“Then the Lord said to Cain, “Why are you angry? And why has
your countenance fallen? If you do
well, will not your countenance be lifted up? And if you do not do well sin is crouching at the door; and
its desire is for you, but you must master it.” Genesis 4:6-7
A few years ago (November, 2010) I wrote a posting on this
blog, called, “Help! I am stuck in my lesson and I can’t get out.” Now, in 2014 I find myself again stuck
in my lesson! Each week as I begin
studying for the lesson I am to teach on Sunday I pray, asking God to allow me
to apply whatever I am learning to my life first before I teach its
truths. God is always faithful to
give me plenty of opportunities each week to apply what it is I am studying. At times I literally feel like I am living
out what I am about to teach.
Two weeks ago I finished teaching through the book of
Romans, which ends with Paul’s instructions to:
- Be alert to those who would cause division among you.
- Turn away from them.
- Be wise in what is good and innocent in what is evil.
His promise to us when we follow these instructions is that,
“the God of peace will soon crush Satan under your feet.” (Romans 16:17-20)
This past week I began studying and teaching through a new
series. While in Kenya on a
mission trip I noticed that just about every home, church, and school had a
gate that guarded its entrance. As
I noticed the gates, Jesus’ words in John 10:9-10 kept going through my mind:
“I am the gate; whoever enters through me will be saved, He will come in and go
out and find pasture. The thief comes only to steal, kill and destroy. I have come that they may have life and
have it to the full.” (NIV) It was then that I decided I would like
to do a word study on gates. I
looked up the words gate, door, gateway and doorway in my concordance and was
amazed at how often these words were used. So, I asked one of our volunteer photographers on our trip
to take pictures of any gates she saw.
After the trip she sent me a CD of fifty-one pictures of gates! So I began to study gates as well as
its synonym, door. The first verse
listed was Genesis 4:7, which I have been studying for a couple of weeks: “ If
you do well, will not your countenance be lifted up? And if you do not do well, sin is crouching at your door;
and its desire is for you, but you must mater it.” (NAS) Needless
to say, sin has been crouching at my door and testing me to see if I will give
in to it or master it.
 |
| A dog outside a gate in Kenya. (Photo by Peggy Bain) |
Recently I have found myself dealing with a conflict that has caused
me much grief. I have had to be
alert to someone trying to cause division and am seeking to turn away from
them. In my study of Genesis 4:7 I
hear the Lord’s voice speaking directly to me: “Nancy, you can either choose to bless or to curse, to extend
grace or be offended, to love or to hate.
Are you going to obey My voice or are you going to give in to your
natural instincts to become angry and say something you shouldn’t?” At this point I am holding my tongue
and seeking to do well. Mastering
sin is not easy and in fact it is impossible on our own!
This morning as I was having my devotions the next-door
neighbors dog began to bark incessantly.
Usually the dog will bark as he sees his master pull out of the driveway
leaving him behind. But, after a
minute or so, he quits the barking and goes back to his patio, curls up and
goes to sleep. But this morning it
was different. His barking was
beginning to make me angry! I
tapped on the window hoping to quiet him down. But his barking continued and even became louder and more
urgent in its sound. I got up and
walked over to the other window to see if I could find the cause of his
barking. I discovered a possum
lying on top of the fence right above where the dog was barking.
The possum was frozen in fear. Then out of the corner of my eye I noticed the dog’s master
walking toward the dog and the possum with a long stick. He took the stick and nudged the possum
from behind several times causing him to sliver quickly out of the
situation. The dog quit barking
immediately and followed his master back inside the house. As I went back and sat down again to
finish my devotional time I reflected on what I just witnessed. The possum found himself stuck in my
lesson! You see, that possum was
like the sin that crouches outside our door trying to lure us into ungodly
behavior. The dog sensed an
intruder in his yard and he was alerting his master to the evil that was
lurking on top of his fence! The
master calmly comes in with a stick to shoo the evil possum away. The dog couldn’t do it no matter how
loudly and urgently he barked. The
evil would only retreat when the master came and used His presence to send him
packing.
What a visual of Genesis 4:7! There has been an opportunity for me to open the door to sin
these past few weeks. I have been
praying daily and seeking His guidance through reading and praying His
Word. I have cried out many times
to the Lord about this situation, just like a barking dog. After resisting the enemy’s temptation
to be angry and sin, my Master Jesus has come in and shooed that crouching
possum of sin away! I am learning
that our part in mastering sin is to be alert to the temptation, cry out to God
in prayer asking Him to lead us out of the temptation and into His powerful
presence by taking up the sword of the Spirit which is the Word of God. I cannot master sin on my own, no
matter how loudly I bark. But, if
I keep barking and keep seeking my master – The God of peace will soon crush
Satan under my feet! (Romans
16:20)
If you find sin crouching at your door today, cry out to God
and take hold of His promises! Be
alert, get help, and step away from the door of tempting sin. Your Master, Jesus, will step in and
bring you into His pasture where you will find a life full of peace.
Keep Barking!
Nancy
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