August 15, 2024
Cain and Abel -- Part 4
Genesis 4:8-10
08/15/2024
8 Cain spoke to Abel his brother. And when they were
in the field, Cain rose up against his brother
Abel and killed him.
9 Then the LORD said to Cain, ``Where is Abel your
brother?'' He said, ``I do not know; am I my
brother's keeper?''
10 And the LORD said, ``What have you done? The voice
of your brother's blood is crying to me from the
ground.'' (ESV)
Cain spoke to Abel his brother. And when they were in
the field, Cain rose up against his brother Abel 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?'' And the LORD said, ``What have you
done? The voice of your brother's blood is crying to me
from the ground.''
The story of Cain and Abel is a warning about pride,
jealousy, and sin. Repeatedly Moses speaks of the relation
between the two men, they were brothers, the eldest of Adam's
children. Rather than being the hope of redemption as desired by
Eve, Cain showed how sin and rebelliousness is passed from father
to child. No one born of a human father can redeem another from
sin and eternal death.
Yet, God accused Cain saying that we are our brother's
keeper. The way we treat each other is a reflection on the way
we accept God's rich grace and mercy. Those who reject the
physical and spiritual gifts from God also are selfish towards
their neighbor.
Many years after Cain introduced murder as the ultimate harm
to another, God indeed sent the Redeemer expected by Eve because
of God's promise. Jesus, who is truly the son of man, born of
the virgin Mary, and the Son of God, conceived by the Holy
Spirit, bore the price of our sin. As we are called by the
Gospel, given faith in Jesus Christ by the Holy Spirit working
through Word and Sacrament, we reflect God's love in our dealings
with others. We delight in loving our neighbors, in being our
brother's keeper.
May our Lord, who has begun this good work in us, bring it
to completion in the day of our Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.