People love to swear
CHAPTER 23: Of Lawful Oaths and Vows
(Parts One and Two)
People love to swear. I’m not talking about profanity, but listening to conversations in public places these days, a lot of people are pretty free with their use of profanity too. I’m talking about swearing oaths. The best counsel is to not make oaths since we tend to be so poor at keeping them. Jesus warned against swearing at all in Matthew 5:34. There are, however, times when oaths are appropriate.
When the courts are trying to get to the bottom of a matter, witnesses are required to “swear to tell the truth.” Rightly understood, these oaths are not to the court, but to God. Therefore, as bad as perjury may be in the eyes of the civil authorities, breaking that oath to God is infinitely more serious.
When a man and woman marry, their “I do’s” are a vow, or an oath, to honor their marriage commitment—and they are not vows merely to the spouse, but to God. When a person becomes a citizen, they swear an oath to their new country. Public servants, from policemen to politicians, are frequently sworn in to uphold the laws—and these too are to God, not man, whether anyone realizes it or not.
Beyond these kinds of lawful oaths, it is simply not wise or proper to make vows, swearing to God (Ecclesiastes 5:5-6). We are told instead to simply say “yes” when we mean yes and “no” when we mean no (Matthew 5:37).
(Part Two)
It is particularly bad to make religious vows that God’s word never calls for, as clergy in some faiths are called to do. Equally bad are those rash vows made by people who promise to make some change in their lives or perform some religious service if God will answer a prayer (or grant them a wish). Why?
God doesn’t make deals.
If one is promising to do what is God’s will, the person is already obligated to do it, without a vow and without expecting God to answer a particular prayer.
The number of these superstitious vows that are kept (even if God did answer their prayer the way they desired) is probably pitifully small.
People who engage in this kind of superstitious foolishness often don’t do what they promised to do if God would answer their prayers. When God doesn’t answer, they often get angry and turn away from Him.
Bottom Line: Understand what lawful vows are. When you must make one, keep it. If the vow is not lawful, refuse make it.
Bonus Thought: Setting goals is not the same as making vows. Goals are good, because they give us direction, but if they are not realized, no vow has been broken.
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