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After seeing man's first fall and God's proclamation of the glad tidings as recorded in Gen. 3, we now come to Gen. 4. Apparently we are studying the fall; actually we are considering the glad tidings. If there had been no fall, there would have been no glad tidings. Praise the Lord for the fall! Man's fall has brought in God's gospel. In this message we come to a further step of man's fall and also to a further step in the proclamation of God's glad tidings.
At the time of Genesis 4 man had already fallen (Gen. 3:6-8, 22-24). Nevertheless, man had received God's promise of salvation (Gen. 3:15) and had obtained God's way of salvation (Gen. 3:21). When God promised Adam that the seed of the woman would bruise the head of the serpent, Adam believed and responded by calling his wife "Living." Adam and Eve had been awaiting the sentence of death. Thus, when they heard the glad tidings, Adam did not call his wife "Dying," but "Living." As we pointed out in message nineteen, the whole human race is dying; no one is living. Nevertheless, after hearing and receiving the gospel of God, man becomes living. Hallelujah, we are living!
Although Adam's response in Genesis 3:20 proves that he believed the gospel, we find no indication in that chapter that Eve also believed. However, Genesis 4:1 tells us that Eve believed the glad tidings. "And Adam knew Eve his wife; and she conceived, and bear Cain, and said, I have acquired a man, Jehovah" (Heb.). Eve brought forth a son and called him Cain, which means "acquired." Although Cain, the person, was evil, his name was very meaningful. When Eve brought him forth, she declared, "I have acquired." She had not acquired a house or some land; she had acquired a man. According to her concept, Cain was the seed of woman promised in Genesis 3:15. God had promised Eve that her seed would bruise the head of the serpent, the evil one. Eve's words in Genesis 4:1 prove that she had believed that promise and that she was expecting to have that seed. When her first boy was born, she declared, "I have acquired a man, Jehovah." If you think that this translation is too bold, I ask you to consult the Hebrew text. In the Hebrew text of Genesis 4:1 there is no preposition between the words "man" and "Jehovah." Although some translators may add prepositions such as "from" or "with," there is no such preposition in this part of the Word according to the Hebrew text. The Hebrew text simply reads, "I have acquired a man, Jehovah." The Concordant Version of Genesis renders it this way in the text, and the New American Standard Version places this translation in the margin. Thus, according to Eve's understanding, the child she bore in 4:1 was the fulfillment of the promise regarding the seed of the woman in 3:15. Therefore, she called her child Jehovah, the Lord.
Such a statement, however, was premature. Eve actually did not bear the man, Jehovah. Four thousand years later the virgin Mary gave birth to a child, and His name was called the mighty God (Isa. 9:6). The child born in the manger at Bethlehem was Jehovah. His name was called Jesus, which means, "Jehovah, the Savior" (Matt. 1:21). Although Eve herself did not give birth to the man, Jehovah, she symbolized the virgin Mary who gave birth to Him. Eventually, the real seed of the woman came through the virgin Mary. Therefore, Jesus, Jehovah, the Savior, is truly the man, Jehovah to whom Eve supposed that she had given birth as mentioned in Genesis 4:1. By giving her child the name Cain, Eve proved that she believed the gospel proclaimed by God in Genesis 3:15. Although four thousand years had to pass, the man, Jehovah eventually came through the virgin Mary.
Both Adam and Eve believed the gospel. Adam believed and called his wife's name "Living"; Eve believed and called her son "acquired," thinking that she had acquired what God had promised. Adam and Eve certainly must have preached the gospel to their children, telling Cain and Abel how they had been created by God, how they had been charged by God not to eat of the tree of knowledge, how they had disobeyed God and had eaten of that tree, how they were in fear and trembling as they awaited the sentence of death, and how God came in to preach the gospel by promising them that the seed of the woman would bruise the head of the serpent. Furthermore, Adam and Eve must also have told them how they had stood naked in the presence of God and how God had slain some lambs as sacrifices, using the skins to make robes to cover their nakedness that they could stand before God and have fellowship with Him. I am convinced that Adam and Eve preached this gospel to their children. Evidence of this is found in Hebrews 11:4 which says, "By faith Abel offered to God a more excellent sacrifice than Cain." According to the Bible, faith comes from hearing the word that is preached (14, Rom. 10:17). Since Abel had such faith, exercised this faith, and offered a sacrifice to God in accordance with this faith, he must have heard the preaching of the glad tidings from his parents. Out of that word he received faith. He did not present his sacrifice according to his own opinion or learning, and his offering was not his own invention. He presented his offering by faith according to the words preached by his parents.
The father, Adam, the mother, Eve, and the second child, Abel, believed the gospel. We, the saved ones, are not the firstborn. The firstborn perished (Exo. 12:29), and the second born were saved by believing. We who believe are the second child. Praise the Lord that we are the second boys, the second children. Adam was a good father, taking the lead in believing the gospel. I hope that all the fathers reading this message will be leaders in believing the gospel. Eve, a good wife and mother, was also a believer, following her believing husband and opening the way for her child to believe. Therefore, in Genesis 4 we have a believing father, a believing mother, and a believing child. Look at this family — they all believed in the same gospel. When people have asked me if Adam and Eve were saved, I have said, "Why not? If you are saved, then certainly they were saved as well. In fact, they were saved much earlier than you were." Adam and Eve were pioneers in believing the gospel. Adam cut the way, Eve paved the way, and Abel walked on the way. Now we are followers of Abel. I wish that every father would be an Adam, every mother an Eve, and all the children Abels. The first family on the earth was a gospel family, a family of believers.
Abel himself was an extraordinary believer. Although you have read the Bible for years, perhaps you have never noticed Abel's occupation. He was a "feeder of sheep" (Gen. 4:2, Heb.). During Abel's time sheep were of no use for man's eating, since, before the flood, man was only permitted to eat vegetables (Gen. 1:29). Only after the flood did God ordain that man eat meat as well as herbs (Gen. 9:3). Therefore, as Abel was feeding the sheep he was not working for food to live on. It seems that Cain was more clever; he was more practical than Abel and "was a server of the ground" (Gen. 4:2, Heb.). Cain might have said to his brother, "Abel, what you are doing is impractical. What is the use of raising sheep? Look at what I'm doing. I am serving the land because the land will produce food for my living. How can you earn a living simply by feeding sheep? All you can get is the skin to cover you, but you have nothing to live on." If we enter into the thought of Genesis 4:2, we shall see that Abel was not working for his living, but for God's satisfaction. Abel did not care about his own satisfaction; he cared for God's. Cain, on the contrary, did not care for God's satisfaction; he only cared for earning a living for himself.
Genesis 4:2 tells us of two flesh brothers: the first served the ground, and the second fed the sheep. The earth produced food for man, while the sheep were used primarily as offerings for God. Thus, we see that Cain served the earth and Abel served God. I have a question to address to all who are reading this message: Are you feeding the sheep or are you serving the earth, the world? If we are living for the Lord, everything we do is feeding the sheep. However, if we do not serve the Lord, everything we do is serving the earth. There are only two categories of people — the servers of the world and the feeders of sheep for God. What are you? All the worldly people serve the earth diligently and earnestly, not caring at all for God. All fallen human beings are servers of the ground and are slaves to the earth. Are you such a server, such a slave? The people who serve the earth think that we, the feeders of sheep for God, are crazy. When they learn that we meet continually, when they see us reading the Bible and fellowshipping with one another, when they hear us singing and praising the Lord all the time they wonder what kind of people we are. We are sheep feeders. Day and night we are feeding the sheep. Do not say that you teach school or work at your business. You are feeding sheep for God. We are Abels, people who are more concerned with feeding the sheep for God than with merely earning a living. Do not say that the leading brothers in the church are the only ones who feed the sheep and that the other brothers and sisters must care for their employment, profession, and business. Apparently, you are working at your job or studying in school; actually you are feeding the sheep for God. Your employment or education is secondary; feeding the sheep is primary. The main aspect of our living is caring for God's satisfaction. We are not servers of the earth; we are feeders of the sheep for God.
Abel fed the sheep with the sole purpose of providing offerings for God. Thus, Abel served God absolutely. Everything you do should be for the purpose of serving God. You should not do anything for any other reason. We are serving God, feeding the sheep that we may have offerings to present to Him. Everything must be for this purpose. Since Abel was such a person, he was an extraordinary believer. He not only believed in the gospel, but practiced the gospel and lived for it.
When Eve gave birth to Cain she was excited and declared, "I have acquired a man, Jehovah." Probably after not too long a time she was disappointed and said, "That was not Jehovah. That was just a naughty boy." Furthermore, Cain did not hearken to her word. Therefore, when Eve gave birth to a second boy, she named him Abel, which means "vanity," like the vanishing of a breath. At the birth of the first child she was enthusiastic and shouted, "I have acquired"; at the birth of the second she was disappointed and said, "vanity." When Abel was born Eve merely said, "It is vanity." The thought here is very significant. We are vanity; yet we are feeders of the sheep. We are nothing and nobodies, but we are feeders of the sheep for God. I find it difficult to answer people when they ask me about my profession. A number of times I have replied, "It is hard for me to say. In a sense I am nobody. In another sense I am wonderful." On the one hand I am nobody, vanity; on the other hand I am a wonderful person doing the wonderful job of feeding the sheep for God. Nothing is more wonderful than the work of feeding the sheep for God. This is Abel. By birth we are people of vanity. If we do not feed the sheep for God, all that we are and do is "vanity of vanities" (Eccl. 1:2). Praise the Lord that in the midst of vanities we are feeding sheep for God's satisfaction. Hence, we are no longer vanity; we are doing a wonderful work for satisfying God.
In Genesis 4 we see two kinds of examples. Abel was an excellent example of believing the gospel, practicing the gospel, and living for the gospel. Cain, the firstborn of the second human generation, was an example of continuing the fall and of turning from God's way of salvation. With Adam and Eve there were two main matters: the fall which they caused and the gospel which they received and preached. Adam and Eve were saved, and they passed on the word of salvation to the following generation. We also must share these things with our own children, telling them the sad story of man's fall and proclaiming to them the good news of God's salvation. Cain did not follow the way of God's salvation, but continued the fall. His life was a continuance and a furtherance of man's fall. Therefore, we may say that with Cain mankind experienced a second fall. His parents caused the first fall; he continued it and brought about the second.
Here I would speak a word of warning: Never continue the fall. We must separate ourselves from the fall and say to it, "Fall, I refuse to cooperate with you. Stay away from me. I will not allow you to continue. I will run to God's salvation." Cain perpetuated man's fall, but Abel pursued God's way of salvation. The same choice confronts us today. Do you want to remain in the fall and continue it or will you go to God for salvation? We should not be so unwise as to continue the fall. We must accept God's provision for our salvation. Nevertheless, Cain was foolish, remaining in the fall and actually abetting its development.
We need to understand the cause of man's second fall. One reason for Cain's continuing the fall was that the Devil had gained him inwardly. Apparently it was Cain that rejected God's glad tidings; actually it was Satan that kept him from God's way of salvation. Satan knew that if Cain had received the glad tidings he would have had no way to gain him. Hence, he subtly caused Cain to take his own way of worshipping God. By this means he kept Cain in his hand and even caused him to fall further. Thus, the second fall of man was instigated by the subtle one who had gained Cain and worked within him.
At the time of Genesis 4 the Devil had already injected himself into man, and God had shown man His way of salvation. However, Cain was presumptuous in that he forsook God's way of salvation. This means that he followed the Devil and put aside God's will. This was a further cause of the second fall. Cain did not care for God's Word, for God's gospel, and he did not hearken to the preaching of his parents. Once again I say that I strongly believe that his parents preached the gospel to him and his brother, telling them of their need for coverings made from the skins of the sacrificial lambs. I believe that this accounts for Abel's desire to be a feeder of the sheep. However, Cain had no regard for this, presumptuously forsaking God's way and inventing his own.
Cain was presumptuous and served God according to his own concept. "Cain brought of the fruit of the ground an offering unto the Lord" (Gen. 4:3). Cain served God according to his opinion. He invented a religion of man's concept. There is not a word in Genesis 3 about offering the fruit of the ground to God. God cares for a sacrifice in which the blood is shed to meet the requirement of God's righteousness and He cares for the skins of the sacrificial lambs that can cover fallen, naked persons. When Adam and Eve discovered that they were naked, they covered themselves with skirts made of fig leaves, but God had no regard for that kind of covering. God slew some lambs for sin offerings and from the skins of those lambs He made robes to cover the man and the woman. We have seen that Adam and Eve must have told Cain and Abel about this and that Abel received their word and acted on it. However, Cain considered himself more clever and disregarded God's concern, refusing to take His way. He did not obey God's gospel, but invented his own way, a religion according to his own concept. Who told him to offer of the fruit of the ground? He told himself, being motivated by the subtle one. This practice originated with his own mind.
Throughout the centuries and the generations there have been countless followers of Cain, people in every place and time who have invented their own religion. They did not teach people to sin, but to serve God and worship Him. In their presumption these people think that they are serving God. They say, "What is wrong with serving God in this way? We are not gambling, stealing, or killing. We are serving God." Nevertheless, I would say to them, "You serve God according to your concept. Ultimately, you do not serve God, you serve yourself. You serve your own concept and you do not care for God's satisfaction. God is not your God; your concept, your mentality, is your God."
If you read Genesis 4 hastily, you may have the same problem that I had when I read this portion of the Word as a young man. I said, "God is not fair. Both brothers presented an offering to God. What was wrong with Cain's offering? He wasn't gambling or stealing. He was religious. If he had not been religious, he wouldn't have presented an offering. He labored on the ground until it produced fruit and then he preserved some of that fruit as an offering to God. Wasn't that good? How could God condemn him for doing that?" However, the Bible says, "But upon Cain and on his offering He did not look" (Gen. 4:5, Heb.). God seemed to say to Cain, "Cain, you did something religious, but I will not even look at it. This is not a service to Me. You are serving your own concept. I don't care at all for your offering." When I was young I could not understand why God reacted in this way, respecting Abel's offering and rejecting Cain's. I thought that God was unfair.
As the years went by I came to realize that although Cain presented an offering to God, he did not present it according to God's way, but according to his own idea. Out of his own concept and desire he invented a new way of worshipping God. In today's Christianity there are many new inventions for worshipping God. All such inventions are presumptuous.
According to his natural being, Cain was no longer pure. Although Adam was pure when created by God, as a result of the fall Satan, the evil one, injected himself into man. Therefore, whenever man acts by himself he is in union with the Devil. Thus, man should not act on his own, but should reject himself and depend on God. I must continually realize that I am a fallen person and that Satan is within me, in my nature, in my thought, desire, and will. Satan is altogether one with me. I dare not exercise myself in acting on my own. I must say, "Lord, I cast myself aside and I put my trust in You. Lord, You take the lead. You take the initiative. Lord, I want to follow You and take Your way." We are not merely sinful, but our very self has become devilish because Satan is in us. Everything we devise according to our nature is actually an invention of the Devil. Cain, along with numerous people today, did not realize this. He thought that as long as he did something for God, serving Him and worshipping Him, everything was fine. Do not think this way. You must realize where you stand and what you are. As fallen people, we are one with the Devil. He is not only around us and over us, but also within us, in our nature, in our mind, emotion, and will. Whenever you lose your temper Satan is present. Whenever you exercise your emotions by yourself, Satan is active in you. Do not say that it is only you who behave in such a way, for Satan is with you and in you. This is not only true in evil things, but even in good things. When Cain presented the fruit of the ground as an offering to God, Satan was involved in his activity. In Cain Satan presented an offering to God. That was the reason that God refused to look at it. God seemed to say, "Cain, your offering is evil. It is an insult to Me. It is an abomination in My eyes. I refuse to accept it."
When he learned that God did not look upon his offering, "Cain was very wroth, and his countenance fell" (Gen. 4:5). It is the same among religious people today. If you fail to appreciate their works, they will be angry with you and say, "Are we not serving God? Why don't you agree with me?" When religious people see others serving God in His way and thus gaining His respect, they will be even more furious. Cain was the leader in this. If you serve God, following the way of Abel, meaning that you follow God's way, the so-called religious people will be angry with you and say, "Don't you think that we also are serving God? Why should God accept you and not us?" We have heard these words quite often. I ask you to be careful. Although you are serving God, in whose way are you serving Him — in yours or in His? Do you serve God according to His revelation or according to your concept and invention? Simply to say that you are serving God is inadequate. You must determine the way in which you are serving Him. Is your service according to God's Word or according to your own ideas?
God, however, was merciful toward Cain and still talked to him. Cain did not pray to God nor ask Him, "God, what is wrong with me?" Although he did not pray, God, who is rich in mercy, came to him and spoke with him. "And the Lord said unto Cain, Why art thou wroth? and why is thy countenance fallen?" (Gen. 4:6). God was asking Cain why he was so angry and why his countenance had fallen. The people who follow God's way all have an uplifted countenance. They lift up their countenance and say, "Praise the Lord! Amen, hallelujah. Jesus is Lord!" According to the King James Version, God said to Cain, "If thou doest well, shalt thou not be accepted?" The Hebrew may also be rendered, "If you do well, will not your countenance be lifted up?" If we are in God's way, our countenance will be lifted up. Although many religious people serve God and worship Him, God does not look at them. They become angry as a result, saying, "Am I not serving God? Am I not doing many things for Him?" Such angry words are indicators of a fallen countenance. When Cain was angry God seemed to say to him, "Cain, you don't need to be angry. You are a sinner. Haven't you heard the glad tidings from your parents? I have My way. Why have you become a person with a fallen countenance? You are like this because you have forsaken My way, because you have not listened to the preaching of your parents, and because you have not believed the gospel. If you take My way and believe the gospel, your face will be lifted up. Cain, it is still not too late. But be careful. If you go on this way, sin is crouching at the door seeking to devour you."
In Genesis 4:7 God gave Cain a warning. "And if thou doest not well, sin is crouching at the door" (Heb.). The latter part of this verse is difficult to translate. The King James Version says, "And unto thee shall be his desire, and thou shalt rule over him." Other versions render the pronouns "his" and "him" as "its" and "it," meaning that sin's desire is for you and that you must overcome it. The King James Version is correct, using the pronouns "his" and "him." Who is the "him" mentioned in this verse? The answer is found in John 8:44 and 1 John 3:12. With the help of these verses we can realize that the "him" in Genesis 4:7 is the Devil. Hence, God was telling Cain that sin was crouching at the door and that his desire, meaning Satan's desire, was for him, and that Cain had to overcome him. Sin and Satan are one. Be careful! If you reject God's way of salvation, sin is crouching at the door to get you. Sin's desire, that is, Satan's desire, is for you, and you must overcome him. The best way to overcome Satan is to flee from your own concept and hide in God's salvation. God's salvation is Jesus as the sacrifice. Jesus shed His blood for our sins and has given Himself to us as righteousness to cover our nakedness. This is the way for us to flee from Satan and to escape the sin which is crouching at our door. If any one of you reading this message will not take Jesus as your Savior, I must tell you that sin is crouching at your door like a ravenous beast, waiting for the opportunity to seize and devour you. This sin is Satan, the subtle one, the liar, the one who was a murderer from the beginning.
"And Cain talked with Abel his brother: and it came to pass, when they were in the field, that Cain rose up against Abel his brother, and slew him" (Gen. 4:8). When we compare this verse with John 8:44, we learn that Cain was not the only murderer; Satan was the murderer as well. In that passage the Lord Jesus spoke of the Devil, saying, "He was a murderer from the beginning." Although Abel was slain by Cain, Satan committed murder in Cain's act of murder. Because Cain had rejected God's way and God's warning, he was caught by Satan, the murderer, and became a murderer with Satan. Hence, two murderers committed the same crime. By murdering his brother Cain became completely possessed by the Devil, for the Devil murdered Abel by Cain's hand and with his cooperation. Cain disdained his parents' preaching and he discarded God's warning. Thus, he, motivated by Satan, served God according to his own invention and eventually was totally possessed by Satan and became a murderer. That was the second fall of man.
The second fall of man began with man's invention of religion. It did not begin with stealing; it began with worshipping God according to the human concept. Worshipping God according to a manmade religion was not a rescue from the first fall, but a continuation of it. The second fall, which began with a self-made religion, was completed by an act of murder. Do you believe that it is possible for religious people to commit murder? If you read history you will discover that the Roman Catholic Church has killed more genuine Christians than the Roman Empire. Thousands of Christians were killed by the Roman Empire, and the Roman Catholic Church continued this persecution, killing even more genuine believers. If you attempt to be a pure and genuine Christian in Portugal or Spain, you will need to be careful, for the religious people there might attempt to take your life. Human religion is always like this: it begins by serving God and it ends by killing people. This exactly corresponds to the word of the Lord Jesus in John 16:2: "An hour is coming when everyone who kills you will think that he is offering service to God."
What was the first fall of man? The first fall of man was man's taking into himself something other than God. Man did not do anything evil; he simply absorbed into himself an element other than God. What was man's second fall? The second fall of man was the invention of religion which resulted in an act of murder. The second fall occurred because of man's presumption. Presumption means that man does not care for God's economy, for God's way, but that he only cares for his own desires and concepts. When man refused to follow God's way, inventing instead his own religion, he eventually became a murderer of God's people. That was the second fall of man.
It is very helpful to be clear about the fall, for, as a result, we can see more of God's salvation. I hope that no one reading this message will become a Cain. We all should be righteous Abels. Let us all be like Abel, believing the gospel, practicing the gospel, and living for the gospel.
