The First Dysfunctional Family
Genesis 3: 1-13; 4: 1-11
(11/29/09)

The Meaning of a Dysfunctional Family
"a family which experiences CONTINUOUS CONFLICT, MISBEHAVIOR, and even ABUSE among family members."

Past Family---Present Family

1. The family of Adam & Eve; Two sons: Cain & Abel

The DYSFUNCTION of the parents

The Fall of Man (Genesis 3: 1-13):

1 Now the serpent was more crafty than any of the wild animals the LORD God had made. He said to the woman, "Did God really say, 'You must not eat from any tree in the garden'?"
2 The woman said to the serpent, "We may eat fruit from the trees in the garden, 3 but God did say, 'You must not eat fruit from the tree that is in the middle of the garden, and you must not touch it, or you will die.' "

4 "You will not surely die," the serpent said to the woman. 5 "For God knows that when you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil."

6 When the woman saw that the fruit of the tree was good for food and pleasing to the eye, and also desirable for gaining wisdom, she took some and ate it. She also gave some to her husband, who was with her, and he ate it. 7 Then the eyes of both of them were opened, and they realized they were naked; so they sewed fig leaves together and made coverings for themselves.

8 Then the man and his wife heard the sound of the LORD God as he was walking in the garden in the cool of the day, and they hid from the LORD God among the trees of the garden. 9 But the LORD God called to the man, "Where are you?"

10 He answered, "I heard you in the garden, and I was afraid because I was naked; so I hid."

11 And he said, "Who told you that you were naked? Have you eaten from the tree that I commanded you not to eat from?"

12 The man said, "The woman you put here with me—she gave me some fruit from the tree, and I ate it."

13 Then the LORD God said to the woman, "What is this you have done?"
The woman said, "The serpent deceived me, and I ate."

The DYSFUNCTION of the two brothers

Cain and Abel (Genesis 4: 1-11 )

1 Adam lay with his wife Eve, and she became pregnant and gave birth to Cain. She said, "With the help of the LORD I have brought forth a man." 2 Later she gave birth to his brother Abel.
Now Abel kept flocks, and Cain worked the soil. 3 In the course of time Cain brought some of the fruits of the soil as an offering to the LORD. 4 But Abel brought fat portions from some of the firstborn of his flock. The LORD looked with favor on Abel and his offering, 5 but on Cain and his offering he did not look with favor. So Cain was very angry, and his face was downcast.
6 Then the LORD said to Cain, "Why are you angry? Why is your face downcast? 7 If you do what is right, will you not be accepted? But if you do not do what is right, sin is crouching at your door; it desires to have you, but you must master it."

8 Now Cain said to his brother Abel, "Let's go out to the field." And while they were in the field, Cain attacked his brother Abel and killed him.

9 Then the LORD said to Cain, "Where is your brother Abel?"
"I don't know," he replied. "Am I my brother's keeper?"

10 The LORD said, "What have you done? Listen! Your brother's blood cries out to me from the ground. 11 Now you are under a curse and driven from the ground, which opened its mouth to receive your brother's blood from your hand.


2. No RESPONSIBILITY taken and assumed

(11) And he said, "Who told you that you were naked? Have you eaten from the tree that I commanded you not to eat from?"
(12 ) The man said, "The woman you put here with me—she gave me some fruit from the tree, and I ate it."
-- Genesis 3: 11 & 12

3. No CONCERN expressed with sincerity

(9) Then the LORD said to Cain, "Where is your brother Abel?"
"I don't know," he replied. "Am I my brother's keeper?"
-- Genesis 4: 9

4. No CONFESSION with true sorrow and repentance

5. Is there HOPE for the dysfunctional family?

(19) For just as through the disobedience of the one man the many were made sinners, so also through the obedience of the one man the many will be made righteous.
-- Romans 5: 19

(45) So it is written: "The first man Adam became a living being"; the last Adam, a life-giving spirit.
-- I Corinthians 15: 45