Mountian Top Livin' #3

Here is the second truth we learn from Matthew 5:33-37 and Jesus teaching on honesty.

Don't Make Foolish Promises
In Judges 10 we find the story of Jephthah. He was a man who was a mighty warrior. He was called upon by the nation of Israel to led them into battle against their military enemies. In Judges 11:30 he made a vow to the Lord. "If you give me the Ammonites into my hands, whatever comes out of the door of my house to meet me when I return...I will sacrifice it as a burnt offering." God gave him victory, because God was gracious to Israel, not because of his foolish vow to God. When he arrived home in victory, the first thing out of his door was his teen age daughter excited to see her father!

The daughter knew the importance of keeping our vows and promises to God. Here response was,
"...you have given your word to the Lord, do to me as you promised..." What! Are they crazy. God clearly says in his law that we are not to sacrifice our children to any God or gods.

The moral of the story is in Proverbs 13:3, "He who guards his lips guards his life, but he who speaks rashly will come to ruin." When you make statements of what you are going to do, you better be ready to do it. Here are some very painful examples.

1. Don't threaten your kids with punishment and possibilities that are wild and ridiculous. If you threaten your kids with a course of action, make sure it is a discipline that you WILL follow through with. You will do them great emotional harm with threats of them loosing your love and provision. You will also do them great harm warning them forever about the disciplinary consequences, while (in your lack of self-discipline) never making those consequences come true.

2. Don't promise people help or payment that you are not sure that you can give to them. When or if you fail, you hurt them deeply. You also can develop a reputation of being the person in your group that never follows through. It is a great way to loose friends and a horrible witness to those who are looking to your example of what it means to be a Christian.

3. Don't make crazy vows to God. Some Christians have as parts of their essential doctrines the process of making vows to God. But, in those vows, there are many situations where individuals are forced out, kicked out or escape from those vows. Why make a vow to God that you don't have the power to keep. If you feel led to ministry or a ministry, understand that it is the leading of God for you at this time of your life and that his leading can change. I think his calling will not change, but understand the difference. I think that making marriage vows are acceptable. They are vows to another person and vows to God at the same time. They are acceptable only because of the nature of marriage. It is intended to end only at the death of one of the two. However, I think that if you write your own vows you need to think through what you are promising to God and your spouse before you make that vow.

4. Finally, we must realize that if we make a promise to God of any kind, we can only keep it by his power, not our own. God, I promise to follow you. I promise to never do that thing again. I promise to change what I say. God, I promise to witness. The list can go on and on. Whatever you promise God that you will do or not do, you will only accomplish by his help and grace.