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Tag: Genesis

Keeper of sheep

The latter part of Genesis 4:2 speaks about the professions of the sons of Adam. Abel was a keeper of sheep, and Cain was a tiller of the ground.

As keeper of sheep, Abel brought of the firstlings of his flock and of the fat thereof and the Lord accepted his offering. Leviticus chapter 3 speaks about the procedures of a peace offering and highlights that the fat of the animal being offered is a special gift to the Lord (Leviticus 3:9) and that all of the fat must be presented to the Lord (Leviticus 3:9,14) because all of the fat is the Lord’s (Leviticus 3:16). In other words, not only did Abel brings the first of his flock, expressing that God was his priority, but he also brought a complete offering (all of it including its fat), expressing that God was also his pre-eminence.

Points to ponder:
God wants us to offer ourselves as a first and full offering – a living sacrifice (Romans 12:1). He was us to give him priority and pre-eminence.

On a separate note, Jesus is the chief Shepherd (1 Peter 5:4), and the people are his sheep (Luke 15). Jesus asked Peter, if Peter loved him and told him that if Peter loved Jesus, Peter must keep i.e., feed and take care of his lambs/sheep (John 21:15-17). In like manner we are commanded to love God totally (Mark 12:30) and we are commissioned to be keepers of his sheep (John 21:15-17). Let us be keepers of sheep, which is an expression of our love of God. Are you/Am I a keeper of sheep?

Genesis 4:2-5 (KJV)
And she again bare his brother Abel. And Abel was a keeper of sheep, but Cain was a tiller of the ground.
And in process of time it came to pass, that Cain brought of the fruit of the ground an offering unto the Lord.
And Abel, he also brought of the firstlings of his flock and of the fat thereof. And the Lord had respect unto Abel and to his offering:
But unto Cain and to his offering he had not respect. And Cain was very wroth, and his countenance fell.

Tiller of Ground

The latter part of Genesis 4:2 speaks about the professions of the sons of Adam. Abel was a keeper of sheep, and Cain was a tiller of the ground.

As tiller of the ground, Cain brought of the fruit of the ground (note: not all the fruit of the ground). The ground was cursed as a result of man’s disobedience and the fruit of the ground was the by-product of man’s effort and sweat (Genesis 3:17-19) which God did not accept as an acceptable offering.

Points to ponder:
God is not interested in our efforts and works for they cannot gain his acceptance. It is by grace (of Jesus Chris) and grace alone and not by our works that God accepts us in his beloved (Ephesians 1:6). Are you/Am I a tiller of the ground?

Genesis 4:2-5 (KJV)
And she again bare his brother Abel. And Abel was a keeper of sheep, but Cain was a tiller of the ground.
And in process of time it came to pass, that Cain brought of the fruit of the ground an offering unto the Lord.
And Abel, he also brought of the firstlings of his flock and of the fat thereof. And the Lord had respect unto Abel and to his offering:
But unto Cain and to his offering he had not respect. And Cain was very wroth, and his countenance fell.

The pre-requisite for being fruitful

Genesis 4:1-2 reads “And Adam knew Eve his wife; and she conceived and bare Cain, and said, I have gotten a man from the LORD. And she again bare his brother Abel. And Abel was a keeper of sheep, but Cain was a tiller of the ground.

Cain and Abel were God’s reward, the fruit of the womb (Psalm 127:3) who came about because of intimacy shared between Adam and Eve.

It is no surprise that in the physical sense, intimacy is a pre-requisite for being fruitful. In like manner, in the spiritual sense, without being intimate with God, one cannot bear fruit.

Jesus said, unless we abide in him and he in us, we cannot bear fruit (John 15:4). The fruit of God’s spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness and temperance (Galatians 5:22-23), which we cannot bear unless we know God intimately. In fact, to know God is eternal life (John 17:3) and those who do not bear good fruit is [to be] hewn down and cast into the fire (Matthew 7:19).

Points to ponder:
The pre-requisite for bearing the fruit of the Spirit is being intimate with God. Are you/Am I fruitful, as a follower of Jesus, bearing fruit again and again?

Genesis 4:1-2 (KJV)
And Adam knew Eve his wife; and she conceived, and bare Cain, and said, I have gotten a man from the Lord.
And she again bare his brother Abel. And Abel was a keeper of sheep, but Cain was a tiller of the ground.

John 15:4-5 (KJV)
Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, except it abide in the vine; no more can ye, except ye abide in me.
I am the vine, ye are the branches: He that abideth in me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit: for without me ye can do nothing.

Galatians 5:22-23 (KJV)
22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith,
23 Meekness, temperance: against such there is no law.

John 17:3 (KJV)
And this is life eternal, that they might know thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent.

Jesus in the OT :: Genesis

The book of Genesis gives us a glimpse of who Jesus is in the Old Testament (O.T).

Genesis starts with ‘In the beginning God’ and sometimes I wish that it had stopped there. God was in the beginning and has to be in the beginning of our lives. Many take the Scriptures and change it, interpret it on their own without the Spirit’s revelation, leading to dogmas, heresies and misinterpretation. We have heard umpteen messages on the creation of man, the Fall of man, banishment from God’s presence, the Curse and even the first messianic prophecy as recorded in Genesis 3:15, wherein God curses satan saying that I will put enmity between you and the woman, between thy seed and her seed (talking about Jesus) and He shall bruise (crush) thy head (Golgotha shaped as a Skull) and thou shalt bruise his heel (Jesus’ heel was pierced on the Cross).

But seldom do we talk about Christ in the Creation. He was present in the tribunal meeting in which God said, Let us (the Trinity of God – Father, Son and Holy Spirit) make man in our own image. Author Nathan Stone in the book “Names of God” writes that In Genesis, where it says, In the beginning, God, the word “Elohim” is used for God and the striking peculiarity of this name “Elohim” is that is plural. Jesus, the Son of God, was in the beginning with God, who was and is God (John 1:1). We see Jesus Christ the Creator.

Also we see in Genesis 14:18-20 that Abram was blessed by a priest of the Most high God, whose was the King of Salem, whose name was Melchizedek. Melchizedek offered bread and wine to Abram. Hebrews 6:20 and Hebrews 7:1-3 talks about Christ after the order of Melchizedek, priest of the Most high God who had no father, no mother, no descent without beginning (alpha) or end (omega). Jesus was in the beginning and will be there in the end. He is eternal (Psalm 90:2 – from everlasting to everlasting thou art God).

In Genesis, Jesus is the Creator God and the priest of the Most High God, who offered his body (as broken bread) and his blood (as shed wine), who exists from everlasting to everlasting.

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