Keion Henderson - Anger Management

Genesis chapter 4: And Adam knew Eve, his wife, and she conceived and bore Cain, and said, «I have gotten a man from the Lord.» And she again bore his brother Abel. And Abel was a keeper of the sheep, but Cain was a tiller of the ground. In the process of time, it came to pass that Cain brought of the fruit of the ground an offering unto the Lord, and Abel, he also brought the firstling of his flock and of the fat thereof. And the Lord had respect unto Abel and his offering, but unto Cain and his offering, he had none. And Cain was very angry, and his countenance fell.

I want to talk about anger management. Let 's discuss anger management. Give three people a high five and say, «This word is for me; it ain’t got nothing to do with you today; this is about me and my anger.» This is my opinion, although it is laced with fact, truth, and historical precedence. In Genesis chapter number 2, Eve had the most deadly conversation the world has ever seen. The enemy sneaks into the garden and does what every person seeking affirmation is looking for: to prove that how I feel is actually justifiable based on my perception. The snake enters the garden and plays on Eve’s emotions because God had already told her that she was not supposed to eat of the fruit in the middle of the garden.

What does Satan come and do? He says, «Well, that’s not really what He meant; that’s a technicality in this situation. Yes, He said that, but here’s what it actually means.» He offers Eve something seemingly off-limits. When we get to Genesis chapter 3, we discover that the consequences of the fall are real and that God truly keeps His word, for He told them, «The day that you eat of this fruit, you shall surely die.» I want you to see the grace of God even in the garden because He tells them they should surely die; yet, notice they didn’t die immediately. God loves you so much, and His grace is so wide that even in the face of disobedience, He still allows them to live, as they have children. He gives them life before He gives them death.

I just wanted to mention this for everyone who has been harshly treated by people in the world, who have made you feel that God is this dogmatic deity looking down from heaven, breathing out fire and threats, and hates you. Look at Eve and look at Adam, who caused sin to enter into the world; even in the face of His promise, He still gives them productivity. I’ve come to tell someone here that even after your greatest fall, you can still produce, even after your greatest fall. For the religious cohorts who love fire and brimstone, this word ain’t for you; this word is for people who say, «I made it by the skin of my teeth, by the grace of God. I didn’t even feel like coming to church today, but I got up because something pushed me and told me I needed to be there.»

Some of y’all might be here because you love the word, and some of y’all might be here because you love the music, and some of y’all might be here because it’s your tradition. Kudos to you; we need you as well. But somebody in here said, «My trouble dragged me in here.» Something told me that if I didn’t make it here today, I wouldn’t make it at all. So I was glad when they said unto me. Who am I talking to? Is there anybody here?

Chapter three shows us the consequences. Here are the consequences, Pastor Lander. Number one: Snake, you messed up. You walked in here; you’re gonna slip out. You will be cursed to your belly, and you shall eat of the dust. Woman, you’re not getting out of this without fault-now every baby you have, you will experience pain during childbearing. And Adam, you can act like you’re innocent, but you aren't because I told you to tell her what to say, and you didn’t do it. So now the ground will be cursed, and you will have to work it. Don't forget this, Adam: the ground is cursed, and I’m going to make sure that your seed… Everybody, let me show you this generational curse: God curses the ground and then makes His first son a farmer. Don't tell me there’s no such thing as a generational curse.

God curses the ground and then makes the firstborn of the first family a farmer of the ground. Now, their relationship is steeped in history; there naturally would be a rivalry between Cain and Abel. The first literate people on earth were a group known as the Sumerians. They were the first people to read on earth. They had a group called the Sumerian religion, and the tale says that there were two gods that fought over a woman in marriage. Guess what? It was the god of the animal and the god of the farmer. It 's interesting that the first literate people had a god they would say represented both the blood sacrifice and the grain offering, because Cain was a farmer and Abel was the keeper of the sheep. It seems that in the historical context, this is a natural sibling rivalry. And they say that what happens is the story…