Genesis Chapter 4 - The Consequences of Choices

Let’s take a look at the First Family of the Bible. The first created man and woman, Adam and Eve, procreated with God and gave birth to two sons, Cain and Abel. Cain was a farmer and Abel was a shepherd. They both brought offerings to the Lord, but God did not accept Cain’s sacrifice. However, He looked on Abel’s with favor. Could it be that Abel gave his best, and Cain offered only leftovers? Because of his jealousy, Cain killed Abel. God punished the world’s first murderer by sentencing him to wandering the earth. However, God put a mark on Cain so no one would kill him. After that Adam and Eve had another son named Seth.

Here we are only in the fourth chapter of the book of beginnings and we already have a murder. It doesn’t take long for sin to fester and boil over. What began with a wrong choice for Adam and Eve has now cost them the life of their son. We never know how far reaching will be the results of the choices we make.

Before Cain had committed murder God warned him, "Sin is crouching at your door; it desires to have you, but you must master it." Those are good words for us to give heed to. There will always be the temptation to sin as long as we walk this earth, but with God’s help we can overcome that temptation.

God does not want us to choose evil, but to choose Him. He gives us nudges along the way that He is there for us. Only when we become determined to have our own way, as Adam, Eve, and Cain had done, do we become mastered by sin. We need to count the cost of our choices before we so willingly and thoughtlessly make them. Each choice has a consequence and an outcome. What price are we willing to pay for the choices we make?