I’ve been preaching through Genesis on Sunday mornings, and this past week I preached a sermon that was particularly tough for me.  Whenever people ask me how I come up with an idea for a sermon, my response is always the same.  “The Holy Spirit preaches it to me before He preaches it to you”, so from this perspective this particular sermon was no different.  The Holy Spirit always shows me through my sermon preparations areas in my own life that I need to correct and improve upon, but for some reason, I’ve really been wrestling with what the Lord showed me through this past week’s sermon.

I preached on Genesis 4:3-7 and focused on the role of Cain as worshipper.  You’ll remember that this is the account of Cain and Abel presenting their offerings to the Lord.

In the course of time Cain brought some of the fruits of the soil as an offering to the Lord.  But Abel brought fat portions from some of the firstborn of his flock.  The Lord looked with favor on Abel and his offering, but on Cain and his offering he did not look with favor.  So Cain was very angry and his face was downcast.  Then the Lord said to Cain, “Why are you angry?  Why is your face downcast?  If you do what is right, will you not be accepted?  But if you do not do what is right, sin is crouching at your door; it desires to have you, but you must master it.  Genesis 4:3-7 (NIV)

Every time I hear pastors or preachers expound on this passage, I generally hear them focus on the importance of having a right heart when presenting our acts or worship to the Lord and bringing Him our very best.  That’s certainly true, and I wouldn’t argue against any of that.  But I’ve really been spending a lot of time focusing on Cain’s response to this situation. 

Put yourself in Cain’s shoes for a moment.  Cain is the older brother.  With that title of oldest sibling comes all the expectations and benefits that one would expect.  Now Cain has presented his offering to the Lord, and Scripture doesn’t give us any indication that this wasn’t a good offering.  I’m sure the crops that Cain presented were just fine, so Cain is probably feeling pretty good.  Then all of a sudden, here comes baby brother with the fatty portion of his flock.  We all know that God looks upon Abel’s offering favorably, and we all know why.  It was the attitude of his heart that made the difference.  Just like that, the older brother is now on the outside looking in, and he is watching his baby brother getting the favor that he feels he deserves.  The sibling rivalry has just given birth to jealousy, and now the jealousy is giving way to anger.  Just when the anger is really starting to boil over, the Lord, in His graciousness, gives Cain a heartfelt warning.  “Don’t do this.  Get your anger under control before it destroys you.”

Through Cain’s response to the Lord and the Lord’s response to Cain, I have been learning a lot about bitterness.  It seems to me, and I am certainly no exception to this, that people these days are harboring so much bitterness.  Whether it’s bitterness towards loved ones or bitterness about the way a certain situation unfolded, people are angry.  Unfortunately, Christians are not immune to this bitterness and anger.  Our churches are full of people who are bitter and angry, even towards other brothers and sisters in Christ.  Quite honestly, it is destroying our churches.  If we do not find a way to let go of our bitterness and anger and become people of restoration and reconciliation, our worship experiences and frankly, our relationships with the Lord will never be what He intended them to be. 

You see, I’ve found that bitterness and anger is a lot like a piece of shredded wheat that is caught in your teeth.  If you don’t deal with it and get it out, then it will fester in your gums, ultimately leading to infection and extreme pain, as the wound isn’t allowed to properly heal.  If you deal with it, it might be sore for a while, but eventually the healing will come.  As someone once told me, when you hate the only one you’re hurting is yourself, because most people don’t know it, and the other ones don’t care.  How true!  When we allow our bitterness and anger to consume us, it does so often with disastrous consequences, ultimately separating us from a full relationship with God.

I’m learning to let go of some long held bitterness and anger in my life.  It’s not easy, and it’s certainly a process, but with the strength of the Lord, I’m learning to let go.  I wonder how many of you need to let things go.  Maybe you’ve been holding on to something for so long that you don’t even remember why you’re angry in the first place.  Are you ready to let it go?  Remember that we serve a God who focused much of His earthly ministry on reconciliation and restoration.  Let’s be a people of reconciliation and restoration.  Maybe it’s time to yank the shredded wheat out and let the healing begin.

Until Next Time,

Pastor JP