These Are the Days of Our Lives

I'm not a big fan of soap operas, although I used to be.  Days of Our Lives was a must watch show for many years, but over time I began to not like all the drama.  Give me something more uplifting, please!  So I turned to America's Funniest Home Videos.  Laughing at other people's blunders was way more enjoyable than despairing over Bo and Hope's relationship!

Last night at small group, a good friend kept us in stitches commenting on how Genesis was none other than a soap opera itself.  Such scandalous material found in this one book!  There's Abraham and Isaac both lying about their wives being their sister (although Sarah was Abraham's half-sister).  Lot's daughters decide to go to bed with their father in order to conceive (GROSS!).  Jacob manipulates Esau for his birthright.  Rebekah convinces Jacob to deceive his father and steal Esau's blessing.  Laban deceives Jacob by giving him Leah instead of Rachel on his wedding night (still not sure how Jacob didn't know until the next morning!).  Rachel lies to her father and hides the family idols.  A whole town of men are told to circumcise themselves in order to make a treaty but instead they're slaughtered when they least expect it.  Need I say more?  This IS soap opera material!  Such drama makes my head spin.  Where is the hope in the midst of all this depravity?

Early on in Genesis, the Lord says something very significant to Cain that I've not been able to shake, "'Why are you so angry?' the Lord asked him. 'Why do you look so dejected? You will be accepted if you respond in the right way.  But if you refuse to respond correctly, then watch out!  Sin is waiting to attack and destroy you, and you must subdue it (4:6-7)."  Clearly, Cain longed to be accepted, yet when told what to do, he didn't listen.  Jealousy drove him to kill his brother and in the end sin did destroy him.  The story ends by Cain leaving the Lord's presence.  He left the very One who loved him most.  For days I've been chewing on this story.  Aren't we all like Cain?  The longing for acceptance is real, something we all can relate to.  The Lord told Cain what to do.  The answer lay right before his face.  It wasn't rocket science or a mystery that needed to be solved.  There was a right way to respond and in doing so, sin would no longer be master in his life.  Unfortunately, Cain rejected God and sought to do things his own way, and sadly not much has changed today.  In our longing to be accepted, we often times look to everything but God to fill that void.  So, what is the "right way" to respond?  And how is it possible to subdue sin in a world racked with it?

It says in Genesis 15:6, "And Abraham believed the Lord, and the Lord declared him righteous because of his faith."  This is probably one of the most important verses in the whole Bible.  It's so important both Paul and James make reference to it in their New Testament letters.  We are accepted by God when we believe in Him.  Period!  Paul says it so clearly in Romans 10:9, "If you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved."  This is good news and God has been proclaiming it since the very beginning of time!  Yet, I find this hard to believe.  Can it really be that simple?  Isn't there more?  Don't I need to try harder and do more in order to be accepted?


Sin is ugly and it does destroy.  I believe the enemy seeks to deceive us into believing that we must perform to be accepted.  Too much emphasis is put on ourselves, which keeps us blinded to the truth. Our only hope to overcome is Jesus.  Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, the forefathers of our faith, were not perfect.  They sinned even after they believed, but the important thing is they believed.  Actually I am convinced they ended up obeying God BECAUSE they believed.  It's a good thing that Genesis clearly paints a picture of sinful man.  If we never read about our forefathers sins than we might believe that salvation is based off of performance.  Grace is found in these stories.  Unmerited, undeserved grace!  Undoubtedly, we should marvel at their performance.  Taking Isaac up that mountain in obedience to God's command was no small thing, but it's the grace of God we must marvel at most.  Only Abba, our loving Father, could save us from such depravity.  Only He could make us a people, who once were not accepted, accepted in His eyes, and only He can equip us to walk this road of faith.  Thankfully, in these days of our lives there IS hope for us all, and His name is JESUS!