In Matthew 5:33-37, Jesus continues His “You have heard it said…But I say to you” mini-series. In this passage, Jesus addresses the issue of honesty. He says, “You have heard it said…‘You shall not swear falsely…’ But I say to you, Do not take an oath at all…Let what you say be simply ‘Yes’ or ‘No’; anything more than this comes from evil.”
Sometimes, people think swearing an oath is more meaningful than just giving our word. But, if a person is willing to lie without an oath, they are probably willing to lie when they give an oath. Even if some will be honest so long as an oath is involved, Jesus teaches that His disciples shouldn’t need such motivation to be honest. We should always be truthful. We should mean what we say and keep our word. The absence of an oath isn’t an excuse to lie or backtrack on our commitments. Christians should be honest people whose words can be trusted.