Straight Talk

Author: Pastor Thomas G. Wilson
May 07, 2020

James 5:12 KJV 12 But above all things, my brethren, swear not, neither by heaven, neither by the earth, neither by any other oath: but let your yea be yea; and your nay, nay; lest ye fall into condemnation.

 

There is a truth crisis in our culture today. Many people do not even believe that there is such a thing as absolute truth but rather that truth is an individual or a situational reality. The fact that during the 90’s, the Promise Keepers movement attracted thousands of men to their rallies speaks volumes regarding the need to restore integrity among men to actually do what they had already promised their wives they would do. The admonition of James to the believers was actually a reminder of the words of Jesus in the Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 5:33-37). This warning goes far beyond the simple taking of an oath of office or swearing in on the witness stand in court and deals more specifically with truthful speech…straight talk.

 

The real issue was speaking the truth at all times. Jesus and then James the Lord’s brother after Him did not prohibit oaths altogether but both addressed the practice of oaths becoming a façade for lying. The Jewish custom of the day was that if you swore using God’s name in your oath, you had to keep your word, but if you swore by some lesser thing (Jerusalem, the altar or the Temple, etc.), you were not bound to your word. The words we speak are very important and vital to the work of God being accomplished in your life. Life cannot be compartmentalized where God is involved in some areas of life and not others. The fact is that God has promised to never leave us nor forsake us and therefore hears not only words spoken in His Name but also all our words. There is no such thing as words that do not bring God into the transaction, therefore we must put a watch on our mouths and regard all our words as sacred, remembering that each promise we make was made in the presence of Almighty God! That’s straight talk.

 

 

For further reading: Matthew 5:33-37 & 23:16-22

BACK