Gleanings for February 2

Knowledge Puffs up; LOVE EDIFIES

Genesis 4: 9 & 10 NKJV: “Then the Lord said to Cain, Where is Abel your brother? He said, I do not know, Am I my brother’s keeper?” And God said, “What have you done? The voice of your brother’s blood cries out to Me from the ground.”

Life outside the Garden of Eden had begun! Cain and Abel are the first sons of Adam and Eve who are mentioned in the Bible. The offering that Cain brought was from something he had produced with his own hands; the “firstborn” from the sheep which Abel was tending, became his sacrifice.

“Even as Adam’s attempt to use fig leaves for a covering was rejected, so was Cain’s offering, but Abel’s offering of a blood sacrifice was pleasing to God.” (That is a quotation from Kingdom Dynamics). In Verse7 of the 4^th Chapter, God tells Cain: “If you do well, you will be accepted; if you do not do well, sin lies at your door.” That is a very strong statement—it implies that “sin” is “virtually personified” almost like a crazed animal waiting to jump out to kill.

Pride was in the heart of Cain and it brought forth a jealous reaction toward his brother which brought about the first recorded murder. Generally speaking, everyone knows it is wrong to take the life of another person; along with that truth, the theme of “brotherhood” and the question of “responsibility” for other people, is a subject we learn about through this scripture. It is very clear that God places “high priority” on the way we treat one another, “blood brothers” but also “spiritual” relationships.

Prejudice is sin; in one sense, that is “good news” because SIN has been dealt with on the Cross. You may think that is a much too “simplistic” answer. No, until we go to the root cause of prejudice, it will never be done away with. John 8:44 says: “The devil was a murderer from the beginning and does not stand in the truth…he speaks from his own resources, for he is a liar and the father of it.”

Lies; incorrect knowledge, can be the source of prejudice. One scripture verse says this about knowledge when truth is left out:

I Corinthians 8: 1b: “Knowledge puffs up (or is arrogant) but LOVE edifies” (builds up). That is the thought we wish to leave with you today. We can learn from incidents such as we have in the scripture today. Check up on your own heart; do you find a “seed” of pride, jealousy, or prejudice there? If your answer is “yes”—I offer you this solution:

1^st Corinthians 13:4 - 8a: New Living Bible “Love is patient and kind. Love is not jealous or boastful or proud or rude. Love does not demand its own way. Love is not irritable, and it keeps no record of when it has been wronged. It is never glad about injustice but rejoices whenever the truth wins out. Love never gives up, never loses faith, is always hopeful, and endures through every circumstance. LOVE WILL LAST FOREVER.” Or as the NKJV puts it: LOVE NEVER FAILS!! Do you believe that? If you do, you will know:

THE JOY OF THE LORD IS YOUR STRENGTH!!!