Character Study The Way of Cain Sunday 30 th August 2015 Plymstock Chapel

Croatian War of Independence

Miroslav Volf “My thought was pulled in two different directions by the blood of the innocent crying out to God and by the blood of God’s lamb offered for the guilty. How does one remain loyal both to the demand of the oppressed for justice and to the gift of forgiveness that the Crucified offered to perpetrators?”

Jude 11 Woe to them! They have taken the way of Cain

Genesis 4: 1-16 Adam made love to 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.’ Later she gave birth to his brother Abel. Now Abel kept flocks, and Cain worked the soil. In the course of time Cain brought some of the fruits of the soil as an offering to the Lord. But Abel also brought an offering – fat portions from some of the firstborn of his flock. The Lord looked with favour on Abel and his offering, but on Cain and his offering he did not look with favour. So Cain was very angry, and his face was downcast. Then the Lord said to Cain, ‘Why are you angry? Why is your face downcast? 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 rule over it.’ Now Cain said to his brother Abel, ‘Let’s go out to the field.’ While they were in the field, Cain attacked his brother Abel and killed him.

Then the Lord said to Cain, ‘Where is your brother Abel?’ ‘I don’t know,’ he replied. ‘Am I my brother’s keeper?’ The Lord said, ‘What have you done? Listen! Your brother’s blood cries out to me from the ground. Now you are under a curse and driven from the ground, which opened its mouth to receive your brother’s blood from your hand. When you work the ground, it will no longer yield its crops for you. You will be a restless wanderer on the earth.’ Cain said to the Lord, ‘My punishment is more than I can bear. Today you are driving me from the land, and I will be hidden from your presence; I will be a restless wanderer on the earth, and whoever finds me will kill me.’ But the Lord said to him, ‘Not so; anyone who kills Cain will suffer vengeance seven times over.’ Then the Lord put a mark on Cain so that no one who found him would kill him. So Cain went out from the Lord’s presence and lived in the land of Nod, east of Eden.

“We worry about the threat of strangers – a clash of civilisations with foreigners who challenge our way of life. But it is often those we know, that we know all too well that breeds violence. We know their faults, their beliefs, their desires and we distrust them because of that…The most common violence is violence between acquaintances or neighbours or kindred communities.”

Proverbs 17:17 ‘A friend loves at all times, and a brother is born for adversity.’

Genesis 4: 1- Adam made love to 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.’ Later she gave birth to his brother Abel. Now Abel kept flocks, and Cain worked the soil. In the course of time Cain brought some of the fruits of the soil as an offering to the Lord. But Abel also brought an offering – fat portions from some of the firstborn of his flock. The Lord looked with favour on Abel and his offering, but on Cain and his offering he did not look with favour. Abel Cain Cain Abel Abel Cain

Cain is Regarded and Abel is Disregarded

God turns the order of recognition upside down

The Chain of Events: The Build Up 1.Our worship is disregarded. 2.We become angry. (v.5) 3.We take our eyes off God. (v.5) 4.God let’s us know what truly matters. (v.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 rule over it.’

The Chain of Events: Exclusion 5.We remove ourselves from accountability to community (v.8) 6.The act of exclusion (v.8)

The Chain of Events: The Judgement 7.Investigation (v.9-10) ‘What have you done?’ 8.Sentencing (v.11) ‘You are under a curse’ 9.Banishment (v.12) ‘a restless wanderer’

The Chain of Events: Grace 10. The mark of grace (v.15) ‘In such a simple way, the narrative articulates the two sidedness of human life, in jeopardy for disobedience and yet kept safe. The acknowledgement of guilt and the reality of grace come together in this presentation.’ (Walter Brueggeman)

Reflection Are you angry with anyone? Are you envious or jealous of anyone? Are you evading responsibility for someone? Are you excluding someone from something or somebody? Are you going ‘out into the field’ where no- one can see what you are doing?

Matthew 5: ‘You have heard that it was said, “Love your neighbour and hate your enemy.” But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, that you may be children of your Father in heaven. He causes his sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous. If you love those who love you, what reward will you get? Are not even the tax collectors doing that? And if you greet only your own people, what are you doing more than others? Do not even pagans do that? Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect.

Washington Post “I forgive you,” “You took something very precious from me. I will never talk to her again. I will never, ever hold her again. But I forgive you. And have mercy on your soul.” Nadine Collier, daughter of 70-year-old victim Ethel Lance. Speaking at the court hearing.

Washington Post “I acknowledge that I am very angry,” said the sister of DePayne Middleton-Doctor. “But one thing that DePayne always enjoined in our family … is she taught me that we are the family that love built. We have no room for hating, so we have to forgive. I pray God on your soul.”

1 John 3: For this is the message you heard from the beginning: we should love one another. Do not be like Cain, who belonged to the evil one and murdered his brother. And why did he murder him? Because his own actions were evil and his brother’s were righteous.