One of the biggest battlegrounds in life is in the mind. From the earliest days of man, God saw man’s struggle of the mind. Genesis 6:5 says, “And God saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually.” Wicked actions start in our minds. Our God, who sees not as man sees but looks on the heart (1 Samuel 16:7), saw that at least part of mankind’s downfall was due to their wicked thoughts. 

After the flood, God again mentioned the wicked mind of man, in Genesis 8:21, “I will not again curse the ground any more for man's sake; for the imagination of man's heart is evil from his youth.” This is a scary truth. It reminds us that the human mind drifts toward sin when God's word is not guiding us. The devil aims for the mind because that is where decisions are made, desires are formed, and actions begin (James 1:14–15).

But there is hope! We do not have to be ruled by evil thoughts. We can renew our minds (Romans 12:2). Paul said in 2 Corinthians 10:5 that we are to bring “into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ.” That is what we must do—fight against every evil thought.

How do we overcome? We must fill our minds with God’s Word: “Thy word have I hid in mine heart, that I might not sin against thee” (Psalm 119:11). We must think on what is true, honest, just, pure, lovely, and of good report (Philippians 4:8). We must be people who pray and be serious about what we allow into our hearts. If we take in worldly things, we shouldn’t be surprised when worldly thoughts take hold.

Overcoming evil thoughts isn’t a one-time act—it’s a daily battle. But with the Word of God, we can win. We must set our affection on things above (Colossians 3:2) and remember that what we think about shapes how we act.

Let’s train our minds to dwell on righteous and upright things (Philippians 2:5).

​The story of Cain and Abel in Genesis 4 is one of the most well-known stories in the Bible. Brothers ideally support one another and, while at times may be at odds, will still come to the aid of their brother when needed. However, the story goes much differently between Cain and Abel.
 
In Genesis chapter 4, we read about these brothers and the labors they were involved in. Cain was a tiller of the ground, a gardener, or perhaps a farmer. Abel was a keeper of sheep. The Bible tells us when it came time to bring an offering to God that each brought from their respective areas of labor. While Abel’s offering is respected Cain’s is not, it appears later in the text that the offering that was brought by Cain was not done well, and that it was not per God’s commands. This helps us understand the question posed to Cain in verse 7 “If thou doest well, shalt thou not be accepted?”
 
After Cain brings his offering, it is revealed to him that God did not respect his offering, that is He was not pleased by it. The attitude of Cain changed. A heart that perhaps once was tender quickly becomes hard, callused, and unresponsive to the warnings and pleadings of God. This is apparent by the reaction to God’s admonition and warning to Cain in verses 6 and 7 “And the LORD said unto Cain, Why art thou wroth? and why is thy countenance fallen? 7 If thou doest well, shalt thou not be accepted? and if thou doest not well, sin lieth at the door. And unto thee shall be his desire, and thou shalt rule over him.”
 
Cain is warned of sin being only a few feet away, just at the door. Cain is told he can rule over it, that is, he can overcome the anger he was feeling and choose not to sin! He could choose instead to “do well” (verse 7). However, that is not how the account unfolds.
 
We read instead of Cain rising in anger and killing his brother in the fields. Cain did not rule over sin, instead, sin rose over Cain and swallowed him whole. Sin pushed anger further into his hardened heart. Sin placed the desire to slay his brother in his mind and heart. Cain, who probably in the eyes of Abel no longer resembled his brother, chose to slay his brother. Before Cain killed his brother, he had to first kill the man he once was, the man who once was a servant of God. One might say there were two killings that day, first of the obedient Cain and then of the innocent brother.
 
Sin truly lies at the door for us all. No doubt its desire is for us. However, we, unlike Cain, can choose to rule over sin. To see it for what it truly is and to choose instead to cling to God. To choose repentance over sin, to choose obedience over rebellion.
 
Let us think on the account of Cain and Abel and remember that we can overcome sin, if we choose to do so. 
​- Russ

​“Now the serpent was more subtil than any beast of the field which the LORD God had made. And he said unto the woman, Yea, hath God said, Ye shall not eat of every tree of the garden?” Genesis 3:1

Genesis chapter 3 reveals many things to the Bible student. First, it reveals certain things about Satan. His name “serpent” for example, this name, one of his many, reveals certain qualities of our adversary (1 Pt 5:8). Satan reveals that he is subtil or as some definitions state “shrewd, crafty, and sly.” 

Second, we see that both the husband and the wife knew God’s law (Genesis 2:16-17; 3:3). We also see that Satan knew what God had commanded as well, however, this did not stop him from encouraging Eve to disobey God, this he did by altering God’s command. Eve committed an error by following what someone had said instead of what God had commanded, today, just like Eve, we sin if we do the same. 
 
Third, we learn that there were two trees in the midst of the garden and only one was forbidden at this time (Gen 2:9, 16-17), the “tree of knowledge of good and evil”. The Tree of Life is not mentioned as being off-limits, not until Genesis 3:22. When Adam and Eve sinned, physical death entered the world, and the ability to live forever ended. The Tree of Life was no longer available to them and Satan’s lie “you shall not surely die” proved to be just that, a lie. They died spiritually and would begin to die physically. The guarding of the way to the Tree of Life further emphasizes this. 

Fourth, we learn that sin separates man from God. While God knew physically where Adam and Eve were, spiritually they were separated because of their sin. We have this reminder when God asks the question “Where art thou?” (Genesis 3:9) Sin separates man from God and this is the very first example of such a separation (Isaiah 59:2). The question is more related to their spiritual whereabouts than it does their physical. 

While we could look at many other lessons from Genesis 3 sin has been a problem from the very beginning of time. Mankind has from the beginning struggled with temptation and God from the beginning has always punished those who disobeyed Him.

Let us learn from the actions of Adam and Eve and remember who our true enemy is and that he is dangerous, and his attacks should be taken seriously. 

Let us remember the warning from God, that if you disobey there will be consequences. Thankfully, God in His mighty love and mercy made it possible for our sins to be forgiven and our spots to be washed away in the blood of His Son.

Let us always be mindful of the consequences of sin and learn from those who have gone before us. 
​- Russ