Master Sin [Genesis 4:6-7]

Gen 4:6 Then the LORD said to Cain, "Why are you furious? And why are you downcast?
Gen 4:7 If you do right, won't you be accepted? But if you do not do right, sin is crouching at the door. Its desire is for you, but you must master it."

We read in the verses that precede this about Cain and Abel’s offerings to the Lord. Cain was a farmer and he presented the Lord with some of the land’s produce. Abel was a shepherd and he presented the Lord with the firstborn of his flock and its fat portions. As we continue to read, we see that the Lord did not accept Cain’s offering. Why was that? There are a few different interpretations of why God did not accept his offering, but the most widely recognized is that it was not a blood sacrifice. Abel offered a God a blood sacrifice, Cain did not. This caused Cain to become very angry with God; anger so deep that the Bible says he was “furious”. Cain was beginning to meditate on the idea of killing Abel. God confronted him with this and told him he had the option to do right or to let sin take control of him.

As I was studying this week on what it means to be “Ninja for God” (Romans 12:1-2), I came across this verse in Genesis dealing with sin. The first step in being “Ninja for God” is to put away sin in your life, eliminate it. I have come to realize that many times we come to accept the sins in our lives. We brainwash ourselves into believing that it is just another part of our day and we can not get rid of it. Well, I’m here to tell you that is a lie straight from Hell. Sin is a choice; every time we sin, we choose to. God was telling this same thing to Cain. He had the choice to allowing sin to have him, or to master sin. That’s right, master sin. Master it meaning not allowing it to control you, but getting rid of it.

Our Christian walk demands of us to be a living sacrifice for God (Ninja for God). As I said before, to do this we have to make a choice: am I going to master sin or is it going to master me? Pose yourself with that question and remember this verse next time you are faced with sin. Master it.

Aaron Taylor