Tag Archives: obedience

Cain and Abel

4 – Cain and Abel

Genesis 4:1-16

Adam and Eve had a son and named him Cain. In time they had another son named Abel.
Abel became a herdsman—working with animals. Cain became a farmer, tilling the soil.
One day, when it was time to bring a sacrifice to the Lord, Cain decided to bring fruits and vegetables, instead of a lamb. Abel also brought an offering, but it was the best lamb from his flock. The Lord was pleased with Abel’s offering, but he wasn’t happy with Cain’s. 

Cain became angry when he saw that God didn’t accept his sacrifice. He started to pout. God said, “Cain, why are you angry? If you simply do what’s right, you’ll be accepted and happy. But if you don’t, sin is waiting for you. It’s crouched by your door, ready to pounce and become your master. Instead, you need to take control of it!”

A few days later, Cain and Abel were talking out in a field. Cain turned and attacked his brother and killed him.

Later that day, God asked Cain, “Where’s your brother?”

“I don’t know! Am I supposed to watch over him all the time?”

“Oh Cain, what have you done? Listen! Your brother’s blood is crying to me from the soil. You’ve loved this ground, but from now on it’s cursed because it contains your brother’s blood. Oh, you’ll continue to work the field, but it’ll no longer respond to you and give you its best. You’ll become a restless wanderer.”

Cain fell down and cried out. “Oh God, your punishment is too severe! You’re taking away my land and your presence! I’ll be aimless and separated from everyone else. Eventually they’ll hunt me down and kill me.”

So God put a mark on Cain and said, “Anyone who kills Cain will suffer for it seven times over!” With that, Cain went away from the presence of the Lord.

Story Told
Story Telling and Questions by Mickie O’Donnell
Insights
Audio

Poem

The Hands of Cain
By Phillis Hostmeyer

Dirt lodges under the nails of his powerful hands.
Fingers that beckoned to his brother, now curl around a stone.
Greedy, the black soil swallows innocent blood.
“Cain, when your hands till the soil, will you plant in his blood?”
Lifting one hand, he blocks the sun and squints as he answers,
“Planting season is long past; soon I’ll harvest the results of my work.”

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  1. What is the difference between shame and guilt?
  2. Watch the video Cain and Abel.
  3. Read Gen 4:6-7. Why doesn’t Cain accept and follow God’s advice?
  4. Because Cain allows himself to believe a lie, he remains angry. What are the results of his anger?
  5. God told Cain to take control of sin. How can we take control of sin?
  6. Do you think Cain’s punishment could have been less severe if he had admitted his sin rather than lying to God about knowing where his brother was?
  7. Does this story give you any ideas about eternal punishment?
  8. What does this story teach you about justice and mercy?
  9. Retell Cain and Abel as a group.

Group Discussion

  1. How can we be sure we are bringing an acceptable offering to God?
  2. How does this story show that God is not as concerned with our offerings as he is with the condition of our heart and our relationships with others?
  3. God lectured Cain on anger management, describing sin as a master. Give an illustration of a time when sin became a master over someone. Give another illustration of when sin tried but failed to control someone.
  4. What does it mean for us to know that “sin is crouching at our door”?

The Fall

3 – The Fall

Genesis 3:1 – 3:24

God created Adam and Eve and provided all they needed in the Garden of Eden. Like the animals, they had no need of clothes, yet they were not ashamed.
The snake was the cleverest of all the animals. One day he said to Eve, “Is it true God won’t let you eat from all the trees in the garden?”

“Oh, we can eat from all the trees. That is, except for the one in the middle. God said that we aren’t to eat that fruit…or even touch it. He says if we do, we’ll die.”

“It’s not true! You won’t die. God told you that because he knows if you eat that fruit, you’d be like him—knowing good, as well as evil.”

The woman looked at the fruit. It was beautiful and looked delicious. She thought, “If I eat this fruit, it’ll make me wise.” So she took the fruit and ate it. She then gave some to Adam and he ate it as well. Suddenly they realized they were naked. So they sewed some fig leaves together to make coverings for themselves.

As evening approached, they heard God walking in the garden. Suddenly, they realized they were afraid of God, so they hid among the trees.

“Adam, where are you?”

Adam knew he had to answer. He said, “Lord, I heard you walking in the garden, and I was afraid because I was naked. So, I hid.”

“Who told you that you were naked? Did you eat of the tree from which I told you not to eat?”

“It was the woman you gave me. She gave me the fruit, and…yes, I ate it.”

God turned to Eve, “Why did you do this?”

“The snake! The snake tricked me into eating it!”

God turned to the snake and said, “Because you have done this, you are cursed more than all the animals. From now on, you’ll move about on your belly. There’ll be hostility between you and the woman, and there’ll be a battle between your offspring and hers. He’ll crush your head, while you’ll only bruise his heel.”

Looking back at the woman God said, “Your pain will be great when you give birth to children, and having babies will be associated with pain. You’ll want to control your husband, but from now on, men will dominate over you.”

God said to Adam, “I made it very clear that you were not to eat from that tree. Because you have disobeyed, the ground is cursed. From now on, you’ll work for your food, and the ground will fight against you. It’ll sprout thorns and weeds. Hard work will mark your life until you return to the soil from which you came.”

God dressed the man and his wife in clothes made out of animal skins. He then sent them out of the garden, where they worked the soil for their food.

God said, “People now know evil as well as good. They’ll try to get to the Tree of Life so they can live forever.” Therefore, God put a heavenly guard outside the garden. From that day on, people were separated from the Tree of Life.

Story Told
Story Telling and Questions by Mickie O’Donnell
Insights
Audio
Song
Poem

Eve, why did you eat the forbidden fruit?
Story #3 The Fall (Genesis 3:1-6)
By Helen Miehl

I ate it since it looked so good
dripping with dew in the morning cool
reflecting the rosy-fingered dawn.
The invidious intruder led me on;
he said the fruit would make me wise
and claimed if I ate, I wouldn’t die
but knowing what happened, now I’d think twice.
I wanted to be like deity
distinguishing good from depravity.

2020 © Helen Miehle

3 The Curse
Inspired by the curse in Genesis 3:16-19 
By Gil Thomas

After dealing with the serpent, God turned to the woman.

“Trouble
Will multiply
In your pregnancies
From conception to birth:
Discomfort, twinges of pain, aching spasms, deep pangs of distress.”

Then He turned to Adam.

“Since you listened to your wife and ate from the tree I told you not to eat from,

It’s your fault that the ground is cursed,
Getting food from it will make you thirst!
Thorns and thistles will come up with ease.
But produce food? Get on your knees
And work and sweat—yes, all day long!
Till, sow, harvest, coax plants along,
But still one day you will go down
Into the ground under a mound

Of dirt. That’s where you started out.

And there you’ll end, without a doubt.”


Storyboard
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  1. How does someone manage to make a lie believable? Why do people believe them?
  2. Why is it often difficult to resist temptation?
  3. Watch the video The Fall
  4. Read Genesis 3:1-5, do you think there was any truth in the things that the serpent said to Eve?
  5. List three reasons that Eve ate the fruit. (Gen 3:6)
  6. Read Genesis 2:15-17. Who is the speaker? Who is listening? Is anyone else present?
  7. Read Genesis 3:1-3.  How does Eve’s account of what God said compare to Gen 2:15-17? 
  8. Refer to Gen 3: 8-19 as you answer the following questions: Who do you feel is more honest with God – Adam or Eve?  Which of them do you feel is more accepting of responsibility for sin? Which of them bears the greater punishment for sin?
  9. What changes did you notice in Adam and Eve’s relationship with God after they ate from the forbidden tree?
  10. Adam, Eve, and the serpent were all punished. How do you feel about each punishment? Too harsh? Too easy? Justified? Does the punishment fit the sin?
  11.  What does Genesis 3 teach us about life?
  12. If we could return to Paradise today, would life be better or worse? Easier or more difficult?
  13. Retell The Fall as a group.

Group Discussion

  1. God provided for Adam and Eve even though they disobeyed and sinned. Tell about a time when God gave you hope in the middle of defeat and failure?
  2. To Eve, the forbidden fruit looked beautiful and harmless, but it led to disaster. Tell about a situation that seemed be good yet turned out to be destructive. What did you learn from that situation?
  3. Think of a movie that showed a person making a bad decision, which led to a series of bad actions to cover it up. Make a list of how many ways it affected the person’s quality of life.
  4. How does this story help us understand our struggle with temptation and sin?

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