Master

“sin is crouching at the door, and its desire is for you, but you must master it”  Genesis 4:7

Master – God can’t do everything.  No, it’s not blasphemy to say this.  God can’t do what He intends you to do without violating your freedom of choice.  And since His purposes include your freedom of choice, He can’t do the job for you.  When God confronts Cain before the murder occurs, God tells Cain that there is something Cain must do.  Cain must rule over the sin that desires to capture him.  After thousands of years, this job still remains a human assignment.  Dealing with sin’s ambush is still our assignment.

The Hebrew word here comes from mashal.  This word is associated with authority and stewardship.  It is God’s intention that Man shall have dominion or rule over creation.  Too often we think only of the physical creation when we consider stewardship.  But the idea of dominion is present here too.  We are also stewards of our situations and emotions.  Did you realize that God wants you to take charge of how you feel and what you think?  That’s part of stewardship.  That’s taking care of what the Owner has put into your hands.

Cain is dejected.  His offering to God has been refused.  This passage doesn’t tell us why God didn’t accept the offering.  The focus of God’s attention is not on the offering.  It is on Cain’s emotional state of mind.  God comes to Cain with hope.  “Just straighten out this issue and we’ll be right back on track.”  But God notices something else.  Emotional mismanagement of the situation is right at the door, ready to attack Cain.  So God reminds Cain that he is a steward.  He has been given authority over this kind of attack.  But it’s up to him to exercise that authority.

Does that mean that God takes a “hands-off” position?  Not at all!  I exercise my stewardship over emotional threats by giving them back to God.  I let go of trying to manage the consequences, of seeking justice for myself, or harboring revenge.  My job as steward is to turn it over to the Boss.  But God won’t make me.  He waits.  He gives me advice.  He warns.  But He has assigned the role of steward to me and He won’t take it away until I have shown that I don’t want it.