Trinity 11 August 15, 2021
Genesis 4:1-15
A Matter of Pride
v.7 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.
Dear friends in Christ, I grew up in a household with two older brothers. To say that there was some sibling rivalry in the house would be something of an understatement. As the youngest I had to constantly prove myself worthy to hang out with my cooler, older brothers. I'm sure they just "loved" having their younger, obnoxious brother tag along wherever they went (sarcasm).
Siblings often try to "one-up" each other--to be seen in a better light by mom and dad--or, simply to keep the others in their place (usually under our feet!). Both Cain and Abel sought the Lord's favour--a worthy goal--but Cain sought to be first. After all, he was the firstborn son--he was the one who was supposed to bring about restoration between God and man (so he thought)--so of course he should be first--of course God should have the most favour upon him--it was a matter of pride--it was his right!
So…when God had favour upon Abel's offering of blood--an offering made in meekness of faith and humility--but not upon Cain's offering of the fruit of the ground--an offering made in prideful arrogance and conceit…Cain loses it. He can't have his little brother showing him up and making him look bad--it's just not right. So he devises a plan to take the life of his younger brother in darkest sin and rebellion.
We see this same story played out throughout humanity's dismal history. A story wherein those who seek to earn God's favour by their own works/merit lash out in rage and violence against those who only in lowly repentance seek the good gifts of God that He freely bestows.
Just look at the parable that Jesus tells in our Gospel reading today. Two men going up to pray at the temple. The Pharisee acts as though he is God's greatest gift to the world--he is so amazingly perfect and has so much to offer that God should basically be falling down on His knees before this wondrous Pharisee. However, the one who truly goes to his home justified is not the perfect man with so much to offer in terms of tithes, good works, and an excellent family, but the one who is gravely distressed over his sin--recognizes that he is absolutely unworthy of God's grace and favour--but who trusts the Lord to BE merciful--to lavish His gifts upon sinners.
Beloved, do we not see ourselves in both of these stories in Scripture? Are we not Cain? Are we not the Pharisee? Are we not the ones who constantly seek to promote ourselves and our good deeds before the Lord as the reason why we should be given His kingdom and righteousness? Are we not the ones who need God's unconditional mercy and love?
Do we not daily struggle against this pride within our hearts--a pride that desires to be God's favoured one based upon our attitudes--our accomplishments--our faithfulness? When we are truly honest with ourselves we can see that we are sinful in our pride and arrogance.
We hurt others with our reckless disregard for their feelings and situations. We cut them down so as to make ourselves feel better--trying to tip the scales of God's justice in our favour, thinking that if we at least are better than our neighbour down the street, or the person in the pew next to us--then we may stand a chance before God. By doing so we sabotage our brother, Jesus, who has offered up the perfect sacrifice of the firstfruits of His body and blood on the cross as an offering that is pleasing and acceptable to God. An offering made with great pain and suffering--that cost Him His very life--so that you and I could be given His holiness and righteousness. And we would ROB Jesus of this great act of love and mercy by seeking to add to it with our OWN works!
Dear friends, we must be humbled before the Lord. We must be brought to our knees in contrition and repentance. And we cannot accomplish this by our own doing. It is a gift of the Holy Spirit who brings us to repentance through His Word of Law. A Law that cuts to our very heart--and removes the sinful pride that is buried within. A Law that makes plain how sinful and destitute we are in God's sight. How powerless we are to earn His favour in any way. A Law that brings us to our knees--so that the only place we have left to look is away from ourselves--to the Lord Jesus hanging on the cross for sinners like you and me.
Sadly, in recent years, we have become very familiar with the devastation that hurricanes wreak on people and property. We can all recall the images that are played on tv of the rescue efforts in these situations. We often see valiant men and women of the coast guard coming to the rescue of those stranded in their homes--clinging to rooftops, trees, anything to stay alive. In many instances, their rescuers have to risk life and limb themselves by lowering the rescue basket and then diving into the raging floodwaters to assist the trapped person to get in and so be hauled to safety.
Those who are rescued in such a dramatic fashion can serve to begin to illustrate the point of what God has done for us in saving us from our sin. But Jesus has done so much more. For we were not just exhausted by our sin--unable to climb the stairway to heaven without assistance. No, as St. Paul writes in our epistle, were DEAD in our trespasses and sins. Caught in the trap of our own rebellion and pride--receiving the just reward for our sins of thought, word, and deed.
But Jesus, with no thought to His own safety--willingly dove into the depths of your raging sin and death. He rescued you and brought you back to life by breathing His life into you through His Word and Sacrament. He gave up His life into death for you so that you might cleansed of all sin—furthermore, He had the great love and mercy to carry you into His kingdom of forgiveness and love and peace.
This is the great joy of the Christian faith, beloved. A joy that knows no end. A joy that is to be shared with our neighbours--no matter who they are--where they may be. You who have been humbled by God's Law--who have been shown the gravity of your sin and been led to repentance by the Spirit--have also been fully and completely lifted up by the saving work of the Lord Jesus Christ--whose blood covers you with His righteousness and peace. Who better now to share the peace, joy, and love of God with others than you?
This is our great task--our mission--and our joy! To help those who are also trapped in the mire of their own sin and pride--to assist those caught up in the rat race to earn a piece of heaven with their own good works--to teach them that is not necessary. That God Himself has worked to earn all people's salvation by sending His only-begotten Son to offer that one and perfect sacrifice for the sins of the whole world--by giving up His body and blood into death on the cross. It is our pleasure to point people to Jesus--no matter who they are--what they have done--for as Jesus is for you--so He is for all people.
So beloved, take up the cry of St. Paul in Galatians 6:14, "But far be it from me to boast except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ…" It is a matter of pride, after all. And you may take great pride in knowing the great love of God made manifest to you and to all people through the person and work of the Lord Jesus Christ who did humble Himself perfectly on the cross, earning your salvation. That is your boast before a world filled with conceit and pride. So that, by God's grace, all may hear and believe. Thanks be to God in Christ Jesus. Amen.
Genesis 4:1-15
A Matter of Pride
v.7 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.
Dear friends in Christ, I grew up in a household with two older brothers. To say that there was some sibling rivalry in the house would be something of an understatement. As the youngest I had to constantly prove myself worthy to hang out with my cooler, older brothers. I'm sure they just "loved" having their younger, obnoxious brother tag along wherever they went (sarcasm).
Siblings often try to "one-up" each other--to be seen in a better light by mom and dad--or, simply to keep the others in their place (usually under our feet!). Both Cain and Abel sought the Lord's favour--a worthy goal--but Cain sought to be first. After all, he was the firstborn son--he was the one who was supposed to bring about restoration between God and man (so he thought)--so of course he should be first--of course God should have the most favour upon him--it was a matter of pride--it was his right!
So…when God had favour upon Abel's offering of blood--an offering made in meekness of faith and humility--but not upon Cain's offering of the fruit of the ground--an offering made in prideful arrogance and conceit…Cain loses it. He can't have his little brother showing him up and making him look bad--it's just not right. So he devises a plan to take the life of his younger brother in darkest sin and rebellion.
We see this same story played out throughout humanity's dismal history. A story wherein those who seek to earn God's favour by their own works/merit lash out in rage and violence against those who only in lowly repentance seek the good gifts of God that He freely bestows.
Just look at the parable that Jesus tells in our Gospel reading today. Two men going up to pray at the temple. The Pharisee acts as though he is God's greatest gift to the world--he is so amazingly perfect and has so much to offer that God should basically be falling down on His knees before this wondrous Pharisee. However, the one who truly goes to his home justified is not the perfect man with so much to offer in terms of tithes, good works, and an excellent family, but the one who is gravely distressed over his sin--recognizes that he is absolutely unworthy of God's grace and favour--but who trusts the Lord to BE merciful--to lavish His gifts upon sinners.
Beloved, do we not see ourselves in both of these stories in Scripture? Are we not Cain? Are we not the Pharisee? Are we not the ones who constantly seek to promote ourselves and our good deeds before the Lord as the reason why we should be given His kingdom and righteousness? Are we not the ones who need God's unconditional mercy and love?
Do we not daily struggle against this pride within our hearts--a pride that desires to be God's favoured one based upon our attitudes--our accomplishments--our faithfulness? When we are truly honest with ourselves we can see that we are sinful in our pride and arrogance.
We hurt others with our reckless disregard for their feelings and situations. We cut them down so as to make ourselves feel better--trying to tip the scales of God's justice in our favour, thinking that if we at least are better than our neighbour down the street, or the person in the pew next to us--then we may stand a chance before God. By doing so we sabotage our brother, Jesus, who has offered up the perfect sacrifice of the firstfruits of His body and blood on the cross as an offering that is pleasing and acceptable to God. An offering made with great pain and suffering--that cost Him His very life--so that you and I could be given His holiness and righteousness. And we would ROB Jesus of this great act of love and mercy by seeking to add to it with our OWN works!
Dear friends, we must be humbled before the Lord. We must be brought to our knees in contrition and repentance. And we cannot accomplish this by our own doing. It is a gift of the Holy Spirit who brings us to repentance through His Word of Law. A Law that cuts to our very heart--and removes the sinful pride that is buried within. A Law that makes plain how sinful and destitute we are in God's sight. How powerless we are to earn His favour in any way. A Law that brings us to our knees--so that the only place we have left to look is away from ourselves--to the Lord Jesus hanging on the cross for sinners like you and me.
Sadly, in recent years, we have become very familiar with the devastation that hurricanes wreak on people and property. We can all recall the images that are played on tv of the rescue efforts in these situations. We often see valiant men and women of the coast guard coming to the rescue of those stranded in their homes--clinging to rooftops, trees, anything to stay alive. In many instances, their rescuers have to risk life and limb themselves by lowering the rescue basket and then diving into the raging floodwaters to assist the trapped person to get in and so be hauled to safety.
Those who are rescued in such a dramatic fashion can serve to begin to illustrate the point of what God has done for us in saving us from our sin. But Jesus has done so much more. For we were not just exhausted by our sin--unable to climb the stairway to heaven without assistance. No, as St. Paul writes in our epistle, were DEAD in our trespasses and sins. Caught in the trap of our own rebellion and pride--receiving the just reward for our sins of thought, word, and deed.
But Jesus, with no thought to His own safety--willingly dove into the depths of your raging sin and death. He rescued you and brought you back to life by breathing His life into you through His Word and Sacrament. He gave up His life into death for you so that you might cleansed of all sin—furthermore, He had the great love and mercy to carry you into His kingdom of forgiveness and love and peace.
This is the great joy of the Christian faith, beloved. A joy that knows no end. A joy that is to be shared with our neighbours--no matter who they are--where they may be. You who have been humbled by God's Law--who have been shown the gravity of your sin and been led to repentance by the Spirit--have also been fully and completely lifted up by the saving work of the Lord Jesus Christ--whose blood covers you with His righteousness and peace. Who better now to share the peace, joy, and love of God with others than you?
This is our great task--our mission--and our joy! To help those who are also trapped in the mire of their own sin and pride--to assist those caught up in the rat race to earn a piece of heaven with their own good works--to teach them that is not necessary. That God Himself has worked to earn all people's salvation by sending His only-begotten Son to offer that one and perfect sacrifice for the sins of the whole world--by giving up His body and blood into death on the cross. It is our pleasure to point people to Jesus--no matter who they are--what they have done--for as Jesus is for you--so He is for all people.
So beloved, take up the cry of St. Paul in Galatians 6:14, "But far be it from me to boast except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ…" It is a matter of pride, after all. And you may take great pride in knowing the great love of God made manifest to you and to all people through the person and work of the Lord Jesus Christ who did humble Himself perfectly on the cross, earning your salvation. That is your boast before a world filled with conceit and pride. So that, by God's grace, all may hear and believe. Thanks be to God in Christ Jesus. Amen.