Have you ever been guilty of not fulfilling a promise you made? For many people, there is little to no shame when they do not keep their word. Some feel as though the promises they make are not really binding and have no consequences.

Matthew 5 details the greatest sermon ever recorded. In that sermon, Jesus challenged His hearers to raise their righteousness above that of the scribes and Pharisees, who were the spiritual leaders of that time. One of the teachings of the rabbis was that one’s word was only binding to a certain extent. The expectations of whether or not someone would keep his word were dependent on how one swore his oath. If a person swore by God, it was binding. However, if he swore by something less than God, it was not binding (Matthew 5:33-36).

Remember when we were kids? What did you do if you made a promise that wasn’t true or you weren’t sure if you would keep it? We would put our hand behind our backs and keep our fingers crossed. When it came time to keep our end of the promise, we would inform the other party that we were not responsible for fulfilling our promise because we had our fingers crossed when we made the vow. As children, this made perfect sense! As adults, we know better. Crossing our fingers is similar to the strategy used when making promises in Biblical times. They were swearing oaths, but they were not keeping their word because they had their fingers crossed, so to speak.

Notice what Jesus said, “Let what you say be simply ‘Yes’ or ‘No’; anything more than this comes from the evil one” (Matthew 5:37). Jesus wants those who follow Him to be people of their word. We should never make a promise or vow and then fail to fulfill what we said. Yet, people today lie more often than they would care to admit. A few years ago, two men interviewed thousands of people and published their findings in a book called The Day America Told the Truth. Of those surveyed, 91% said they lied on a regular basis.

Friends, followers of Jesus should not fall into the 91%. Jesus expects His followers to always tell the truth (Prov. 12:22; Eph. 4:25; Col. 3:9; Rev. 21:8). We must be people of integrity. Don’t allow yourself to be tricked into believing your words aren’t significant or that crossing your fingers means your words aren’t binding. When we say something, let our words be true. When we make a promise or vow, let us be faithful and see it through. Are you a person of your word?