Promises, promises

I gave you a land on which you had not labored and cities that you had not built, and you dwell in them. You eat the fruit of vineyards and olive orchards that you did not plant.’ “Now therefore fear the Lord and serve him in sincerity and in faithfulness. Put away the gods that your fathers served beyond the River and in Egypt, and serve the Lord. And if it is evil in your eyes to serve the Lord, choose this day whom you will serve, whether the gods your fathers served in the region beyond the River, or the gods of the Amorites in whose land you dwell. But as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.” 
Then the people answered, “Far be it from us that we should forsake the Lord to serve other gods, for it is the Lord our God who brought us and our fathers up from the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery, and who did those great signs in our sight and preserved us in all the way that we went, and among all the peoples through whom we passed. And the Lord drove out before us all the peoples, the Amorites who lived in the land. Therefore we also will serve the Lord, for he is our God.” 
But Joshua said to the people, “You are not able to serve the Lord, for he is a holy God. He is a jealous God; he will not forgive your transgressions or your sins. If you forsake the Lord and serve foreign gods, then he will turn and do you harm and consume you, after having done you good.” 
And the people said to Joshua, “No, but we will serve the Lord.” 
Then Joshua said to the people, “You are witnesses against yourselves that you have chosen the Lord, to serve him.” 
And they said, “We are witnesses.” 
He said, “Then put away the foreign gods that are among you, and incline your heart to the Lord, the God of Israel.” 
And the people said to Joshua, “The Lord our God we will serve, and his voice we will obey.” 
So Joshua made a covenant with the people that day, and put in place statutes and rules for them at Shechem. (Joshua 24:13–25)

This conversation sounds familiar to me. How many times have I wanted to do the right thing, failed, made a promise never to do that again, but did? Yet best intentions and trying harder do not work.

This morning, my hubby and I talked about shared experiences where we admitted our sins AND our helplessness. Instead of promising to do better, or ‘never again’ we knew that was folly and admitted only our inability and weakness — only to realize over time that sin was no longer happening in our lives. How did that happen?

We agreed is that no one wants to feel useless or helpless. We want to be able to do the right thing, but as Joshua said, we are not able to serve the Lord — not in our own strength or initiative or ability. Instead of saying “I can do it” — the only way to be able to do anything well is plead with the Lord not to remove our weakness but to help us embrace it:

But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me. For the sake of Christ, then, I am content with weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions, and calamities. For when I am weak, then I am strong. (2 Corinthians 12:9–10)

Often we say that God's ways are not our ways, and these verses make that clear. I ask to be powerful and He asks me to admit I am not. He asks me to do the impossible when I ask for power. but the secret to being able is admitting that I’m not able and never will be on my own. Most certainly, His ways are not mine.

Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit by itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in me. I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing. (John 15:4–5)

Jesus, You are teaching me something many others think is sheer nonsense. You want me to pray for Your strength as I realize my weakness, but not in despair but in joy because I know You will surprise and even shock me with the wonder of how You answer those prayers. How glad I am that I can’t do a thing without You. 

Why I should not make promises

The trouble with making promises, even promises to God, is that I tend to forget what I said. While I live by the grace of God and not my own performance, obedience is still important.

A man called Shimei cursed King David. David could have killed him but didn’t. Instead, he told his son Solomon to deal with this man. After David died, Solomon summoned Shimei and told him to “Build yourself a house in Jerusalem and dwell there, and do not go out from there to any place whatever. For on the day you go out and cross the brook Kidron, know for certain that you shall die. Your blood shall be on your own head.” (1 Kings 2:36–37) 

Shimei made this promise to Solomon, now the king, “What you say is good; as my lord the king has said, so will your servant do.” 

 

Shimei lived in Jerusalem many days. But it happened at the end of three years that two of Shimei’s servants ran away… and when it was told Shimei… he arose and saddled a donkey and went to Gath to Achish to seek his servants… and he brought his servants home. (1 Kings 2:38–40) 

Only three years later, he forgot his promise and that by breaking it he would die. How could anyone forget such a thing? This was a serious lapse of memory. Verses 43 tell how Solomon summoned him, challenged him, then had him put to death.

How often have I said to God, “I’ll never do that again” only to do that again? How often have I promised God that I would be a faithful witness or do some other act of obedience only to drop the ball when it was thrown to me? The story of Shimei reminds me the seriousness of making promises. No wonder Jesus said…

Again you have heard that it was said to those of old, ‘You shall not swear falsely, but shall perform to the Lord what you have sworn.’ But I say to you, Do not take an oath at all, either by heaven, for it is the throne of God, or by the earth, for it is his footstool, or by Jerusalem, for it is the city of the great King. And do not take an oath by your head, for you cannot make one hair white or black. Let what you say be simply ‘Yes’ or ‘No’; anything more than this comes from evil. (Matthew 5:33–37)

James repeats the same command…

But above all, my brothers, do not swear, either by heaven or by earth or by any other oath, but let your “yes” be yes and your “no” be no, so that you may not fall under condemnation. (James 5:12)

The problem with promises is that by making them I assume that I have the power to keep them. Not only that, I also assume I have control over any circumstances that might interfere with my actions. This is folly. I am supposed to say yes or no when asked about anything, but it is sinful arrogance to assume that I can know and do which only God can know or do.

Besides arrogance in my assumptions, there is that problem with forgetfulness. This reveals that I do not take my promises as seriously as God does with His promises. The best I can say about myself is that I am a forgiven sinner, but not one thing God says is rash or assumption. He knows He can keep His promises, but furthermore that He will keep them. He is perfectly faithful, without sin or forgetfulness and His promises are certain because He is God. 

To Live is Christ — keeping my word, exalting His Name

The devotional reading asks, “What is the difference between swearing and cursing?”The question comes from this passage, 

But I say to you, do not swear at all: neither by heaven, for it is God’s throne; nor by the earth, for it is His footstool; nor by Jerusalem, for it is the city of the great King. Nor shall you swear by your head, because you cannot make one hair white or black. But let your ‘Yes’ be ‘Yes,’ and your ‘No,’ ‘No.’ For whatever is more than these is from the evil one. (Matthew 5:34–37)

In the Old Testament, two Hebrew words were translated oath. One means making a solemn promise. The second one is a stronger word that pronounces a curse. That is, an oath is said with, “I will keep my promise no matter what.” However, an oath is also given when someone says, “Go to heck,” as a negative and judgmental appeal for God to inflict harm.

In the Old Testament, people reinforcing their oaths by invoking Yahweh to witness them, as in “By God, I will do this. . . .” However, those who did this placed themselves under a curse if they didn’t do it. Their oath was said to have been sworn deceitfully.

When Jesus came, the practice of making of oaths had deteriorated to the point where people swore by an object, such as the temple, so they would be absolved of any curse should they not keep their vow. Often they had no intention of keeping it anyway. It was this oath-taking that Jesus condemned.

As for the difference between swearing and cursing, this is a bit muddled these days. If the Lord’s Name is used in vain, this is called blasphemy, swearing or cursing.  If someone seals a promise or makes a vow, this is called swearing (usually on a Bible etc.). If someone pronounces doom or says they want evil to happen to another, this is called cursing. I’m thinking that no matter the correct meaning of these words, Jesus doesn’t want me to do any of them.

I’m not to blaspheme. His Name is precious and holy. I’ve no reason to use it in a vain way, nor do I have any right to curse Him. Even writing such words makes me cringe. God is God and I am nothing. He is gracious to me. I know the power of His Name and I dare not misuse it.

I’m not to make vows and use His Name (or any other name) as an endorsement on my vow. He does not give me the authority or the right to use His Name that way. He wants me to be a person of my word. If I make a promise, or say I will do something, I’m supposed to do it.  I don’t need endorsements. I just need to keep my word — as He does.

I cannot curse other people or things because I am in no position to decide the fate of anyone or anything. This is God’s business, not mine.

All that being said, several times Paul said that God was his witness. This was allowed, but only in one way. Paul could not demean God or use His Name improperly.  Nevertheless, he could say that God was his witness and would put His stamp of approval on all the good things He had done in Paul’s life. 

For God is my witness, whom I serve with my spirit in the gospel of His Son, that without ceasing I make mention of you always in my prayers. (Romans 1:9)

Other than giving Him glory, I cannot use His Name in any other way. I say with the psalmist, “Oh, magnify the Lord with me, and let us exalt His Name together” (Psalm 34:3), and with the writer of Hebrews, “Therefore by Him let us continually offer the sacrifice of praise to God, that is, the fruit of our lips, giving thanks to His Name” (Hebrews 13:15).

To Live is Christ — Say what I mean and mean what I say

When my children were small, sometimes I made excuses after one of them said, “But mom, you promised. . . .” without realizing that I may have been breaking an oath, something that Jesus says I should never do. 

But I say to you, do not swear at all: neither by heaven, for it is God’s throne; nor by the earth, for it is His footstool; nor by Jerusalem, for it is the city of the great King. Nor shall you swear by your head, because you cannot make one hair white or black. But let your ‘Yes’ be ‘Yes,’ and your ‘No,’ ‘No.’ For whatever is more than these is from the evil one. (Matthew 5:34–37)

The biblical notion of an oath is a promise that evokes an outside witness that supposedly makes the promise more binding. That is, someone might say, “By the name of the Lord, I will do such and such.”

The Old Testament emphasized that God hates false oaths. Ecclesiastes 5:5 says, “It is better that you should not vow than that you should vow and not pay.”

By the time of Jesus, the religious leaders had devised elaborate methods of taking oaths that supposedly guarded their integrity. If they used the right formula, such as swearing ‘by the earth’ or ‘by Jerusalem’ then, if the oath was not kept, they could claim that they had not swore in the name of God and were therefore blameless.

Jesus constantly cut through the hypocrisy of the Pharisees. In His Sermon on the Mount, He calls for integrity in all speech. Since God made oaths, the point of this passage is not so much about making oaths as it is about saying what you mean and meaning what you say. I am not supposed to turn a serious promise into something frivolous. Instead, I must be trustworthy and not need to add anything to make my promises more binding.

My devotional reading gives some examples. It says don’t swear on a stack of Bibles, your mother’s grave, or by God or by heaven. It adds that an oath includes “damning” something in God’s name, using Jesus’ name to endorse actions, using God’s name as an  exclamation, and even swearing in your own name.

Instead, and this seems so obvious to me, God wants me to speak simply, truthfully, and directly, to say what I mean and mean what I say. Jesus says that since God witnesses every word I say anyway, I should be able to tell the truth without having to call Him to witness by a formal oath.

Again, in those days, this was a popular abuse. People thought they would protect the sanctity of God’s name against inadvertent oath-breaking by using an object instead. Then, if they swore an oath by something like their right hand and didn’t keep their promise, they had not violated the name of God. Jesus pointed out that no matter what was used in the oath, everything was made by Him, and He hears the oath anyway. Only sin is purely secular.

Again, this issue is not the oaths but telling the truth. While God may allow some degree of deception to preserve life, how often will that happen to me? I’m more apt to do things like commit myself to meet someone at a particular time and then be late. This treats them as if their time was less precious than mine. Although this seems minor, the attitude behind it is what Jesus condemns. He wants me to be truthful and considerate in small things. Not keeping small promises can lead to breaking bigger promises, such as in business or even marriage vows.

To live is Christ means being a person of integrity. It goes beyond saying what I mean and meaning what I say. I must be conscious of God who knows my words and my heart, and conscious of others who should not have to wonder if I will keep my promises or fear that I won’t.