and the other a publican. 11 The Pharisee stood and prayed thus with himself, God, I thank thee, that I am not as other men are, extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even as this publican. 12 I fast twice in the week, I give tithes of all that I possess. 13 And the publican, standing afar off, would not lift up so much as his eyes unto heaven, but smote upon his breast, saying, God be merciful to me a sinner. 14 I tell you this man went down to his house justified rather than the other: for everyone who exalts himself shall be abased; and he who humbles himself shall be exalted. Prayer is not a competition for a better place in God’s love. Prayer is not making yourself better than another person. Prayer is humbling yourself before God and trusting Him to take care of you. Cain didn’t do that. He thought he could do whatever he wanted and God would accept him. Where is your focus when you pray? Do you feel justified by your actions, or do you feel unworthy of God’s love? Don’t let Satan rob you of the joy of being in God’s presence. Let’s pray: Father, give me a humble heart. I know I am unworthy. I know it is only the blood Jesus shed for me that brings me into Your presence. Let my focus be on You and not myself. In Jesus’ name, I pray. Amen. Copyright © 17 June 2021 by Valerie Routhieaux Image courtesy of Pixabay