Some time ago, I scheduled an appointment to see a dear brother and his wife at their residence. That was to be my first time, so I needed some guidance. It was agreed that I should be at a particular landmark at a given time, from where he would lead me to his home. A few minutes before the appointed time, he jumped on his bike, heading to the meeting point. He told his wife, “I know pastor doesn’t waste time; he will be there as he said”. True to his prediction, I was already there by the time he arrived. The couple did not require an oath from me that I would show up; my word was enough assurance. This is the lesson from our text. If people can believe us only when we swear, there is a big shadow cast on our character.
“Make your word a simple yes or no. Anything extra puts you in the magnetic field of evil…Develop your brand to a point that the world will take you seriously when you speak, not when you swear.”
Jesus came with the kingdom blueprint. He showed how the new order is radically different from the old. One of the areas touched was swearing. The old order required that you don’t swear falsely, and must perform your oath. Jesus said the new order does not even require swearing at all. Make your word a simple yes or no. Anything extra puts you in the magnetic field of evil. One D. A. Carson summed up Jesus’ stand on this: “The important thing, Jesus is saying (Matthew 5:33-37), is to tell the truth and keep one’s pledges without insisting that a certain form of words must be used if it is to be binding. No oath is necessary for the truthful person…Their word is so reliable that nothing more than a statement is needed from them”. In any case, those who can break their words can equally break their oaths. No one said this better than William Shakespeare: “I’ll take thy word for faith, not ask thine oath; Who shuns not to break one will sure crack both”. Develop your brand to a point that the world will take you seriously when you speak, not when you swear.