Am I My Brothers Keeper

Gen 4:9 Where is Abel thy brother? And he said, I know not: Am I my brother's keeper?

A charitable concern for our brethren, as their keepers, is a great duty, which is strictly required of us, but is generally neglected by us. In light of the recent earthquake that devastated Port-Au-Prince in Haiti; a question arises are we our brother’s keeper. Do we have a responsibility to look out and care for one another? Yes we do. It brought great joy to my heart to see so many people reach out to help Haiti in their time of need.

Most of us have heard the story, in the book of Genesis about Cain & Abel. It was time for Cain & Abel to bring their sacrifices and present them to God. Cain brought fruit from the ground and Abel brought the firstlings of his flock. God had respect unto Abel’s offering; but not Cain’s offering. Hebrews 9:22 states that there must be the shedding of blood before there can be the remission of sin, but Cain brought a bloodless offering from the cursed earth. His offering may have been sincere, but it was not accepted. He had no faith in God’s Word or dependence on the sacrifice of a substitute. Cain killed his brother because God had respect unto Abel’s offering. In verse 9 God asked Cain where is Abel, your brother. Cain’s response was am I my brother’s keeper?

Cain’s response was one of calloused indifference. Am I my brother’s keeper?” People say, “I’ve got enough to do to look after myself.” On the other hand, many times we quickly say, “Yes, I am my brother’s keeper,” but it turns out to be more of “a duty required; but also a duty generally neglected because of our own selfishness.” Matthew Henry said, “When a person is unconcerned in the affairs of others and takes no care when they have opportunity to prevent hurt--especially in their souls,--that person in effect speaks Cain’s language.” Who is my brother? Anyone and everyone is my brother, my family, my friends, my coworkers and yes even my enemies.

So what are some our responsibilities towards our brothers?

• First and foremost we are to love one another - John 14:34

• We are to "receive one another" - Ro 15:7

• We are to "edify another" - Ro 14:19

• We are to "serve one another" - Ga 5:13

• We are to "bear one another's burdens" - Ga 6:1-2

• We are to be "forgiving one another" - Ep 4:32

• We are to be "submitting to one another" - Ep 5:21

• We are to "exhort one another" - He 3:12-13

• We are to "consider one another" - He 10:24-25

• We are to be "hospitable to one another" - 1Pe 4:8-10

Cain’s name means possession while Abel’s name means weakness or vanity. There are some that belief; I have mine, now you get yours. I want to encourage you today to lay aside the hindrances that are keeping you from fulfilling your obligation towards one another. Theodore Roosevelt, the 26th President said: - “Do what you can, with what you have, where you are.” …… God loves you and so do I….. Pastor Tammy