THEY ARE WITHOUT EXCUSE

Was Cain a Sinner?

God’s discourse with Cain recorded in Genesis 4 shows that God does not hold any person to be a sinner just because he or she is brought forth by sinful parents. God warned Cain of sin (and that is the first time sin is explicitly mentioned in the Bible) when he apparently started getting jealous of his brother Abel. Clearly, God had made Himself known to them, as He does to every single human being on Earth through His creation.

Cain had sought to maintain this relationship as was Abel after him, but apparently on his own terms (which is the starting point of departure for all found to be sinners). God hinted that such “independence” would not do, and Cain got offended!

The Pattern of Willful Aloofness

Cain’s reaction to God after he had killed Abel is typical repetition of the UNREPENTANT reaction of his parents before him when they had eaten the forbidden fruit in the Garden of Eden. (1) He did not acknowledge his offence. (2) He did not apologize when the nature and consequences of his sin was made clear to Him. (3) He insisted on hiding from God, although God offered the remedy that would make such hiding unnecessary.

Adam said, “I was afraid because I was naked; so I hid” (Gen 3:10), “And the Lord God made garments of skin for Adam and his wife and clothed them” (Gen 3:21). Cain said, “I will be hidden from your presence, and I will be a restless wanderer on earth, and whoever finds me will kill me. But the Lord said to him, “Not so, if anyone kills Cain, he will suffer vengeance seven times over. Then the Lord put a mark on Cain so that no one who found him would kill him” (Gen 4:14,15). Yet still, “Cain went out from the Lord’s presence” (Gen 4:16).

A Pattern of Outstretched Arms of Grace

God has always been willing to receive the offender back at the moment that offender returns to Him, and He demonstrated it in the case of Cain as in the case of his parents (and he still does in the case of every human being till today): He told Adam and Eve of their sin, its consequences and clothed them. He told Cain of his sin, its consequences and “clothed” him with immunity from murder.

One can argue that at the time God was telling them of the consequences of their sin, it was a WARNING. They would suffer it only if they resisted their inner promptings to REPENT (acknowledge their sin, apologize and return to reverent fellowship with God). It was when they failed to do this that they activated the consequences.

The Place of Mercy

Mercy, unlike grace which is given freely, must be “earned”, or received through repentance. Grace is God’s acts of kindness that leaves the offender in no doubt of His willingness to restore broken relationship, if the offender so desires: He continued to speak directly to Adam, Eve and Cain, and provided for their every stated need, as he does and provides for all His creation till today. 

Even your reading this material is an act of God’s grace, speaking to you directly. He has fed you, sustained your life, and made you aware that you are superior creation, made in the image of the Creator, making you aspire to greater things than animals do. At least, all these should tell you that no matter what you have done against the Creator, He is willing to receive and have fellowship with you. Grace is in force, but mercy cannot be enforced.

The Place of Philosophy

Everybody asks questions about creation and our existence. Thus, we all philosophize. Philosophy is “the branch of knowledge or academic study devoted to the systematic examination of basic concepts such as truth, existence, reality, causality, and freedom” (Encarta).

The answer to our basic question however stares us in the face: CREATION has a CREATOR, who alone is worth our DIRECT DEVOTION. As difficult as it is to block out this truth, Adam, Eve and Cain sought to ignore it and rather tried other means of carrying on (as do many today who prefer to build their lives on weaker propositions – philosophies of men).

Why turn to Jesus

In the days of Cain and his parents, Jesus Christ as we know Him now as Savior of the world (John 4:42), the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world (John 1:29), had not come, yet God was willing to be found by those who sought Him. The bottom line was to have faith in Him: To respond to Him according to His generosity and be willing to submit to His revealed will.

Faith is required because although He is invisible (not reducible to measurement by the so called tools of science), He is undeniable because of His creation, the chief of which we are. Jesus Christ is the fullest manifestation of God to humanity, the highest act of God’s grace in his pursuit to restore fellowship. In Jesus Christ God has presented in the best way possible the totality of His grace and mercy.

Jesus Christ lived a sinless life to wipe away any excuse that we are unable to live without offending God (and therefore are ultimately not liable for our offences); He was killed, and in that a completely innocent man carried the punishment for our sin (wiping out every fear of rejection or reprisals should we return to reverent fellowship with God). An unwillingness to respond to God’s LOUDEST statement of His love, JESUS CHRIST, is just another “excuse” to remain aloof of the CREATOR.

The most important “YES” anyone will ever say is to Jesus, and by that forsake the pattern of Adam, Eve and Cain. It is required of every human being to maintain a direct reverent fellowship with God. An unwillingness to do this is at the core of what is called sin.

Further Reading: Roman 1: 18-21; 3:21-31

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