Same with us. Why? And sin has pounced, turned him into a murderer, turned him into a liar. For those of you visiting with us, we are in a study of origins, and Genesis is the book of origins. Wisdom Literature Cassuto, the Hebrew commentator, translates it that way. Daily devotional with John Piper. God didnt establish an illustration of personal vengeance here. Genesis 24: 6/30/1993: God's Passion for a Pure Church: Acts 4:32-5:11: 7/11/1993: The War of the Ages, Part 2 . You see, in the words of James 1, lust was at work in him. The curse was on the woman. And even though God had pronounced a curse on Cain, He was still going to extend some grace to him. Here is demonstration that somebody innocent has to die in the sinners place, and thats what substitutionary death was all about. All rights reserved. This is characteristic of doomed people. This teaching is made available from Grace to You. Please login or create an account to use this feature, Learn More | Livestream | Bulletin And to reinforce his resentment, he recites the curse, as if such a recitation in Gods ears is going to make God change His mind. God could have said, Okay, Im going to ask your father, Adam, to kill you. There was no government at this point. Our website uses cookies to store user preferences. This is a murder done because there was a feeling of being inferior to righteous Abel, and his righteousness became intolerable to Cain. General Epistles Because they were preparing to enter Canaan and dispossess the Canaanite inhabitants of their homes and properties, God revealed their enemies background. GenesisExodusLeviticusNumbersDeuteronomyJoshuaJudgesRuth1 Samuel2 Samuel1 Kings2 Kings1 Chronicles2 ChroniclesEzraNehemiahEstherJobPsalmsProverbsEcclesiastesSong of SongsIsaiahJeremiahLamentationsEzekielDanielHoseaJoelAmosObadiahJonahMicahNahumHabakkukZephaniahHaggaiZechariahMalachiMatthewMarkLukeJohnActsRomans1 Corinthians2 CorinthiansGalatiansEphesiansPhilippiansColossians1 Thessalonians2 Thessalonians1 Timothy2 TimothyTitusPhilemonHebrewsJames1 Peter2 Peter1 John2 John3 JohnJudeRevelation, Select an Ending Point 22:3). Please see Blue Letter Bible's Privacy Policy for cookie usage details. Blue Letter Bible is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization. I dont want righteousness, I dont want God, I dont want forgiveness, I want sin. Jesus said it this way, Men loved darkness rather than light because- what? Poor Eve. Maybe she believed that this was the fulfillment of that promise from God, that this was the one who would come and would bruise the serpents head. GenesisExodusLeviticusNumbersDeuteronomyJoshuaJudgesRuth1 Samuel2 Samuel1 Kings2 Kings1 Chronicles2 ChroniclesEzraNehemiahEstherJobPsalmsProverbsEcclesiastesSong of SongsIsaiahJeremiahLamentationsEzekielDanielHoseaJoelAmosObadiahJonahMicahNahumHabakkukZephaniahHaggaiZechariahMalachiMatthewMarkLukeJohnActsRomans1 Corinthians2 CorinthiansGalatiansEphesiansPhilippiansColossians1 Thessalonians2 Thessalonians1 Timothy2 TimothyTitusPhilemonHebrewsJames1 Peter2 Peter1 John2 John3 JohnJudeRevelation, Select a Beginning Point Genesis 2:4-7. You got to be kidding. If we lived in a society without government, without police, if we lived in an anarchy, murder would be going on all the time. Your face will be lifted up. Genesis 1:1 Series: The Battle for the Beginning The How, Why, and When of Creation, Part 2A Pastor John MacArthur May 23, 2011 Genesis 1:1 Series: The Battle for the Beginning The How, Why, and When of Creation, Part 1B Pastor John MacArthur May 20, 2011 Genesis 1:1 Series: The Battle for the Beginning The How, Why, and When of Creation, Part 1A 8:4; Mark 12:26; Luke 16:29; 24:27, 44; John 5:46; 7:22; Acts 15:1; Rom. Pentateuch Behold, thou hast driven me this day from the face of the ground, and from thy face I shall be hidden, and I will be a vagrant and a wanderer on the earth, and it will come about that whoever finds me will kill me. 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, lest anyone finding him should slay him. Eight. God would have still applied the sacrifice of Christ to Cain and forgiven him if he had repented. This is what youre doing to me. John MacArthur Sermon:The First Sacrifice (Genesis 3:20-24) He let him live. Sin was deeply embedded in Cain. And Abels name (hebel) means a mere breath. And certainly he was aptly named because his life was so very brief. Major Prophets Those are the wonderful, wonderful promises of the Bible in many scriptures, but the one that always comes to my mind when I think about that is the sixth chapter of Romans, verse 12. And that was what God offered Cain. You dont have to be motivated by this anger. He flees the scene of his crime, carries on the ruse of his self-righteousness. Unbelievers (or the doomed) reject the Word of God. Thank you for registering. It says, Cain rose up against Abel, his brother, and killed him. His brother is emphatic in the Hebrew, emphasizing the closeness, the intimacy. Ive read paragraph after paragraph about what it is, page after page, nobody knows what it is. That is the settled conclusion to the matter. In this book of beginnings, God revealed Himself and a worldview to Israel which contrasted, at times sharply, with the worldview of Israels neighbors. Bible Introductions - Genesis by John MacArthur - Blue Letter Bible Eve and Adam had other children, and they intermarried, and they produced children and more and more children. The Old Testament But again, at some time, she gave birth to his brother, Abel. If you do well, will not your countenance be lifted up? Ultimately, the Jewish nation would understand a selected portion of preceding world history and the inaugural background of Israel as a basis by which they would live in their new beginnings under Joshuas leadership in the land which had previously been promised to their original patriarchal forefather, Abraham. Cain told his brother (could be talked with, spoke with his brother) and the conversation either occurred in the field or set up a meeting in the field. God would see that he never, ever was able again to make another offering of the fruit of the ground. The next point: In spite of that, the doomed are eventually indicted by God. The woman trying to get control, the woman being, as it were, the predator, trying to pounce and take every inch of power or territory she can get and the man constantly trying to subdue, and thats the conflict of marriage among the fallen, only to be really reversed in the power of the gospel and the power of the Holy Spirit. Scripture: Genesis 2:18-25. We are in Genesis chapter 4. God moves from being the interrogator to being the investigator to then being the prosecutor, and there are no more questions. Used by permission. Sun Valley, CA 91352, MF 8:00 am5:00 pm Wisdom Literature Our website uses cookies to store user preferences. Copyright 2023 Grace Community Church. The Whole Bible Cain was a worshiper, and he even worshiped the true God, the God he knew to be the creator God, but he worshiped Him in a false and wrong way. He loved the world, so the love of God was not in him, 1 John 2. -repentance.. John MacArthur is the pastor-teacher of Grace Community Church in Sun Valley, California, as well as an author, conference speaker, chancellor of The Master's University and Seminary, and featured teacher with the Grace to You media ministry. They also enjoy the enthusiastic company of their fifteen grandchildren. This is that pattern that you see in the sinner who will not acknowledge his sin. That ground, which has received your brothers blood, that ground which yielded you the crops will be reluctant to yield its bounty to you from now on. Luke-Acts Look at this in verse 15. Pauline Epistles You cant grow anything, you dont have any animals. God designed capital punishment to be carried out by society, not as a matter of personal vengeance. Why are you so angry at me and angry at your brother? And then He says to him in very gracious words, This doesnt have to be the end of the story, this doesnt have to be the way it is. Look at verse 7. GenesisExodusLeviticusNumbersDeuteronomyJoshuaJudgesRuth1 Samuel2 Samuel1 Kings2 Kings1 Chronicles2 ChroniclesEzraNehemiahEstherJobPsalmsProverbsEcclesiastesSong of SongsIsaiahJeremiahLamentationsEzekielDanielHoseaJoelAmosObadiahJonahMicahNahumHabakkukZephaniahHaggaiZechariahMalachiMatthewMarkLukeJohnActsRomans1 Corinthians2 CorinthiansGalatiansEphesiansPhilippiansColossians1 Thessalonians2 Thessalonians1 Timothy2 TimothyTitusPhilemonHebrewsJames1 Peter2 Peter1 John2 John3 JohnJudeRevelation, Select an Ending Point No more questions. Theres no other way to understand this than common grace. Here is demonstration that the sinner deserves to die. Email / username or password was incorrect! Genesis was written after the Exodus (ca. My punishment is too great to bear. That is not repentance, folks. Your brothers blood is crying to me from the ground. Really an important sentence in the Bible. We pray in your Sons name. Pastor John MacArthur March 9, 2023 Facing a Tolerant World with Intolerant Truth (Selected Scriptures) Pastor John MacArthur Jan. 1, 2023 The Life-Giving Shepherd (John 10:1-11) Pastor John MacArthur Dec. 25, 2022 Prayer: The Believer's Constant Conversation (Ephesians 6:18-24) Pastor John MacArthur Dec. 18, 2022 Grace to You Sermons; The Study Bible; Blog; Devotionals; Sermons; Donate. I dont know what it is. While it is difficult to pinpoint precisely the historical moment for which this book was written, Israel first heard Genesis sometime prior to crossing the Jordan River and entering the Promised Land (ca. The doomed fail to appreciate common grace. They resent the true people of God. Has a hopeful beginning but soon offers unacceptable worship in his self-styled religion. Genesis 1250 (patriarchal history) explained to Israel how they came into existence as a family whose ancestry could be traced to Eber (hence the Hebrews; Gen. 10:24, 25) and even more remotely to Shem, the son of Noah (hence the Semites; Gen. 10:21). Individual instructors or editors may still require the use of URLs. You will be a wanderer. Thank you for registering. Bible Introductions - Galatians by John MacArthur - Blue Letter Bible And he adds this: Itll come about that whoever finds me will kill me. I know whatll happen. GenesisExodusLeviticusNumbersDeuteronomyJoshuaJudgesRuth1 Samuel2 Samuel1 Kings2 Kings1 Chronicles2 ChroniclesEzraNehemiahEstherJobPsalmsProverbsEcclesiastesSong of SongsIsaiahJeremiahLamentationsEzekielDanielHoseaJoelAmosObadiahJonahMicahNahumHabakkukZephaniahHaggaiZechariahMalachiMatthewMarkLukeJohnActsRomans1 Corinthians2 CorinthiansGalatiansEphesiansPhilippiansColossians1 Thessalonians2 Thessalonians1 Timothy2 TimothyTitusPhilemonHebrewsJames1 Peter2 Peter1 John2 John3 JohnJudeRevelation, Select an Ending Point I dont know. John MacArthur is the pastor-teacher of Grace Community Church in Sun Valley, California, as well as an author, conference speaker, president of The Masters University and Seminary, and featured teacher with the Grace to You media ministry. Acts 7:22). Verse 16, Cain went out from the presence of the Lord. No comment, no comment on Gods invitation to him to do the right thing, no comment on God sparing his life and giving him space to repent, no comment on God becoming His protector. He says, You can either repent and do whats right, and Ill forgive you and your face will be lifted up, or you can just keep doing what youre doing, and just hold onto your sin, and youre going to fight it all your life as its going to be like a hungry lion waiting to chew you up. John Piper Jan 28, 2007. Take a look at whats going on in you. 17:14; Num. Thats how youre going to live your life- unsuccessfully. And thats the curse. Poetical Books Now, this indicates that the population may have been growing, certainly soon would be growing. And your whole life is going to be a battle to master sin.. Same context as we read earlier about Cain. The Blue Letter Bible ministry and the BLB Institute hold to the historical, Interestingly enough, Cain must have married his sister, which was, in the early plan and purpose of God, not the problem that it would be today in the decline of the gene pool and intermarriage in a family. The time frames of these 3 segments are: 1) Creation to ca. God pulls him into the court. And I think theres a third reason God allowed him to live. And thats why Romans 10, when it describes the sinner- you know, sometimes we think sinners are really pretty nice people, they just dont have enough information. God made mankind the crowning point of His creation, i.e., His companions who would enjoy fellowship with Him and bring glory to His name. Therefore, do not let sin reign in your mortal body, that you should obey its lusts. John MacArthur's 25th Anniversary Celebration: Selected Scriptures: 2/6/1994: The Seven Bowl Judgment, Part 2 . Blue Letter Bible is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization. Cookie Notice: Number four. Actually, its possible to translate: and from thy face I will seek to hide. Oh, how I pray for any who are in the way of Cain. So now God says, Im going to make sure nobody takes your life. Secondly, government. Theyre going to hate you. God had given him a curse and yet protected him from death, which would have given him an opportunity to say, Im sorry. I have been so preoccupied and so devoured by the theme that we have been dealing with in the morning that its a challenge to be able to sort of unthink all of that and replace it with the matters before us tonight. If youre going to let me live, then I repent. He doesnt do that. God places that vengeance in the hands of a duly constituted government, a court, but no personal vengeance. He required a sacrifice of the very best. Johannine Writings The Lord then said to Cain, Where is Abel, your brother? And again, remember, God doesnt need information. So heres a doomed unbeliever. Theres more, another thought that comes out of this text, and well hurry to a conclusion. But it says in Romans 3:10, There is none righteous, no not one. The completed registration allows us to send order and donation receipts to the email address you provided. At that time, they will partake, wearing robes washed in the blood of the Lamb (Rev. You did it. His religion was hypocritical, self-righteous, and false. Prophets Recognizing the value of consistent reflection upon the Word of God in order to refocus one's mind and heart upon Christ and His Gospel of peace, we provide several reading plans designed to cover the entire Bible in a year. Cookie Notice: So it is reasonable to assume that somewhere along the line- and its hard to be dogmatic about this. Pastor John MacArthur tells of reading a book that told of a pastor who had been sent to prison for robbing 14 banks to finance his numerous engagements with prostitutes. This is the sinners obstinate rebelliousness. Soon after these boys had reached adulthood, all of those wonderful hopeful beginnings for Cain came to an abrupt end, and his real spiritual condition was clearly revealed, and it was revealed in an act of worship, and that took us to the second point: The doomed offer unacceptable worship. Apparently, Cain doesnt feel he needs a substitute, he doesnt feel that death needs to occur on his behalf. John MacArthur is the pastor-teacher of Grace Community Church in Sun Valley, California, as well as an author, conference speaker, president of The Master's University and Seminary, and featured teacher with the Grace to You media ministry. Written by John MacArthur. Do not go on presenting the members of your body to sin as instruments of unrighteousness, but present yourselves to God as those alive from the dead and your members as instruments of righteousness to God. He wont even acknowledge his sin. Sinners will deny their sin. He was angry. Wisdom Literature Remember that? Pauline Epistles And Abel, on his part, also brought of the firstlings of his flock and of their fat portions. Register. Poetical Books I mean there were only the two of them and their parents. Now lets pick it up where we left off. He says to Cain, Look, if you dont do whats right, then youre going to live your life trying to master sin, and sin is going to be like a predatory lion trying to devour you, and you are trying to control it. It is part of their attitude to be angry with the Bible, to be angry with the God of the Bible, to be angry with those who believe the Bible. John 3:16, Jesus faith love), Select a Beginning Point That was the Word of God to Cain. I repent. If you do that, your face will be lifted up in joy. John is also president and featured teacher with Grace to You. You remember the- Luke 18, the publican went into the temple to pray with the Pharisee, and he was beating on his breast saying, God, be merciful to me, a sinner and the text says he wouldnt so much as do what? Wisdom Literature Study with him the Genesis of the Gospel to find the answers not only to those big cosmic questions, but also to discover the extraordinary privileges God has given women, what strong male leadership looks like, and how that all ties in to God's ultimate triumph over the tragedies that began in the garden. ), but before Moses death (ca. Youll just be a vagrant.