The Grands Letter

Dear Grands,

Genesis 4:8-16, “And it came about when they were in the field, that Cain rose
up against Abel his brother and killed him.
9 Then the LORD said to Cain, ‘Where is Abel your brother?’ And he said, ‘I do
not know. Am I my brother’s keeper?’
10 He said, “What have you done? The voice of your brother’s blood is crying to
Me from the ground. “Now you are cursed from the ground, which has opened
its mouth to receive your brother’s blood from your hand.
12 “When you cultivate the ground, it will no longer yield its strength to you; you
will be a vagrant and a wanderer on the earth.”
13 Cain said to the LORD, “My punishment is too great to bear!
14 “Behold, You have driven me this day from the face of the ground; and from
Your face I will be hidden, and I will be a vagrant and a wanderer on the earth,
and whoever finds me will kill me.”
15 So the LORD said to him, “Therefore whoever kills Cain, vengeance will be
taken on him sevenfold.” And the LORD appointed a sign for Cain, so that no
one finding him would slay him.
16 Then Cain went out from the presence of the LORD, and settled in the land
of Nod, east of Eden.”

There is indeed sufficient room in this letter to relate most, if not the entirety, of
the difficulty Cain had with Abel. Yet, what we can glean from the verses above
is sufficient as a background to their perfidious encounters. Simply stated, Cain
had received a stern rebuke from Adam, his father. Seething with hatred, Cain
took it all out on his brother, Abel.

Cain’s heated rebellion, however, was hardly comparable to that of his father,
Adam. I’m no psychologist, but I can proffer the question: Why do those, who
are disciplined for their own wrong, seem always to take it out on someone else?
It’s true that they do, in every discipline, and all the way up and down the line!
“He asked for it!” “He made me do it!” –and on and on it goes.

It’s noteworthy, too, that Cain ultimately “went out from the presence of the LORD.”
The Scriptures don’t specifically state it, but it’s true of human nature, that the
guilty parties remove themselves from the presence of the LORD and generally
“sulk” over their loss that was covered in their complaints.

We all make mistakes. Some of them are unintentional; many are not. When the
assessment of the difficulty reveals that we were at fault, we should admit the
fault (something that Cain did not do!), ask forgiveness (something else, Cain
did not do), and determine not to make the same mistake again.

When was the last time you were accused of wrong-doing? Were you gulty?
Did you ask the LORD’s forgiveness for the wrong you did? Did you promise
the LORD that you would not to do it again? You had better. Seriously, His
punishments will commence with ferver! Don’t get mad! Just get ahead of things
by not allowing His words to drive you to indescrible actions!

Heartily in Christ Jesus,

(Dado III)

Gene L. Jeffries, Th.D.
Springdale, Arkansas 72764
United States of America

“We never know that Christ is all we need until He becomes all that we have.” – Corrie ten Boom