“Again you have heard that it was said to those of old, ‘You shall not swear falsely, but shall perform your oaths to the Lord.’ But I say to you, do not swear at all: neither by heaven, for it is God’s throne; nor by the earth, for it is His footstool; nor by Jerusalem, for it is the city of the great King. 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.
Continuing on with a look at Jesus' Sermon on the Mount, I want to take a closer look at oath taking and the implications it might have for Christians in the world today. Are we for example, forbidden from swearing on a Bible in court?
Let us first look at the history Jesus is talking about here. In Exodus 20:7 we find this verse: You shall not take the name of the Lord your God in vain, for the Lord will not hold him guiltless who takes His name in vain. So what does it mean to take the Lord's name in vain? And what does that have to do with swearing an oath? The word for "vain" in Hebrew is shav' and it means emptiness, vanity, falsehood, lying or worthlessness (of conduct). So "taking the Lord's name in vain" was to use it in a false, empty way. Many have taken this to mean we shouldn't curse using God's name and so we shouldn't, because it is using God's name in a profane way. Which we find in Leviticus 19:12 and is also something we should not do. And you shall not swear by My name falsely, nor shall you profane the name of your God: I am the Lord. So we have two verses that warn us about using the Lord's name in a false or profane manner (in vain). How does this relate to what Jesus was talking about in regards to oath taking? Deuteronomy 23:21 gives us an idea: When you make a vow to the Lord your God, you shall not delay to pay it; for the Lord your God will surely require it of you, and it would be sin to you. The word "vow" comes from the Hebrew word neder and means to promise or swear to do something. In this case making a vow to God and not following through is considered a sin. Each of these verses shows us that using God's name when taking an oath, as a way to show everyone your statements are true is essentially using it in a false, empty and profane way. In Old Testament times oaths taken in the name of the Lord were looked upon as binding, and if you didn't follow through with that oath, or you were never meaning to follow through, it was strongly condemned by Jewish Law. However, by the time Jesus came on the scene, the Jews had developed an elaborate system of oath-taking, adding to what the Lord had commanded, which often formed the basis of actual lying. In other words, there were stages of truth and thus also of falsehood within the system of taking oaths. Jesus alluded to this in Matthew 23:16-22. According to Jesus, all such oath-taking was unnecessary if one were in the habit of just telling the truth. It's so simple! Tell the truth and you do not need to take an oath. Hence his command do not swear at all. Jesus said, "Do not swear at all: neither by heaven, for it is God’s throne; nor by the earth, for it is His footstool; nor by Jerusalem, for it is the city of the great King. Nor shall you swear by your head, because you cannot make one hair white or black." Again, the Lord is driving home the point that no one should use God's name in vain this way, because He is Holy and the creator of everyone and everything and so should be respected - not used to extract the truth out of someone or extract a promise from someone. Instead, we are to let our yes, be yes and our no, be no. Why? Because as Jesus said, "Whatever is more than these is from the evil one." This is why Christians will not and should not swear on a Bible in a courtroom or swear using God's name in any way at all. Jesus is telling his disciples to speak the truth in such a way that their “yes” means yes and their “no” means no. To make an oath or vow that is binding and using God's name to cement that oath is, as Jesus says, "from the evil one."
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Do not think that I came to destroy the Law or the Prophets. I did not come to destroy but to fulfill. For assuredly, I say to you, till heaven and earth pass away, one jot or one tittle will by no means pass from the law till all is fulfilled. Whoever therefore breaks one of the least of these commandments, and teaches men so, shall be called least in the kingdom of heaven; but whoever does and teaches them, he shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven. For I say to you, that unless your righteousness exceeds the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees, you will by no means enter the kingdom of heaven.
In Jesus' Sermon on the Mount He touches on many subjects that were centered on the Laws God had given for the Jewish people to follow. Keep in mind that He is speaking to those Jews (and perhaps some curious Gentiles) who had become His disciples. Try to imagine what it was like for them to be drawn to this unassuming man from Galilee. Yes, it was clear He was a Jew, for many called Him Rabbi (or teacher). He taught in the Temple and He performed miracles that were so spectacular they were beginning to think He was the Messiah. It had been over 400 years since they had heard or seen anyone like this man. And He said the most unusual things.
Jesus said He did not come to destroy the Law or the Prophets, but to fulfill them. He was making it clear to His disciples that they were to continue to obey the Laws God created for them. He was quite emphatic about this, going so far as to say, that till heaven and earth pass away, "not one jot or one tittle" would by no means pass from the law until all was fulfilled. FYI - a jot is the smallest Hebrew letter and a tittle was used to denote the small stroke distinguishing one Hebrew letter from another. So the Law was to be obeyed, yet Jesus said He fulfilled the Law and the Prophets. What did He mean by that? The Rabbis or teachers of the Law in Jesus' day held the Torah (Law) in high regard. They revered it much like Christians revere the Bible today, but they lacked one thing. While professing the most scrupulous reverence to the Law, they violated its spirit. They took everything quite literally and never took the time to see why God gave the laws or why they should be obeyed in the first place. Laws about sexual immorality for example, that were disobeyed, almost always ended up with someone getting stoned. The consequences were severe in order to make a point - God did not want His people involved in such things. They were called to be a HOLY people, an example to the world on how God expects His children to live. Therefore, anyone disobeying the Law knew they were taking a huge risk by violating it. So most people would not cross that line. But, as Jesus showed us when the woman caught in adultery was brought to Him by the scribes and Pharisees (John 8:2-12), everyone sins and is in need of forgiveness. The Pharisees were quick to judge and wanted to see her stoned. Their lust for blood was in fact a sin. They were not seeking to obey the Law because they wanted to show God how obedient they were. They were seeking to show everyone else how righteous (or self-righteous in this case) they were and Jesus knew it, because He knew what was really in their hearts. So the Law shows us how to live lives that honour God and it clearly shows us when we have crossed the line and sinned against Him. By saying He came to fulfill the Laws Jesus did not mean they were no longer to be obeyed. On the contrary, He made it very clear that until heaven and earth passed away the Law would stand firm. However, Jesus said in John 5:39: "You search the Scriptures because you think that in them you have eternal life; it is these that testify about Me." In other words, Jesus fulfilled the Law. He fulfilled all the prophecies written about a coming Messiah. He fulfilled the required sacrifices to make atonement for mankind. He alone fulfilled the consequences of the Laws because He took our punishment upon Himself on the cross. He was the only one who was able to keep the Laws and not sin because He was pure of heart. A man without sin (2 Corinthians 5;21). God in the flesh (John 1:1; 14). Jesus told those listening to Him, "That unless your righteousness exceeds the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees, you will by no means enter the kingdom of heaven." In other words, while the Lord is still adamant that the Law is to be obeyed, it will not save you. That is why He said He was the fulfillment of the Law. It is also why He said, "No one comes to the Father, except through Me" (John 14:6). Jesus said that anyone who teaches something contrary to the Law will be called the least in the kingdom of heaven. The Law is there for a reason - to keep people from sinning against God. They are moral laws. The laws we live by in society - do not murder or steal for example, come from the Torah. The consequences today are prison and in some States - even death. Civil Laws are there to prevent anarchy in society. Rules of the road for example, must be obeyed or someone could die. We all have laws to obey that are in place for our good. God's Laws are there for our moral good, and so that we know what it means to be holy. There are 613 commandments to be obeyed in the Torah. No one in all the world has been able to keep them without sinning and that is the point. Jesus fulfilled them all! So, are the Laws to be obeyed? Yes. Have they been fulfilled in Jesus? Yes. Does that mean they no longer exist? No. They are still there for our benefit, to teach us right from wrong that we may live lives that honour God and glorify Him. We will learn more about them in the weeks ahead as we continue to look at The Sermon on the Mount.
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