sisted instead on the simplicity of a “ yes ” or “ no ” as the ultimate truth statement without the need for any fortification .
Also as children , we would declare “ cross my heart , hope to die , stick a needle in my eye ” as one way to add emphasis to a promise we made . Saying this phrase supposedly gave added “ believability ” to our statements .
As adults , we know that crossing our fingers and our hearts should not play any role in our statements . Say what you mean ; mean what you say . While Christians find it somewhat easy to cast aspersions on the Pharisees , Sadducees , and teachers of the law , allow me to cover just one phrase that Christians readily use today .
“ I ’ ll pray for you .”
A powerful statement . An appropriate commitment . But how many times do Christians make that promise and then promptly forget about it ? Or use that phrase to remove themselves from uncomfortable situations ? While many Christians will add the request to a prayer list , how often do these words get lost in the sea of life as it churns around us ?
Do we use trite phrases to move on from a person who makes us uncomfortable with their stories or appeals ? Do we utter Christian “ vernacular ” to impress others with no intention of following through on the words we speak ?
We must consider the area of intent in this discussion . Jesus expressed many concerns about the intent of the religious elite when they spoke words to impress without planning to keep their words or when they attempted to skirt their oath while making it appear as if they upheld it .
This example may help clarify the point . The fourth of the Ten Commandments deals with observing the Sabbath . Could one sidestep the Sabbath ? If on Saturday you wanted to visit a friend or relative , did that involve work ? An interpretation of Jewish law stated you could walk the equivalent of five-eighths of a mile on the Sabbath . But , what if your cousin lived a mile from you ? No visit on Saturday ? Well , not so fast ! Another Jewish interpretation of the Fourth Commandment also stated that you could consider your “ home ” any place where you would find some of your possessions . To circumvent the law to visit your cousin on the Sabbath , you could walk the five-eighths of a mile before the Sabbath started and place a belonging of yours at that location . On the Sabbath , you could return to that site and retrieve the item you had placed the previous day . Technically – or better legally - you have arrived home ! From that spot , you could start over and travel another fiveeighths of a mile to finish the rest of the three-eighths of a mile to your cousin ’ s house . If you wanted to return to your house on the Sabbath , leave your item at the five-eighths marker and return to it . Doing so would renew your lease on the Sabbath walk and you could arrive home still under the limits of the law . Did God intend this as a means of keeping a commandment ?
Oaths and vows speak to our character . Jesus rails against those who used their words to offer a false sense of the sincerity of their actions . They hid behind their words and then continued their lives with no impact from those words that so easily fell from their lips .
Don ’ t be that person . Honor God with your words by keeping them rather than trying to impress others when you harbor no intent to follow your words with actions . Obviously the keeping of our word , or the lack thereof , reflects on our character . Others can classify us by the way we live out what we speak . Along with this , others may make some assumptions about the character of God given the way we keep our word .
Beyond words and actions , Jesus focuses on righteousness as we note from Matthew 5:6 & 10 . As Christians live out their righteousness , then concerns about the fulfillments of oaths and vows fade into obscurity given the genuineness of their walk with Christ .
The breaking of a personal vow will adversely affect the opinion of others toward us , and , more importantly , our opinion of ourselves . Take , for instance , New Year ’ s Resolutions . We could classify these as vows . Typically , these resolutions focus on the self – quit this or start that . While most people understand that very few resolutions will make it to the next year , or the next month , the failure to keep