Elementary Level, Block 1—Adam to Noah
Week 3
Cain and Abel—Two Brothers, Two Choices
Point to Emphasize: We should watch, listen and follow our parents, especially in caring for people.
Reference Reading: Genesis 4
Memory Verse: Children, obey your parents in the Lord, for this is right. (Ephesians 6:1)
Story Sample
Today’s story is about the first family in the Bible. The first man was Adam and his wife was named Eve. We can learn a lot from looking at this family with two sons. The two brothers were Cain and Abel. They were the first brothers in the Bible. Do any of you have brothers? Do any of you have sisters? Let’s find out how these two brothers grew up as the first family in the Bible. First we need to see what kind of family they were. They raised sheep. God had given Adam and Eve some instructions for the raising of sheep. They used the sheep to make their clothing and that’s how they lived. That was God’s instruction for them. This is what God needed them to do; this made God happy. Wow! Adam and Eve were faithful to tell their boys where they came from, who they were, how to live, how to be according to what God had instructed them. They told them what God needed and what made God happy.
Are you ready to hear what happened with these two boys? Here we go. At the beginning these two brothers were doing exactly what their parents taught them to do: raise sheep. As they grew older, Abel followed the way of his mom and dad to raise sheep. But the other brother Cain, he did whatever he wanted only to care for himself. Oh, oh, what? Yes, that is right! These two children were from the same family, but one of them did not follow his parents. This is very, very sad. Abel went the way of his parents and Cain went another way. Abel became a shepherd of sheep to take care of the sheep as he had learned from his parents. What did Cain do? He did something different. Cain grew crops and he took care of his own needs.
Let’s review: [Write the name Abel on the board and emphasize these three words as you write them on the board next to Abel’s name.] Abel spent time watching, listening and following his parents. He not only attentively watched, but he closely listened and much more, he diligently followed. He followed what his mom and dad had told him to do. He became what his mom and dad were. But the other brother Cain, he got in trouble because he did not follow what was spoken and taught by his parents. His parents gave him a direction, but he had another idea and went another way.
When I was about 4 years old my parents started opening our home. That means we had people who came and stayed with us for a night, sometimes for a couple of weeks; and one time even for 6 months! I remember that when I was about 7 or 8 a whole family came and stayed with us until they were able to find a home. So, I had to give up my room and sleep with my younger sister. Oh, this was so hard for me! But, I would see the happiness in my parents’ eyes while they were helping others. So, from a young age, I set my heart to be just like my parents and help other people. I could tell my parents were happy because God was happy. This is what God wanted them to do. So, I decided to watch, to listen and to follow my parents’ way of caring for others. I didn’t want to grow up just taking care of my own house, my own family and my own needs. I wanted to do what I saw my parents doing. I set my heart to care for people, just like my parents did! [Insert your own example of following your parents’ way, aspiring to be like your parents, especially when caring for others.]
Just like Cain and Abel had a special family, we are also part of a special family. We don’t want to be like Cain. We don’t need to go our own way. We want to be like Abel. We want to watch, listen and follow our parents’ way.
In the next week, I want all of us to be just like Abel. Every time your parents are helping others and caring for others, you can watch what they do, you can listen to what they say and you can follow their ways. We can be just like Abel!