In conflict with the holy God
Series: Holy – Holy – Holy | Bible text: Genesis 4:2–8; Hebrews 11:4
The story of Cain and Abel is an example of a conflict between a human being and the holy God. First there is a difference which triggers something in Cain and influences his inner attitude. He throws God’s warning to the wind and looks for a scapegoat in Abel, on whom he finally takes out his anger. Cain projects the guilt onto Abel and makes him responsible for HIS problem.
Today we dive into one of the first conflicts in human history. It is the story of the first two people born on this earth – Cain and Abel. This conflict should serve as an example for us. Perhaps you are wondering what conflict between brothers has to do with the annual theme of holiness. But I hope I will be able to show this in the course of the sermon.
Affirm differences!
The story is found right in the first book of the Bible. After Adam and Eve were thrown out of the Garden of Eden, they fathered children. First Cain was born, then Abel. These brothers were very different. That is where most of the causes of conflict lie. Differences are completely normal and are part of life. Difference is not something bad per se. But it becomes a problem when I can no longer affirm it.
In the case of Cain and Abel, there were some differences. Cain was a farmer by profession. He planted the land. Abel was also farming, but in a different way – he was a shepherd. One after the other, both had the same intention. They wanted to offer a voluntary sacrifice to God. The exact motives are not clear, but I assume that their intention was to say thank you to their God. When it comes to the choice of what to sacrifice, the next difference becomes apparent. Cain chose part of his harvest. I can still remember the children’s Bibles where this was all so beautifully drawn. Melons, cucumbers, tomatoes, carrots, potatoes, grains, figs, strawberries, etc. The sight of these drawings makes your mouth water. In contrast to all the fruits and vegetables, Abel also makes an offering from his work. He takes a few of the firstborn lambs, kills them and offers them along with the fat. Both offer a sacrifice from what they have worked for. But then the third difference appears. For one sacrifice is accepted favourably by God, the other is not. The vegetable, fruit and fruit offering was rejected. The meat offering, on the other hand, was accepted. What does this mean? Is God not a vegetarian?
Often we focus on what is being sacrificed, but not on the one who is sacrificing. God looks at the person and the sacrifice. » […] The LORD looked favourably on Abel and accepted his sacrifice». (Genesis 4:4 NLB). In contrast «Cain and his sacrifice, however, he rejected. […]» (Genesis 4:5 NLB). There are countless theories as to why Cain was rejected.
One says, for example, that Cain was rejected because he did not sacrifice the first fruits. Another says that Abel’s sacrifice was accepted because he intuitively did the right thing. For in the Bible, a commandment is given as to how a sacrifice should be offered. «The ministering priest shall burn everything on the altar; such an offering is pleasing to the LORD. All fat belongs to the LORD». (Genesis 3:16 NLB). Did Abel act correctly because he also sacrificed the fat? Lastly, one assumption is that only Abel’s sacrifice was accepted because he sacrificed animals and thus blood was shed. If no blood is sacrificed, then the reference to life is missing. All these theories have their justification, but fall short. The dog is buried in another place – in Cain’s relationship with God. «By faith, Abel offered a better sacrifice to God than Cain. God accepted Abel’s sacrifice to show that he was righteously spoken of in his eyes. And though Abel is long dead, he still speaks to us in this way.» (Hebrews 11:4 NLB). This is the fourth and decisive difference. By faith, Abel offered the better sacrifice. This is also echoed in various theories. Abel met the holy God with high regard. His whole life was shaped as a service to God. The difference between the two sacrifices lies in the faith of the person who performed the act. Cain was not rejected because of his sacrifice, but the sacrifice because of Cain!
We often have the feeling that this probably best-known conflict takes place among brothers. But this is not the case. This conflict is between Cain and God. I had a training session this week on the topic of conflict. There I learned that the golden rule in conflict theory is that problems always have to do with myself first. This is also the case with Cain. The second mistake that Cain makes is the one that we also make all the time. We want to solve the conflict. But conflicts cannot be solved – even if this is colloquially said – they can only be dealt with.
Feelings and inner attitude take over!
But Cain had no knowledge of conflict theory, so he wanted to solve his problem. Let us look further at how he went about it. After they both sacrificed and his sacrifice was rejected, something happened to him. » […] Then Cain became very angry and he looked grimly to the ground». (Genesis 4:5 NLB). The non-acceptance triggered feelings in him. I can imagine how the mere fact that the little brother’s sacrifice is better than his own triggered a lot in Cain. Feelings are always subjective and not objective and uncontrollable at first. Since, as I said, the problem always has to do with myself first, tensions trigger different reactions in each person. Five conflict styles are distinguished here. Each one reacts differently. Some immediately go on the attack and meet the conflict partner with aggression. Others flee and avoid the confrontation. Some seek consensus. Until this is achieved, there may well be very hard fighting over positions. Some seek compromise, but this does not necessarily mean that there is a win-win situation. A final group adapts and gives in. All these styles have their strengths and weaknesses. This is also not an evaluation, but a description of a certain pattern that a person falls back into in a conflict. This also does not mean that this is personally satisfactory. Personally, I have the compromise type of conflict. This means that I aim for a quick agreement. However, this can also mean that I am partly dissatisfied with the outcome because I perceive myself as not standing firm enough. I think that Cain was an attacker in terms of style.
After the feeling of anger had settled in him, his inner attitude changed increasingly. He lowered his gaze grimly to the ground and entered what is called tunnel vision. This narrowed his vision. This is exactly what happens when emotions take over. One effect of this is the simplification of all things. There are no more shades or shades of grey, but only good or evil, for or against me, right or wrong. Cain was angry because God was merciful to Abel and did not treat him that way. «The Lord answered: I will make my goodness pass over you and will proclaim my name «the LORD» before you. I will give my grace and my mercy to whom I will». (Ex 33:19 NLB). This attitude caused him increasing trouble.
Heed warning signs – otherwise a scapegoat will be punished!
Cain did not have a conflict with a human being, but with the holy God. As in every conflict, a warning sign comes – this time even from God himself. God asks Cain: «Why are you so angry?» the Lord asked him. Why do you look so grimly at the ground? Is it not so: If you have good in mind, you can look around freely. But when you plan evil, sin lies in wait for you. It wants to bring you down. But you shall reign over it!» » (Genesis 4:6–7 NLB). God points out to Cain HIS problem. He shows him that there is no reason to be angry and look so grim. Looking down shows that he has evil in mind. The inner attitude that resulted from the difference and the feelings now radiates to his posture, gestures and facial expressions.
God points out to him that sin is lurking. Sin means missing the mark. The parents of Cain and Abel were created by God himself. He wanted to have fellowship with them. Their original mission was to live in God’s presence and to put Him first. Sin, in God’s eyes, is anything that does not put Him first. It defeats the purpose of being fully devoted to God as a human being. This pulling of oneself to decide was not something that only Cain had, but it is something that all people know – even those who say they follow Jesus Christ and put Him first. The New Testament describes how followers of Jesus Christ should deal with this urge for self-realisation. «Do not let sin dominate your lives; do not give in to its urges». (Romans 6:12 NLB). It is our own choice how we deal with details, but we are to have dominion over our desire. This message applied to Cain, but equally to us. But Cain goes on and on in the spiral of conflict.
Because Cain, despite God’s warning, still does not see the problem in himself, a scapegoat must be found. A perfect and supposedly guilty victim is found in Abel. Abel is made guilty for Cain’s problem. He wants to solve the conflict of his unaccepted victim. But this cannot be solved, only answered. He chooses the supposedly easy path of a quick solution instead of working through his relationship with God. After he has found a good scapegoat in Abel, there is no more long talk, but action. «Later Cain suggested to his brother Abel: «Come, let’s go out into the field». When they were there, Cain fell upon his brother and struck him dead.» (Genesis 4:8 NLB). Several times I have mentioned that the problem always has to do with myself first. Maybe this sentence irritated you, because what does Abel have to do with it? Because in this case this is also true. For Abel was not a party to the conflict at all, but merely a scapegoat – and yes, here we cannot help it, but Abel had not noticed anything personally until he was killed.
Cain had the choice of how to deal with his problem. But he allowed himself to be drawn into the vortex, which finally ended in fratricide. After that, Cain was cast out. Before that, he was in the presence of God. Whatever that might have looked like. For he experienced first-hand that he and his sacrifice were not accepted. He was not yet dead, but self-determination (sin) determined his life from then on. In this way, what the apostle Paul later said in his letter to the Romans came to pass. «For the wages of sin is death; but the undeserved gift of God is eternal life through Christ Jesus our Lord.» (Romans 6:23 NLB). The decision is yours. Following the holy God means submitting to him completely and making your whole life a service to God – as Abel had done.
Possible questions for the small group
Read the Bible text: Genesis 4:1–16
- Which differences do you find difficult? Which ones can you easily affirm?
- What does the sentence: «Problems always have to do with yourself first» do to you?
- Can you classify the sequence (difference leads to tension, feelings take over, inner attitude changes (tunnel vision), disregarding warning signs, looking for a scapegoat, taking action) of Cain’s action? How do you experience it?
- Where have you experienced God’s warning signs? How did you react to them?
- What does your «sacrificial service» look like? Do you give yourself completely to God or are you rather reserved? What holds you back?
