Truth in Speech

This week we will study Jesus' hard teaching concerning our speech. During His seminal Sermon on the Mount, Jesus contradicts the religious teaching of the day that one could be relieved of the responsibility to fulfill one's oaths. Instead, Jesus shows us that all of our promises ultimately appeal to God and so we cannot vow without also having accountability to Him. Instead of using grandiose language to add weight to our speech, our love of the truth should so mark us in such a way that our "yes" really means yes, and our "no" really means no. In our failures to fulfill our promises, we are drawn to worship our unchanging God, for "not one of all the good promises the Lord your God gave you has failed. Every promise has been fulfilled" (Joshua 23:14).