He who covers over an offence promotes love
but whoever repeats the matter separates close friends Proverbs17:9
I am sure this proverb comes from the story of Noah: After the ark landed Noah grew some grapes, made some wine and got drunk. He was lying passed out and naked when one of his sons found him and thought it was very funny. He went and told his brothers about it. They did an amazing thing: they walked into the tent backwards with a blanket which they spread over their dad to hide his nakedness.
There are a couple of things we should note:
1. Noah was responsible for his actions and DESERVED to be mocked
2. The first son enjoyed being able to take his dad down a peg or two
3. The other two sons restored dignity to Noah.
When people around us fail - especially if they deserved it - it is tempting to gloat and to gossip and even to embellish the story a bit! We should not!
When we see someone stumble and do something wrong, we should remind ourselves that we are not without sin. With a kind, thoughtful, and corrective action we can lessen the pain of what happened.
It must have been hard for the two sons to contemplate the failure of their father but their love for him was not based on his performance, but their commitment to him.
Is there someone you are angry or disappointed with today? Which of Noah's sons will you be?
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Theo Groeneveld theo@emmanuel.org.za
You can see past EmmDevs at http://emmdev.blogspot.com/
