Don’t Tear Others Down

Genesis 4:9-12 Later, the LORD said to Cain, “Where is your brother Abel?” Cain answered, “I don’t know. Is it my job to watch over my brother?” Then the Lord said, “What have you done? You killed your brother and the ground opened up to take his blood from your hands. Now his blood is shouting to me from the ground. So you will be cursed from this ground. Now when you work the soil, the ground will not help your plants grow. You will not have a home in this land. You will wander from place to place.”

Do you mind if I ask you today … how do you feel when you see others getting ahead, succeeding, basking in the limelight while you’re slogging away, unnoticed, doing your best, but never seeming to get anywhere? Come on, how does that make you feel?

Adam and Eve had two sons, Cain and Abel. Abel was a good kid, so when he offered his sacrifices to God, God accepted them willingly. Cain, not so much. He was turning out to be a bad dude so, despite his hard work, God rejected his sacrifices point-blank.

How did that make him feel? Well, he was so angry, so jealous that he went and murdered his brother. That’s how it made him feel!

Genesis 4:9-12 Later, the LORD said to Cain, “Where is your brother Abel?” Cain answered, “I don’t know. Is it my job to watch over my brother?” Then the Lord said, “What have you done? You killed your brother and the ground opened up to take his blood from your hands. Now his blood is shouting to me from the ground. So you will be cursed from this ground. Now when you work the soil, the ground will not help your plants grow. You will not have a home in this land. You will wander from place to place.”

So, even after eliminating the competition, God didn’t choose Cain. Not only did He reject Him, He turned the earth against him. He expelled him from the land, booted him out into an uncertain, nomadic existence.

Let’s get a revelation here. Tearing others down will never ever elevate us.

That’s God’s Word. Fresh … for you … today.