God’s Glory Going Global: Genesis 4

Today in chapel, SGA Chaplain Ethan Foster led us through Genesis 4, focusing on the story of Cain and Abel. Foster reminded us of the past chapters of Genesis in this series, referring to the creation account in Genesis 2 and the fall in Genesis 3. He reminded us of the ideas that we are made in God’s image to reflect Him, yet sin disrupts that design. In Jesus, we are invited to walk in victory rather than defeat.

Foster then explained how understanding the author’s intent is a good interpretive tool. He encouraged us not to obsess over the details of Cain and Abel’s sacrifices in Genesis 4 since the author’s intent was for readers to see themselves within the story of sin’s progression in Genesis’ accounts. In Eve’s choice, we see a warning, her contemplation, and then sin. With Cain, the pattern shifts: God issues a warning, but Cain ignores it and acts without thinking it through. By the time of Lamech, sin has proliferated, and Lamech engages in unrepentant, boastful sin. Foster then warned, “When people live away from the presence of the Lord, they no longer receive the warning of God.”

Our response to the stories of Genesis, he said, must be to heed God’s warnings as gifts. When we fail, confession and repentance will open the way back to God. He emphasized the importance of godly sorrow — the kind that acknowledges where we’ve ignored God’s voice and turns us back toward Him.

Foster then lifted up Abel’s example, pointing to Hebrews 11:4. Abel’s faithful sacrifice continues to speak across generations, showing us that true worship is costly. As Christians, we are called to be living sacrifices, willing to give all for the sake of God’s mission.

In closing, Foster challenged us: if God’s glory is to go global, it will be through believers who, like Abel, live and even die in faithful sacrifice. So, he says, “Let’s live a life of sacrifice so that one day, though we are dead, we will still speak as a sacrifice pointing to Christ.”