STATISTICS:
Father: Adam (Genesis 4:1)
Mother: Eve (Genesis 4:1)
Spouse: Unnamed wife (Genesis 4:17)
Brothers: Abel and Seth named (Genesis 4:2, 25)(Genesis 5:4)
First mention: Genesis 4:1
Final mention: Jude 1:11
Meaning of his name: "Acquisition"
Frequency of his name: Referred to 19 times
Biblical books mentioning him: Four books (Genesis, Hebrews, I John, Jude)
Occupation: Farmer, city builder (Genesis 4:3, 17)
Place of birth: Outside the Garden of Eden (Genesis 3:23-4:1)
Important fact about his life: He was the first baby to be born on earth (Genesis 4:1)
KEYS TO THE WORD:
Let us always be aware of the danger of the proliferation of false prophets. It started with Cain and continues today.
I. The Apostate
A. A Purely Human Scheme
True salvation revolves around three focal points. These are the Word of God, the work of Christ and the witness of the Spirit. Cain found a substitute for all three and founded a false religion. In Genesis 4:1-3 he substitutes his own religion for the Word of God. While he did not have the written record we have today, he had the witness of his parents as well as direct communication with the Lord (Genesis 4:9). There can be no doubt from the Scriptures that blood must be shed for an acceptable sacrifice (Exodus 12:3, I John 1:7, I Peter 1:18-19).
B. A Purely Human Sacrifice
Secondly, Cain failed to center his sacrifice on the work of Christ. While they looked forward to Christ rather than back as we do, the eternal plan of God was still in effect. It has already been mentioned of the necessity of a blood sacrifice. Cain no doubt, presented a beautiful and expensive sacrifice, Able, however, presented a sacrifice that was pleasing to God. While you or I might have admired the beauty of Cain's sacrifice, Genesis 4:3-4 made clear that it was not acceptable to God (Psalm 4:5).
C. A Purely Human Satisfaction
Genesis 4:5-7 points out that the third area of focus that Cain missed was the witness of the Spirit. There was not a sense of trying to please the Spirit, but rather a focus on what Cain felt was adequate. When the offering was rejected, Cain became angry in a flash. Every false religion that Satan has come up with since has shared this characteristic; an appeal to man's satisfaction rather than to pleasing the Holy Spirit (Psalm 51:17).
II. Assassin
A. The Murderer
Genesis 4:8-15 shows a pattern of behavior occurring for the first time, but unfortunately, not the last in the long, wicked history of the human race.
1. FORCE (Genesis 4:8)
2. FALSEHOOD (Genesis 4:9)
3. FUTILITY (Genesis 4:10-12)
4. FEAR (Genesis 4:13-15)
B. The Martyr
The long, rugged road traveled by God's people through the ages flows with the blood of martyrs. the first of these was Abel. He had no way of knowing that he was only the first of many. Satan's method from the first has been partial to silencing God's people through death. John the Baptist (Mark 6:24-28) and Stephen (Acts 7:60) also paid for their witness with their lives. In spite of Satan's temporary victories through the centuries, God is still in control (Job 1:12).
C. The Mark
Some might feel that God is negligent in allowing adversaries to take the life of Christians. This is not so. At this first martyrdom God clearly sets a standard. Anyone who persecutes His children is dealt with severely (Genesis 4:13). In addition to Biblical examples, history is replete with examples. Any nation or person aligned against Israel soon finds their stature diminished. Acts 9:4 shows how personally God takes persecution against His people.
III. Architect
A. His Direction
Genesis 4:16 is surely among the saddest in the Bible. Cain "...went out from the presence of the Lord..." How sad that he, that his mother thought to be the Messiah, (Genesis 3:15, 4:1) now is fleeing from the presence of God. We have no indication from the Scriptures that Cain ever became a saved man. He had been given many advantages and had received many chances, but at the moment of truth takes a disastrous direction. One is reminded of another moment of truth centuries later. In John 13:25-30, Judas Iscariot also took a perilous path when he left the presence of the Savior.
B. His Destination
He "...dwelt in the land of Nod...". Nod means wanderings. What an accurate picture! Anyone who is leaving the presence of God has just started to wander. How sad that the lost are dwelling in a place of instability. Even Christians can make their dwelling place far from God's comforting presence (Psalm 51:11).
C. His Design
Cain built a city (Genesis 4:17). He sought to build something as a substitute, for what God had provided, he had rejected. A city is a poor substitute for a garden. Ever since Cain started city-building, every society's worst problems have been manifested in its cities. The best of man's efforts could never approach what God has created (Genesis 11:4).
FINAL THOUGHT: In the case of Cain we have one who had many advantages who ended up as a false prophet. It is imperative that we be able to recognize these false prophets so that we may reject them. How can we do this?
First we must recognize THE FLEECE THEY WEAR (Matthew 7:15). There are three types of false prophets mentioned by the New Testament book of Jude (vs 11). They are the error of Cain which is perversion. This is the object of our study today and how prevalent it is in our society. False prophets abound who feel they can improve on the plan of God. Perversion of the Gospel is so prevalent today that many more follow its various permutations than follow the truth. The second example mentioned is Balaam who represents prostitution. these are those who had fallen prey to the call of riches or fame and perverted the Gospel in this way (II Peter 5:2). Lastly, the example is given of Core (Korah). This represents the protest of the Gospel. Numbers 16 outlines the story of Korah and his followers. They knew the plan of God, yet, plainly rejected it. This is more than perverting a part of it (Cain) or succumbing to monetary considerations (Balaam). This is strictly deciding to reject it. A Harvard biologist recently agreed that evolution broke all proven scientific laws. Nevertheless, he stated that he is still an evolutionist because to be anything other than this would confirm a God. He stated that he knew scientifically that there was a God but he chose to be an atheist anyway. The spirit of Korah is certainly alive and well in the halls of academia today.
Secondly, let us consider THE FRUIT THEY BEAR. We can determine false prophets by looking at their fruit (Matthew 7:16). Christ often talked of the laws of husbandry to illustrate the Christian life. We know three basic principles of husbandry are that the root determines the fruit, the fruit reveals the root and the seed (Word of God) determines the root and fruit. A reading of John chapter 15 can be edifying to us all in this area.
Thirdly, we notice THE FATE THEY SHARE. Matthew 7:23 tells us that God will say "...I never knew you: depart from me...". He will do this in spite of their false profession (vs 21), false preaching (vs 22a), false performance (vs 22b), and false power (vs 22c).
1. Eve mistakenly felt at the time of his birth that Cain was the promised _____________________________.
2. The three focal points around true salvation which Cain ignored are the _______________ of God, the ________________ of Christ and the ______________ of the Spirit.
3. Because he was killed for his beliefs, Abel became a _____________________ like Stephen and John the Baptist later became.
4. After leaving the garden, Cain went to the land of Nod which means ________________________.
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