The Answer is YES!
Then the LORD said to Cain, “Where is Abel your brother?” He said, “I do not know. Am I my brother’s keeper (or guardian)?” (Genesis 4:9 NKJV)
Universal Theme of the Bible
In Matthew 22:35-40 we read, “Then one of them, a lawyer, asked Him a question, testing Him, and saying, ‘Teacher, which is the great commandment in the law?’” Jesus said to him, “You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind. This is the first and great commandment. And the second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself. On these two commandments hang all the Law and the Prophets.”
These commandments in Matthew 22 were violated by Cain who slew his brother, by Joseph’s brothers who sold him into slavery, by Absalom who hated his brother for violating his sister, by Abimelich the son of Gideon’s concubine who slew his half-brothers so he could usurp leadership in Israel, by Athaliah who destroyed her grandchildren so she could usurp the throne, and I am sure that I am missing some.
Love vs Self-Will
Cain didn’t love his brother because his brother was obedient to the Lord and he was not. Cain was self-willed. And in each case that I have mentioned, self was put before the welfare of others. But we who claim the name of Christ are not only to be guardians of those to whom we are related, but also we are to love our neighbors who are not blood relatives. The Lord goes so far as to say in Matthew 5:43-44, “You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy. But I say to you, love your enemies, bless those who curse you, do good to those who hate you, and pray for those who spitefully use you and persecute you.’” Frankly, I don’t do that. However, the Lord was able to do that. He did it at his trial where he didn’t defend Himself though He was innocent and at his crucifixion where He willingly died for the sins of the world and even of those who were crucifying Him.
But while I don’t do that like I should, I do try to ask myself as I make decisions, am I doing this just for me, or am I doing this for the benefit of others? I sacrificed a professional career as a CPA to preach the Gospel so that “others” could be in heaven with me. And yet, I enjoy preaching the Gospel. I get a thrill out of hearing people saying, “Now I understand, now I see. Now I know Christ died for me and I know I am saved.” So am I doing what I do for others or for self-satisfaction? I don’t really know. Frankly, I got tired of putting little numbers in little boxes. And I have always enjoyed preaching the Gospel. But I trust I have never made decisions that would harm my brothers or sisters or my neighbors. I realize we can make self-willed decisions that affect others negatively without hating them as Cain hated Abel, but we should consider our neighbors and even our enemies as we who are saved make decisions in this life.
The answer should be YES!
Are we our brother’s keepers? The answer should be YES!
Bruce Collins
Meditation for the week of November 15, 2020