Chapter 11 - Truthfulness
Mat 5:33 Again, ye have heard that it hath been said by them of old time, Thou shalt not forswear thyself, but shalt perform unto the Lord thine oaths:
Mat 5:34 But I say unto you, Swear not at all; neither by heaven; for it is God's throne:
Mat 5:35 Nor by the earth; for it is his footstool: neither by Jerusalem; for it is the city of the great King.
Mat 5:36 Neither shalt thou swear by thy head, because thou canst not make one hair white or black.
Mat 5:37 But let your communication be, Yea, yea; Nay, nay: for whatsoever is more than these cometh of evil.
Bonhoeffer- 'If lying were unknown, there would be no need for oaths. Oaths are intended as a barrier against untruthfulness. But it goes further than that: for there, where alone the oath claims final truth, is space in life given to the lie, and it is granted a certain right of life. The Old Testament had expressed its condemnation of the lie by the use of the oath. But Jesus destroys the lie by forbidding oaths altogether.'
My thoughts-
'Oaths are intended as a barrier against untruthfulness.'
We don't make many oaths these days do we? But we do make some.
From Wikipedia-
'An oath (from Anglo-Saxon āð, also called plight) is either a statement of fact or a promise calling upon something or someone that the oath maker considers sacred, usually God, as a witness to the binding nature of the promise or the truth of the statement of fact. To swear is to take an oath, to make a solemn vow. Those who conscientiously object to making an oath will often make an affirmation instead.
*
Various religious groups have objected to the taking of oaths, most notably the Religious Society of Friends (Quakers) and Mennonites. This is principally based on Matthew 5:34-37, the Antithesis of the Law. Here, Christ is written to say "I say to you: 'Swear not at all'". The Apostle James stated in James 5:12, "Above all, my brothers, do not swear—not by heaven or by earth or by anything else. Let your "Yes" be yes, and your "No," no, or you will be condemned." Beyond this scriptural authority, Quakers place importance on being truthful at all times, so the testimony opposing oaths springs from a view that "taking legal oaths implies a double standard of truthfulness" Faith and Practice of Baltimore Yearly Meeting of the Religious Society of Friends (1988) p. 19 suggesting that truthfulness in legal contexts is somehow more important than truthfulness in non-legal contexts and that truthfulness in those other contexts is therefore somehow less important.
Not all Christians interpret this reading as forbidding all types of oaths, however. Opposition to oath-taking among some groups of Christian caused many problems for these groups throughout their history. Quakers were frequently imprisoned because of their refusal to swear loyalty oaths. Testifying in court was also difficult; George Fox, Quakers' founder, famously challenged a judge who had asked him to swear, saying that he would do so once the judge could point to any Bible passage where Jesus or his apostles took oaths. (The judge could not, but this did not allow Fox to escape punishment.) Legal reforms from the 18th century onwards mean that everyone in the United Kingdom now has the right to make a solemn affirmation instead of an oath. The United States has permitted affirmations since it was founded; it is explicitly mentioned in the Constitution. Only President Franklin Pierce has chosen to affirm rather than swear at his inauguration.'
Pasted from
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We do make oaths. It's common place for us to say the words… "I swear…" And when we say those words we are trying to convince another of the truth of our words, of the seriousness of our words. We don't necessarily think of it in a religious sense but it is very religious when the One we are swearing to is God. To say the words, "I swear to God…" means we are truly swearing before God our truth. Jesus does tell us NOT to swear. It makes sense that the truth is something we should be LIVING and have NO NEED of having to swear, no need to make an oath when our lives should be truth. If we do swear an oath we are saying that our lives are not truth always.
*******
Bonhoeffer- '"Let your speech be Yea, yea, and Nay, nay." This is not to say that the disciples are no longer answerable to the omniscient God for every word they utter, it means that every word they utter is spoken in his presence, and not only those words which are accompanied by an oath. Hence they are forbidden to swear at all. Since they always speak the whole truth and nothing but the truth, there is no need for an oath, which would only throw doubt on the veracity of all their other statements. That is why the oath is "of the evil one." But a disciple must be a light even in his words.'
My thoughts-
Only through Christ Jesus can we live the truth- because HE is the truth!
Joh_14:6 Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.
He is the truth and if we live in HIM, we must live the truth.
If we can't be truthful in our words we are liars, because the only way NOT to be truthful is to lie.
Rev 21:8 But the fearful, and unbelieving, and the abominable, and murderers, and whoremongers, and sorcerers, and idolaters, and all liars, shall have their part in the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone: which is the second death.
All UNREPENTANT liars will perish eternally.
Lying is evil.
Lying is of Satan.
Satan is the father of lies.
Joh_8:44 Ye are of your father the devil, and the lusts of your father ye will do. He was a murderer from the beginning, and abode not in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaketh a lie, he speaketh of his own: for he is a liar, and the father of it.
The next 'white' lie you tell, the next harmless 'lie' you utter, try to remember that SATAN is behind it! Satan's work is being wrought by you every time you lie.
We need to seek forgiveness for every single lie from the tiniest to the largest.
Our lives must be lives of TRUTH in CHRIST!
All by HIS mercy and grace!
Please LORD save us from ourselves and the evil that would overtake us.
Mat 5:33 Again, ye have heard that it hath been said by them of old time, Thou shalt not forswear thyself, but shalt perform unto the Lord thine oaths:
Mat 5:34 But I say unto you, Swear not at all; neither by heaven; for it is God's throne:
Mat 5:35 Nor by the earth; for it is his footstool: neither by Jerusalem; for it is the city of the great King.
Mat 5:36 Neither shalt thou swear by thy head, because thou canst not make one hair white or black.
Mat 5:37 But let your communication be, Yea, yea; Nay, nay: for whatsoever is more than these cometh of evil.
Bonhoeffer- 'If lying were unknown, there would be no need for oaths. Oaths are intended as a barrier against untruthfulness. But it goes further than that: for there, where alone the oath claims final truth, is space in life given to the lie, and it is granted a certain right of life. The Old Testament had expressed its condemnation of the lie by the use of the oath. But Jesus destroys the lie by forbidding oaths altogether.'
My thoughts-
'Oaths are intended as a barrier against untruthfulness.'
We don't make many oaths these days do we? But we do make some.
From Wikipedia-
'An oath (from Anglo-Saxon āð, also called plight) is either a statement of fact or a promise calling upon something or someone that the oath maker considers sacred, usually God, as a witness to the binding nature of the promise or the truth of the statement of fact. To swear is to take an oath, to make a solemn vow. Those who conscientiously object to making an oath will often make an affirmation instead.
*
Various religious groups have objected to the taking of oaths, most notably the Religious Society of Friends (Quakers) and Mennonites. This is principally based on Matthew 5:34-37, the Antithesis of the Law. Here, Christ is written to say "I say to you: 'Swear not at all'". The Apostle James stated in James 5:12, "Above all, my brothers, do not swear—not by heaven or by earth or by anything else. Let your "Yes" be yes, and your "No," no, or you will be condemned." Beyond this scriptural authority, Quakers place importance on being truthful at all times, so the testimony opposing oaths springs from a view that "taking legal oaths implies a double standard of truthfulness" Faith and Practice of Baltimore Yearly Meeting of the Religious Society of Friends (1988) p. 19 suggesting that truthfulness in legal contexts is somehow more important than truthfulness in non-legal contexts and that truthfulness in those other contexts is therefore somehow less important.
Not all Christians interpret this reading as forbidding all types of oaths, however. Opposition to oath-taking among some groups of Christian caused many problems for these groups throughout their history. Quakers were frequently imprisoned because of their refusal to swear loyalty oaths. Testifying in court was also difficult; George Fox, Quakers' founder, famously challenged a judge who had asked him to swear, saying that he would do so once the judge could point to any Bible passage where Jesus or his apostles took oaths. (The judge could not, but this did not allow Fox to escape punishment.) Legal reforms from the 18th century onwards mean that everyone in the United Kingdom now has the right to make a solemn affirmation instead of an oath. The United States has permitted affirmations since it was founded; it is explicitly mentioned in the Constitution. Only President Franklin Pierce has chosen to affirm rather than swear at his inauguration.'
Pasted from
*******
We do make oaths. It's common place for us to say the words… "I swear…" And when we say those words we are trying to convince another of the truth of our words, of the seriousness of our words. We don't necessarily think of it in a religious sense but it is very religious when the One we are swearing to is God. To say the words, "I swear to God…" means we are truly swearing before God our truth. Jesus does tell us NOT to swear. It makes sense that the truth is something we should be LIVING and have NO NEED of having to swear, no need to make an oath when our lives should be truth. If we do swear an oath we are saying that our lives are not truth always.
*******
Bonhoeffer- '"Let your speech be Yea, yea, and Nay, nay." This is not to say that the disciples are no longer answerable to the omniscient God for every word they utter, it means that every word they utter is spoken in his presence, and not only those words which are accompanied by an oath. Hence they are forbidden to swear at all. Since they always speak the whole truth and nothing but the truth, there is no need for an oath, which would only throw doubt on the veracity of all their other statements. That is why the oath is "of the evil one." But a disciple must be a light even in his words.'
My thoughts-
Only through Christ Jesus can we live the truth- because HE is the truth!
Joh_14:6 Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.
He is the truth and if we live in HIM, we must live the truth.
If we can't be truthful in our words we are liars, because the only way NOT to be truthful is to lie.
Rev 21:8 But the fearful, and unbelieving, and the abominable, and murderers, and whoremongers, and sorcerers, and idolaters, and all liars, shall have their part in the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone: which is the second death.
All UNREPENTANT liars will perish eternally.
Lying is evil.
Lying is of Satan.
Satan is the father of lies.
Joh_8:44 Ye are of your father the devil, and the lusts of your father ye will do. He was a murderer from the beginning, and abode not in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaketh a lie, he speaketh of his own: for he is a liar, and the father of it.
The next 'white' lie you tell, the next harmless 'lie' you utter, try to remember that SATAN is behind it! Satan's work is being wrought by you every time you lie.
We need to seek forgiveness for every single lie from the tiniest to the largest.
Our lives must be lives of TRUTH in CHRIST!
All by HIS mercy and grace!
Please LORD save us from ourselves and the evil that would overtake us.
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