1 00:00:00,240 --> 00:00:08,640 Well, if you would turn to Genesis chapter 4, we're in 2 00:00:08,640 --> 00:00:13,960 Genesis chapter 4 continuing the story of Cain and Abel. 3 00:00:20,190 --> 00:00:25,510 A few moments ago, we took special note of sanctity of Life 4 00:00:25,510 --> 00:00:33,520 Sunday, right? And it's great that here on 5 00:00:33,560 --> 00:00:37,200 Sanctity of Life Sunday, we would be addressing the first 6 00:00:37,440 --> 00:00:41,560 death in human history. How appropriate for us to be 7 00:00:41,560 --> 00:00:45,960 talking about these things. So as we look into this 8 00:00:45,960 --> 00:00:49,880 particular death on this day given to promoting the sanctity 9 00:00:49,880 --> 00:00:54,040 of human life, I'm reminded of a pro-life billboard I saw once 10 00:00:54,040 --> 00:00:59,080 that said abortion. Deep down, you know what's 11 00:00:59,080 --> 00:01:03,600 wrong. The militant push for abortions 12 00:01:03,600 --> 00:01:08,720 in our nation is an example of people becoming desensitized to 13 00:01:08,720 --> 00:01:12,440 death. Even outside of the abortion 14 00:01:12,440 --> 00:01:16,040 conversation, many have become calloused to death. 15 00:01:16,920 --> 00:01:21,400 Death is so much a part of life that it seldom grips and tears 16 00:01:21,400 --> 00:01:25,440 us to shreds. Sure, we grieve when someone 17 00:01:25,680 --> 00:01:30,200 close dies, but other than that, we know death is coming. 18 00:01:31,480 --> 00:01:38,120 The statistics on death are impressive. 1 out of every one 19 00:01:38,520 --> 00:01:44,280 person dies. We check the many forms of news 20 00:01:44,280 --> 00:01:48,440 at our disposal and we're likely to see and read about to death. 21 00:01:48,440 --> 00:01:52,920 Whether it's under natural circumstances, accidents or 22 00:01:53,280 --> 00:01:56,320 murders. We're daily reminded that we 23 00:01:56,320 --> 00:02:00,720 live in a fallen world under the presence and power of sin and 24 00:02:00,720 --> 00:02:06,640 death is part of life. As followers of Christ, we 25 00:02:06,640 --> 00:02:12,440 believe that our God is not a God of death, but of life. 26 00:02:12,800 --> 00:02:15,480 Satan comes to steal, kill and destroy. 27 00:02:15,480 --> 00:02:17,840 He wants to bring death wherever he goes. 28 00:02:17,840 --> 00:02:23,800 But Jesus literally said I came that they may have life. 29 00:02:25,520 --> 00:02:29,920 Jesus and Satan are at odds in this world, Satan working to 30 00:02:29,920 --> 00:02:35,960 extinguish life and Jesus working to make life abundant. 31 00:02:37,320 --> 00:02:41,120 If you're able, would you stand? As we read from Genesis chapter 32 00:02:41,120 --> 00:02:50,480 4, verses 8 through 16, Cain spoke to Abel, his brother, and 33 00:02:50,480 --> 00:02:53,200 when they were in the field, Cain rose up against his brother 34 00:02:53,200 --> 00:02:57,320 Abel and killed him. Then the Lord said to Cain, 35 00:02:58,000 --> 00:03:01,280 Where is Abel, your brother? He said, I do not know. 36 00:03:01,280 --> 00:03:04,880 Am I my brother's keeper? And the Lord said, What have you 37 00:03:04,880 --> 00:03:07,120 done? The voice of your brother's 38 00:03:07,120 --> 00:03:09,160 blood is crying to me from the ground. 39 00:03:09,160 --> 00:03:12,120 And now you are cursed from the ground which has opened its 40 00:03:12,120 --> 00:03:14,680 mouth to receive your brother's blood from your hand. 41 00:03:15,600 --> 00:03:19,160 When you work the ground, it shall no longer yield to you its 42 00:03:19,160 --> 00:03:21,840 strength. You shall be a fugitive and a 43 00:03:21,840 --> 00:03:25,520 wanderer on the earth, Cain said to the Lord. 44 00:03:25,520 --> 00:03:27,800 My punishment is greater than I can bear. 45 00:03:28,120 --> 00:03:30,960 Behold, you have driven me today away from the ground and from 46 00:03:30,960 --> 00:03:32,360 your face. I shall be hidden. 47 00:03:32,880 --> 00:03:35,640 I shall be a fugitive and a wanderer on the earth, and 48 00:03:35,640 --> 00:03:39,640 whoever finds me will kill me. Then the Lord said to him, Not 49 00:03:39,640 --> 00:03:42,280 so. If anyone kills Cain, vengeance 50 00:03:42,280 --> 00:03:46,480 shall be taken on him sevenfold. And the Lord put a mark on Cain, 51 00:03:46,560 --> 00:03:48,720 lest any who found him should attack him. 52 00:03:49,440 --> 00:03:52,680 Then Cain went away from the presence of the Lord and settled 53 00:03:52,680 --> 00:03:55,480 in the land of Nod, east of Eden. 54 00:03:56,120 --> 00:04:02,040 Let's pray. Father God is we approach this 55 00:04:02,040 --> 00:04:07,880 passage this morning. There are some things that will 56 00:04:07,880 --> 00:04:15,480 be difficult to address and my prayer this morning is that your 57 00:04:15,480 --> 00:04:20,959 heart is what shines through in all the words that I share this 58 00:04:20,959 --> 00:04:24,840 morning. May it be your heart of 59 00:04:24,840 --> 00:04:32,360 compassion, your grace, your mercy that is on display this 60 00:04:32,360 --> 00:04:42,240 morning even as we look at a topic like death in Jesus name, 61 00:04:42,600 --> 00:04:48,920 Amen, You may be seated. So our study this morning begins 62 00:04:48,920 --> 00:04:53,360 at the logical place. Cain kills his brother Abel. 63 00:04:54,200 --> 00:04:56,600 Like we know this, right? We, we, we expected this. 64 00:04:56,600 --> 00:05:00,240 We knew this was coming, this. But this wasn't just a crime of 65 00:05:00,240 --> 00:05:05,320 passion, something done in in the heat of the moment of our 66 00:05:05,320 --> 00:05:09,800 common Bible translations, about half of them say that Cain was 67 00:05:09,800 --> 00:05:12,480 talking with Abel. And then, and then casually, the 68 00:05:12,480 --> 00:05:16,680 setting moves to out in the field where Abel was killed. 69 00:05:19,640 --> 00:05:23,280 The NIV, the NLT, New Revised Standard, and the Christian 70 00:05:23,280 --> 00:05:27,960 Standard Bible all translate verse eight in a much different 71 00:05:27,960 --> 00:05:32,440 manner. They each say something like one 72 00:05:32,440 --> 00:05:36,800 day Cain suggested to his brother, let's go out into the 73 00:05:36,800 --> 00:05:39,520 fields. And while they were in the 74 00:05:39,520 --> 00:05:42,760 field, Cain attacked his brother Abel and killed him. 75 00:05:44,520 --> 00:05:48,280 These translations point to a nefarious purpose in Kane's 76 00:05:48,280 --> 00:05:52,560 conversation with his brother. He wasn't just asking for his 77 00:05:52,560 --> 00:05:54,640 brother's help with something out in the field. 78 00:05:54,840 --> 00:06:00,040 His goal was to lure Abel to the field and there with no one 79 00:06:00,040 --> 00:06:05,320 around murder him. Now not to state the obvious, 80 00:06:05,320 --> 00:06:12,000 but Kane killed his brother like he killed his brother. 81 00:06:12,000 --> 00:06:14,360 Yes, that is the point that I'm making here. 82 00:06:14,520 --> 00:06:17,760 I know you know that, but it's important that we start there. 83 00:06:17,760 --> 00:06:21,800 This short section on Cain and Abel refers to Abel's Abel's 84 00:06:21,800 --> 00:06:26,440 brother 6 times. Actually, I should say Cain's 85 00:06:26,440 --> 00:06:30,600 brother 6 times from verses 8 all the way all the when he's 86 00:06:30,600 --> 00:06:33,520 introduced, all the way through the end of this section, it 87 00:06:33,520 --> 00:06:36,800 mentions his brother. Now why does that matter? 88 00:06:38,040 --> 00:06:43,120 Well, this this passage serves to tell us that Cain's treatment 89 00:06:43,120 --> 00:06:49,080 of his brother is intrinsically related to his relationship with 90 00:06:49,080 --> 00:06:51,080 Yahweh. I put that there on the note 91 00:06:51,080 --> 00:06:53,160 sheet. Cain's treatment of his brother 92 00:06:53,400 --> 00:06:57,760 is intrinsically related to his relationship with Yahweh. 93 00:06:58,600 --> 00:07:01,680 If his relationship with Yahweh was close then then he would 94 00:07:01,680 --> 00:07:06,160 have treated his brother with respect and dignity, right? 95 00:07:07,880 --> 00:07:10,680 But his relationship with Yahweh was strained. 96 00:07:10,720 --> 00:07:12,440 We know that from the very beginning. 97 00:07:13,640 --> 00:07:16,120 He was literally at odds with Yahweh. 98 00:07:16,120 --> 00:07:21,320 So destroying another image bearer, another human, wasn't 99 00:07:21,320 --> 00:07:28,680 out of the question. When I think of this, my mind is 100 00:07:28,880 --> 00:07:31,360 is immediately drawn to the New Testament. 101 00:07:32,400 --> 00:07:37,120 In Luke 10, Jesus was confronted by a lawyer, I'm guessing 102 00:07:37,120 --> 00:07:41,440 probably a Pharisee, somebody who knew the law really well. 103 00:07:41,640 --> 00:07:45,000 He wanted to know, how do I inherit eternal life? 104 00:07:45,840 --> 00:07:50,600 So Jesus asked him, well, you're a lawyer, you tell me, what does 105 00:07:50,880 --> 00:07:57,240 the law say? And and we read in Luke 1027, he 106 00:07:57,240 --> 00:08:01,520 says, you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and 107 00:08:01,520 --> 00:08:03,760 with all your soul, and with all your strength, and with all your 108 00:08:03,760 --> 00:08:06,640 mind, and your neighbor, neighbor as yourself. 109 00:08:08,280 --> 00:08:11,720 Jesus told the man he'd answered correctly and to live in this 110 00:08:11,720 --> 00:08:15,920 manner. But then verse 29 shows us his 111 00:08:15,920 --> 00:08:20,120 real motive. It says he, desiring to justify 112 00:08:20,120 --> 00:08:24,680 himself said to Jesus, who's my neighbor? 113 00:08:25,600 --> 00:08:29,160 Like who do I really have to love? 114 00:08:30,920 --> 00:08:34,080 Do I have to love that person that that is not like me? 115 00:08:35,000 --> 00:08:37,640 Do I have to love that person who hates God? 116 00:08:37,640 --> 00:08:40,960 Do I have to love that that person that just cut me off? 117 00:08:40,960 --> 00:08:46,080 Do I have to love illegals? Do I have to love ICE? 118 00:08:46,880 --> 00:08:48,800 Do I have to love the protesters? 119 00:08:51,640 --> 00:08:55,960 Do I have to love people I don't like? 120 00:08:59,840 --> 00:09:10,120 The answer to all of it is yes. You see, the way of Jesus is 121 00:09:10,120 --> 00:09:15,360 different than the world's ways. And Jesus went on to tell the 122 00:09:15,360 --> 00:09:20,000 story of the Good Samaritan. I know you're familiar with it. 123 00:09:20,000 --> 00:09:22,080 He would. He was robbed, beaten and left 124 00:09:22,080 --> 00:09:25,280 for dead. A priest come, comes by, sees 125 00:09:25,280 --> 00:09:27,400 him and passes by on the other side. 126 00:09:27,400 --> 00:09:31,320 Then a Levite comes by, sees him, also passes by on the other 127 00:09:31,320 --> 00:09:38,120 side, and the one who stops, Luke 1033 tells us the 128 00:09:38,120 --> 00:09:42,880 Samaritan, somebody who shouldn't be stopping in this 129 00:09:42,880 --> 00:09:45,040 situation. The Samaritan as he journeyed 130 00:09:45,040 --> 00:09:50,240 came to where he was and when he saw him he had compassion. 131 00:09:52,600 --> 00:09:58,240 You see the Samaritans and Jews hated each other, like actually 132 00:09:58,360 --> 00:10:01,760 hated each other. They were actually racist 133 00:10:01,960 --> 00:10:05,880 towards each other. The Jews hated the Samaritans 134 00:10:05,880 --> 00:10:08,520 because they were, they were half breeds. 135 00:10:08,520 --> 00:10:11,840 These were people who had returned from the exile and in 136 00:10:11,840 --> 00:10:16,400 the exile the Jews had had intermarried with the Assyrians 137 00:10:16,400 --> 00:10:19,400 and Babylonians. And so then they return and they 138 00:10:19,400 --> 00:10:24,720 are no longer purely Jewish descent, that now they are 139 00:10:24,720 --> 00:10:29,160 mixed. And so the Jews hated the 140 00:10:29,160 --> 00:10:32,960 Samaritans. And of course, when you're hated 141 00:10:32,960 --> 00:10:38,360 as strongly as they were, you repay in kind, right? 142 00:10:38,720 --> 00:10:50,000 They hated them back. Now that was the situation here. 143 00:10:50,160 --> 00:10:57,360 But it's the Samaritan who stops and helps this person. 144 00:10:59,480 --> 00:11:03,720 He was the Good Samaritan. As I relate this passage this 145 00:11:03,720 --> 00:11:08,840 morning, thinking about Cain and Abel, the the Good Samaritan's 146 00:11:08,840 --> 00:11:15,160 actions, and Jesus exhortation towards compassion, I can't help 147 00:11:15,160 --> 00:11:17,560 but grieve over what's happening in our country. 148 00:11:22,720 --> 00:11:26,960 Whether you agree or disagree with the president's attempt to 149 00:11:26,960 --> 00:11:31,080 remove illegals from this country, it's clear that the 150 00:11:31,080 --> 00:11:34,840 image bearers of God are being violated. 151 00:11:37,160 --> 00:11:42,040 I'm stepping it this morning, but this is what God has given 152 00:11:42,040 --> 00:11:44,360 me. I've agonized and agonized over 153 00:11:44,360 --> 00:11:47,680 this this morning all week. I should say what to share. 154 00:11:49,440 --> 00:11:52,760 That's something I see that I think grieves God's heart. 155 00:11:55,280 --> 00:11:59,240 Some conservatives lack compassion and neglect to see 156 00:11:59,880 --> 00:12:05,120 the human side of the immigration issue, an issue 157 00:12:05,120 --> 00:12:08,000 which I might add, is important to me. 158 00:12:09,000 --> 00:12:14,640 Without immigration, I don't have the wife and family that I 159 00:12:14,640 --> 00:12:20,520 have now. Some neglect to see the human 160 00:12:20,520 --> 00:12:23,960 side of this issue, casting all immigrants under under the 161 00:12:23,960 --> 00:12:31,160 derogatory label of illegals, whom I might add, are also image 162 00:12:31,160 --> 00:12:36,680 bearers of God. Before I continue, allow me to 163 00:12:36,680 --> 00:12:40,600 share part of an e-mail that that I received from our 164 00:12:40,600 --> 00:12:45,840 denomination this week. It recounts some of the 165 00:12:45,840 --> 00:12:50,440 experiences that Pastor Joel Ramirez of Iglesia Centro 166 00:12:50,440 --> 00:12:54,240 Cristiano in South Minneapolis has recently had. 167 00:12:57,560 --> 00:13:02,000 Dear friends, several people have asked how I am doing and 168 00:13:02,000 --> 00:13:04,840 how our congregation is navigating this difficult 169 00:13:04,840 --> 00:13:08,320 season. The best way I can answer is by 170 00:13:08,320 --> 00:13:11,400 sharing a glimpse into one ordinary day and the larger 171 00:13:11,400 --> 00:13:16,840 reality surrounding it. Yesterday was meant to be my day 172 00:13:16,840 --> 00:13:19,000 off. By mid morning that changed. 173 00:13:19,000 --> 00:13:22,560 We received an urgent call asking us to rush to Anoka. 174 00:13:23,320 --> 00:13:26,440 A church members brother and nephew had gone to handle a 175 00:13:26,440 --> 00:13:30,160 simple car related matter and found themselves surrounded by a 176 00:13:30,200 --> 00:13:34,920 ICE agents in the parking lot. When we arrived they were 177 00:13:34,920 --> 00:13:38,560 already gone. Only the empty car remained. 178 00:13:40,480 --> 00:13:42,920 Throughout the day, we encountered the quiet wait many 179 00:13:42,920 --> 00:13:47,720 families are carrying. A young girl proudly recited 180 00:13:47,720 --> 00:13:53,800 Bible verses she memorized in English and Spanish, while her 181 00:13:53,800 --> 00:13:57,600 mother, seven months pregnant, shared that she rarely leaves 182 00:13:57,600 --> 00:14:02,160 home out of fear, despite having her paperwork in process. 183 00:14:04,240 --> 00:14:07,040 We delivered groceries to a family new to our church, living 184 00:14:07,040 --> 00:14:10,720 cramped in a in a basement with three children, one with Down 185 00:14:10,720 --> 00:14:13,960 syndrome. The parents now take turns 186 00:14:13,960 --> 00:14:17,920 leaving the house so their children won't risk losing both 187 00:14:17,920 --> 00:14:23,760 parents at the same time. That same day, their daughter 188 00:14:23,760 --> 00:14:29,120 turned 14. No party, no guess, just a 189 00:14:29,120 --> 00:14:36,080 cheesecake, prayer and tears. That evening we drove a woman 190 00:14:36,080 --> 00:14:39,720 home because she was too afraid to take an Uber after hearing 191 00:14:39,720 --> 00:14:43,080 stories of ICE detentions involving Latino writers. 192 00:14:44,960 --> 00:14:48,440 We also visited a 16 year old whose mother has been suffering 193 00:14:48,440 --> 00:14:53,080 severe stomach pain for weeks but is afraid to seek medical 194 00:14:53,080 --> 00:14:58,080 care even though she has a valid work permit and a pending asylum 195 00:14:58,280 --> 00:15:01,360 case. This is where I'm stopping with 196 00:15:01,360 --> 00:15:04,160 the e-mail. But the e-mail goes on to talk 197 00:15:04,160 --> 00:15:07,720 about how drastically attendance has been impacted in their 198 00:15:07,720 --> 00:15:11,680 church, in their bodies, of course, as well as how how some 199 00:15:11,680 --> 00:15:17,640 parents are are taking legal steps to assign custody for 200 00:15:17,640 --> 00:15:22,360 their children in the events that one of them is removed so 201 00:15:22,400 --> 00:15:25,760 that they their children aren't taken over by the States. 202 00:15:28,160 --> 00:15:32,240 It's a sad time. Wherever you sit on the 203 00:15:32,240 --> 00:15:38,000 situation, hopefully you can see the humanity in this. 204 00:15:38,200 --> 00:15:42,520 And similar stories are told all over the Twin Cities and in many 205 00:15:42,520 --> 00:15:46,720 other parts of our nation. People who are here legally 206 00:15:46,720 --> 00:15:50,000 finding themselves living in fear because a portion of our 207 00:15:50,000 --> 00:15:53,680 government has lost all compassion and neglected to 208 00:15:53,680 --> 00:16:00,120 remember that we are all people bearing God's image. 209 00:16:02,400 --> 00:16:10,680 So as Christ followers, we value life, all life, because our 210 00:16:10,680 --> 00:16:13,600 relationship with Him dictates it. 211 00:16:15,680 --> 00:16:19,680 Sanctity of life doesn't just mean before birth, it also means 212 00:16:20,360 --> 00:16:25,200 from the cradle to the grave. Every person's life, no matter 213 00:16:25,200 --> 00:16:29,120 their age or capabilities, their socio economic status, orphaned 214 00:16:29,120 --> 00:16:39,520 or adopted, healthy or on life supports, all, all are precious 215 00:16:39,840 --> 00:16:48,760 in God's sight and I know that will offend you. 216 00:16:49,360 --> 00:16:52,280 I take issue with it because I don't want to love everybody 217 00:16:52,280 --> 00:16:59,600 sometimes, but this is God's word. 218 00:17:02,240 --> 00:17:04,960 My challenge to us this morning is that we begin to see others 219 00:17:04,960 --> 00:17:12,200 as our brothers and sisters, fellow image bearers who who 220 00:17:12,200 --> 00:17:17,440 Christ died for, and allow yourself to be moved with 221 00:17:17,440 --> 00:17:24,480 compassion for their plight. Now that the heavy stuff out of 222 00:17:24,480 --> 00:17:27,319 the way, that was kind of introductory. 223 00:17:27,720 --> 00:17:34,480 So we move on to God confronting Cain in verses 9 through 10. 224 00:17:34,480 --> 00:17:36,800 The Lord said to Cain, where is Abel, your brother? 225 00:17:37,040 --> 00:17:39,680 He said, I do not know. Am I my brother's keeper? 226 00:17:40,480 --> 00:17:41,760 And the Lord said, what have you done? 227 00:17:41,760 --> 00:17:44,000 The voice of your brother's blood is crying to me from the 228 00:17:44,000 --> 00:17:47,880 ground. The first thing God asked was, 229 00:17:48,200 --> 00:17:50,920 where is Abel? Of course, God already knows, 230 00:17:50,920 --> 00:17:54,360 but but he's giving Cain the opportunity to come clean, to 231 00:17:54,560 --> 00:17:59,560 confess his sin. Cain's response is purely flesh, 232 00:17:59,760 --> 00:18:03,080 a snarky, I don't know, am I my brother's keeper? 233 00:18:04,680 --> 00:18:08,960 Cain had abdicated his position. He was Adam and Eve's oldest, 234 00:18:08,960 --> 00:18:11,920 the the third caretaker in the world. 235 00:18:12,760 --> 00:18:15,160 He's just the third human in the world. 236 00:18:15,720 --> 00:18:19,600 He he held a special place. But he had exchanged that 237 00:18:19,600 --> 00:18:25,680 position for anger and instead opted for killing his brother. 238 00:18:28,920 --> 00:18:31,600 This isn't the first time the word keep shows up in scripture 239 00:18:31,600 --> 00:18:35,520 though. The word somer was also used 240 00:18:35,520 --> 00:18:39,720 back in Genesis 215 where it said the Lord God took the man 241 00:18:39,720 --> 00:18:43,640 and put him in the garden to work it and keep it. 242 00:18:43,640 --> 00:18:48,560 So his job is to to look out for the land and to take care of it 243 00:18:48,560 --> 00:18:53,280 and help it to be productive. He kept watch over it for it's 244 00:18:53,280 --> 00:18:56,160 good. Adam had been keeper of the 245 00:18:56,160 --> 00:18:59,240 garden, but here the object being guarded over should have 246 00:18:59,240 --> 00:19:05,160 been another human being able. All of us humans have been given 247 00:19:05,160 --> 00:19:10,080 the same task by God to be keepers of the world and and 248 00:19:10,080 --> 00:19:14,920 help it both the earth and humanity to be as good and 249 00:19:14,920 --> 00:19:19,240 profitable as it can be. Cain's obligation to the earth 250 00:19:19,240 --> 00:19:23,880 and humanity means the answer to the question am I my brother's 251 00:19:23,880 --> 00:19:30,960 keeper is a resounding yes, you are your brother's keeper. 252 00:19:31,800 --> 00:19:35,520 Yes, Cain is his brother's keeper. 253 00:19:36,880 --> 00:19:39,080 Cain wasn't off the hook with Abel. 254 00:19:40,080 --> 00:19:44,400 There was an obligation on his part to look out for his family. 255 00:19:44,720 --> 00:19:47,760 Now I'm not sure what kind of like existential threats there 256 00:19:47,920 --> 00:19:50,520 that might have already existed at this point in time. 257 00:19:50,680 --> 00:19:54,840 Of course there's threats from animals, but I don't know if 258 00:19:55,280 --> 00:19:58,120 other people were pondering murdering people or something 259 00:19:58,120 --> 00:20:01,360 like that where, where things had been at this point. 260 00:20:01,360 --> 00:20:05,560 It's hard for us to understand that so early in humanity's 261 00:20:05,560 --> 00:20:11,280 history. But taking the life of his 262 00:20:11,280 --> 00:20:15,240 brother, this, this was completely unfathomable, hadn't 263 00:20:15,240 --> 00:20:20,400 been done before, yet he somehow ventured into this uncharted 264 00:20:20,720 --> 00:20:23,800 territory. He failed to uphold his 265 00:20:24,000 --> 00:20:28,840 community responsibility. Moses contemporaries, hearing 266 00:20:28,840 --> 00:20:32,240 this for the first time, would have immediately recognized this 267 00:20:32,240 --> 00:20:36,560 to be particularly heinous. To kill his brother. 268 00:20:37,040 --> 00:20:42,520 This this violated community solidarity which was highly 269 00:20:42,520 --> 00:20:45,600 esteemed among the Hebrew people. 270 00:20:50,520 --> 00:20:55,680 We are free to choose our actions, but we are not free to 271 00:20:55,680 --> 00:20:59,000 choose the consequences of our actions. 272 00:21:00,320 --> 00:21:03,880 Cain had free will and he abused it. 273 00:21:05,600 --> 00:21:09,520 So now we turn our attention to the curse on Cain. 274 00:21:11,280 --> 00:21:14,960 Verse 11 reads Now you are cursed from the ground which has 275 00:21:15,200 --> 00:21:18,520 opened its mouth to receive your brother's blood from your hand. 276 00:21:19,240 --> 00:21:21,920 When you work the ground, it shall no longer yield to you its 277 00:21:21,920 --> 00:21:23,880 strength. You shall be a fugitive and a 278 00:21:23,880 --> 00:21:27,800 wanderer on the earth. The first part of the curse 279 00:21:27,800 --> 00:21:31,280 meant that he was cursed from the ground. 280 00:21:33,440 --> 00:21:35,840 Cane is simply cursed from the ground. 281 00:21:37,520 --> 00:21:39,840 In the garden there was lush provision for food. 282 00:21:39,840 --> 00:21:43,440 Everything was perfect outside the garden. 283 00:21:43,440 --> 00:21:47,280 There was arable land where humans could cultivate the land 284 00:21:47,280 --> 00:21:53,080 to be what they needed. Cain worked the ground, it would 285 00:21:53,280 --> 00:21:56,800 give him a great yield. It's it's strength is how God 286 00:21:56,800 --> 00:22:00,280 referred to it. He got a great return on his 287 00:22:00,280 --> 00:22:06,640 time invested into farming the land, but now the ground was no 288 00:22:06,640 --> 00:22:12,160 longer going to to easily yield its crop in the same way that it 289 00:22:12,160 --> 00:22:17,040 had. And so since the ground is no 290 00:22:17,040 --> 00:22:22,360 longer going to be as as productive, he's now destined to 291 00:22:22,360 --> 00:22:27,520 become a hunter gatherer as he's driven to a place that has no 292 00:22:27,520 --> 00:22:33,320 hope of agriculture. And this brings us to the second 293 00:22:33,320 --> 00:22:37,600 parts of the curse. He was exiled to wander. 294 00:22:39,440 --> 00:22:45,600 He is exiled to wander. Genesis 46 told us where he 295 00:22:45,600 --> 00:22:49,600 went. 46416 told us where he went. 296 00:22:49,840 --> 00:22:52,840 Then Cain went away from the presence of the Lord and settled 297 00:22:52,840 --> 00:22:56,760 in the land of Nod or Node, east of Eden. 298 00:22:58,080 --> 00:23:02,160 Over the years there have been attempts to locate the land of 299 00:23:02,360 --> 00:23:05,920 Node. You see Eden there and southern 300 00:23:05,920 --> 00:23:09,880 Iraq. This is where the the Euphrates, 301 00:23:09,880 --> 00:23:13,000 the Tigers, the Gihon and the Pichon rivers. 302 00:23:13,000 --> 00:23:15,560 We don't know all of these rivers, couple of them are 303 00:23:15,880 --> 00:23:20,080 harder to nail down, but we can presume that Eden was likely 304 00:23:20,080 --> 00:23:22,440 somewhere there in southern Iraq. 305 00:23:24,080 --> 00:23:30,960 And so if Cain goes to to the land of Node, he's going 306 00:23:30,960 --> 00:23:36,920 somewhere east of it. So we don't know exactly where. 307 00:23:36,920 --> 00:23:41,240 It could be that maybe he's still in Iraq, maybe he's 308 00:23:41,240 --> 00:23:46,320 actually in Iran, another place. I hope you're paying attention 309 00:23:46,320 --> 00:23:52,400 to what's going on there because certain portions of the media 310 00:23:52,560 --> 00:24:01,440 are not talking about this. But God has been working around 311 00:24:01,560 --> 00:24:08,840 the world, especially in Islamic regions in Iran. 312 00:24:09,440 --> 00:24:13,240 He's working there as well as those people are fighting for 313 00:24:13,240 --> 00:24:20,280 their freedom. So it could be that perhaps Cain 314 00:24:20,280 --> 00:24:24,920 was exiled to somewhere in Iran. We, we, we don't know exactly 315 00:24:24,920 --> 00:24:30,240 because it just says Adam and Eve went east of the garden and 316 00:24:30,240 --> 00:24:35,920 all it says is Cain went east. We don't know if that means east 317 00:24:35,920 --> 00:24:39,360 of the garden or if he went further E further into Iran. 318 00:24:39,360 --> 00:24:44,280 We don't know exactly. You know, there's no sign that 319 00:24:44,280 --> 00:24:49,760 says welcome to Node, the home of Cain. 320 00:24:50,440 --> 00:24:53,800 You know, as as we would put up now these days. 321 00:24:53,800 --> 00:24:56,960 Oh, this is the home of President Ronald Reagan's 322 00:24:56,960 --> 00:25:01,840 birthplace I saw the other day. You know, there's no sign like 323 00:25:01,840 --> 00:25:03,960 that. We have no idea really where 324 00:25:04,240 --> 00:25:08,960 node is, even the city he built called Enoch. 325 00:25:09,400 --> 00:25:12,520 We don't know where it's located either. 326 00:25:13,880 --> 00:25:15,680 But let me let you in on a little secret. 327 00:25:16,840 --> 00:25:18,440 There might be a reason why we don't know. 328 00:25:20,000 --> 00:25:25,720 I and many scholars don't think it's an actual place. 329 00:25:27,200 --> 00:25:32,680 The word node actually means exile or wandering. 330 00:25:33,720 --> 00:25:37,320 The last verse of this section, verse 16, could then be 331 00:25:37,320 --> 00:25:40,480 translated. Cain went away from the presence 332 00:25:40,480 --> 00:25:45,360 of the Lord and settled in the land of wandering, the land of 333 00:25:45,360 --> 00:25:51,080 exile east of Eden. Part of the curse involved his 334 00:25:51,080 --> 00:25:55,120 exile, so it makes perfect sense for Moses to write that Cain 335 00:25:55,120 --> 00:25:57,760 settled in the land of wandering. 336 00:25:59,720 --> 00:26:03,800 Now being a wanderer is one thing, but there's something 337 00:26:03,800 --> 00:26:07,360 else that's going along with this wandering that he that he 338 00:26:07,360 --> 00:26:14,080 is going to experience. It is since he is removed to the 339 00:26:14,080 --> 00:26:19,400 east, he's removed farther from God's presence. 340 00:26:19,840 --> 00:26:23,880 He would experience a loss of God's presence. 341 00:26:25,760 --> 00:26:30,680 In verse 14 Cain said from your face I shall be hidden. 342 00:26:30,680 --> 00:26:33,960 And then in verse 16 we're told Cain went away from the presence 343 00:26:33,960 --> 00:26:39,200 of the Lord. These verses don't explicitly 344 00:26:39,200 --> 00:26:42,560 tell us God was going to remove His presence from Cain, but they 345 00:26:42,560 --> 00:26:45,960 do make it clear that his relationship with Yahweh was 346 00:26:45,960 --> 00:26:50,960 about to significantly change any sort of face to face 347 00:26:50,960 --> 00:26:54,080 relationship he might have had. Whether he went there to the 348 00:26:54,080 --> 00:26:57,040 garden and would would meet there at the entrance to the 349 00:26:57,040 --> 00:27:04,160 garden in commune with Yahweh, any relationship he had would be 350 00:27:04,160 --> 00:27:08,160 gone. The passage continues with 351 00:27:08,160 --> 00:27:11,480 verses 13 and 14. Cain said to the Lord, My 352 00:27:11,480 --> 00:27:13,400 punishment is greater than I can bear. 353 00:27:14,520 --> 00:27:17,880 Behold, you have driven me today away from the ground and from 354 00:27:17,880 --> 00:27:19,680 your face. I shall be hidden. 355 00:27:20,480 --> 00:27:23,480 I shall be a fugitive and a wanderer on the earth, and 356 00:27:23,480 --> 00:27:31,600 whoever finds me will kill me. Cain is airing all his 357 00:27:31,600 --> 00:27:37,480 complaints to Yahweh, and so he is complaining of an unbearable 358 00:27:37,560 --> 00:27:42,600 loss. This is an unbearable loss for 359 00:27:42,600 --> 00:27:46,680 Cain as he's experiencing the repercussions of his actions. 360 00:27:48,280 --> 00:27:51,800 Now. Sin can be a complex thing. 361 00:27:53,240 --> 00:27:57,400 We first violate God's ways and standards, thinking that we know 362 00:27:57,400 --> 00:28:02,120 better than He does right. I can do it my way, forget what 363 00:28:02,240 --> 00:28:08,920 what God has to say on it. Then when discipline comes, we 364 00:28:09,080 --> 00:28:14,680 we, we can either repent or dig our heels in. 365 00:28:15,200 --> 00:28:19,240 And here Cain is, digging his heels in and complaining. 366 00:28:20,960 --> 00:28:25,120 When we're caught in sin, like, like we're really stuck in it, 367 00:28:25,840 --> 00:28:28,040 this is what we become. We start to blame shift. 368 00:28:28,040 --> 00:28:30,920 We start to point the finger. We bite at anyone. 369 00:28:30,920 --> 00:28:35,400 We lash out anyone within reach, especially those closest to us. 370 00:28:35,760 --> 00:28:38,360 No, the problem isn't me, it's you. 371 00:28:41,880 --> 00:28:46,320 That's what sin does when we don't want to address it. 372 00:28:48,240 --> 00:28:53,840 All Cain could see was himself, and in a moment when he should 373 00:28:53,840 --> 00:28:57,360 have shown remorse, he demonstrated self pity and 374 00:28:57,360 --> 00:29:01,560 entitlement. The loss of land and loss of 375 00:29:01,560 --> 00:29:06,120 God's presence was just too much for him to bear. 376 00:29:08,360 --> 00:29:11,960 And part of why Cain felt it was too much was because he feared 377 00:29:11,960 --> 00:29:14,680 for his life. He feared death. 378 00:29:17,400 --> 00:29:20,680 He feared death. He he wasn't being delusional 379 00:29:20,680 --> 00:29:24,280 here. He was justified in fearing for 380 00:29:24,280 --> 00:29:26,680 his life. He'd broken loyalty to his 381 00:29:26,680 --> 00:29:30,880 kinship, and it was it was reasonable to think that someone 382 00:29:30,880 --> 00:29:34,280 may come along seeking vengeance for Abel. 383 00:29:37,320 --> 00:29:44,520 Now Cain's fearing for his life presupposes the the expansion of 384 00:29:44,520 --> 00:29:51,120 civilization. By now, it's easy for us, if 385 00:29:51,120 --> 00:29:55,320 we're not careful to, to just look back on the situation, this 386 00:29:55,320 --> 00:30:00,960 moment and think, oh, there were only now three people on the on 387 00:30:00,960 --> 00:30:05,640 the face of the earth, Adam, Eve, and Cain, because Abel had 388 00:30:05,640 --> 00:30:09,320 been killed. Well, no, that is not the case. 389 00:30:10,960 --> 00:30:14,000 Civilization had already begun there. 390 00:30:14,120 --> 00:30:18,680 There was there were many people on the earth by this time 391 00:30:18,680 --> 00:30:21,880 already. So, so Cain is fearful that that 392 00:30:21,880 --> 00:30:27,640 somebody is going to come and kill him seeking retribution for 393 00:30:27,640 --> 00:30:30,760 the ACT that he committed against his brother Abel. 394 00:30:34,240 --> 00:30:40,760 Genesis 54 tells us that the days of Adam after he fathered 395 00:30:40,760 --> 00:30:44,040 Seth were 800 years and he had other sons and daughters. 396 00:30:44,800 --> 00:30:49,480 Adam lived 930 years and Cain's younger brother Seth lived 912 397 00:30:49,480 --> 00:30:53,000 years. So it's reasonable for us to 398 00:30:53,520 --> 00:30:58,320 arrive at the conclusion Cain probably lived 900 plus years 399 00:30:59,000 --> 00:31:06,240 himself, and over the course of his long life there could be 400 00:31:06,240 --> 00:31:11,440 many opportunities for Blood Avengers to exact retribution. 401 00:31:12,880 --> 00:31:17,560 In spite of Cain deserving expulsion, God didn't leave him 402 00:31:17,840 --> 00:31:23,640 helpless. So lastly we look at God's 403 00:31:23,640 --> 00:31:31,480 response to Cain in verse 15. The Lord said to him, not so if 404 00:31:31,480 --> 00:31:35,520 anyone kills Cain, vengeance shall be taken on him sevenfold. 405 00:31:36,120 --> 00:31:39,440 And the Lord put a mark on Cain, lest any who found him should 406 00:31:39,440 --> 00:31:45,000 attack him. Now, of course, later capital 407 00:31:45,000 --> 00:31:48,840 punishment becomes God's recommended response to murder 408 00:31:48,840 --> 00:31:54,680 cases, but that's not always the way he chooses. 409 00:31:56,160 --> 00:32:00,120 In Yahweh's response, we see a God who holds justice in his 410 00:32:00,120 --> 00:32:02,400 right hand and mercy in his left. 411 00:32:04,520 --> 00:32:08,320 God's mercy was was already on display in the simple fact that 412 00:32:08,600 --> 00:32:12,320 that he had chosen to let Cain live. 413 00:32:14,200 --> 00:32:18,160 This is God's mercy to Cain. He let Cain live. 414 00:32:20,080 --> 00:32:22,240 Allowing him to live was important. 415 00:32:22,800 --> 00:32:28,960 God said no one was going to kill Cain, and if they did, God 416 00:32:28,960 --> 00:32:33,040 would take vengeance on them in His mercy. 417 00:32:33,040 --> 00:32:37,040 God didn't give Cain what he deserved and let him continue 418 00:32:37,040 --> 00:32:40,960 living. But not only was God merciful, 419 00:32:41,480 --> 00:32:45,320 but he was also gracious and gave Cain something that Cain 420 00:32:45,320 --> 00:32:49,760 didn't deserve. In fact, God has been gracious 421 00:32:49,760 --> 00:32:54,760 with Cain all along. He was patient towards Cain as 422 00:32:54,760 --> 00:32:58,520 he grew angry over the offering not being accepted. 423 00:32:58,680 --> 00:33:01,280 God was encouraging in the context of failure. 424 00:33:01,400 --> 00:33:04,840 Now here in their second conversation after Cain's crime 425 00:33:04,840 --> 00:33:09,960 has been committed, God showed his concern for Cain and 426 00:33:09,960 --> 00:33:14,040 demonstrated more grace by giving him a mark. 427 00:33:14,880 --> 00:33:21,520 This is the mark of Cain. The mark of Cain. 428 00:33:21,960 --> 00:33:26,560 This was some sort of sign identifying him so he wouldn't 429 00:33:26,560 --> 00:33:30,200 be killed by those seeking vengeance on his life. 430 00:33:33,160 --> 00:33:37,800 The mark of Cain has been the subject of of much debate over 431 00:33:37,800 --> 00:33:42,280 the years, with one of the most egregious interpretations 432 00:33:42,560 --> 00:33:49,640 arriving at the conclusion that God turned Cain's skin black so 433 00:33:49,640 --> 00:33:56,080 he could be easily identified. This repulsive teaching was 434 00:33:56,080 --> 00:34:00,520 perpetuated in order to justify chattel slavery and and the 435 00:34:00,520 --> 00:34:09,560 oppression of people of color. The mark of Cain was not black 436 00:34:09,760 --> 00:34:14,400 skin. This interpretation is straight 437 00:34:14,520 --> 00:34:17,920 from hell and has no place in Christianity. 438 00:34:20,000 --> 00:34:28,239 Furthermore, it reminds me. I've heard a story from my dad. 439 00:34:28,239 --> 00:34:31,800 He he had spent some time in Texas back in the 70s. 440 00:34:33,000 --> 00:34:37,480 I think he's on his third moment in Texas now, living there. 441 00:34:37,960 --> 00:34:42,040 He went to school there, later went back to pastoral church, 442 00:34:42,040 --> 00:34:44,600 and now he's back living in El Paso. 443 00:34:46,120 --> 00:34:52,600 But one of his deacons, I believe, maybe it was somebody 444 00:34:52,600 --> 00:34:58,920 with money, said something quite racist. 445 00:34:59,720 --> 00:35:05,080 My dad hadn't been there long and I believe it sounds like the 446 00:35:05,080 --> 00:35:08,160 story is something like maybe he puts his hand through the 447 00:35:08,160 --> 00:35:14,640 dashboard of the car and says that is not how we are going to 448 00:35:14,640 --> 00:35:20,080 be in this church. He soon he was one of those hot 449 00:35:20,080 --> 00:35:22,960 preachers back in the day, one of those fire and brimstone type 450 00:35:22,960 --> 00:35:26,440 preachers. He didn't really preach or or 451 00:35:26,440 --> 00:35:30,160 teach. It was more of a yelling type 452 00:35:30,160 --> 00:35:31,560 thing. I think you probably heard it. 453 00:35:32,280 --> 00:35:36,720 He's changed a lot over the years, but he quickly made an 454 00:35:36,720 --> 00:35:46,000 exit from that church. Because racism has no part in 455 00:35:46,000 --> 00:35:49,960 Christianity. That is not God's heart. 456 00:35:52,760 --> 00:35:58,120 Little secrets in heaven. I think the white people are 457 00:35:58,120 --> 00:36:02,360 going to be the minority, just so you know. 458 00:36:02,360 --> 00:36:07,800 It's going to be wonderful, so I digress. 459 00:36:08,760 --> 00:36:13,160 So this is not what the mark of Cain is. 460 00:36:13,800 --> 00:36:16,520 We don't truly know what the mark of Cain is. 461 00:36:16,520 --> 00:36:18,320 People speculate, what is it? A tattoo? 462 00:36:18,320 --> 00:36:21,760 Was it a scar? Somebody I read even said maybe 463 00:36:21,760 --> 00:36:26,320 he even looked really good. So nobody even had any idea that 464 00:36:26,320 --> 00:36:31,720 this person, attractive guy, was a murderer. 465 00:36:32,040 --> 00:36:35,240 I don't know. So we don't know what it is. 466 00:36:35,560 --> 00:36:41,680 What we do know is that the mark of Cain is an extension of God's 467 00:36:41,840 --> 00:36:44,720 grace, a physical symbol of his protection. 468 00:36:45,320 --> 00:36:49,400 But why would God be so concerned with protecting this, 469 00:36:49,520 --> 00:36:53,600 this murderer, this Sinner? This past summer I spent a bit 470 00:36:53,600 --> 00:36:58,840 of time in a passage that I often come back to, Exodus 34, 471 00:36:58,840 --> 00:37:02,120 verses 6 through 7, where God introduces himself. 472 00:37:02,600 --> 00:37:05,080 The Lord passed before him and proclaimed the Lord. 473 00:37:05,280 --> 00:37:07,280 The Lord. A God merciful and gracious, 474 00:37:07,280 --> 00:37:11,560 slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love and faithfulness, 475 00:37:12,200 --> 00:37:15,840 keeping steadfast love for thousands, forgiving iniquity 476 00:37:15,840 --> 00:37:22,080 and transgression and sin. This is God's character. 477 00:37:23,080 --> 00:37:26,440 Is he just? Of course he's just, but that is 478 00:37:26,440 --> 00:37:31,400 not his only character trait. When God introduces himself as 479 00:37:31,560 --> 00:37:35,320 merciful and gracious, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast 480 00:37:35,320 --> 00:37:40,760 love and faithfulness, we can trust that to be the case. 481 00:37:43,240 --> 00:37:46,680 And this reorients our our hearts posture towards God. 482 00:37:47,440 --> 00:37:51,200 It enables us to sing those words that we sang this morning. 483 00:37:51,600 --> 00:37:55,000 All my life you have been faithful, God. 484 00:37:55,480 --> 00:37:59,160 All my life you have been so, so good. 485 00:38:02,200 --> 00:38:09,120 Regardless of what life throws at me, I know God is gracious. 486 00:38:10,000 --> 00:38:12,720 Grace isn't an afterthought for him. 487 00:38:12,720 --> 00:38:16,920 It isn't something he just decided to add to his character 488 00:38:16,920 --> 00:38:22,680 traits, it is the core of who he is. 489 00:38:24,960 --> 00:38:27,880 So what do we do with a message like this? 490 00:38:28,640 --> 00:38:32,680 Well obviously don't kill your brother, right? 491 00:38:33,800 --> 00:38:43,000 That's a bad idea. First of all, have compassion 492 00:38:43,000 --> 00:38:48,320 for others. Have compassion for others. 493 00:38:50,040 --> 00:38:53,960 When we have compassion, we're being like God. 494 00:38:55,560 --> 00:39:00,720 When Jesus saw the hurting, the broken repeatedly says he was 495 00:39:00,720 --> 00:39:05,280 moved with compassion for them. This means that we not only feel 496 00:39:05,280 --> 00:39:11,360 and and sympathize with them, but it means we take steps to 497 00:39:11,360 --> 00:39:19,200 help them out. Next, value all life. 498 00:39:21,560 --> 00:39:26,240 Value all life, even the people you hate. 499 00:39:29,640 --> 00:39:32,120 We value all life. Not just lives in the womb, not 500 00:39:32,120 --> 00:39:33,720 just lives that are outside the womb. 501 00:39:34,640 --> 00:39:38,240 Value all of it. Value the people you disagree 502 00:39:38,240 --> 00:39:42,040 with and simply don't like. Look at them through God's eyes 503 00:39:43,080 --> 00:39:51,160 and see what you can see and support vulnerable people is our 504 00:39:51,160 --> 00:39:55,080 last point. Support vulnerable people 505 00:39:56,400 --> 00:40:00,400 whether in person could be a neighbor, a friend, Co worker, 506 00:40:00,400 --> 00:40:03,680 church member, homeless person that you might come across 507 00:40:03,680 --> 00:40:09,600 asking you for food or. Could be by reaching out to an 508 00:40:09,600 --> 00:40:14,200 organization like World Relief or or Habitat for Humanity, 509 00:40:14,200 --> 00:40:18,040 these organizations that that work to just give people a a 510 00:40:18,040 --> 00:40:26,160 hand up, a helping hand to get on their feet supports the 511 00:40:26,160 --> 00:40:32,040 vulnerable. This has been a challenging 512 00:40:32,040 --> 00:40:37,960 message. Everything that's I receive, 513 00:40:37,960 --> 00:40:40,400 that I feel convicted, I need to share. 514 00:40:40,400 --> 00:40:45,600 Obviously it's already worked his way through here, worked his 515 00:40:45,600 --> 00:40:49,080 way through here, and I still don't like some of it. 516 00:40:52,240 --> 00:41:01,600 This is a challenge to me. It is hard to love people that 517 00:41:01,600 --> 00:41:15,120 we don't like, but by God's grace, may we love the 518 00:41:15,160 --> 00:41:22,920 unlovable. So let's bow our heads and close 519 00:41:22,920 --> 00:41:34,350 our eyes. God, as we close our time this 520 00:41:34,350 --> 00:41:43,000 morning, I pray that each person in this room would take these 521 00:41:43,000 --> 00:41:53,240 words that I've shared. Weigh them, weigh them against 522 00:41:53,240 --> 00:42:00,400 your word, weigh them against their own hearts. 523 00:42:06,120 --> 00:42:13,520 And God, may we be shaped and further transformed to your 524 00:42:13,520 --> 00:42:24,320 image so that we love people that we don't want to love, that 525 00:42:24,320 --> 00:42:27,040 we have compassion for people who are hurting, that we have 526 00:42:27,040 --> 00:42:37,880 compassion for the vulnerable. May we value each person as an 527 00:42:37,880 --> 00:42:44,400 image bearer. They were created in your image, 528 00:42:45,920 --> 00:42:52,640 so may we value them for that. Thank you for meeting here with 529 00:42:52,640 --> 00:42:55,520 us this morning. It's in Jesus name we pray, 530 00:42:56,600 --> 00:42:56,840 Amen.