Let us pray. In the sweat of thy face, shall thou eat bread, until you return into the ground? For out of it was thou taken. For dust thou art, and unto dust, shalt thou return. Genesis 3:19. Dear Father, because of Adam's disobedience, I was born into this sinful inheritance until you sent your son Jesus, who made a way through his obedience unto death that broke the curse. I am now adopted into your eternal family by accepting his atonement for my sins. You fashioned Adam's physical body out of the dust of the earth and breathed your life into him, and he became a living being with an eternal soul. When he sinned, he broke that eternal connection and returned to the dust of the earth in which you took him from. I am doomed to provide for my family and myself through the work of my hands. The stress of my labor wears out this human body. But my eternal soul has been restored through forgiveness of my sins. And faith in the work of Christ on the cross. My human condition will perish, and my body will return to the earth, but my soul shall rise to be with you forever in heaven.

Thank you, heavenly Father, for restoring my soul and redeeming me from Adam's sin. Nothing I sacrifice for you will ever repay the life you sacrificed for me. Nothing is impossible for you, and you outsmarded the one who thought he defeated you when he crucified you on the cross. Glory to the risen Lord. In Jesus' name, Amen. Listening to these daily prayers strengthens your relationship with God. Continue hearing from the Lord by listening to today's Bible in a Year. Brought to you by BibleInAyear. Com.

Hello, I'm Bishop TD Jakes, and I want to welcome you to my new podcast with pray. Com called Sleep Psalms. He is going to lay you down in green pastures and restore your soul. Join me and let the Lord be your shepherd tonight. Listen to Sleep Psalms with Bishop TD Jakes on the iHeard radio app, Apple podcast, or wherever you get your podcast.

Cain and Abel. Before this story, we learned about the fall of mankind. Adam and Eve lived with God, shameful and without sin. But because of their pride and desire to be their own gods, they were deceived and turned away from him. Now they live in exile, still with God, but no longer in an intimate relationship with him. Now we will learn about how Adam and Eve start their family outside of paradise. They have their own children, but the sinful nature of Adam and Eve has now been given to their children. And what comes next is a tragedy that has been repeated for all of human history, inspired by the Book of Genesis.

Hello, I'm Pastor Jack Graham with today's episode of the Bible in a Year podcast. Today, we pick up with Adam and Eve outside the garden. This is life after the Curse. If yesterday Today's story was about doubt and pride. Today's theme is insincere worship of God, anger, bitterness, and the passing down of sin nature to all future generations after Adam. Adam and Eve start a family. They have two sons, Cain and Abel, names that have become infamous for the devastating effects of sibling rivalry. Cain and his brother Abel grew up knowing God. They were taught the importance of sacrifice. Places. Abel chose the best to offer to God, while Cain brought offerings from a sense of obligation rather than gratitude and praise. So God accepts one and rejects the other. Cain was angry, bitter, and sin took hold of his heart. The tragedy that ensued once again created an irreparable rift in the family. The first human blood that was shed on God's once perfect Earth came from the hands of one brother upon one another. Sin was now spreading through generations, and the cost was high. Murder, banishment, another curse, and yet in the midst of it all, God's grace and mercy once again shining through.

Let's Listen now to the telling of this story from Genesis 4, the story of Cain and Abel.

Adam and Eve had been banished from Eden, and their sin had made life hard. But the steadfast love of God had not left them. Adam and Eve knew each other intimately and became pregnant. First came Cain, afterward came Abel. Cain labored in the fields, growing food for the family. Abel tended to the livestock as a shepherd. Cain and Abel are the first of us to grow up in a world riddled with imperfection, sin, and distance from God. Both children grew up in the new world, and it was time for Cain and Abel bring sacrifices to God. Cain brought some of the fruits of his labor, grains, vegetables, and other vegetation. Abel brought the first born of his flock, a lamb. Abel brought the best of what he had. Not only this, but Abel had to raise this little sheep and kill it before God. This means that it was not just a sacrifice of materials, but a sacrifice of the heart. Because of this, God accepted Abel's offering. God also rejected Cain's offering, knowing that it did not come from any real love at all. Jealousy gripped Cain's heart. Contempt towards God boiled up inside him.

This is mankind's first rumblings of true hatred. Cain's face gave away his true feelings. God noticed this and asked, Why are you so angry? Knowing full well what the issue was. If you do well, will you not be accepted? God asked. If you don't do well, you give more room for hatred and sin to rule in your heart. Do not let hate rule over you. You can overcome it. But Cain didn't listen. His anger had already won him over. There would be no stopping the sin he was about to commit. Cain lured his brother into the fields. Then at that moment, all the hatred, jealousy, and contempt of Cain unleashed onto his brother. Flow after flow, Cain unleashed his wrath and spited God by murdering his brother. His hands stained red, dripping with the blood of his brother. God, already knowing what Cain had done, asked him, Cain, where is your brother? Cain replied, I do not know. Am I my brother's keeper? God is the creator of life. And Cain had taken an innocent one. This enraged God. He cursed Cain saying, What have you done? The voice of your brother's blood is crying to me from the ground, and now you are cursed from the ground which has opened its mouth to receive your brother's blood from your hand.

When you work the ground, it shall no longer yield to you its strength. You shall be a fugitive and a wanderer on the earth. This punishment was fitting. Because Cain had taken a life, God wanted his life to be burdensome. It was more than Cain could bear. Fortunately for him, God's mercy is still present in punishment. God said, If anyone kills you, vengeance shall be taken on them sevenfold. And he put a mark on Cain to keep anyone from doing to him what he did to his brother. Cain had shed innocent blood, and this was a pattern mankind would continue in for a thousand generations after. Yet God continues to show mercy, waiting to bless them and save them from their evil.

Hello, I'm Bishop TD Jakes, and I want to welcome you to my new podcast with pray. Com called Sleep Psalms.

Close your eyes and focus on God. Picture him as your shepherd that knows you and surrender to him.

Each episode guides you on a serene exploration of Psalms, tranquility calming every nerve and restless mind-turning adventure that keeps you up in the middle of the night, transposing you into the safety of his arms. He is going to lay you down in green pastures and your soul. Join me and let the Lord be your shepherd tonight. Listen to Sleep Psalms with Bishop TD Jakes on the iHeard radio app, Apple podcast, or wherever you get your podcast.

Pray. Com's Meditative prayers podcast is the best way to bring God's perfect peace into your night. Each meditative prayer helps you focus on God, fight Great anxiety, sleep better, and more. Our goal for today's Meditative Prayer is to sleep better. Allow your heart to enter into the presence of the Lord. Follow the Meditative prayers podcast. Come relax and strengthen your relationship with God.

As you close your eyes, ask God to come and have fellowship with you. Open yourself to the Holy spirit and ask him to minister to you. Take a moment to dwell on God's amazing gift of strength. Think of how Jesus had to persevere and rely upon the Father to complete his task. Thank him for setting aside his personal desires for the benefit of mankind.

Listen to meditative prayers on the Art Radio app, Apple podcast, or wherever you get your podcast.

When jealousy and anger take root, they fester and grow. That's what we see happening in today's story. Abel, who really only plays a brief is lifted up as the example of God honoring sacrifices and offerings. He gave God the first and the best, and God accepted that sacrifice. Cain, whose heart was not in the right place, full of faith to begin with, brought God vegetables and grains, but not his first fruits, not his best, and not in faith. His motives were wrong, and he became angry when his offering was rejected. Sin started to creep in through resentment and anger. So God warned him of the danger of letting sin in. He speaks to Cain in Genesis 4:7-8, saying, If you do well, will your face not be cheerful? And if you do not do well, sin is lurking at the door, and its desire is for you, but you must master it. I appreciate this passage providing a warning that's applicable to you and me today. Sin is now loose in the world. It lurks at our door. It desires us. In other words, it wants to get in our heads and in our hearts, into our lives.

When sin is allowed to rule over us, the outcome is never good and ultimately, tragic. That's what happened to Cain. Sin took hold of him, and he directed his jealousy and anger at the one whose offering was accepted to his own brother, whom he killed in cold blood. Once again, we are reminded that sin always comes with a price. As he did with Adam and Eve, God questions Cain, and his guilt is revealed. Cain is cursed to wander in the Earth. Sin, separation is always, always, always the same. When we sin, there is always separation that happens from God, which is the worst of all separations, and then from others. But again, God, in his mercy, does not abandon Cain or leave him without protection. God marks him not as a sign of the curse, but as a sign of God's hand of protection. God, thank you for this story that shows us how sin can take hold and rule our thoughts, leading us to commit unthinkable acts. Help us through your spirit to master the sin that lurks at our doors. And thank you, Lord, that even when we sin, even through the consequences of our sin, your mercy and grace remain.

In Christ's name, Amen. Thank you for listening to today's Bible in a Year podcast. I'm Pastor Jack Graham from Dallas, Texas. Download the pray. Com app and make prayer a priority in your life. If you enjoyed this podcast, share it with someone you love. By sharing this podcast, you can make a difference in someone's life. If you want more resources on how to tap into God's power for successful Christian living, be sure to visit jackgraham. Org. God bless.

Hello, I'm Bishop T. D. Jakes, and I want to welcome you to my new podcast with pray. Com called Sleep Psalms. He is going to lay you down in green pastures and restore your soul. Join me and let the Lord be your shepherd tonight. Listen to Sleep Psalms with Bishop T. D. Jakes on the iHeard radio app, Apple podcast, or wherever you get your podcast.