Dr. Stan Basler
Oklahoma Conference
Criminal Justice and Mercy Ministries
1501 NW 24TH ST
OKLAHOMA CITY, OK 73106
Phone: (405) 530-2015
Fax: (405) 525-4164
Email: sbasler@okumc.org
Scripture reading: Genesis 4: 1-16
4Now the man knew his wife Eve, and she conceived and bore Cain, saying, ‘I have produced* a man with the help of the Lord.’ 2Next she bore his brother Abel. Now Abel was a keeper of sheep, and Cain a tiller of the ground. 3In the course of time Cain brought to the Lord an offering of the fruit of the ground, 4and Abel for his part brought of the firstlings of his flock, their fat portions. And the Lord had regard for Abel and his offering, 5but for Cain and his offering he had no regard. So Cain was very angry, and his countenance fell. 6The Lord said to Cain, ‘Why are you angry, and why has your countenance fallen? 7If you do well, will you not be accepted? And if you do not do well, sin is lurking at the door; its desire is for you, but you must master it.’
8 Cain said to his brother Abel, ‘Let us go out to the field.’* And when they were in the field, Cain rose up against his brother Abel and killed him. 9Then the Lord said to Cain, ‘Where is your brother Abel?’ He said, ‘I do not know; am I my brother’s keeper?’ 10And the Lord said, ‘What have you done? Listen; your brother’s blood is crying out to me from the ground! 11And now you are cursed from the ground, which has opened its mouth to receive your brother’s blood from your hand. 12When you till the ground, it will no longer yield to you its strength; you will be a fugitive and a wanderer on the earth.’ 13Cain said to the Lord, ‘My punishment is greater than I can bear! 14Today you have driven me away from the soil, and I shall be hidden from your face; I shall be a fugitive and a wanderer on the earth, and anyone who meets me may kill me.’ 15Then the Lord said to him, ‘Not so!* Whoever kills Cain will suffer a sevenfold vengeance.’ And the Lord put a mark on Cain, so that no one who came upon him would kill him. 16Then Cain went away from the presence of the Lord, and settled in the land of Nod,* east of Eden.
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Dr. Stan Basler Oklahoma Conference Criminal Justice and Mercy Ministries 1501 NW 24TH ST OKLAHOMA CITY, OK 73106 Phone: (405) 530-2015 Fax: (405) 525-4164 Email: sbasler@okumc.org |
Sermon Title: "SIN IS LURKING AT THE DOOR" Sunday, January 25, 2009
DR. BASLER: The scripture this morning
is easy to find. It's Genesis 4, verses 1 through 16.
It's the well-known story of Cain and Abel. Cain said
to his brother Abel, Let us go out to the field, and
when they were in the field, Cain rose up against his
brother and killed him. The Lord asked Cain, Where is
your brother Abel? He said I do not know. Am I my
brother's keeper?
The Lord said, Now you are cursed for what you
have done. The ground will no longer yield to you.
You will be a fugitive, a wanderer on the earth. God
then took Cain's life experience of estrangement and
wandering and proclaimed no person ever again need
feel that kind of estrangement from God.
So what does this story have to do with the
believer today? This story illustrates how some
Christians actually think today about convicted
offenders: It must be their own fault. They're doing
something wrong. God is displeased with them. It's
no concern of mine.
Today's inmates are people who don't see the
world much differently than I've just described.
They're so convinced of their inadequacies, it seems
to them they are losers. Most of their life
experiences have been filled with chaos.
What does it mean to be a wanderer on the earth,
to be in exile? It means you can only find support in
the company of others like yourself. There is a type
of subculture forming in our society today of
prisoners, ex-prisons and their families, which
coincidentally, a standard rule of probation and parol
is don't associate with others like yourself.
One of the prevailing themes in the New Testament
is reconciliation among people. So this morning we
stand together on the edge of history. We stand as
people capable of writing the next chapter in the
story of Cain. We have the opportunity to be part of
a community of healing and reconciliation.
For those who would like to be a part of that
plan, I bring to you opportunities to do that. We
need people to be part of Kairos Prison Ministry. We
have a new ministry to victims of crime who often feel
as alienated by the church, and perhaps more so, than
offenders. We need people to be involved in this new
ministry.
New Day Camp is for children who have parents in
prison. I describe those youngsters as forgotten
victims of crime. Statistically, they are about five
or six times more likely to go to prison as adults
than other youngsters are. I invite you if you'd like
to go to New Day Camp, there is a place for you.
Although it's important to protect society, we
need to find ways to do justice that allows the
victim, the offender, and the community to all
participate in the process of crafting justice whose
goals are restitution to the victim and restoration to
the offender.
May the United Methodist Church and this local
church lead the way in practicing God's redemption to
people in trouble. Amen.
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Criminal Justice and Mercy Ministries is the prison ministry of the Oklahoma Conference of The United Methodist Church providing opportunities for Christian outreach to incarcerated people and ex-offenders and their families.
CJAMM flourishes under the leadership of Stan Basler, who has developed new ministries to serve in the care of prisoners and their families. Multiple churches and hundreds of volunteers have impacted lives by their faithful witness of Christ’s love to those in need.