The Lord said to Cain, "Why are you angry, and why has your face fallen? If you do well, will you not be accepted? And if you do not do well, sin is crouching at the door. Its desire is for you, but you must rule over it." Genesis 4:6-7
We see Cain's true colors in this passage. After God looked with favor on Abel and his offering, Cain is jealous and angry with a wounded pride. What a warning to us to be on our guard against any jealousy when God blesses others. The green-eyed monster of envy can poison our spirit!
God doesn't abandon Cain in his jealous rage but he comes to Cain with fatherly counsel. He pictures sin like a crouching animal, ready to pounce and devour him! But Cain has a choice. He does not have to succumb to the crouching tiger! He can choose to obey God and do right.
So can we. We don't have to succumb to sin. We can choose to obey God. We have the Spirit of God within us. We are slaves to Jesus, not to sin.
We face many choices about sin, choices involving loving a spouse, being honest at work, engaging in gossip, looking at pornography, giving way to materialism, bringing the full tithe to God, being patient with a child, prioritizing prayer, and many more. Sin crouches beside us to devour us in all these situations, but we have a choice. We don't have to give in to sin. We can choose to obey God. We must choose to obey God.
In obedience to God is our joy, our freedom, our life.
Right now, in your life, is sin crouching at the door? What will you do?