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What Does 'Raising Cain' & Sibling Rivalry Have in Common? | Genesis 4:1-1

Darien Gabriel

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What Does 'Raising Cain' & Sibling Rivalry Have in Common? | Genesis 4:1-16 Darien Gabriel

Series: Chaos to Covenant

Title: "What does 'Raising Cain' & sibling rivalry have in common?"

Scripture: Genesis 4:1-16

Jude 11, Hebrews 11:4, Micah 6:7-8, James 1:14-15, Matt 5:21-26, Matt 18:21-22

Bottom line: The way of Cain leads to sin, death and hell. The way of Able leads to grace, mercy and life.

  1. INTRODUCTION

  2. CONTEXT

  3. SERMON OUTLINE

  4. CONCLUSION

  5. NOTES

  6. OUTLINES

  7. QUESTIONS TO CONSIDER

  8. DISCUSSION QUESTIONS

  9. MAIN REFERENCES USED

Opening prayer: Lord God, help us grow to be and do like Jesus, while abiding in him, and leading others to do the same.

INTRODUCTION

Canes

One of our sons-in-law lives in Charlotte. When he comes to visit, he tries to work in a visit to the chicken finger restaurant called Raisin' Canes. Apparently, they don't have any in Charlotte yet.:-)

Where did the restaurant name "Raisin' Canes" come from?

Raising Cane’s, the popular chicken finger restaurant chain, was named after the founder Todd Graves’ dog, a yellow Labrador named “Raising Cane.” When Graves was starting the restaurant in the mid-1990s, his initial plan to name the place something different was met with the suggestion from a friend to name it after his dog. Graves embraced the idea, and the dog became the namesake and mascot for the chain.

- ChatGPT

Expression

Where does the expression come from?

The expression “raising Cain” refers to causing trouble, making a scene, or behaving in a rowdy or disruptive manner. It comes from the biblical story of Cain and Abel in Genesis 4, where Cain, the firstborn son of Adam and Eve, kills his brother Abel out of jealousy. Because of this violent act, Cain became associated with sinful or rebellious behavior.

When someone is said to be “raising Cain,” it implies that they are acting in a wild, reckless, or disruptive way, much like the connotations of Cain’s rebelliousness in the Bible. The phrase became popular in the 19th century and has been used colloquially ever since.

- ChatGPT

This is also the origin of sibling rivalry.

CONTEXT

Adam and Eve are exiled and banished from the garden of Eden. They are living east of the garden and several generations have passed. Cain and Abel are the only sons of Adam and Eve. They likely continue to have daughters as well as Cain and Abel's sons and daughters. The tribe is growing.

There are two kinds of people in these clans and tribes. Those who follow the way of Cain and those who follow the way of Abel.

Another practice that has developed some is that of offering sacrifices to the Lord. The way Cain and Abel do this becomes a moment of revelation for us even today.

SERMON

Q. What do I want them to know?

A. There are basically 2 ways to live: the way of Cain and the way of Abel.

Q. Why do I want them to know it?

A. Because we will live one way or the other. There are consequences to following the way of Cain.

Q. What do I want them to do about it?

A. Reject the way of Cain and follow the way of Abel. Follow Abel as he follows the Lord.

Q. Why do I want them to do it?

A. So that you will find the favor and blessing of the Lord in your life.

Q. How can they begin to do this?

A.

  1. Turn from your ways (ways of Cain) to the Lord (ways of Abel) asking for him to show you the way to that hope found only in Jesus Christ.

  2. Tell others how they can also find this hope.

CONCLUSION

Talk about sibling rivalry? My brother and I are 3.25 years apart (I'm the older). No other siblings either. You might say we had a rivalry going on--especially when no one else was around.

I can specifically recall several times when I thought, "I hate him and I want to kill him!" Now that might sound funny to you because you can relate to that emotion due to your own sibling rivalry. I'm glad you can relate but let me sober you a little. We're all capable of murder. In Matthew 5:21-22, Jesus makes it clear that when we hate someone it's the same in God's eyes as if we murdered them. It's the idea that in our rage we're ready to murder them--we just lack the opportunity to do so without getting caught.

Why do I share this? Because we all naturally go the way of Cain.

God's grace is that we don't have to if we go Abel's way.

Bottom line: The way of Cain leads to sin, death and hell. The way of Able leads to grace, mercy and life.

““Therefore let all Israel be assured of this: God has made this Jesus, whom you crucified, both Lord and Messiah.” When the people heard this, they were cut to the heart and said to Peter and the other apostles, “Brothers, what shall we do?” Peter replied, “Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. The promise is for you and your children and for all who are far off—for all whom the Lord our God will call.”” ‭‭Acts‬ ‭2‬:‭36‬-‭39‬ ‭NIV‬‬

How do we respond? Answer 2 questions:

Invitation

  1. What is God saying to me right now?

  2. What am I going to do about it? Write this down on a sheet of paper.

What I hear you saying, Lord, is ___________________.

[my name] is going to believe/do __________________________________________________ as a result.

Finally, share this with your Home or Mission group this week when you gather as a testimony about what God is doing in your life. You don’t have to get too specific to give him praise.

Pray

NOTES

The expression “raising Cain” refers to causing trouble, making a scene, or behaving in a rowdy or disruptive manner. It comes from the biblical story of Cain and Abel in Genesis 4, where Cain, the firstborn son of Adam and Eve, kills his brother Abel out of jealousy. Because of this violent act, Cain became associated with sinful or rebellious behavior.

When someone is said to be “raising Cain,” it implies that they are acting in a wild, reckless, or disruptive way, much like the connotations of Cain’s rebelliousness in the Bible. The phrase became popular in the 19th century and has been used colloquially ever since.

-ChatGPT 10.06.24

Raising Cane’s, the popular chicken finger restaurant chain, was named after the founder Todd Graves’ dog, a yellow Labrador named “Raising Cane.” When Graves was starting the restaurant in the mid-1990s, his initial plan to name the place something different was met with the suggestion from a friend to name it after his dog. Graves embraced the idea, and the dog became the namesake and mascot for the chain.

There have actually been multiple “Raising Cane” dogs over the years. The first Raising Cane (Cane I) was the original dog the chain was named after, and subsequent Labradors have carried on the name as the brand grew. It’s a fun, personal touch to the restaurant’s identity!

- ChatGPT 10.06.24

The Pattern

See D. J. A. Clines, Catholic Biblical Quarterly, No. 38 (1976), pp. 487, 488. Clines explains that Gerhard Von Rad initially observed a pattern of sin, mitigation, and punishment. Then Claus Westermann discerned another element, that of divine speech. Though he did not include it in the pattern, Clines does. Thus the following chart:

I.

II.

III.

IV.

SIN

SPEECH

GRACE

PUNISHMENT

  1. FALL

3:6

3:14-19

3:21

3:22-24

  1. CAIN

4:8

4:10-12

4:15

4:16

  1. SONS OF GOD

6:2

6:3

6:8, 18ff

7:6-24

  1. FLOOD

6:5, 11f

6:7, 13-21

6:8, 18ff

11:8

  1. BABEL

11:4

11:6f

10:1-32

11:8

Preach the Word, Genesis, Kent Hughes, chapter 1, note 3, p. 625

Hamilton puts it this way:

"God acts and speaks; man rebels; God punishes; God protects and reconciles." P. 201

GOD ACTS & SPEAKS    MAN REBELS    GOD PUNISHES    GOD PROTECTS & RECONCILES

OUTLINES

N/A

QUESTIONS TO CONSIDER

  1. Who is God?

  2. What has he done/is he doing/is he going to do?

  3. Who am I? (In light of 1 & 2)

  4. What do I get to do? (In light of who I am)

  5. How do I do it?

DISCUSSION QUESTIONS

Discovery Bible Study process: https://www.dbsguide.org/

  1. Read the passage together.

  2. Retell the story in your own words.

  3. Discovery the story

    1. What does this story tell me about God?

    2. What does this story tell me about people?

    3. If this is really true, what should I do?

  4. What is God saying to you right now? (Write this down)

  5. What are you going to do about it? (Write this down)

  6. Who am I going to tell about this?

Find our sermons, podcasts, discussion questions and notes at https://www.gracetoday.net/podcast

Alternate Discussion Questions (by Jeff Vanderstelt): Based on this passage:

  1. Who is God?

  2. What has he done/is he doing/is he going to do?

  3. Who am I? (In light of 1 & 2)

  4. What do I do? (In light of who I am)

  5. How do I do it?

Final Questions (Write this down)

  • What is God saying to you right now?

  • What are you going to do about it?

MAIN REFERENCES USED

“Genesis,” by R. Kent Hughes, Preaching the Word Commentary, Edited by Kent Hughes

Exalting Jesus in Genesis, by Bethancourt

The Genesis Record, by Henry Morris

The Genesis Factor, by David Helms & Jon Dennis

“Look at the Book” by John Piper (LATB)

“The Bible Knowledge Commentary” by Walvoord, Zuck (BKC)

“The Bible Exposition Commentary” by Warren Wiersbe (BEC)

Outline Bible, D Willmington (OB)

Willmington’s Bible Handbook, D Willmington (WBH)

NIV Study Bible (NIVSB) https://www.biblica.com/resources/scholar-notes/niv-study-bible/

Chronological Life Application Study Bible (NLT)

ESV Study Bible (ESVSB) https://www.esv.org

The Bible Project https://bibleproject.com

“The Bible in One Year 2023 with Nicky Gumbel” bible reading plan on YouVersion app (BIOY)

Claude.ai