Luke 3:19-20
“But Herod the tetrarch, being reproved by him for Herodias his brother Philip’s wife, and for all the evils which Herod had done, Added yet this above all, that he shut up John in prison.”
Scandals are often revealed, not because of the original wrongdoing, but because of the cover-up that happened afterwards. Probably, one of the most famous scandals in recent decades is Watergate. President Nixon hurt himself when he lied to the American people about his involvement in bugging the Democratic Headquarters in the Watergate building. It wasn’t the crime that forced him to resign, but it was adding to the crime by trying to cover up his involvement. If he had been honest from the beginning, he might have been able to salvage his presidency.
I think of a recent scandal in the sports world when Ohio State coach, Jim Tressel, lied to the NCAA about his knowledge of players breaking NCAA rules. Coach Tressel could have easily kept his coaching position if he had not added a cover-up to the NCAA violations. It was not the original violations that hurt him, but it was the cover-up that brought him down.
Herod made the same mistake these men made. John the Baptist approached Herod about his adulterous affair with his brother Philip’s wife. Herod, trying to cover up the potential scandal, threw John the Baptist into prison thinking this would silence him. He thought if he put John in prison that it would keep the affair from becoming public knowledge. The problem is that God knew about it. God said that Herod “Added yet this above all,…” The thing that finally brought God’s judgment upon Herod was adding a cover-up to his sin.
God says in Luke 12:2, “For there is nothing covered, that shall not be revealed; neither hid, that shall not be known.” God is teaching us that cover-up’s never work. Eventually, they will be revealed. You may think you can cover your tracks of sin, but God sees what is going on, and it will eventually come back to get you. David thought he could cover his sin, but the cover-up was revealed by God. Saul thought he could cover his sin, but God revealed the cover-up. God despises cover-up’s because a cover-up is adding dishonesty to the committed sin.
Friend, there is nobody who is above sin. Everyone has committed a sin at some time. What will get you in trouble with God quicker than anything else is when you try to cover it up. It is always better to come clean with your sin than to try and cover it up. God says in Psalm 34:18, “The LORD [is] nigh unto them that are of a broken heart; and saveth such as be of a contrite spirit.” If a person will come clean with God and man, God promises to be near them and help them recover from their sin.
I caution you about adding to your sin. You must always remember that it is not the original sin that will destroy a person, but it is normally adding the sin of a cover-up that destroys them. Please don’t think you can get away with it. Learn from those in history that sin will eventually catch up to you. When you sin, come clean with God and don’t add to your sin. Remember, when you add to your sin, you are also adding God’s wrath to your judgment.