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[#57] Genesis 4:9-12 – From the Blood of Abel

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In Genesis 4:10 we read that the blood of Abel cried out to God from the ground. Have you ever wondered what it said? Well, the book of Hebrews gives us a hint, and we look at these questions in this podcast episode.

Genesis 4:9-12

We will also be discussing how Cain implied that God was guilty for the death of Abel, and why God did not curse Cain for murdering his brother.

Learn how to deal with election fallout and difficult situations by seeing from Genesis 4:9-12 how God deals with Cain (and all of us).

The Text of Genesis 4:9-12

Then the Lord said to Cain, “Where is Abel your brother?”

He said, “I do not know. Am I my brother’s keeper?”

And He said, “What have you done? The voice of your brother’s blood cries out to Me from the ground. So now you are cursed from the earth, which has opened its mouth to receive your brother’s blood from your hand. When you till the ground, it shall no longer yield its strength to you. A fugitive and a vagabond you shall be on the earth.”

In this discussion of Genesis 4:9-12 we look at:

Cain and Abel

  • How Cain implies God is guilty for Abel’s death.
  • Why the curse upon Cain is not a curse from God.
  • Why it is not always true that the evil get punished and the good get blessed.
  • What the blood of Abel cried out from the ground.
  • The better word spoken by the blood of Jesus.

Resources:

Downloadable Podcast Resources

Those who are part of my online discipleship group may download the MP3 audio file for this podcast and view the podcast transcript below.

You must join a discipleship group or login to download the MP3 and view the transcript.

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Do you like learning about the Bible online?

Do you like learning about Scripture and theology through my podcast? If so, then you will also love my online courses. They all have MP3 audio downloads, PDF transcripts, quizzes, and a comment section for questions and interaction with other students.

If you want to deepen your relationship with God and better understand Scripture, take one (or all) of these courses. They are great for personal study or for a small group Bible study.

You can see the list of available courses here, and if you join the Discipleship group, you can take all the courses at no additional cost. Go here to learn more and join now.

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My Sin

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I remember as a child asking God to forgive me and accept me into His family, but afterward, every time I sinned, I would worry that maybe God had kicked me out of His family or that He didn’t love me anymore.

child praying for forgivenessI made it an almost daily habit to ask God back into my heart. I never really knew for sure where I stood with God, and so prayed daily to thank Him for loving me if He still did, but if He did not, then would He please forgive me and start loving me again.

I didn’t really have too many major sins to be worried about. It was just the normal kid stuff, such as talking back to my parents, getting mad at one of my sisters, or stealing a piece of penny candy from the glass bowl on the pastor’s desk at church.

Asking the Devil into My Heart

One time, though, I heard that a true Christian could never be possessed by the devil, so I decided to test whether or not I was a true Christian by praying to the devil and inviting him into my heart.

I remember feeling relieved afterward that I could still name the name of Jesus and pray to God, but for many years after that, I wondered if I had in fact been possessed by the devil and he was just deceiving me into thinking I had not.

So I prayed and begged for God’s forgiveness and that He would keep me in His family.

Getting Addicted to Porn

In Junior High and High School, I fell into a sin which I could never seem to beat. This was a sin which most males struggle with most of their lives, but which few Christians talk about. It was pornography. This cycle of sin led me into a cycle of shame, guilt, and fear, which then led to tearful confessions, repentance, and promises to never do it again, only to fall right back into it a few days or weeks later.

sin guilt and shameSimilar sorts of sins, problems, and fears followed me into college, adulthood, marriage, and even into my first years as a pastor.

Finding Freedom in God’s Love and Grace

It was during college that I first began to see some of the central truths of the gospel, and it was because of these truths that I first began to find the freedom, liberty, and joy in my relationship with God that I had often heard about but had rarely experienced.

These gospel truths liberated me from the fear of God’s rejection and the shame of my sin.

Later, during my years as a pastor, I came to understand the limitless freedom of God’s grace, and how to invite people into a relationship with God centered on grace instead of on our own performance.

In more recent years, these truths have continued to blossom, flourish, and grow into a certainty about the centrality of God’s unconditional love for everything in the life of the Christian. The fact that God’s love is unconditional means that there is nothing we need to do (or stop doing) to earn it, keep it, or prove it.

In my course, The Gospel According to Scripture, I share some of the truths with you that I have learned over the past couple decades which have helped and encouraged me.

freedom from sin and guiltI share with you what I have learned about God’s infinite love, grace, and forgiveness. I want you to begin to experience these truths in your own life, so that you not only come to a fuller understanding of the gospel, but so that you can actually begin to experience the promises and freedoms of the gospel in a real and tangible way.

If you take the course, you will see that God is pure love, that God’s love for you is unconditional and unadulterated. Once you see this, your fear and shame will fade away, because there is no fear in love (1 John 4:18). You will come to recognize that since God loves you completely and unconditionally, there is nothing you need to do to earn or keep God’s love for you.

The Gospel According to ScriptureWant to learn more about the gospel? Take my new course, "The Gospel According to Scripture."

The entire course is free for those who join my online Discipleship group here on RedeemingGod.com. I can't wait to see you inside the course!

grace gives freedom

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[#43] Genesis 3:8-10 – Do Not be Afraid

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If you have ever been afraid of God, or have thought that God is out to get you, to punish you for some sin, if you think that the bad things which happen to you in life are because God hates you or is making you pay for something you did, this podcast episode is for you.

We look at Genesis 3:8-10 and see that there is nothing to fear from God.

Genesis 3:8-10 God walking in the Garden

The Text of Genesis 3:8-10

And they heard the sound of the LORD God walking in the garden in the cool of the day, and Adam and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the LORD God among the trees of the garden.

Then the LORD God called to Adam and said to him, “Where are you?”

So he said, “I heard Your voice in the garden, and I was afraid because I was naked; and I hid myself.”

In this discussion of Genesis 3:8-10 we look at:

  • How some Christians read Genesis 3:8-10 to make God appear angry
  • Why God was not angry.
  • How to know what God think about us and our sin.
  • How God responds do your sin.

Resources:

Downloadable Podcast Resources

Those who are part of my online discipleship group may download the MP3 audio file for this podcast and view the podcast transcript below.

You must join a discipleship group or login to download the MP3 and view the transcript.

Membership-become-a-member

Thanks for visiting this page ... but this page is for Discipleship Group members.

If you are already part of a Faith, Hope, or Love Discipleship Group,
Login here.

If you are part of the free "Grace" Discipleship group, you will need to
Upgrade your Membership to one of the paid groups.

If you are not part of any group, you may learn about the various groups and their benefits here:
Join Us Today.

Membership-become-a-member


Do you like learning about the Bible online?

Do you like learning about Scripture and theology through my podcast? If so, then you will also love my online courses. They all have MP3 audio downloads, PDF transcripts, quizzes, and a comment section for questions and interaction with other students.

If you want to deepen your relationship with God and better understand Scripture, take one (or all) of these courses. They are great for personal study or for a small group Bible study.

You can see the list of available courses here, and if you join the Discipleship group, you can take all the courses at no additional cost. Go here to learn more and join now.

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10 Ways the Non-Violent God Changes Your Life and Theology

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My new book on the Non-Violent Atonement was released yesterday. It is called The Atonement of God, and you can (#AmazonAdLink) buy it on Amazon.

The book begins with a summary of three views on the atonement, and then I define and defend a fourth view, which is a Non-Violent view of the atonement.

The basic idea of a Non-Violent view of the atonement is that God did not want or need the death of Jesus in order to offer grace or forgiveness of sins. Yes, Jesus died a violent death, but it was not to satisfy an angry God. Instead, Jesus died for completely different reasons (which are explained in the book).

(#AmazonAdLink) The atonement of GodFollowing this explanation of the Non-Violent atonement, I provide 10 areas of theology that are affected by the Non-Violent atonement.

Here they are with a brief summary of each.

1. The Non-Violent Atonement Brings Continuity to the Life of Jesus

Everything Jesus did was Non-Violent. Yes, Jesus was aggressive, but He never harmed another human being, or encouraged others to do so. A Non-Violent atonement helps us see that Jesus what Jesus accomplished on the cross was right in line with the way He lived the rest of His life as well.

2. The Non-Violent Atonement Reveals the Truth about God

Does Jesus fully reveal God to us or not? Jesus claimed that He did, and other New Testament writers believed so as well John 1:14, 18; 14:9-11; 2 Cor 4:4; Php 2:6; Col 1:15; Heb 1:2-3.

But if God is violent, and Jesus does not reveal the violent side of God to us, this means that Jesus is a faulty revelation of God. The better option is to believe that Jesus does reveal God to us, and God looks just like a Non-Violent Jesus.

3. The Non-Violent Atonement Reveals the Truth about Scripture

But if God is Non-Violent like Jesus is Non-Violent, then what are we to do with all the violent portrayals of God in Scripture? I do not write them off as hopelessly in error. I continue to hold to an inerrantist position on Scripture, and argue that the violent portrayals of God in Scripture accurately reveal the heart of man instead of the heart of God.

Non-Violent atonement

4. The Non-Violent Atonement Reveals the Truth about Sacrifice

If Scripture reveals the heart of man instead of the heart of God, then this helps us make sense of the conflicting statements in Scripture about sacrifice. God does not want sacrifice and never did. We wanted it.

5. The Non-Violent Atonement Reveals the Truth about Humans

The truth from Scripture is that God is not violent, but humans are. We are the violent ones. And we justify our violence by blaming it on God.

6. The Non-Violent Atonement Reveals the Truth about Sin

The reason God tells us not to sin, is not because He is angry at us about sin, or will be angry with us if we sin. No, God tells us not to sin because in hurts and damages us. He loves us and does not want to see us hurt.

atonement of God

7. The Non-Violent Atonement Reveals the Truth about Forgiveness

God’s forgiveness has always been completely free. There have never been any conditions for God’s forgiveness. God does not need sacrifice in order to extend forgiveness. He simply forgives, just as Jesus does on the cross.

8. The Non-Violent Atonement Reveals the Truth about Justice

Christians often teach that “God is a God of love and forgiveness, but He is also a God of justice.” This chapter shows how wrong that idea is. Unconditional love and forgiveness are incompatible with justice. You can have one or the other, but you cannot have both.

9. The Non-Violent Atonement Reveals the Truth about Violence

As we begin to bring the book to a close, this chapter shows why God inspired a book (the Bible) which is so full of violence. The reason is because violence is such a huge human problem, God wanted to reveal that we humans are the source and cause of violence. We are in desperate need of this revelation from God, which is why God gave us the Bible.

10. The Non-Violent Atonement Reveals the Way to Peace

But if the violence is the problem, then peace is the cure. The Bible doesn’t just tell us that we are violent, but also shows us the way to peace, which is the way of love and forgiveness.

I am really excited about this book. Studying about the Non-Violent atonement and writing this book transformed my theology, and I know that if you read it, your life and theology will also be transformed. (#AmazonAdLink) Get your copy today on Amazon.

God of the Old Testament and JesusHow can a God who says "Love your enemies" (Matthew 5:44) be the same God who instructs His people in the Old Testament to kill their enemies?

These are the sorts of questions we discuss and (try to) answer in my online discipleship group. Members of the group can also take ALL of my online courses (Valued at over $1000) at no charge. Learn more here: Join the RedeemingGod.com Discipleship Group I can't wait to hear what you have to say, and how we can help you better understand God and learn to live like Him in this world!

A Lesson from World War I that could maybe be applied to ISIS?

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I recently read the following in J. Denny Weaver’s book, The Nonviolent God (p. 220):

When the hour arrived for the end of Word War I, Winston Churchhill and his wife went to Downing Street to congratulate Lloyd George, the prime minister. Churchill interrupted a meeting already in progress and suggested that since the “fallen foe” was close to starvation, they should send “a dozen great ships crammed with provisions” to Hamburg. The suggestion received a cold rebuff.

Six years later a German soldier described his feelings at the time and wrote that “only fools, liars, and criminals could hope for mercy from the enemy.” His hatred grew for those responsible for the suffering. On observing the great misery [in Germany], he wrote, “My own fate became known to me … I resolved to go into politics.”

That soldier was Adolph Hitler.

HitlerCritics of nonviolence often use Adolph Hitler as an example of a time when violence and bloodshed was absolutely necessary. They say, “So if you had a chance to go back in time and kill Hitler and save millions of innocent Jews, you wouldn’t do it?”

What the question fails to recognize is that there were good ways of stopping Hitler that did not involve killing him. One wonders if there ever would have been a Nazi Germany and a World War II if Winston Churchill’s advice had been heeded.

Similarly, one wonders if Winston Churchill’s suggestion could help the West in our struggle with radical Islam and ISIS.

Recent estimates put the cost of the recent wars in Iraq and Afghanistan at somewhere between $4 and $6 Trillion.

If that isn’t appalling enough, in our efforts to retaliate against the horrible tragedy of the murder of 2,753 people in the Word Trade Center on 9/11/2001, we sent our young men and women overseas, and so far, 4,486 U.S. soldiers have died in Iraq and 2,345 U.S. soldiers have died in Afghanistan, with tens of thousands of soldiers being injured or wounded. And this is nothing compared to the casualties among the people of Iraq and Afghanistan.

Looking back, is it possible that there might be a better way to defeat Isis and radical Islamic terrorists … a way that would have spent less money and fewer (if any) lives? What would Iraq and Afghanistan look like today if we had followed Churchill’s advice in the wake of World War I, and had sent boatloads of food and construction crews to the Middle East to prop up their economy and give their people an education?

The annual GDP of Iraq is just over $200 Billion. Afghanistan is about $60 billion. Imagine what the two countries might look like today if we had spent $4 Trillion building those nations up instead of bombing them down?

ISISWhen it comes to stopping Islamic terrorists, I sometimes think a Wal-Mart in Baghdad would work better than bombs.

“Oh … But you can’t export capitalism into the Middle East! They will rise up in rebellion.”

Maybe. But if your choices are between a Wal-Mart and bombs, are you really going to choose bombs?

I am not saying this would have “worked,” … but then, is what we are doing now really “working”?

I am not a politician, and I know these are difficult issues, but I just sometimes wonder when the world is going to wake up and realize the truth that that violence always and only leads to more violence. In trying to defeat violence with violence you become like the enemy you seek to defeat.

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