Sermon Video: Noah's sons choose between gossip and respect - Genesis 9:18-29

In our only glimpse in Genesis into the lives of Noah's 3 sons, a family incident involving Noah being passed-out drunk leads to one son, Ham, choosing to spread the news about Noah (gossip) rather than help him, and the other two, Shem and Japheth, doing their best to show respect to their father even in his current state.

In the narrative of Genesis, this brief story functions as a device to frame the upcoming judgment of God against Ham's symbolic descendants, the Canaanites.  It also reminds us that issues within our families are some of the most difficult moral questions and character moments in our lives.  It may not be easy, but we can rise above the situation and respond with kindness, honor, truth, and the like.

What do we choose to say about people?

How often is what we say to someone else about a third party something good about that person?  The news, be it local or national, politics or pop culture, print, TV, radio, or internet tends to focus upon the negative such that there are plenty of people that you or I know about only because of a negative report that we heard about that person.  The negative: the scandalous, salacious, and gossip laden grabs our attention, the stories of quiet good being done for selfless reasons get lost in the endless chatter about the latest celebrity, politician, or athlete DUI or overdose.
Aren't we meant for better than this?  Shouldn't we be making an effort to uphold and support the good and turn away from, instead of repeating, the bad?  The words of Matthew Henry on this topic ring true, "What is good in men we should take all occasions to speak of and often repeat it, what is evil we should make mention of but sparingly, and no more than is needful."
Think about the last few conversations you've had where you talked about a third party to somebody...How often did you focus on the good, sharing encouragement and thanking God, how often did you pass along gossip, take guilty pleasure in the misfortune of others, or simply laugh at their expense?  The things that we choose to say about other people, say an awful lot about us too.