“And the Lord had respect unto Abel…But unto Cain…he had not respect.” God’s love is unconditional, but it is not so with His respect; that must be earned. Today, it seems not to matter to some of the Lord’s children whether they have His respect or not. He does not mete out His respect indiscriminately, but only, rather, to those who merit it. And who are these meritorious marvels? To be sure, they are not to be found in some elite group. They come from all sorts of spiritual backgrounds. But each has one characteristic that qualifies them for God’s smile: they are obedient to His revealed Will.
In our text, we have two grown children who were brought up in the same environment, had identical teaching, and saw the same example, yet the one chose to go his own way. No doubt, like many in our time, he felt his father’s faith was no longer relevant. Some adult children mistakenly believe their sibling or siblings, who receive their father’s and mother’s respect, are the parents pet. And as a result, like Cain of old, end up with a hateful spirit. But this is far from the truth. It’s just that those who live out the parental principles they were taught while at home are the recipients of their parent’s respect.
I have found those who care nothing about having God’s and their parent’s respect, are void of any self-respect. When children are small, they’re to obey their parents but when grown, they’re to honor them. And the best way to honor them is by living out their parent’s godly principles in their own daily lives. Not necessarily to the letter, but most certainly in the spirit. This does not take away individuality from one’s life, but it does add respectability.
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