Genesis 4
9 And the LORD said unto Cain, Where is Abel thy brother? And he said, I know not: Am I my brother's keeper?
10 And he said, What hast thou done? the voice of thy brother's blood crieth unto me from the ground.
11 And now art thou cursed from the earth, which hath opened her mouth to receive thy brother's blood from thy hand;
12 When thou tillest the ground, it shall not henceforth yield unto thee her strength; a fugitive and a vagabond shalt thou be in the earth.
We are all murderers. If we have ever hated anyone, then we have as much as committed the same crime that Cain committed.
Matthew 5
21 Ye have heard that it was said by them of old time, Thou shalt not kill; and whosoever shall kill shall be in danger of the judgment:
22 But I say unto you, That whosoever is angry with his brother without a cause shall be in danger of the judgment: and whosoever shall say to his brother, Raca, shall be in danger of the council: but whosoever shall say, Thou fool, shall be in danger of hell fire.
None of us have ever lived without sin. Adam was perfect until he disobeyed, and that is what sin is: disobedience.
I remember reading about Cain when I was younger and thinking of how crude and mean he was for doing such a horrible thing. Now I realize how mean and crude I am each time I choose to make a decision to be angry at someone, or to dislike them. Love has become the answer to any emotion I may have. I can feel as if I do not like someone, yet treat them with love and respect and let God speak through me with my life.
Romans 12
19 Dearly beloved, avenge not yourselves, but rather give place unto wrath: for it is written, Vengeance is mine; I will repay, saith the Lord.
20 Therefore if thine enemy hunger, feed him; if he thirst, give him drink: for in so doing thou shalt heap coals of fire on his head.
21 Be not overcome of evil, but overcome evil with good.
I have found that in doing so, I have made many friends that I would otherwise not have had. These friends have proved, sometimes, more loyal than those who were chosen for their good character.
God's Grace has saved us while we, ourselves were yet sinners. (Romans 5:8). This means that while we were at enmity with God, He loved us enough to send His own son to take the punishment for us. Should we not do the same and offer such love to someone else in our lives who does not deserve it?
Genesis 4:9
“And the LORD said unto Cain, Where is Abel thy brother? And he said, I know not: Am I my brother's keeper?”
As Christians, it is, indeed, our duty to be our "brother's keeper". When we see a fellow Christian struggling with a need, we are to help him or her lift their burdens. It is our duty to care for the sick, feed the hungry, relieve the poor and oppressed and tired.
When was the last time you passed by that hungry transient on the street corner holding up a sign? Did you ignore him, or did you stop to take the time to get to know him? Sometimes getting to know someone is more important than dropping a dime in his hat. When you get to know them, you become less judgmental and more knowledgeable on how to give the hand up he or she needs.
John 13
34 A new commandment I give unto you, That ye love one another; as I have loved you, that ye also love one another.
35 By this shall all men know that ye are my disciples, if ye have love one to another.
"I just want to know that God loves me and that He cares about what I am going through..."
I can't count how many times, in some form or another, I have heard people say this. Yet, the Bible is full of God telling us that He loves us. His actions, His Word, His intentions; they all speak love for us. The biggest thing He ever did to prove His love to us was sending Jesus to this earth, watching Him suffer and die for our sins.
You see, know matter how much it hurts Him, He cannot lie. So, if He says something has to happen for something else to happen, then it will be so, no matter what. God said, in the Old Testament, that we had to sacrifice a lamb without blemish, sprinkle its blood on ourselves and the altar, and burn it for each and every sin that we committed. After a while, that would get expensive, don't you think? And, if you were poor, it would be impossible! I don't know about you, but I don't think any amount of money in the world could purchase enough lambs to pay for my sins.
So, God did us a favor. He sent Jesus:
2 Corinthians 5:21
“For he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him.”
Jesus was the Lamb that God sent to be the final payment for each and every sin we have ever, or will ever commit. All we have to do is realize that we have sinned, and pray that God forgives us IN JESUS' NAME. If we don't use the name of Jesus in that prayer, it means nothing.
Acts 4:12
“Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved.”
God did this because He loves us.
John 3:
16 For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.
17 For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved.
"But, how do I know God loves ME?"
Simple. Do you have the capacity to love? Do you practice love?
John 4
7 Beloved, let us love one another: for love is of God; and every one that loveth is born of God, and knoweth God.
8 He that loveth not knoweth not God; for God is love.
9 In this was manifested the love of God toward us, because that God sent his only begotten Son into the world, that we might live through him.
10 Herein is love, not that we loved God, but that he loved us, and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins.
11 Beloved, if God so loved us, we ought also to love one another.
So, when someone tells me they wish that God would do something to show them that He loves them, I say, "He already did! Two thousand years ago, He sent you Jesus. And, Jesus is with you today!"
Matthew 1:23
“Behold, a virgin shall be with child, and shall bring forth a son, and they shall call his name Emmanuel, which being interpreted is, God with us.”
If you do not feel love in your heart at any time, then God is not with you. But, if you love, then God is in it! That is how you know that He is there.
John 4:
15 Whosoever shall confess that Jesus is the Son of God, God dwelleth in him, and he in God.
16 And we have known and believed the love that God hath to us. God is love; and he that dwelleth in love dwelleth in God, and God in him.
Those who ask the question, "Does God love me?" are fearful. They wonder if the suffering of this world is all that they have to look forward to. And, if God cares, why doesn't He do something?
John 4:
18 There is no fear in love; but perfect love casteth out fear: because fear hath torment. He that feareth is not made perfect in love.
This type of torment leads to depression and hopelessness. It can lead to anger against God and man. It causes more problems in your life than it solves. Love, on the other hand, dissolves any problem you can have. It makes those problems that won't go away bearable. It provides fulfillment. When you act in love, you are letting God live through you.
1 Corinthians 12:
27 Now ye are the body of Christ, and members in particular.
(Because I like to teach others what I know, I jokingly refer to myself as God's appendix. The appendix helps the immune system to stay strong in the human body).
So, in serving God, all He is asking us to really do is to love one another. If we can do that, then all other things fall into place, and His will can be made perfect in your life. Your life will have no choice but to glorify Him. And, every door that opens to you will be an act of God on your behalf.
Therefore, as an imperfect human being who is learning to love like Jesus loved, it starts not to matter whether others love me back, or treat me with kindness, respect, honor, or any other way that is good. Love is something you are supposed to practice with even your enemies, those who mistreat you, misjudge you, hate you, and persecute you. When you can say:
2 Corinthians 12:15
“And I will very gladly spend and be spent for you; though the more abundantly I love you, the less I be loved.”
That is when you KNOW that God is with you, and that He DOES love YOU!
Proverbs 4:23
“Keep thy heart with all diligence; for out of it are the issues of life.”
To all of you women out there who keep jumping from one relationship to another: Take it from someone who has been there, someone who knows...
Stop giving to men what belongs to God! Until you start giving to God what you have been giving men, you will never find true happiness and lasting peace!
God will let you be who you are and make you want to be who you become. He does not box you in, isolate you from your family or friends, place stupid rules on where you can go and what you can do while you are there. He will let you decide what to do with your time, and He will magnify you when you choose to spend it with HIM.
If you are angry because you are in a bad relationship, then you need to stop and think: WHO was it that made the decision for you to enter into that relationship? It was YOU. God allows you to make your own choices. If He didn't, you would be a robot. God doesn't want robots! He wants someone who genuinely loves HIM for who HE is, just like He is willing to love YOU for who He created YOU to be! So, stop blaming God for your troubles, and give Him the authority to direct your path from now on!
If you are heartbroken over a failed relationship, then stop dwelling over what you have lost and start focusing on what you have yet to gain!
Maybe you have prayed that God send someone to love you. If you would stop and open your eyes, you would realize that He sent someone who loved you enough to die for you on a cross over 2,000 years ago! And, HE is still waiting for you to love Him back!
