If a man vow a vow unto the Lord, or swear an oath to bind his soul with a bond; he shall not break his word, he shall do according to all that proceedeth out of his mouth. Numbers 30:2
The lifting of many of the Covid restrictions of the past couple of years means many of us will be attending more weddings this year. Almost always a happy occasion, weddings contain mostly joyful elements, but there is one aspect of a marriage ceremony that is – or should be – solemn: the vows! If we look back on our own wedding ceremony (for those of us who are married), we can recall those words we happily recited with the very best of intentions. And we have often recalled our own vows when we have heard them repeated at other weddings since. The solemnity of those vows is obviously lost on many these days as every divorce that is issued is the direct result of one or both of the marriage partners breaking the vows they made. That is wrong, according to our text today.
For whatever reason a marriage breaks up, whether infidelity, cruelty, abandonment, or something else, there is proof that the solemn words of the vows have come to have little meaning. And it’s not just in the case of marriage either, there are many ways in which solemn words uttered seem to carry little actual weight on the part of those who utter them. I have sat in many a courtroom where conflicting evidence is given under oath. I recall a murder trial in which each of the two accused men told how the other one had carried out the vile deed. Both of those men recited their conflicting stories, one of which had to be false, after they had each sworn – hand on Bible – to tell the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth. For good reason, Canada’s laws exact stiff penalties on those who commit the crime of perjury by lying under oath. As our text declares, those who make a vow or swear an oath should not break their word. But how many of us do?
Actually, not many of us make formal vows or swear formal oaths very often, so we might feel excused from the rigid requirement to always keep our word. That might work for some of those who make no claim to recognizing Jesus Christ as Lord. But if He is our Lord, we are bound to obey Him. His Word insists on honesty in everything, as we read in Ephesians 4:28: ‘Wherefore putting away lying, speak every man truth with his neighbour: for we are members one of another’. Jesus Himself in His ministry always told the truth, in fact, He declared Himself to be the truth (John 4:6). His followers should seek to be like Him.
Whether it be in small daily things, or in major issues, every Christian’s word ought to be as good as that of our God, Who cannot lie nor ever break a promise. – Jim MacIntosh