The Two Divisions of Mankind

Able offered the finest he had to God. Cain offered second best. From the heart all things proceed and from Cain's heart he desired to hold back his best, not fearing God. Cain has walked away from God and followed the way of sin, the way of evil. Lucifer fell because of pride. Cain also fell because of his pride.

Many people today mistake the meaning of pride for vanity. Pride simply is "I don't so much care about you". Pride is all about - me. Vanity simply is "what do you think of me". Vanity is all about - pleasing you. Pride has no concern for what one thinks.

Pride and Vanity Pride is a high or an excessive esteem of one's self for some real or imagined superiority, as rank, wealth, talents, character, etc. Vanity is the love of being admired, praised, exalted, etc., by others. Vanity is an ostentation of pride; but one may have great pride without displaying it. Vanity, which is etymologically ``emptiness,'' is applied especially to the exhibition of pride in superficialities, as beauty, dress, wealth, etc. ©Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary

The two divisions of mankind's humanity

• Those will follow God and do according to His will. This is Abel's testimony.
• Those who will reject God and do according to their will. This is the way of Cain.
  

No servant can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to the one, and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon. Luke 16:13

What was Cain's motive for killing Abel? The Apostle John explains:

For this is the message that ye heard from the beginning, that we should love one another. Not as Cain, who was of that wicked one, and slew his brother. And wherefore slew he him? Because his own works were evil, and his brother's righteous. Marvel not, my brethren, if the world hate you. 1John 3:11-13.

And wherefore (means; for what purpose, for what reason)

Matthew Henry Commentary

As Abel leads the van in the noble army of martyrs (Matt:23:35), so Cain stands in the front of the ignoble army of persecutors (Jude 11). So early did he that was after the flesh persecute him that was after the Spirit; and so it is now, more or less (Gal:4:29), and so it will be till the war shall end in the eternal salvation of all the saints and the eternal perdition of all that hate them. See also what comes of envy, hatred, malice, and all uncharitableness; if they be indulged and cherished in the soul, they are in danger of involving men in the horrid guilt of murder itself. Rash anger is heart-murder, (Matt:5:21-22). Much more is malice so; he that hates his brother is already a murderer before God; and, if God leave him to himself, he wants nothing but an opportunity to render him a murderer before the world.

Everyone who hates his brother is a murderer, and you know that no murderer has eternal life residing in him. 1John 3:15

Cain starts from selfishness. When Cain saw that praise was given to Abel, because he willingly gave his best (from faith), Cain became envious, culminating into jealousy, resulting into rage against his brother. Rage is a result of envy, and jealousy is one of the most recognizable traits of a selfish person.

But mine eyes are unto thee, O GOD the Lord: in thee is my trust; leave not my soul destitute. Psalms 141:8

Folly is joy to him that is destitute of wisdom: but a man of understanding walketh uprightly. Proverbs 15:21

Matthew 5:3
Blessed are the poor in spirit: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

The two divisions of mankind's spirituality

• those who know they are destitute and poor in spirit.
• those who believe they are rich in spirit and in righteousness.
  

Genesis 4:5-8
But unto Cain and to his offering he had not respect. And Cain was very wroth, and his countenance fell. And the LORD said unto Cain, Why art thou wroth? and why is thy countenance fallen? If thou doest well, shalt thou not be accepted? and if thou doest not well, sin lieth at the door. And unto thee shall be his desire, and thou shalt rule over him. 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.

Proverbs: For jealousy is the rage of a man: therefore he will not spare in the day of vengeance. 6:34 Wrath is cruel, and anger is outrageous; but who is able to stand before envy? 27:4

Jesus spoke these words:

Ye are of your father the devil, and the lusts of your father ye will do. He was a murderer from the beginning, and abode not in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaketh a lie, he speaketh of his own: for he is a liar, and the father of it. John 8:44

The way of Cain, the heart of Cain, is the way of eternal damnation. It is the soul that rejects God. Yet God revealed the Son through a mystery (Rom:11:25); the Lord Jesus Christ, God in the flesh. His own people rejected and murdered him, even those whom He called his friends.

And one shall say unto him, What are these wounds in thine hands? Then he shall answer, Those with which I was wounded in the house of my friends. Zecheriah 13:6

He came in humiliation and rejection. He was hated and despised. He was brutally beaten and nailed to the tree. This is the same rage of Cain, seen of the Pharisees, and all those who hated him and eventually plotted to murder him. WOE unto them... For the have gone in the way of Cain.

From the heart man will reject the true living God, eventually replacing him by creating his own truth. He will create his own god. Thus, we will arrive at idolatry, where man will begin to create an image of god by his own hand. Man does this because, in his mind and heart, he bases his decisions on that which concerns truth, upon feelings and emotion. Once a man is turned over unto himself, he will then base truth on that which satisfies his heart and thoughts.

And so.. this is the way of Cain; the heart of one who sees only himself, who places all things after that which he has decided is truth, that which is moral, that of authority, of judgment. When idolatry appears, it will begin to manifest itself into the visualization of a wicked and evil spirit world that is habited by fallen angels, who manipulate mankind at will, using deception as the means in which to denying God's truth. The Serpent was in the garden, so we know he is in the world, deceiving men as he deceived Eve, then Adam, then Cain, taking from God the souls in which He has sought to redeem. If only they call would call out in faith, their salvation is sealed, such is the tesimony of Abel.

In Cain’s day, there were no commandments from God. Their sins were from the heart, they are acts of omission. This was Cain's moral position, representing his authority and judgment. He had known God personally. He did not reject God because of love - NAY! Cain revealed that which resides already in his heart, he did not believe God because he did he listen, even though he offered a sacrifice to Him. Abel believed God, and his faith was made manifest.

Clearly we see two directions:

• The mind of Abel was to please God, through faith, to offer that which God seeks from our heart, because Abel's works were righteous.
  
  
• From the mind of Cain we find selfishness, envy, jealousy, rage. Not as Cain, who was of that wicked one, and slew his brother. And wherefore slew he him? Because his own works were evil
  

We do not know how Cain came to know to murder. All we are told is he killed his brother out of rage. Jesus makes clear that those who sin are of the devil. Those who obey God, belong to God. Two lines are clearly made. One is for God, the other is for Satan.

The Way Of Cain by Chip Brogden

Now the way of Cain is all about religious sacrifice, doing one's duty, begrudgingly giving to God whatever suits us, all the while retaining Self as the center. All is for Self - bringing the offering, making the sacrifice, going through the motions, keeping up appearances, and pointing to these "evidences" as proof that we are doing God's work.

But the way of Cain goes beyond the mere failure to render to the Lord the things that belong to the Lord. Evil is not limited to something bad or immoral; evil is the natural, inevitable result of acting in the best interest of Self. It may be good, but it is good for me, pleasing to me, able to make me wise, able to make me like God, it meets my needs, and so on. Self, for all its seeking, is never satisfied, is never content, is never at peace, is always wandering - and wondering

Those who follow the way of Cain will find that the ground is cursed. It will not produce anything for them. They will never be fruitful. They will never be satisfied. They will wander the earth and will never know the genuine presence of the Lord. But Cain remains stubborn, even complaining about God's judgment: "My punishment is more than I can bear (Genesis 4:13). The flesh justifies itself at every turn.

End of part 2
The Two Divisions of Mankind

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Woe unto them! for they have gone in the way of Cain

part 1 They Were Morally Corrupt and Destitute
part 2: The Two Divisions of Mankind
part 3 In Due Time Christ Died For The Ungodly
part 4 The Revelation of Two Mysteries
part 5 Am I My Brother's Keeper?
part 6 Thy Brother's Blood Crieth Unto Me

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Copyright Wendell Leahy
published by Suite101.com