Practicing Radical Truthfulness (Matt 5:33-37)

Practicing Radical Truthfulness

“Again, you have heard that it was said to the people long ago, ‘Do not break your oath, but fulfill to the Lord the vows you have made.’ But I tell you, do not swear an oath at all: either by heaven, for it is God’s throne; or by the 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. All you need to say is simply ‘Yes’ or ‘No’; anything beyond this comes from the evil one.

Matthew 5:33-37

How can we practice radical truthfulness in a world of deception?

Essentially, the first sin that happened on the earth was a lie. Satan deceived Adam and Eve, which plunged the world into sin and destruction. From that point, lying is common. In Romans 3:13, Paul described the effects of sin on humanity this way: “Their throats are open graves; their tongues practice deceit.” Sin has affected everybody’s integrity. Children struggle with lying, adults struggle with it, and the aged struggle with it also. Dishonesty is an epidemic from kindergarten through graduate school, from the home to the work place. It is often hard to trust people in our society.

Other than simply sin nature, why do people practice lying?

People lie to make themselves look better (a little exaggeration makes a story better).
People lie to protect themselves from consequences (often to cover up a failure committed).
People lie to gain something they want (like a good grade, a promotion, or tax benefits).

In Matthew 5:33-37, Christ addresses the abuse of oaths and how dishonesty was prevalent in the ancient world. Christ has been correcting common misinterpretations of the OT law; here he corrects the fourth out of six. Essentially, he declares that citizens of his kingdom will be identified by radical honesty.

Psalm 15 teaches something similar, as it describes the ideal worshiper. Consider the characteristics mentioned:

Lord, who may dwell in your sacred tent? Who may live on your holy mountain? The one whose walk is blameless, who does what is righteous, who speaks the truth from their heart…who keeps an oath even when it hurts, and does not change their mind;

Psalm 15:1-2, 4

When God looks for a worshiper, he finds somebody with integrity: This person speaks the truth from the heart and keeps his oaths even when it hurts. Are we those types of worshipers? Are we practicing the righteousness of the kingdom?

In this text, we learn how to practice radical truthfulness in a world of deceit.

Big Question: In Matthew 5:33-37, what principles can be discerned about practicing radical truthfulness?

To Practice Radical Truthfulness, We Must Reject Deceptive Practices

“Again, you have heard that it was said to the people long ago, ‘Do not break your oath, but fulfill to the Lord the vows you have made.’ But I tell you, do not swear an oath at all

Matthew 5:33-34a

Interpretation Question: What did the OT teach about taking oaths?

The Old Testament did not forbid taking oaths; it in fact encouraged it. Deuteronomy 10:20 says, “Fear the Lord your God and serve him. Hold fast to him and take your oaths in his name.” In addition, Jeremiah 12:16 encouraged Gentiles to make oaths in God’s name. It says,

And if they learn well the ways of my people and swear by my name, saying, ‘As surely as the Lord lives’—even as they once taught my people to swear by Baal—then they will be established among my people.

God permitted oaths to restrain humanity’s natural tendency to lie. By invoking God’s name, it brought a greater accountability between people. Essentially by invoking God’s name, one asked for God’s judgment in the case of lying. Deuteronomy 23:21 says, “If you make a vow to the Lord your God, do not be slow to pay it, for the Lord your God will certainly demand it of you and you will be guilty of sin.”

What was forbidden in the OT was breaking one’s vows and also flippantly making them. Oaths were reserved for the most solemn occasions and were to be kept. Ecclesiastes 5:2 and 4-6 says:

Do not be quick with your mouth, do not be hasty in your heart to utter anything before God. God is in heaven and you are on earth, so let your words be few…When you make a vow to God, do not delay to fulfill it. He has no pleasure in fools; fulfill your vow. It is better not to make a vow than to make one and not fulfill it. Do not let your mouth lead you into sin. And do not protest to the temple messenger, “My vow was a mistake.” Why should God be angry at what you say and destroy the work of your hands?

However, this was exactly what the Jews were doing. They were flippantly taking oaths, breaking them, and deceiving others by their use. In fact, many were doing this in the name of religion. D.A. Carson explains:

In the Jewish code of law called the Mishnah, there is one whole tractate given over to the question of oaths, including detailed consideration of when they’re binding and when they’re not. For example, one rabbi says that if you swear by Jerusalem you are not bound by your vow; but if you swear toward Jerusalem, then you are bound by your vow. The swearing of oaths thus degenerates into terrible rules which let you know when you can get away with lying and deception, and when you can’t. These oaths no longer foster truthfulness, but weaken the cause of truth and promote deceit. Swearing evasively becomes justification for lying.

Specifically, some Rabbis taught that as long as people didn’t use God’s name in an oath, they were free to break it (cf. Lev 19:12). Therefore, they would swear upon one’s mother, father, Jerusalem, or something else that appeared sacred. It was like a child making a statement with his fingers crossed—meaning that at that moment it was OK to lie.

Sadly, the integrity of people today is no better. In certain circumstances, it is considered perfectly acceptable to lie, steal, cheat, and accept or give a bribe. Often it is thought strange to not. Illegal downloading is done and accepted by almost all. Cheating on taxes is normative; people say to themselves, “It is my money! The government shouldn’t be taking it anyway.” Lack of integrity in marriage is also becoming common. McCall Magazine published this story, as shared by Kent Hughes:

A young wife was at lunch with eleven of her friends, who had been meeting together regularly to study French since their children had been in nursery school. As they conversed, one of the women, the group’s leader, asked, “How many of you have been faithful throughout your marriage?” Only one woman at the table raised her hand. That evening when the young wife told her husband about the conversation, she revealed that she was not the one who had raised her hand. He was shocked and devastated. “But I have been faithful,” she added. “Then why didn’t you raise your hand?” She replied, “I was ashamed.”[1]

This was the type of dishonest culture that Christ spoke to. Unfortunately, it was the religious people propagating it. If we are going to maintain radical truthfulness, we must reject all forms of deceptive practices. This is what Christ meant when he said, “But I tell you, do not swear an oath at all” (v. 34). We must reject dishonesty in academia, corporations, romantic relationships, and the home. What happens when we tolerate dishonesty is that our integrity begins to slowly erode: what we previously despised becomes accepted and eventually praised.

Interpretation Question: Was Christ forbidding all oath taking? What about oaths given in courts?

Some have taken Christ’s statement as an absolute prohibition such as the Reformation Anabaptists and the Quakers. George Fox, the founder of the Quakers, was sentenced to prison for refusing to swear on a Bible. He said this to the court:

You have given me a book here to kiss and to swear on, and this book which ye have given me to kiss says, “Kiss the Son,” and the Son says in this book, “Swear not at all.” I say as the book says, and yet ye imprison me; how chance ye do not imprison the book for saying so?”

Because of Fox’s stand, people in Great Britain and the U.S. no longer have to swear on the Bible in court. They can simply affirm to tell the truth.[2]

However, Christ was not forbidding all oath taking. Again, the OT encouraged taking oaths. In Genesis 22:16-18, God swore to fulfill his call on Abraham’s life and offspring. In fact, when Jesus was on trial and put to an oath by the high priest to say if he was the Son of God, Jesus affirmed. Matthew 26:63-64 says:

…The high priest said to him, “I charge you under oath by the living God: Tell us if you are the Messiah, the Son of God.” “You have said so,” Jesus replied. “But I say to all of you: From now on you will see the Son of Man sitting at the right hand of the Mighty One and coming on the clouds of heaven.”

In addition, Paul took oaths before God several times in his epistles: In 2 Corinthians 1:23, he says, “I call God as my witness—and I stake my life on it—that it was in order to spare you that I did not return to Corinth.” In Galatians 1:20, he says, “I assure you before God that what I am writing you is no lie.”

Therefore, it doesn’t seem that Christ is giving an absolute prohibition to oaths. He is condemning frivolous oaths and evasive oaths, which only increased dishonesty instead of decreasing it.

As a summary, what deductions about oaths should we take from this? Kent Hughes summarized it this way:

Oath-taking is permitted, but it is not encouraged. In civil life oath-taking, as in the courtroom, is permitted, and when one does so, he does not sin against Christ’s teaching. Also, on rare occasions it may be necessary, as it was for Paul. However, oaths are not to be a normal part of our everyday conversation. In normal relations oaths should never fall from our lips. Kingdom men and women do not need such devices. Their commitment to truthfulness should be evident to all.[3]

If we are going to practice the radical truthfulness of the kingdom, we must reject all dishonest practices: lying, stealing, cheating, and the abuse of oaths.

Application Question: In what ways have you seen and experienced a culture of dishonesty at school, at work, in the government, and even at home? Why is it hard to maintain a moral compass in this dishonest culture?

To Practice Radical Truthfulness, We Must Recognize God as Sovereign

But I tell you, do not swear an oath at all: either by heaven, for it is God’s throne; or by the 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.

Matthew 5:34-36

Again, the Jews tried to evade God’s judgment and deceive others by removing his name from oaths. They thought if they substituted heaven, earth, Jerusalem, or their head for God’s name, then they were free from God’s judgment. However, Christ reminded them that even though they did not mention God’s name, God would still hold them accountable, since he is the sovereign judge over all. If they swore by their mother or father, he was their creator. If they swore by their life, God was over that as well.

This is also important for us to realize. We tend to fall into the same type of dualism. If we are in church, then that is a holy place where we shouldn’t lie or curse. However, if we are at a meal with friends, our conversations are no longer as refined. That was the type of thought that led the Rabbis into hypocrisy. To them certain places or things invoked God’s judgment and others did not. Consider Christ’s rebuke of the Pharisees in Matthew 23:16-22:

“Woe to you, blind guides! You say, ‘If anyone swears by the temple, it means nothing; but anyone who swears by the gold of the temple is bound by that oath.’ You blind fools! Which is greater: the gold, or the temple that makes the gold sacred? You also say, ‘If anyone swears by the altar, it means nothing; but anyone who swears by the gift on the altar is bound by that oath.’ You blind men! Which is greater: the gift, or the altar that makes the gift sacred? Therefore, anyone who swears by the altar swears by it and by everything on it. And anyone who swears by the temple swears by it and by the one who dwells in it. And anyone who swears by heaven swears by God’s throne and by the one who sits on it.

We must therefore recognize God as sovereign over all, if we are going to practice radical righteousness. He is everywhere and hears everything, and we will be judged not only for breaking our oaths, but also for every word. Matthew 12:36-37 says,

But I tell you that everyone will have to give account on the day of judgment for every empty word they have spoken. For by your words you will be acquitted, and by your words you will be condemned.”

Revelation 22:15 describes those who are shut out of the kingdom of heaven as “everyone who loves and practices falsehood.” Our words will be judged; they will prove whether we are truly born again or not.

If we are going to practice radical truthfulness, we must recognize God as sovereign. He is everywhere, he hears all, and will judge all. Therefore, truth is important in every situation, not just some situations. Hebrews 4:13 says, “Nothing in all creation is hidden from God’s sight. Everything is uncovered and laid bare before the eyes of him to whom we must give account.”

Application Question: What are your thoughts about the fact that God will judge every one of our words? How should that affect our conversations?

To Practice Radical Truthfulness, We Must Guard Ourselves from the Evil One by Only Speaking the Truth

All you need to say is simply ‘Yes’ or ‘No; anything beyond this comes from the evil one.

Matthew 5:37

Interpretation Question: What was Christ challenging believers to do when he said, “All you need to say is simply ‘Yes’ or ‘No’”?

As a general principle, people use oaths in regular conversations because their integrity is in doubt. Christ says that the members of his kingdom should not have to resort to oath taking. We are called to simply say, “Yes” or “No.”

The word “say” is from the Greek word “logos” which simply means “word.”[4] This emphasizes that not only should our oaths be truthful but our regular daily conversations. We should avoid exaggerations which are shared to display ourselves in a more favorable light. We should avoid half-truths which are often given to avoid consequences. Ours words at all times must be truthful.

Interpretation Question: What did Christ mean by anything less is from the evil one?

Satan is a liar and the father of lies (John 8:44). When we practice dishonesty, we not only model the devil but open the door for him to use and speak through us. In the same way, Satan spoke through Peter in order to try to convince Jesus to not go to the cross (Matt 16:23), we are no less vulnerable to the enemy’s tactics. When we accept lies and then begin to speak them, we allow Satan to use our voice box to deceive, discourage, and destroy. We must be aware of this reality.

In Ephesians 6:14, Paul said that we protect ourselves from Satan’s attacks by putting on the belt of truth. We must know God’s Word, if we are going to stand against the evil one and his deceptions. We must not only know it, but we must constantly speak it.

In Joshua 1, when God commissioned Joshua to lead Israel, God told him to meditate on God’s Word day and night and to never let it depart from his lips (v. 8). Joshua was to continually talk about the Word of God. He was to teach and encourage others with it. If he did this, he would be successful in fulfilling God’s call. No doubt, this promise is for us as well. We must know God’s Truth and speak it to ourselves and others. By doing this, we leave no room for the devil in our lives. If we are going to live the radical integrity of the kingdom, we must always speak the truth, including God’s Word.

Application Question: In what ways does the enemy try to speak through you, whether to yourself or others? How can we recognize his lies and have victory over them?

Conclusion

How can we practice radical truthfulness in a world of deception?

To Practice Radical Truthfulness, We Must Reject Deceptive Practices
To Practice Radical Truthfulness, We Must Recognize God as Sovereign
To Practice Radical Truthfulness, We Must Guard Ourselves from the Evil One by Only Speaking the Truth