Well, good morning. It’s good to be with you. If my voice cracks and goes in and out, I’ve got some kind of head cold I’ve got the last couple of days.

I was afraid I was going to sound like a dying bird this morning singing, so I made it through, but it’s a little rough. We’re going to be in Matthew chapter 5, so going on in Jesus’ sermon on the mount this morning. Matthew chapter 5, we’re going to be in verses 33 to 37.

Matthew chapter 5, verses 33 to 37.

And here’s what Jesus says. He says, Again, you’ve 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 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. I read an article this past week that there is a panel in the House Committee, in the House of Representatives, and they are seeking to remove So Help You God. So the rules proposal states that witnesses appearing in hearings before the committee would be administered the following oath. Do you solemnly swear or affirm under penalty of law that the testimony that you’re about to give is the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth? Take out, so help you God.

And I think that’s sad because it tells us where we’ve been going for a while, and it tells us where we are as a people, as a culture, at levels of goodness, government, and here’s this sad, false reality we’re starting to live in. And truth can be known apart from God. And I think you have to ask yourself the ultimate question, from where is truth derivative? And to whom will we all answer for what we’ve done in life? Now it’s true, God’s Word is clear, we respect governing authorities, but for the authority itself to forget or to never know, or to reject the idea that truth ultimately comes from God, God alone, friends, that’s an infringement itself upon the truth. Truth is from God, for truth itself is God.

And so as Jesus’ people, we saw Him take us deeper into what it really means to be committed in relationships. We saw that, so Jesus is going to take us deeper in what it means to live an honest life. An honest life before God, an honest life before men. What is that really? What is that truly? Can it be accomplished apart from a knowledge of God? That’s what I want us to consider. So verse 33, Jesus says, Again, you’ve heard that it was said to those of old, you shall not swear falsely, but shall perform to the Lord what you have sworn. So I want to hang out there just for a second on the word again, because it’s easy to read Jesus in the Sermon on the Mount, and He says that over and over. It’s like, yeah, again. He’s not saying again just because He’s talking about something else. Again says to me this, Jesus is reminding the people He’s not in charge of one thing or the other. Jesus is in charge of everything. He’s the grand arbiter of every point of God’s law. Jesus is the great authority over every aspect of human life. So Jesus alone is qualified and able to speak in tune, explain every detail of the law, every detail of humanity. What is truth? That’s Jesus’ business alone. So Jesus says again, You thought you heard this, you thought you knew this, but now I’m showing you. I’m showing up, and I’m the one who really can speak into this for what proceeds from me. This is what we need to grab from you again. And Jesus is addressing to us this morning vows and oaths. And those words, maybe they’re a little removed from our culture. We don’t talk about vows and oaths. But as is the case with all of Scripture, friend, it’ll speak right to our hearts and to our lives. So what is a vow? Here’s what a vow is. A vow is something that a person, a commitment a person makes before God. So it’s a one-way thing between, between God and man. So why would I make a vow? You make a vow because you want something from the Lord. Like, Lord, I want this. I want to see this come to pass. I need this favor from you. So it’s usually an if-then formula. Lord, if you bring this to pass, then I’ll do this, or I’ll give this to you. So that’s why you would make a vow. Second reason you would make a vow is gratitude or just devotion. Lord, I love you so much. I’m making a vow that I’m going to give you this. I’m going to do this. So that’s what the purpose of a vow is. It’s either to gain something, some favor from the Lord, something you want to see come to pass, or you would have made a vow in ancient Israel just to simply say to the Lord, I love you, and I’m just of my own free will choosing to give you this. So vows were, in ancient Israel especially, a very valid, God-ordained means by which to interact with the Lord. So it wasn’t a wrong thing to make a vow. It was a good thing. But as is the case in the Scriptures, we see things done well, and we see things, things done very poorly. And so we’re going to kind of go in that together. While vows were ubiquitous, and you see them all over the place, they were serious business. And this is where people got themselves in trouble when you made a vow before the Lord, and you took it as a light thing, as a simple thing. And it’s not a light and a simple thing. And I think the reason why it’s a serious business, friends, we’re going to have to reacquaint ourselves with the reason. So we’re going to go to Deuteronomy 23, verses 21. And here’s what the Torah says. If you make a vow to the Lord your God, you shall not delay in fulfilling it. For the Lord your God will surely require it of you, and you will be guilty of sin. But if you refrain from vowing, you will not be guilty of sin. You shall be careful to do what has passed your lips, for you have voluntarily vowed to the Lord your God what you’ve promised with your mouth. And the Ecclesiastes writer says this in chapter 5, When you vow, vow to God, do not delay in paying it. Free has no pleasure in fools. Pay what you vow. It is better that you should not vow than that you should vow and not pay. Let not your mouth lead you into sin, and do not say before the messenger, Oh, it was a mistake. Why should God be angry at your voice and destroy the works of your hands? So vows are serious business because, and we’ve forgotten this largely in culture today, the words you let out of your mouth are serious business. Our words carry the weight of our character and heart. Our words are a very clear window and picture into who we are. It becomes transparent when we speak. So again, we throw words around a lot on the internet. We throw words around a lot through text messaging. Words have lost their value because we can do it so easy in so many different ways. But the word of the Lord is saying, Be careful. Be careful. And God hears it and God takes it very serious. Amen. That’s what we need to hold on to this morning. What you choose to say to God then, certainly as it relates to making vows, says a lot about, one, who you think God is, like what you would have the nerve to say to Him, and two, to what degree God should be taken seriously.

Vows are not mystical formulas to get whatever you want.

Vows were and are, are a serious God-ordained method to implore the Lord for a good thing. Let’s be clear about what a vow is for. A good thing that honors the character and will of the Lord and means to praise His character and will. Okay? So I want to give us a couple examples, again, positive and negative. Let’s start with Hannah in 1 Samuel chapter 1. So Hannah was a barren woman. She wanted to have children for a very long time. She couldn’t have children. And so she makes a vow to the Lord. And here’s what she says in, chapter 1, verse 11, and she vowed a vow and said, O Lord of hosts, if you will indeed look on the affliction of your servant and remember me and not forget your servant, but will give to your servant a son, then I will give him to the Lord all the days of his life and no razor shall touch his head. So what did Hannah ask for? She asked for something that we know from God’s Word is appropriate and pleasing, children. Children are a blessing from the Lord. Hannah didn’t say, hey God, I’ve been wanting a whole bunch, a bunch of money. Hey Lord, I want a bigger house. Hey Lord, I’ve got this enemy I want you to take out. That’s not what she said. Hannah’s heart is in the right place. She’s not asking for something that disagrees with God’s character and God’s will. And we know her heart is genuine because she pays good on her vow. She makes her offering, her sacrifice. She said, Lord, you’ve blessed me, so here’s what I’m going to do. I’m going to give it back to you. Here’s Samuel. And of course we know Samuel is one of the greatest prophets that we have record of in the Old Testament. So it’s a good person. It’s a good picture of using a vow to praise and honor the Lord. It’s asking for a good thing. It’s not wrong to ask the Lord for a good thing. But why are you asking for that thing? Is it honoring and pleasing to the Lord? But now we come to a terrible example of vows. And again, I want to open it up here more than vows, just our relationship with the Lord. When vows or our relationship with the Lord is a means to obtain an outcome or possession that serves our purpose, and it ignores the goodness and glory of God, it’s clear we’ve perverted our relationship with the Lord into a tool to serve our own flesh. Words spoken in pretense are just a poor attempt to cover up a dirty heart.

Ananias and Sapphira. Acts chapter 5. So, story goes, Ananias and Sapphira, this is the birth of the church, everything’s great, and here’s what they say, you know what we’re going to do? We’re going to give all of our land to the Lord. All right? All of it. But they don’t do it, do they? They hold some of it back.

Chapter 5, verse 1. But a man named Ananias with his wife Sapphira sold a piece of property, and with his wife’s knowledge he kept back for himself some of the proceeds and brought only a part of it and laid it at the apostles’ feet. But Peter said, Ananias, why has Satan filled your heart to lie to the Holy Spirit? Lie to the Holy Spirit. And to keep back for yourself part of the proceeds of the land. While it remained unsold, did it not remain your own? And after it was sold, was it not at your disposal? Why is it that you have contrived this deed in your heart? You have not lied to man, but to God. When Ananias heard these words, he fell down and breathed his last, and great fear came upon all who heard of it. The young men rose and wrapped him up and carried out and buried him. And the very same thing happens to Sapphira when she comes in. They witness her drop dead and they carry out and bury her. What does that say?

What you say to God matters. He takes you very serious. So we start with these beautiful words, right? Hey, everybody, we’re donating all of our land. And what is that? It looks like it’s for God, but it wasn’t for God. The beautiful words didn’t match the intentions of their heart. They said what they said so everyone would think, wow, look at these spiritual people. Look at these generous people. They use the vow as a means for selfish gain, not as a mean to live a life that accorded, with godliness, with holiness, with truth. They did not think God’s words about vows and consequences were to be taken serious. But God does take our words serious. And when they don’t align with the heart of honesty and truthfulness, friends, we’re always found out and we always suffer the consequences. God does not pass by an unfulfilled vow. He takes them for what they are, lies. And you know what the Word of God says about what the Lord thinks of lying. Proverbs chapter 22 tells us He hates lies. Hates liars. Lying lips are an abomination to the Lord. But those who act faithfully are His delight. God delights just in truth. God loves the truth. God is truth.

Dishonest heart. It is against God’s very nature. So vows, narrowly speaking, you think, well, that’s not like a huge concern of mine. Like I don’t go around wondering like, hey, can I make a vow about this? Or how I’ve been wanting this? Can I make a vow about that? Like that’s not a normal feature of our lives today. The New Testament doesn’t really encourage us to make vows. You see Paul do it in a scenario. But it’s by and large not a feature of New Testament life. But as is the case, friends, with all the things that Jesus says, there’s a greater, weightier truth for us to grab. And here’s what I want you to see. When we become followers of Jesus, all of life becomes a vow. If a vow is a deep and weighty and serious commitment to give myself to God for His glory, friend, your heart is under a microscope then. The Christian life is not I’m giving to God some. The Christian life is I’ve died to myself and now my whole mind and my whole heart are before God. I’m going to follow this Jesus no matter what, always and forever. That’s the vow that we’re making. We’re believing that God is good to us and we’re giving our life to Him. Your whole life is a vow. Paul says, I urge you, be living sacrifice. He doesn’t say, hey, be a sacrifice here and here and this vow and maybe you’re going to feel real spiritual and make this vow. Paul says, your whole life is dedicated to God. So you see, an honest life is impossible to live without honesty before God. God sees and hears you at every moment. We’re never hid from God. You need not expressly make a vow before the Lord for your whole person to be laid bare before Him. The thoughts and intentions of our hearts are before Him. Always, as the whole world’s was when God judged the whole world for their sins. When God flooded the world, He said the thoughts and intentions of the heart are evil always. The people of the world didn’t need to make some vow to get in trouble. Their whole heart was dishonest and untruthful before the Lord. Friends, these consequences come about. Why? Because we fail to remember who God is. And who is God?

God is Lord of hosts. So often the Psalms tell us that. He is Lord of hosts. It means He’s the commander of angel armies. He is the supreme power. And God is the supreme power. You know what He rules in? His philosophy, His method? Truth and equity. That’s it. He demands truth. He demands equity. He demands rightness from every living creature under His rule. If God were to turn a blind eye to dishonesty, He would contradict His own character and being. For Him to be God, He must deal with the untruthfulness of our hearts so that the integrity of His rule is upheld. So He must take untruthfulness serious. So here’s what we’ve got to constantly live with. It’s plain. God, this is His universe. It’s His world. I exist for God’s glory alone and nothing else. God is not a genie in the bottle and I’m going to see how I can work this relationship to get something I need or maybe I’m going to be in a fit of passion or maybe I’m going to be in a fit of passion of holiness and, Lord, I’m going to give you this. Like, hold on, why did you say that? From you exists everything you have. It is to bring glory and honor to God alone.

Yes, the Father is loving and yes, Jesus is kind and yes, the Spirit is an aid, but that does not do away with God’s attribute of justice and righteousness. He demands truthfulness in all of our parts.

Failing to take God serious as we ought, results in the consequences.

And you get a very, I guess, scary picture of it in Revelation chapter 21, the very end.

It says in verse 7 of 21, the one who conquers will have this heritage and I will be his God and he will be my son.

But as for the cowardly, the faithless, the detestable, for murderers, the sexually immoral, sorcerers, idolaters and all, lying is not a big deal.

All liars, their portion will be in the lake that burns with fire and sulfur, which is the second death.

Let all that you say to and request of God accord with His Word. Let everything you do before Him be done honestly and let what you commit and sacrifice to God be given fully and with all earnest. The psalmist says God delights in truth and the inward being. Delights in truth. I went to the beach a couple weeks ago with my family and Darcy and I. She’s trying to find seashells and she’s just grabbing them. I’m like, this isn’t working very well. I was like, go get that sand sifter thing you got up there. So we had a big basket of these toys. And so we would go up there and you’d dig this thing up and it would pass through. All the sand would pass through. And sometimes you would find beautiful things, but more times than not you’d find very ugly things. And it would be like those white, I don’t know what they are, like barnacle looking things. You’d just throw them out. And so you’re constantly sifting the sand, sifting the sand to find beautiful shells.

It’s the very same thing, friends, with the Lord in us. We constantly have to come before Him and say, Lord, show me that part of me that’s dishonest before You. Show me that part that’s ugly and take Your Word and put me through the sift of Your Word and let it find the things that are ugly. Let it find the things that are impure. Show me where I don’t, desire to live pure before You. Show me where I don’t love Your truth. Show me where I’ve got idols in my heart. Show me where I’ve said, Lord Jesus, Jesus, You are my all, You’re my King, but I’m not living like it. I want to be fully devoted to You, Jesus, alone.

The psalmist says, search and try me, O Lord. Find what’s egregious in me.

Find the hidden motives of my heart. I think you have to ask the Lord, like put me in that uncomfortable place. It’s uncomfortable to discover where you’re dishonest. It’s uncomfortable to, to find out, you know, the idols that you love. Like God’s got to take the sword of the Spirit. It divides joint and marrow. That’s what the Word says. Soul and Spirit. God’s got to stick that thing into those deep crevices of you and say, ooh, look at that in there. Look at that worldliness. Look at your love for sin. Look at your idleness for godliness. I’ve got to constantly say, Lord, work me through Your Word and draw out the impurities. Purify me so I have a pure heart before You, friends. We must live in honesty. We must live in honest life before God.

Verse 37 in chapter 5 of Matthew 33, 34. Sorry. But I say to you, do not take an oath at all,

either by heaven, for it is throne, or by 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 do not do. Let what you say be simply yes or no. Anything more than this comes from evil. So apart from vows, which were like the serious commitment you can make in ancient Israel, the other one would have been oaths. And different from vows, oaths were made between two parties, man and man. I would have made an oath with someone if I wanted them to be very truthful with me about something that had happened. Make an oath that this is true. You’re not lying to me. Would you make an oath? Or make an oath with me that what you’re saying is going to stay true. You’re never going to do this to me. Or I make an oath, I’m never going to do this. Or let’s make an oath you’re going to actually pay up when you’re supposed to pay up. That’s what an oath was for. It was a very weighty, serious agreement. It put all the obligation on both parties to uphold it no matter what. So it was an unthinkable thing to break an oath. Again, the seriousness of the spoken word in ancient Israel. So they weren’t to be made lightly or flippantly. Rash oaths. The Torah was clear. If you made a rash oath and you forgot about it, you need to go repent. You need to make the appropriate animal sacrifice. So again, big deal to break these oaths. But here’s the thing that’s most important about the oath when you make it with someone else.

Usually, God’s name was invoked when you would make an oath. And invoking God’s name in an oath meant on the basis of God’s character, I am saying thus to you. In other words, if I break this oath, let the shame of what I’ve done be on God’s name.

So that’s not something you want to take lightly. When Abraham and Abimelech made an oath, Abimelech came to Abraham when he came into the Promised Land. He said, hey, Abraham, I see that God’s with you. I don’t want to mess with you. Make an oath that we’re going to be buddies. And what does Abraham do? He invokes the name of the Lord. Jacob and Laban.

Jacob has run off with Sarah and Rachel. Leah and Rachel. And Laban says, hey, I’m not going to harm you. You’re not going to harm me. Don’t harm my daughters. They invoke the name of the Lord. When Ruth says to Naomi, hey, no matter what, I’m not going to leave you. I know that you’re financially destitute, but she says, may the Lord do so to me if I ever abandon you. She invokes the name of the Lord. So you see, to the people of God, it was a serious thing to make an oath to other people invoking the name of the Lord. Two parties saying God’s character, God’s surety to uphold what we’ve said.

But the Pharisees, that slithery bunch, they created their own loophole. And here’s what they did. They took things that were weighty and important, but not as serious as God’s name itself. And you make an oath on that thing. And so if you break your oath, well, it wasn’t God’s name. But Jesus says, hold on a second. If you make a… If you make a… If you make an agreement with another person, it doesn’t matter what you’re going to make the agreement on. It’s still… It’s still invalid to break it. Here’s why. The whole universe belongs to God, so it’s sacred. Don’t you swear by heaven, because that’s God’s home. That’s the place where the glory of the Lord is filled. You can’t break an oath by heaven. And he says, hey, don’t you break an oath by earth. That’s God’s footstool. That’s the place where the glory of the Lord has been manifested and will be manifested. That shows God’s glory and creation and all His people live there. You can’t make an oath by that. And don’t make an oath, don’t make an oath by your own head. You don’t belong to yourself. Like, you exist for God’s glory. You can’t turn your hair white or black. So you can’t find something in life by which it’s okay to break the oath. Friend, your heart is plain before the Lord. It’s an issue of the heart. So coming up with these technicalities… Well, technically… Let’s see, how technically… No, see, your heart’s dirty when you want to wrong and be dishonest with other people. And so Jesus says further in Matthew to the Pharisees, you are blind guides. Blind guides. We cannot escape the fact that God demands truthfulness before Him. We cannot escape the fact either that God demands we live honest, truthful lives before people.

Oaths assume the oath maker has some moral defect. Otherwise, you wouldn’t need the oath. The other party would stand his shirt on. You’re a good character and will. Both good characters. Hey, there’s no chance this oath isn’t coming to pass. That’s not how we live, is it? You buy a house. What does the bank want? Give me that signature, right? We’re just not trusting one another to do that. Rarely would someone trust someone else just based off of the raw truthfulness of your person. It’s not the case. But friends, it should be the case with us as Christians. We should be found unique in our truthfulness and trustworthiness. No questions asked.

Followers of Jesus have no category for manipulation. We simply live by and speak the plain truth. Christians speak solemn truth. And their character, which ought to be the character of Christ, it matches.

To deal with people this way, you know what Proverbs says it is when you give a person an honest answer? It’s a kiss on the lips.

It is the Proverbs that say like a kiss on the lips when you deal honestly with people. And in a world that’s so stricken with half-truths and shadows, friends, shouldn’t we be a people of truth? You know what I mean? Those Christians, they’re honest and they mean well and they’re never seeking. They’re never seeking selfish gain. They’re true. That must mean their Lord is true. And the ways in which we could talk about this, I know are so many, aren’t they? With your spouse. Living honest before your spouse. Being truthful. With your employer. With co-workers. You know? Whether it’s, am I working the hours I agreed to work? Am I doing the work I’m supposed to be doing? What about business deals with other people? What about the government?

Yeah. It’s easy to rail on the government, but at the end of the day, God expects me to be honest and truthful before the government. So, so many examples in which we could talk about being truthful as Jesus’ people, but here’s what we need to grab and just apply it across the board of our lives. Deal in truth with all people as Christ has. I must deal in plain truth as Christ has dealt and taught in plain truth. Let the surety of your words be based on nothing else, just Christ, the truthfulness of His Spirit of truth that remains within you. Friends, we are kingdom people, and kingdom people live and operate this way. And when we act like kingdom people in all truth, you know what it is. It’s a breath of fresh air to the world around us. Let it be a plain yes or no. For Christ came in the plainness of truth to us.

I was at Logan’s Roadhouse last night eating dinner, and this happens to be a lot of people, this happens sometimes. But you know, you look over your bill, and I saw the waiter didn’t charge me for my Diet Coke. I love Diet Coke. Gotta have Diet Coke. I don’t like plain water. I know, it’s bad, but I just, I love Diet Coke. Gotta get Diet Coke. Gotta Diet Coke.

And he didn’t charge me for it, and so it’s like, well, it’s his fault.

It’s his fault. You know? But it’s like, hey man, you didn’t charge me for the Diet Coke. It was kind of a taken back. It’s like, oh, yeah, you’re right, I didn’t. You know, that’s integrity. Like, wow, that’s integrity. I was like, yeah, that’s integrity. But that, and I’m not trying to make myself the hero of the story. Just a small example to say, like, in like every detail of your life, you either have or have not surrendered to Jesus. And if there’s some part of you you’re holding back, friend, I want to say to you, following Jesus is an all-of-life thing, not when it’s convenient, not when there’s selfish games to be had and business deals or getting a free Diet Coke. You know, I’m keeping my, I’m keeping my eyes on eternity. I’m looking to where I want to be. I’m not trying to get my best life now and set up shop here. Like, I’m living like I’m already there because I’m not a citizen of here. I’m a citizen of there. So I’m going to live in the truth of Christ. It’s not about who sees me. It’s about who I’ve become. It’s not about can I get away with this. It’s about, like, am I looking like the Jesus I say that I love?

Remember, your dealings with others will be judged by God. Seek the welfare of others. Christ did.

Seek the character of God above personal gain. Be a light in a dark, dishonest world.

You know, Jesus’ disciples were curious about, you know, what is the real life? What is honest life?

And one of His disciples said, like, how are we, you know, how do we know where you’re going? And Jesus said, you’ll know where I’m going. He’s like, I don’t, you know, how are we going to know the way? And Jesus says in John chapter 14,

He says,

I am the way. I am the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me. If you had known Me, you would have known My Father also. From now on, you do know Him and you have seen Him.

Church, I want to say to you this morning, an honest life can only be lived in and through the person of Jesus Christ.

Jesus Himself testified that He came from the truth, that He was the full embodiment of the truth, and He was going back to the Father where all truth is derivative. Jesus said alone, He was truth before God, and He is truth before man. Jesus, the King of kings, Jesus, the Lord of lords, He lowered Himself down to our poor estate to preach the truth of the Gospel to us. Jesus lowered Himself to seek the betterment of the world. He lowered Himself to seek the betterment and the welfare of others. Jesus wanted people to know the truth of who He was. He wanted people to know the truth about who God was. And Jesus wanted to bring people back to God. And the only way to get back to God, the only way to live an eternal life, is through this Jesus who is uniquely true and good and honest like no one else is. Adam and Eve, they gave up their truthfulness in the garden, but Christ didn’t fail once to live a life of truth before God. And so it is only in and through Him alone, friends, that we become true again in all that God has created us to become. It’s only in Jesus.

Being in Matthew then, it’s a reminder of this. Jesus has shown up to transform us into a kingdom people. That’s the truth of God’s goodness and the Gospel setting every man free from sin to new, real, and true life.

Would you pray with me?

Lord, this morning, we want to do the very thing that we’ve just talked about. We want to be sifted. We want the thoughts and intentions of our hearts to be laid bare before You. We want You to, Lord, show us those places where we’re not faithful,

where, Lord, we are dishonest, where we love the things of the world. I pray we would constantly just run to the truth of the Gospel that in Christ we’ve been set free. In Christ, it’s truth alone. And we would love that truth, Lord.

Father, I know that we’re different people in this room. We live different lives. But Your Spirit knows where we are. Your Spirit knows where we need to repent. Your Spirit knows where we need to become genuine before You, Lord. So I just pray for a conviction only that You could give, Lord, so that we could together as a body, as a body of Christ, grow up in holiness, grow up in the truth of the Gospel, and be a light to the world around us. So thank You, Jesus, that You paid it all. Thank You that You’ve made us new. Thank You, Jesus, that You promised You’ll always be with us and You’re making us new and we’re going to be with You in all truth and all perfection and glory someday. So we just praise You. We love You. And it’s in Jesus’ name.

Amen.