Matthew 5:33-37
"Again, you have heard that it was said to the people long ago, Do not break your oath, but keep the oaths you have made to the Lord."
I take this to mean to be true to your word and steadfast in your devotion to God.
"But I tell you, do not swear at all: either by heaven, for it is God's throne; or by earth, for it is his footstool; or by Jerusalem, for it is the city of the great king. And do not swear by your head, for you cannot make even one hair white or black.
Simply let your Yes be Yes and your No be No; anything beyond this comes from the evil one."
God already knows your true intentions; If you prayerfully consider your actions and decisions before going ahead with them, you don't always need to go into long explanations or qualify yourself to other people. If you are being honest, there is no need to embellish the truth. In other words, "Say what you mean and mean what you say"!
--Terry Ryan
--Terry Ryan
3 comments:
What I find interesting is that "anything more than that comes from the evil one". There are so many warnings in the Bible about the sinful or even evil way we use our words.
In the multitude of words sin is not lacking, But he who restrains his lips is wise. (Proverbs 10:19 NKJV) 3/26/14
Or
And among all the parts of the body, the tongue is a flame of fire. It is a whole world of wickedness, corrupting your entire body. It can set your whole life on fire, for it is set on fire by hell itself. People can tame all kinds of animals, birds, reptiles, and fish, but no one can tame the tongue. It is restless and evil, full of deadly poison. (James 3:6-8 NLT) 3/21/14
In this passage too we are told that the tongue , and by extension, our very words are "set on fire by hell itself" or in other words used by the enemy. Sadly, I have had way too much occasion to witness good Christian people become unwitting tools of the enemy simply by the words they speak. Just writing those words leaves me convicted, knowing I too fall into that category. How many times have I given in to the fleshly urge to "vent" only to have my words devolve into gossip, or discouraging complaint. What is worse is that I nearly always receive some type of warning from the Holy Spirit in the form of a spirit check which I simply choose to ignore and yammer on. In contrast, the Lord has found numerous occasions to place this scripture in my path lately:
Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen. (Ephesians 4:29 NIV)
THAT is how I want to use my words...so that I may be a tool of the Lord rather than satan's tool.
The tongue can bring death or life; those who love to talk will reap the consequences. (Proverbs 18:21 NLT)
Let's all resolve to be intentional in the use of our words to be life-giving and encouraging to both ourselves and those we come in contact with!
So true--say what you mean. Mean what you say. Don't say it mean.
Be sure that you word is true, not by swearing, but by doing.
Samuel Ngale visited Warwick during this past Christmas season. He brought his wife Judite and son Kaleb to see the congregation that helped him when he came from Mozambique to America.
After dinner one night, Samuel thanked me for the value of my word. He said that many Americans promised him so many things and ways to support. He remembered our first meeting in Africa. When Samuel asked for help in getting a seminary degree in the U.S., I only promised that I would try. I made no promises.
Samuel said that achieved more than he could have dreamed for.
Please make your promises few but kept. People will remember 17 years later.
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