More Than Medicine
More Than Medicine
DWDP: Gen 4, 12 -15 Jesus Bore our Shame that Paralyzes
Shame can be a powerful prison. In this intimate devotional episode, we dive deep into the aftermath of humanity's first murder through the lens of Genesis 4:12-15. The story of Cain's punishment reveals profound truths about our own struggles with sin, shame, and separation from God.
What happens when the weight of our actions becomes too heavy to carry? Cain's lament that "my punishment is too great to bear" echoes through time into the hearts of many today. Drawing from his experiences ministering to men in prison, Dr. Papa illuminates how this ancient cry mirrors what he's witnessed firsthand—the paralysis that comes when shame overwhelms us. Even believers who intellectually understand Christ's redemptive work find themselves trapped in this self-imposed exile, separated from God, family, and purpose.
The contrast between Cain and his parents offers a striking lesson. While Adam and Eve understood that blood sacrifice pointed toward a future Messiah, Cain rejected this path to restoration. His story serves as a powerful warning about the consequences of unconfessed sin and rebellion against God's design. Yet even in judgment, we glimpse God's mercy through the mysterious protective sign placed on Cain.
The message culminates in a soul-stirring invitation: Will you continue wandering as a vagrant in your shame, or will you run into the loving arms of Jesus, who bore your sin and shame on the cross? "He who believes in Him will not be ashamed, will not be disappointed." The choice is yours—continued separation or complete restoration through Christ, who waits with open arms to receive you. Subscribe to "Devotions with Dr. Papa" for more biblical insights that bring ancient truths to bear on our modern struggles.
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Welcome to More Than Medicine, where Jesus is more than enough for the ills that plague our culture and our country. Hosted by author and physician, Dr Robert Jackson.
Dr. Robert Jackson:Papa, can you tell me a story?
Dr. Jackson:Do you really want me to tell you a story? Well, you go, get your brother and your sisters and I will tell you a story. Well, you go, get your brother and your sisters and I will tell you a story. Welcome to Devotions with Dr Papa. Gather around, grab your Bibles and let us look into the written Word, which reveals to us the living Word, which is our Lord Jesus Christ. Well, today we're at Genesis, chapter 4, verses 12 to 15. Let me read to you.
Dr. Jackson:God is speaking to Cain and he says when you cultivate the ground, it will no longer yield its strength to you. You will be a vagrant and a wanderer on the earth. Cain said to the Lord my punishment is too great to bear. Behold, you have driven me this day from the face of the ground and from your face. I will be hidden and I will be a vagrant and a wanderer on the earth, and whoever finds me will kill me. So the Lord said to him. Therefore, whoever kills Cain, vengeance will be taken on him sevenfold. And the Lord appointed a sign for Cain so that no one finding him would slay him. So we are only halfway through the fourth chapter in the first book of the entire Bible and already the first couple have openly rebelled against God, hidden from him, and cast blame on others. They have been cursed by God and cast out of the idyllic garden, then their son murdered. His brother, spoke defiantly to God and lied to God's face regarding his personal culpability. Apparently, god, who is the author of Scripture, doesn't hold back in describing the iniquity of man. In verse 12, we see that the judge of all the earth always does right. He renders an equitable judgment upon Cain. In fact, listen to what he says in verse 12. When you cultivate the ground, it will no longer yield its strength. To you, you will be a vagrant and a wanderer on the earth. You, you will be a vagrant and a wanderer on the earth. I remind you that the death penalty is not instituted until after the flood, in Genesis, chapter 9 and verse 6. Let me read that verse to you. In Genesis 9 and verse 6, it says whoever sheds man's blood by man, his blood shall be shed For in the image of God. God made man. So the death penalty is not an institutional entity, it's not a law of God until after the flood. So in this instance, god's equitable judgment against Cain is number one. The ground will not yield its produce and he's condemned to be a vagrant and a wanderer. In verse 13,.
Dr. Jackson:Some translations read my iniquity, not my punishment, but my iniquity is too great to bear. Now, as I've told you in previous podcasts, I have a ministry to men who are in prison and I'll tell you the honest truth. I've heard that exact statement many times, as anguished men in prison exclaim that their punishment is too great to bear or their sin, their iniquity, is too great to bear, and I would submit to you, very respectfully, that what they really mean is that the shame of their sin, the shame of their iniquity, is too great to bear. Just like my friend in my, my friends in prison, many of my patients and many of my Christian friends are paralyzed by shame. Even though they acknowledge that on the cross, jesus took our sin and our shame, nevertheless they allow the shame of their previous sins to paralyze them and that shame keeps them from their friends, keeps them from their families and keeps them out of Christian ministry.
Dr. Jackson:Cain's parents, adam and Eve, understood that the bloody sacrifice that covered their nakedness, that covered their sin, that covered their shame, pointed toward a future perfect sacrifice. It pointed towards a future Messiah, a future Savior. Just like you and I look backwards to the perfect sacrifice. They looked forward to the perfect sacrifice. They looked forward to the Messiah. Unfortunately, however, cain didn't avail himself of that proffered sacrifice which, by faith, could have been available to him.
Dr. Jackson:I speak to prisoners and to patients and to friends who were paralyzed by their sin and their shame, who wander like vagrants through this life and their shame, who wander like vagrants through this life, frustrated, impotent, separated from God and family and friends, in a self-imposed exile, muttering to themselves. My punishment is too great to bear, which is exactly what Cain said in verse 14. Behold, you have driven me this day from the face of the ground and from your face. I will be hidden and I will be a vagrant and a wanderer on the earth, and whoever finds me will kill me. They became wanderers and vagrants, and vagrants just like Cain. Their sin and shame drives them from the face of God, from the presence of God, and unconfessed sin always separates us from God. If I nurture sin in my heart, it will eventually drive me away from family and friends. The Bible tells us the way of the wicked is hard.
Dr. Jackson:In verse 14, cain knew that he had been exiled from productive work. He'd been exiled from the presence of holy God and exiled from polite society and exile from polite society. Consequently, he feared for his life, saying Whoever finds me will kill me. Well, in verse 15, let me read that verse again. So the Lord said to him. Therefore, whoever kills Cain, vengeance will be taken on him sevenfold.
Dr. Jackson:And the Lord appointed a sign for Cain so that no one finding him would slay him. So God placed a sign on Cain. No one knows exactly what that sign was. Some translations use the word mark, causing us to think that he may have had a physical mark like a tattoo on his person, but that is incorrect, since the correct word is sign. It makes one think of Nathaniel Hawthorne's book the Scarlet Letter, in which his female protagonist, hester Prynne, is made to wear a scarlet letter. The scarlet letter was the letter A around her neck, because she had born a child out of wedlock in Puritan America, the early years of America. The letter A, of course, symbolized adultery. What sign might God have given Cain? No one really knows for certain and we can only speculate, but the sign was for his protection. It protected him well enough that he was able to eventually survive long enough to found a city and become the ancestor of a large number of descendants.
Dr. Jackson:Now let me close by saying this Cain had the same opportunity as his brother, abel, to offer an acceptable sacrifice, but he rebelled in his heart against God's order. Cain had a truth-telling brother who warned him repeatedly, but he rejected that admonition. Cain, in his anger and rebellion, rose up and struck down his own brother in premeditated murder. Cain then defied God to his face and lied about the whereabouts of his brother. He lied to the judge of all the earth and then he whined that his judgment was too great to bear and covered his face with shame. Does that sound like anyone you know? Does that sound like you? Have you rebelled against God's order, against God's word, ignored the truth teller in your life and now you suffer the paralysis of shame because of what you've done?
Dr. Jackson:Listen to me carefully. Jesus took your sin and your shame upon the cross that you need not bear it any longer. The Scripture says Behold, I lay in Zion a choice stone, a precious cornerstone, and he who believes in him will not be ashamed, will not be disappointed. Jesus is our sin bearer, our shame bearer. He takes away sin and he takes away shame and he takes it out of the way and nails it to the cross and he sets us free.
Dr. Jackson:Dear listener, you may need to make a choice. Do you want to wander like a vagrant, like Cain, in the land of Nod, always away from the face of God and away from the presence of your family and friends, or do you want to confess and repent and run into the loving arms of Jesus, your Savior? Trust me, jesus is waiting for you. You're listening to Devotions with Dr Papa. For you, you're listening to Devotions with Dr Papa. If you like what you hear, follow like share, tell your friends and family about it and I'll be back again next week. Until then, may the Lord bless you real good.
Dr. Robert Jackson:Thank you for listening to this edition of More Than Medicine. For more information about the Jackson Family Ministry or to schedule a speaking engagement, go to their Facebook page, instagram or webpage at jacksonfamilyministrycom. Also, don't forget to check out Dr Jackson's books that are available on Amazon His third book Turkey Tales and Bible Truths, and his father's biography on Laughter Silvered Wings the story of a country doctor, a family man, a patriot and a political activist. This podcast is produced by Bob Slone Audio Productions.
