Which Brother Are You?

A man received a new car from his brother as a present. He parked it at his job and that evening, when he came out of work, there was a poor child of the streets walking around it, admiring it. He asked, “Is this your car, mister?” To which the man nodded and told him that his brother had given it to him. The boy was shocked by this and said, “You mean he gave it to you and it didn’t cost you nothing? Boy, I wish . . . .” He hesitated and the man knew he was going to say that he wished he had a brother like that. However, the boy surprised the man when he completed his sentence. “I wish,” the boy went on, “that I could be a brother like that!” The man looked at the boy and asked, “How would you like to go for a ride?” “Oh, yes, I would like that,” the boy said.

As they were riding the boy asked, “Would you mind driving in front of my house?” Thinking the boy wanted to show his friends he was riding in a new car, the man readily agreed. “Stop by these steps,” the boy cried as he jumped out of the car and started up the steps. “I’ll be right back!” When he returned he was leading his crippled younger brother. “There it is, Buddy, just like I told you. His brother gave it to him and it didn’t cost him a cent! Someday I am going to give you one just like it!”

What makes this type of selflessness so special? Why do stories like this fill us with inspiration? Could it be that it is because it is counter to our physical nature and so totally in line with God’s nature of love? The fact that we are moved by stories like this certainly works against the concept of “survival of the fittest”, doesn’t it? That is because we are created in the image of God, as we will see in the sermon this morning, which means there is a part of our soul that is touched by the same selflessness and giving He Himself demonstrates throughout the Scriptures.

Last week we saw how Moses introduced God as a God of POWER, ORDER, and COMPETENCE. We saw how He could take the biggest messes and speak order into them to turn them into something “GOOD”! This morning, as we consider the elements of covenant found in the second creation account, we will be further introduced to a God who cares about mankind with a selfless, giving kind of love that provides for our needs! We will be introduced to the elemental principles of covenant which are part of the foundation for the rest of Scripture.
We all want a brother like the one who gave the new car, don’t we? God is demonstrated to be this kind of brother, friend and God in Genesis 2. However, how many of us are trying to become like this type of brother to others? This is the quest we should be on as we truly take on the image of the ONE who has created us. Which brother are you?

To listen to sermon, click Does He Care about My Needs?