ICS Daily Devotions
Don’t Say More Than What You Can Deliver
Matthew 5:36-37(NKJV) Nor shall you swear by your head, because you cannot make one hair white or black. But let your ‘Yes’ be ‘Yes,’ and your ‘No,’ ‘No.’ For whatever is more than these is from the evil one.
Do you know that our ability to honour our words is priceless?
In the old days, people swore by a divine being or a sacred object to convey the fact that what they were about to say was truthful and should be taken seriously, but in this Scripture, Jesus said it wasn’t necessary to swear by anything when speaking. Instead, someone’s character and their ability to keep to their word should suffice whether it was a “Yes” or a “No”, thus making the oath unnecessary.
Jesus is the Word that became flesh and walked among us. The Word of Jesus represents Him. He means what He says and says what He means. Likewise, we need to know that our word represents us, and thus it is important for us to honour our words.
Have you ever met or conversed with someone who promised you something but never delivered? After a few encounters or conversations with them, you will quickly become sceptical of them because they do not mean what they say. The last thing we want to be known for is not being able to deliver what we said!
Do you know that our children have remarkably simple faith towards God and His Word? Because they trust the words of adults, especially their parents’, we should be careful not to play down the effects of any broken promises on our children when we fail to honour our words. They will feel disappointed, hurt, a sense of abandonment, and a loss of confidence.
When Jesus said that whatever is more than a simple “Yes” and “No” is from the evil one, He is saying, “Don’t say more than what we can deliver”. Sometimes, when we are at business meetings, instead of just saying “Yes” or “No”, we will attempt to cover up or craft words that are non-committal in order to safeguard our personal or company’s interests. Know, however, that if there is anything to add, it should simply be to clarify and substantiate the “Yes” or the “No”!
It is very much dependent on us as to whether people will take our words seriously. Therefore, the best practice is to honour our words so that we will develop trust from the people we work and live with. It is simply priceless when people can take our word for it and see us as men or women of character. Therefore, let your “Yes” be “Yes” and “No” be “No” without adding anything to it.
Sermon Series: It Is More Precious Than Gold (devotional 1)
