From the Inside Out - Can People Trust My Word?

Bible Passage: Matthew 5:33–37 Series: From the Inside Out

Matthew 5:33–37 CSB

“Again, you have heard that it was said to our ancestors, You must not break your oath, but you must keep your oaths to the Lord. But I tell you, don’t take an oath at all: either by heaven, because it is God’s throne; or by the earth, because it is his footstool; or by Jerusalem, because it is the city of the great King. Do not swear by your head, because you cannot make a single hair white or black. But let your ‘yes’ mean ‘yes,’ and your ‘no’ mean ‘no.’ Anything more than this is from the evil one.

Main Point

Jesus changes our hearts so that our words can be trusted.

Main Question

Can people believe what I say without me having to say, “I promise”?

Introduction: “I Swear I’m Telling the Truth”

Read Matthew 5:33–37.

33 “Again, you have heard that it was said to our ancestors, You must not break your oath, but you must keep your oaths to the Lord., 34 But I tell you, don’t take an oath at all: either by heaven, because it is God’s throne; 35 or by the earth, because it is his footstool; or by Jerusalem, because it is the city of the great King. 36 Do not swear by your head, because you cannot make a single hair white or black. 37 But let your ‘yes’ mean ‘yes,’ and your ‘no’ mean ‘no.’ Anything more than this is from the evil one.

Jesus is calling out our past traditions of oath-taking and focuses attention back on people’s hearts.

Jesus says: “Let your ‘yes’ mean ‘yes,’ and your ‘no’ mean ‘no.’”

Key Point:

If our hearts and intentions are pure, our yes should mean yes and our no should mean no.

Ask:

How often do you hear people say, “I swear”?

Why do people say, “I promise” or “I’m being serious”?

Why do people feel like they have to keep convincing us that they are telling the truth?

Does constantly saying, “I promise,” make our regular words seem less valuable?

Saying, “I swear,” or “I promise,” is not necessarily the main issue. The question is why our ordinary word is not enough.

Jesus say we do not need dramatic promises. Our words should be honest enough.

Jesus never said: “I promise I will go to the cross and die for your sins.....”

His life and His actions demonstrated that He would do what He said.

Cross-References

“Let your ‘yes’ mean ‘yes,’ and your ‘no’ mean ‘no.’”

James 5:12 “Above all, my brothers and sisters, do not swear, either by heaven or by earth or with any other oath. But let your “yes” mean “yes,” and your “no” mean “no,” so that you won’t fall under judgment.”

“For the mouth speaks from the overflow of the heart.”

Matthew 12:34 “Brood of vipers! How can you speak good things when you are evil? For the mouth speaks from the overflow of the heart.”

Point 1: Don’t Look for Loopholes

Matthew 5:33–36 ““Again, you have heard that it was said to our ancestors, You must not break your oath, but you must keep your oaths to the Lord. But I tell you, don’t take an oath at all: either by heaven, because it is God’s throne; or by the earth, because it is his footstool; or by Jerusalem, because it is the city of the great King. Do not swear by your head, because you cannot make a single hair white or black.”

People had developed different kinds of oaths. They treated some promises as more serious than others.

Some people believed an oath was more binding if it directly mentioned God, while an oath made by heaven, earth, Jerusalem, the temple, or something else might be treated as less serious.

Their thinking was:

“If I did not swear directly to God, maybe I do not really have to keep my word.”

Use the old fingers-crossed-behind-your-back example:

“I promised, but my fingers were crossed, so I did not really mean it.”

Jesus says heaven, earth, Jerusalem, and even our lives belong to God.

There is no way to leave God out of our words.

God created us. As believers, we have been redeemed by Christ, and the Holy Spirit lives within us.

When we intentionally go against our word, we are acting against what God is doing within us.

Key Point

A half-truth meant to deceive is still not the Truth, it’s a lie.

If it is only half of the truth, it is not the whole truth.

Give Examples:

Leaving out part of the story to get our way

Blaming somebody else

Saying something technically true but intentionally misleading

Deleting messages to hide what really happened

Saying, “I was joking,” after saying something hurtful

Explaining our way out of trouble instead of admitting the truth

Story or Illustration

Use the example of asking permission to go to a friend’s house.

You tell your parents that an adult will be on the property, but you delete or leave out the part explaining that the adult will not actually be supervising you.

Technically, the adult may be somewhere on the property, but you left out part of the story because you knew the whole truth could change your parents’ answer.

Deleting messages or leaving out details to create a false impression is still dishonest.

Application Question

Have you ever tried to explain your way out of trouble instead of simply admitting the truth?

Sometimes the best response is:

“You know what? You are right. I did that. I was wrong, and I am sorry.”

Cross-References

Jesus exposes religious leaders who created technical loopholes concerning which oaths were binding.

Matthew 23:16–22 ““Woe to you, blind guides, who say, ‘Whoever takes an oath by the temple, it means nothing. But whoever takes an oath by the gold of the temple is bound by his oath.’ Blind fools! For which is greater, the gold or the temple that sanctified the gold? Also, ‘Whoever takes an oath by the altar, it means nothing; but whoever takes an oath by the gift that is on it is bound by his oath.’ Blind people! For which is greater, the gift or the altar that sanctifies the gift? Therefore, the one who takes an oath by the altar takes an oath by it and by everything on it. The one who takes an oath by the temple takes an oath by it and by him who dwells in it. And the one who takes an oath by heaven takes an oath by God’s throne and by him who sits on it.”

Whoever conceals sin does not prosper, but the one who confesses and renounces it finds mercy.

Proverbs 28:13 “The one who conceals his sins will not prosper, but whoever confesses and renounces them will find mercy.”

Point 2: Say What You Mean

Matthew 5:37a

Jesus says: “Let your ‘yes’ mean ‘yes,’ and your ‘no’ mean ‘no.’”

Jesus is calling His followers to simply be honest.

Key Point:

Stop with the back and forth and say what you mean.

When you say yes, mean yes.

When you say no, mean no.

Do not make promises you do not intend to keep.

Do not tell people what they want to hear just to avoid disappointing them.

Friend Invitation Illustration

A friend invites you to come to their house.

Then you say: “Yeah, I would love to come. I just need to ask my parents.”

But you never ask your parents because you already have something else you would rather do.

You did not want to make your friend feel bad, so you gave them a hopeful yes that you did not really mean.

What you do not know is that your friend may have:

Gone to the store

Bought food

Made plans

Become excited about you coming

Then you cancel.

Key Point:

Sometimes an honest no is kinder than a dishonest yes.

Key Point:

Your words should match your actions.

If you say you will do something, do it.

If you made a mistake, admit it.

If you do not know something, do not pretend. Say:

“I don’t know, but I will try to find out.”

Do not tell different versions of the same story to different people.

Personal Illustration

Use the example from home:

“Yes, I’ll take out the trash.”

Sometimes what we really mean is:

“I will take it out when I feel like doing it.”

But when we say yes, our actions should follow our words.

Acknowledge:

“I am the first to admit that I am guilty of this too.”

Trusted Person Illustration

We all know someone whose word can always be trusted.

They are:

Solid

Stable

Steady

Dependable

When they say they will do something, we believe them.

We also know people whose promises mean very little because their actions rarely match their words.

Application Question

When people hear you say, “I’ll do it,” do they believe you?

Are you someone people can trust, or have your past actions taught them not to believe your word?

Cross-References

Matthew 21:28–31 ““What do you think? A man had two sons. He went to the first and said, ‘My son, go work in the vineyard today.’ “He answered, ‘I don’t want to,’ but later he changed his mind and went. Then the man went to the other and said the same thing. ‘I will, sir,’ he answered, but he didn’t go. Which of the two did his father’s will?” They said, “The first.” Jesus said to them, “Truly I tell you, tax collectors and prostitutes are entering the kingdom of God before you.”

One son said yes but did not obey, while the other initially said no but later followed through.

1 John 3:18 “Little children, let us not love in word or speech, but in action and in truth.”

“Let us not love in word or speech, but in action and in truth.”

Point 3: Be the Same Person Everywhere

Matthew 5:37b

Jesus says: “Anything more than this is from the evil one.”

Key Point:

Dishonesty does not reflect Jesus. Truthfulness reflects the character of God.

Integrity means being the same person:

Inside church and outside church

At school and at home

Around friends and around family

In the group chat and face-to-face

In public and in private

When nobody is watching

Key Point

Integrity is who you are when no one is looking.

Following Jesus does not mean pretending that we never mess up.

Integrity does not mean that we never mess up. Integrity means that we admit it when we do.

A person growing in integrity can say:

“I was wrong.”

“That was my fault.”

“I lied about that.”

“I need to apologize.”

“I need to make this right.”

Application Question

Are you the same person in your private life that you are in public?

The honest answer is that none of us does this perfectly.

We are sinful, and we all have things we are tempted to hide.

But what would life look like if we stopped hiding, gave those things to God, and allowed Him to make us more consistent?

Cross-References

“Search me, God, and know my heart… See if there is any offensive way in me.”

Psalm 139:23–24 “Search me, God, and know my heart; test me and know my concerns. See if there is any offensive way in me; lead me in the everlasting way.”

When we confess our sins, God is faithful and righteous to forgive and cleanse us.

1 John 1:9 “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.”

Conclusion: Jesus Changes the Heart Our Words Come From

So lets go back to the original question:

Can people trust your word without you having to say, “I promise”?

Because Jesus is not just trying to change the words that come out of our mouths.

He wants to change the heart those words come from.

Jesus is doesn;t want to just trying and change how we communicate.

He is changing the heart from which we communicate.

When Jesus changes our hearts, our words become:

More truthful

More gracious

More loving

More merciful

More dependable

More life-giving

When we give God our hearts, our mouths, minds, eyes, and actions begin to follow Him.

2 Corinthians 10:5 “and every proud thing that is raised up against the knowledge of God, and we take every thought captive to obey Christ.” tells us to:

Paul Say to “Take every thought captive to obey Christ.”

When our thoughts are brought under Christ’s authority, our thoughts affect our words and our words affect our actions.

That is what Jesus is doing throughout the Sermon on the Mount.

He is transforming us from the inside out.

Cross-References

Take every thought captive to obey Christ.

2 Corinthians 10:5 “and every proud thing that is raised up against the knowledge of God, and we take every thought captive to obey Christ.”

God gives His people a new heart and places His Spirit within them.

Ezekiel 36:26–27 “I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you; I will remove your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh. I will place my Spirit within you and cause you to follow my statutes and carefully observe my ordinances.”

This Week’s Challenges

1. Tell the Whole Truth

Catch yourself when you leave something out in order to mislead someone.

2. Keep Your Word

When you say you are going to do something, do it.

3. Admit When You Are Wrong

Do not hide, blame, downgrade, or make excuses. Admit it and make it right.

So going back to our Main Point at the begining.

Jesus changes our hearts so that our words can be trusted.

Final Question

Do my words make it easier or harder for people to see Jesus in me?

Jesus says:

“Let your ‘yes’ mean ‘yes,’ and your ‘no’ mean ‘no.’”

Let our yeses be yes and our nos be no this week and forever.

To God be the glory. Amen.