1 Samuel 27:11
“And David saved neither man nor woman alive, to bring tidings to Gath, saying, Lest they should tell on us, saying, So did David, and so will be his manner all the while he dwelleth in the country of the Philistines.”
David went through a short period in his life when he thought the only hope of staying alive was by joining the enemy. Every time he went to fight for the Philistines, he would completely destroy every person in the city. His whole reason for destroying everyone was so that nobody would “tell on us.” He was very concerned with word getting back to Israel about him fighting for the Philistines. He had hopes that one day he would be able to go back to Israel and he didn’t want his actions with the Philistines to harm this from potentially happening.
A very valuable lesson must be learned from this story. The lesson is: if it is right, why are you trying to keep it silent? There is always something that you are trying to hide when you don’t want others to find out what you are doing in secret. When someone comes to you and says, “Don’t tell anybody what I’m about ready to tell you.” You can be assured that what you are about ready to hear is something that is either dishonest or wrong. Truth doesn’t care if others find out about it. Truth wants everyone to know what it is doing. Dishonesty is usually done in secret. Deception must be kept private to keep its actions from being discovered. If what you are doing is so right, you won’t need to be deceptive in covering it up.
Moreover, the thought that nobody should find out is deceptive in its own premise. God always knows what you are doing. David didn’t think anyone knew what he was doing, but God knew which is evidenced by the fact that we read about it in this story. You may be successful in completely fooling everyone with silence, but you must take into account that God already knows what you are doing and will reward you accordingly. Luke 12:2-13 says, “For there is nothing covered, that shall not be revealed; neither hid, that shall not be known. Therefore whatsoever ye have spoken in darkness shall be heard in the light; and that which ye have spoken in the ear in closets shall be proclaimed upon the housetops.” God promises that whatever you are doing in secret will eventually be known by all.
The best way to avoid any of this from happening is to learn to live a transparent life. In my household we have a code of ethics by which we live, “No secrets.” Everyone in my household knows that when someone is told not to tell anyone else then they are by that statement commanded to tell the other party what they were told. This keeps everyone honest and from living a deceptive life. Transparency will keep you living right and it will save you from much embarrassment later on when everyone finds out what you did in secret.
Let me encourage you to take this principle and apply it to your life. The only reason you would not want to live by this principle is if you are living in such a manner that is not pleasing to the LORD. The best rule of thumb by which to live is that if you wouldn’t want anybody seeing what you are doing then don’t do it. Someone will find out what you are saying and doing, so live your life accordingly and you never have to fear the day of revelation.