Am I my brother's keeper?

Though God spoke to Cain directly, Cain showed no faith in God's omniscience. How futile and foolish it is to lie to God! But as well as lying, he asks irritably, “Am I my brother's keeper?” God did not have to answer this: Cain knew well enough that he was responsible to have some honest care for his brother, but he had not only neglected this: he had been guilty of the total opposite. God then speaks with solemn words to the criminal's conscience, “What have you done! The voice of your brother's blood cries out to Me from the ground” (v. 10). Of course this means that Abel's blood cries out to God for righteous retribution (Compare Revelation 6:10).

As well as pride, anger, selfishness, stubbornness, jealousy and hatred, Cain adds dishonesty to his unsavory qualities when the Lord asks him, "Where is Abel your brother?" (v.9). though there was no announced law against murder, Cain showed that he knew he had sinned in killing Abel. If he had considered himself right, he would have told the Lord plainly that he had killed Abel. But when one is determined to defend his sin, he will continue to multiply his sinful actions and to cover them up by falsehood. Thus, in the first child born of Adam we see the ugly works of the flesh come strongly to the forefront.

Though God spoke to Cain directly, Cain showed no faith in God's omniscience. How futile and foolish it is to lie to God! but as well as lying, he asks irritably, "Am I my brother's keeper?" God did not have to answer this: Cain knew well enough that he was responsible to have some honest care for his brother, but he had not only neglected this: he had been guilty of the total opposite. God then speaks with solemn words to the criminal's conscience, "What have you done! The voice of your brother's blood cries out to Me from the ground" (v.10). Of course this means that Abel's blood cries out to God for righteous retribution (Compare Revelation 6:10).

With what hurried steps sin advanced to trespass against man's neighbour, which is counted as a trespass against the Lord. As soon as there was a man to sin against, the trespass was done, and the startled earth drank the blood of the first man slain, not by a demon from a nether hell, nor by a wild beast from the forest, but by his own mother's son. In the murder of Abel, Cain had trespassed in that "which was delivered him to keep, " and he had "taken away by violence" his brother's life. His sullen retort to God's enquiry as to his brother, "Am I my brother's keeper?" showed clearly that he knew that he was.

With what hurried steps sin advanced to trespass against man's neighbour , which is counted as a trespass against the Lord. As soon as there was a man to sin against, the trespass was done, and the startled earth drank the blood of the first man slain, not by a demon from a nether hell, nor by a wild beast from the forest, but by his own mother's son. In the murder of Abel, Cain had trespassed in that “which was delivered him to keep, ” and he had “taken away by violence” his brother's life. His sullen retort to God's enquiry as to his brother, “Am I my brother's keeper?” showed clearly that he knew that he was.

Again, it is indeed most important to be separate from evil, but what is true separation from evil? It is emphatically not the separation of the monk and the nun. True separation from evil is Christ-likeness which moves about amongst our fellowmen, but is altogether of a different spirit from that of this world, with other motives, desires and ambitions. Thus it is written, "He that loveth not his brother whom he hath seen, how can he love God whom he hath not seen," but what about our brother who lives in our street, our neighbourhood, and whom we have often seen, but we have never done anything to show our love to him? Will it do at the judgment-seat to say, he was not "of us," and therefore we were justified in ignoring him. We are bound to shew love to him, how have we done it? Truly we have reason to be humbled to the dust, for we have not neighboured our brother, and if our excuse is, "Oh, he is all wrong," this will only make our own case worse, for the need was all the greater. "If thou forbear to deliver them that are drawn to death, and those that are ready to be slain; if thou sayest, behold, we knew it not; doth not he that pondereth the heart consider it? and he that keepeth thy soul, doth he not know it? and shall he not render to every man according to his works? (Prov. 24:11-12.)

Ver. 11. John is writing to fellow believers. So, "Beloved, if God so loved us, we ought also to love one another." Whilst the law said, "Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul and thy neighbour as thyself," it never got it. Does the gospel tell me I ought to love God? No, it tells me God loved me, and the result of this knowledge in the heart is that we do love God. Love Godward is produced, not exacted. We do it: we love Him. But, then there are those we are called to love, who may be very awkward. We do not like so and so — they are a great trial to us: perhaps we are to them! So there are these peculiarities, and eccentricities, etc., these hindrances in the way, for we do not always behave ourselves. "In many things we all offend" — what, an apostle! Yes. But we are to bear one with another. If I love my brother because he is loved of God, that is unchangeable. I may not be able to go along with him if he is going wrong. "Have no company with him that he may be ashamed, yet count him not as an enemy, but admonish him as a brother." If he is not keeping God's word, and I did not care for him, I might leave him to himself and the world would call that love. But "Am I my brother's keeper?" Yes. Who was neighbour 1 o him that fell among thieves? We act in a spirit of independency! "If you say anything you will only be getting yourself into trouble." That is thinking of self. The only question is what would please the Lord. There is a time to speak, and a time to be silent. So the Christian is held responsible to walk in dependence on God. Does He care for me in everything? Why should we not realise it? What repose is given to me then! My Father knows.

Paul once wrote: ‘But if any one does not provide for his own, and specially for those of his house, he has denied the faith, and is worse than the unbeliever’ (1 Tim. 5:8). This verse refers particularly to widows but we could apply it to anyone who has lost their breadwinner through some circumstance of life. Those believers who are near to us require our special interest. God takes care of them, but He wants us to take care of them too.

“But whoso hath this world’s good, and seeth his brother have need, and shutteth up his bowels of compassion from him, how dwelleth the love of God in him?” Is this not to be a real, personal exercise and responsibility as before God? This is no demanding of the government that the poor should be relieved from public funds, while taking nothing from my own pocket; nor is it the founding of a benefit society to solicit the support of the world for the relief of the poor. The Lord give His people serious concern to see that their means are used for the blessing of others, and here it is specially the household of faith. If we ignore evident needs, is this an evidence of the love of God dwelling in us? To give where there is not need is of course a mistake; yet it is better to err on the side of kindness than on the side of greed and heartlessness.

It would be for the profit of all, if we often questioned ourselves as to whether we are really owning our duty in this particular, whether practically we confess to the responsibility of having "the same care" for all the members of the body whom we know. A very manifest tendency with many of us is to form our own circles within the Church of God, and sometimes, it is to be feared, circles of friendship rather than of spiritual fellowship. It is not forgotten that of necessity those who are closest to Christ will be themselves drawn closer together, and those who are farther from Christ will also be mutually attracted. This is true; but the responsibility here enjoined is based upon common membership of the body, so that I owe care to my fellow-members simply because they are of the body. Family relationships might teach us this lesson. The parents care for their children because they are their children, and not at all on the ground of their answering to their own mind. So we must have the same care one for another on the ground of common membership of the body. Hence, too, our responsibility goes out far beyond those who are gathered on the ground of the body. There will be certainly more frequent opportunities for the exhibition of the care towards those who are associated together, but the debt is owing to all, wherever they may be found; for we must not forget to claim them as Christ's members, even if they do not recognise us as such. Indeed, we must express the heart of Christ, and in the same circle; and His affections embrace all who are His.

"For each one shall bear his own load" (v.5). In the final analysis, though we may at present "bear one another's burdens," each one of us is solitarily responsible only for our own work. We cannot transfer responsibility from ourselves to someone else. Nor should we have such an attitude as did Peter at one time, saying, "But Lord, what about this man?" (Jn.21:21). Therefore, while it is important that we have genuine compassion and care for others, we must not expect others to take responsibility for us, nor concern ourselves with what is their responsibility.