Two Coverings for Sin
"He that covereth his sins shall not prosper" (Prov. 28:13)
"Charity shall cover the multitude of sins" (1 Pet. 4:8).
In an interview with a famous Gospel preacher a reporter said: "His first words to me were, `Things are very different now from what they were 25 or 30 years ago. It was easy to work for God then, compared with what it is now. There was then a sense of sin — where there is no sense of sin you have no fulcrum for your lever." Alas. how true are these words in our own time. But if the sense of sin has been lost, the fact of sin remains. In the two verses before us two coverings for sin are given. In the one, covering of sins is denounced; in the other, commended. By bringing these texts together we note the contrast. There is a covering of sin allowable, if only the sin be another's and not our own. But we reverse the order, hiding our own, and uncovering the sins of others.
I. THE COVERING OF SINS COMMENDED. There is a covering of sins which is not only allowable, but commended, the sin which is not my own but that of another. Human nature persists in reversing the order. Yea, alas, alas, so many make traffic with the sins of another!
A. What Does This Mean?
1. First of all this does not mean that we view sin differently in others than in ourselves.
a. Sin is ever the same hideous monster wherever it is. I must never condone or excuse sin in either myself or in another. This just means that I must never make merchandise of the sins, faults, or failings of another fellow-mortal. It means that I will uncover the sins of others only to the Lord when alone with Him.
b. It does not say that charity shall excuse sin, or to like sin, or ignore sin, or permit sin, or even tolerate sin or not to beware of sin.
1) 1Co 5:9 I wrote unto you in an epistle not to company with fornicators:
2) Ro 16:17 Now I beseech you, brethren, mark them which cause divisions and offences contrary to the doctrine which ye have learned; and avoid them.
3) 2Co 6:17 Wherefore come out from among them, and be ye separate, saith the Lord, and touch not the unclean [thing]; and I will receive you.
4) Tit 3:10 A man that is an heretick after the first and second admonition reject; 11 Knowing that he that is such is subverted, and sinneth, being condemned of himself.
2. It means accepting others in spite of their weaknesses and faults.
a. Acceptance and approval are two different things. Approval is based on what we do. Acceptance is based on who we are.
b. Look at how the Bible shares this concept.
1) Romans 14:1 Him that is weak in the faith receive ye, [but] not to doubtful disputations.
2) Welcome with open arms fellow believers who don’t see things the way you do. And don’t jump all over them every time they do or say something you don’t agree with--even when it seems that they are strong on opinions but weak in the faith department. Remember, they have their own history to deal with. Treat them gently.
c. When you accept someone it doesn’t mean you are agreeing with them on everything. It doesn’t mean that you approve of everything they do. You treat them gently. You don’t try to beat them into accepting your opinion on everything.
1) Do you see the irony? The reason you jump all over people who don’t agree with you is because you desire their approval! You feel more comfortable when others agree with you because, in your mind, that means they approve of you. You need to get out of the approval mode and get into the acceptance mode. You need to accept others and let others accept you on the basis of who you are not what you do!
2) I can illustrate this best by looking at the approval junkies of Christ’s day - the Pharisees. John 14: 43 For they loved the praise (approval) of men more than the praise (approval) of God.
3) Seeking man’s approval is idolatry. When it comes to approval you need God’s approval. And the only way to get that is in Christ.
d. Once you have received Christ’s approval by making a faith commitment to Him, then you may accept others on the same basis that Christ accepts you – not because you deserve it – but because God extends His grace to you. Because you are created in His image. Now you are free to extend grace to others!
e. Someone said, "when God saw you it was love at first sight." That’s true. God loves you – therefore you can afford to love others. God loves you in spite of the fact that you don’t always do and say the right things. And you can love others in spite of the fact that they don’t always do and say the right things.
f. ***The world’s idea of love is to love when others meet our approval. God’s expression of love is to love others because they are inherently valuable. " Wherefore receive ye one another, as Christ also received us to the glory of God." Rom 15:7
g. Thank God Jesus didn’t wait for you to achieve perfection before He accepted you. And you don’t have to wait for others to be perfect to accept them either. You don’t have to be perfect for others to accept you. If they don’t accept you then they’re not being like God – they’re not being "godly."
B. Why should I cover the sins of others?
1. 1st: On the common ground of the Golden Rule, doing to others as we would be done by. Sins have a strange way of coming home to roost.
2. 2nd: But the Christian has a higher and a nobler reason for covering the sins of others- -to cover sin is God-like. What He has done for me for Christ's sake, I must do to others for His dear sake. Observe, there is no limit to this operation. "A multitude of sins."
C. Jas 5:20 Let him know, that he which converteth the sinner from the error of his way shall save a soul from death, and shall hide a multitude of sins.
II. THE COVERING OF SIN DENOUNCED. If love leads me to cover my neighbour's sin, pride prompts me to cover my own. For the sinner naturally wishes to be thought better than he really is. To uncover my sins does not mean:
A. One: that I have to Parade them before the Public gaze. God forbid that we should ever gloat over our past, or refer to it in a spirit of bravado! Nor does it mean:
B. Two: that I have to uncover my sins to man, if the sin has just been between God and my soul. "I said I will confess my transgressions unto the Lord," was the Psalmist's declaration (Psa. 32).
1. Pr 28:13 He that covereth his sins shall not prosper: but whoso confesseth and forsaketh [them] shall have mercy.
2. Cover the sins of others with love but confess your own sins to God. You need to tell God about your sin. Don’t try hiding your sins from God. His mercy comes when you admit to Him your wrongs.
C. Consequences of Concealing our Transgressions.
1. The first consequence of ‘concealing’ our transgressions or sin is that it creates a barrier between us and our God. Isaiah 59:2, “But your iniquities have made a separation between you and your God, And your sins have hidden His face from you.”
a. The separation that is created is not based upon God being angry as much as it is based upon the fact that our Holy God cannot casually fellowship with sin. 1 John 1:5-6, “And this is the message we have heard from Him and announce to you, that God is light, and in Him there is no darkness at all. If we say that we have fellowship with Him and yet walk in the darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth.”
b. If we sin and casually go about our lives, with an attitude of indifference, our relationship with God is damaged or broken. The sin that we have attempted to ‘conceal’ produces a wall between ourselves and God. We are not showing a true desire for closeness. Whereas, we may not show much of a desire for closeness, God does desire that bond. He built us in such a fashion that ‘concealed’ sin would vex us. He gave us a conscience that can be burdened by guilt.
2. Guilt is a second consequence of our choosing the ‘concealment’ option.
a. We know today that guilt can have a devastating effect upon our mental and emotional state. It often leads to anxiety and depression. And, experts now know that anxiety and depression can cause physical problems in our bodies - fatigue, headaches and body aches, heart arythmia, high blood pressure, digestive problems, etc.
b. David experienced guilt-induced anxiety and depression when he tried to ‘conceal’ his sin from God. Not only did he feel the emotional and mental misery, but he experienced the physical effects as well:
c. Psalm 32:3-4, “When I kept silent about my sin, my body wasted away Through my groaning all day long. For day and night Thy hand was heavy upon me; My vitality was drained away as with the fever heat of summer. Selah.”
d. Psalm 38:3-8, 17-18, “There is no soundness in my flesh because of Thine indignation; There is no health in my bones because of my sin. For my iniquities are gone over my head; As a heavy burden they weigh too much for me. My wounds grow foul and fester. Because of my folly, I am bent over and greatly bowed down; I go mourning all day long. For my loins are filled with burning; And there is no soundness in my flesh. I am benumbed and badly crushed; I groan because of the agitation of my heart…For I am ready to fall, And my sorrow is continually before me. For I confess my iniquity; I am full of anxiety because of my sin.”
e. God is so merciful in that he has built within us an alarm system that can alert us when we begin to stray from the path of righteousness. The tender conscience, when violated, can reek havoc on us emotionally, mentally and physically. Truly, “he who conceals his transgressions will not prosper.”
3. The third and final consequence of ‘concealing’ our sin is eternal in nature. It can lead to our eternal destruction.
a. Let’s read from 2 Peter 2:20-21, “For if after they have escaped the defilements of the world by the knowledge of the Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, they are again entangled in them and are overcome, the last state has become worse for them than the first. For it would be better for them not to have known the way of righteousness, than having known it, to turn away from the holy commandment delivered to them.”
b. It is hard to conceive that we can enter a state that is worse than before we ever became Christians; yet, Peter says such is the case of those brethren who conceal their sin. We know that the “lake of fire” is reserved for those whose names are not found in “the book of life” (Revelation 20:15). What could be worse than that?
c. Truly, the consequences of choosing to ‘conceal our transgressions’ are severe.
THE DIVINE COVERING. If I uncover my sin to the Lord, He will, by His Precious Blood, blot it out, and that 'is better than covering. In the Old Testament sins could only be covered; in the New Testament sins are put away, blotted out. Beautiful is the pleading of the Prophet, Isaiah 55:6-7, “Seek the Lord while He may be found; Call upon Him while He is near. Let the wicked forsake his way, And the unrighteous man his thoughts; And let him return to the Lord, And He will have compassion on him; and to our God, for He will abundantly pardon.”
The promise is ours as Christians also. 1 John 1:9, “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.”