Sins: Expose or Cover?

20Noah, a farmer, was the first to plant a vineyard. 21He drank from its wine, got drunk and passed out, naked in his tent. 22Ham, the father of Canaan, saw that his father was naked and told his two brothers who were outside the tent. 23Shem and Japheth took a cloak, held it between them from their shoulders, walked backwards and covered their father’s nakedness, keeping their faces turned away so they did not see their father’s exposed body.
24When Noah woke up with his hangover, he learned what his youngest son had done. 25He said, Cursed be Canaan! A slave of slaves, a slave to his brothers!

This is an ugly moment in the life of an otherwise extraordinary Bible hero. Noah, the one who built the boat and whose righteousness saved humanity, finds himself in a very compromising position.

His son Ham exposes his sinful mistake to the rest of the family. Ham should have done what the other sons did - he should have quietly covered over their father's mistake. Instead, Ham chose to hold Noah up for public ridicule.

This verse has great meaning for the Christian life. How tempting it is for us to expose the sins of our fellow Christians! Too many times I have known Christians to jump at the chance to "share" about someone else's sinful failure. Too many times I have known Christians to expose the sins of others publically in an effort to do one of two things:
1) Maybe they expose the sin because they want to "help" their fellow Christian who has fallen. But exposing someone's sin rarely helps them. It is better to quietly deal with the issue than it is to expose another Christian's failings and so bring down ridicule on the rest of us, and shame our God in the process.
2) More often, the true reason Christians expose the sins of others is because of a desire to make themselves appear more righteous. It's a means of justifying the sinful condition of their own heart. "I'm better than that other Christian! Look at what they do!"

But that's not what the Bible teaches. 1 Peter 4:8 tells us how we should deal with the sins of other believers: "Above all, love each other warmly, because love covers many sins."

Love will do what Shem and Japheth did for their father - cover the sin. Quietly dealing with the issue in a way that will lead to the least amount of embarrasment for the Christian who stumbled.

I like how Galatians 6:1 is expressed in the Message version. "Live creatively, friends. If someone falls into sin, forgivingly restore him, saving your critical comments for yourself. You might be needing forgiveness before the day’s out."

How does this work in real life? It means that I don't talk about the failures of other believers. It means that when I see a fellow Christian making a mistake, I help that person to keep it as quiet as possible. It means I keep confidences. It means that I refuse to make myself look more spiritual at the expense of my fellow believer.

Further, it means that I only confront the person when it is appropriate. Shem and Japheth did not confront their father about his sin. It wasn't their role to do that. Noah, however, did confront Ham about his sin. Why? Because, as the patriarch of the family, it was Noah's job to confront Ham's sin. Noah's sin could be confronted by others - maybe his wife, or maybe by God Himself.

It is important to know when it is your role to confront someone in sin, and when it is your role to help the person who is struggling with sin. Often a carefully placed blanket is more powerful in convicting someone of their sin than in the ridicule of many.