Something that goes unnoticed throughout the entire world is promises being made. If you have seen a lot of movies like I have, in many of those movies, the main characters, no matter what genre you are watching, always make promises.

In olden times promises were everything, and when they were broken, your honor (especially if you were a king) was ruined and no one would trust you. Today promises are broken left and right, and people are affected in negative ways, and leaders everywhere promise and then lie deliberately, constantly tricking the masses. If I were to count how many times U.S. presidents or any leader in the world promised changes for that society or country, we would see that out of all the promised changes said, almost none were fulfilled. But people still put so much trust and faith in human leaders despite them lying.

But besides how much it is taught through society as a whole, we also need to realize that Jesus taught not to make promises at all. Jesus makes it crystal clear that we as fallible creatures should not make promises that we don’t even know we can keep.

”Again, ye have heard that it hath been said by them of old time, Thou shalt not forswear thyself, but shalt perform unto the Lord thine oaths: But I say unto you, Swear not at all; neither by heaven, for it is God’s throne, nor by the earth, for it is his footstool; neither by Jerusalem, for it is the city of the great King. Neither shalt thou swear by thy head, because thou canst not make one hair white or black. But let your communication be, Yea, yea; Nay, nay: for whatsoever is more than these cometh of evil.”
(Matthew 5:33-37)

An oath in today’s vocabulary is a promise. And Jesus says to not swear to Heaven or to God’s throne or to not make promises on earth either. Imagine promising God something and later finding out when judgment comes that you did not fulfill your promise.

What do you think God would think about that? He would have expected you to be someone of their word, and because you were not someone of their word and instead a liar, he punishes you for lying. Because every idle word you speak, you will be held accountable. (Matthew 12:36) Your own mouth can bring life and death; seriously, that is what happens today, right? You have been given the power, the strength, to bring forth good words for people’s edification, peace, and encouragement.

But also lies and destructive words for people’s deaths. Promises can be destructive when broken. Let’s say you promise to pay for your daughter’s education for college when she is still in middle school; years later she performs exceptionally and is ready to go to college, only to find out that her father changes his mind or just decides not to do it because he’s too old to work now. Regardless if the reason can be understood or not, the promises and the effects of it are done, and it has a very negative effect on someone you love. The trust (in a lot of cases) is completely gone, and the person doesn’t forget the broken promise (the lie) the rest of their life, and often they are bitter because of it.

What is interesting is that it is also recorded what the effects of promises were in olden days. Herod the Tetrarch was a king in his time, and he decided to marry a woman named Herodias who was already married. John the Baptist tells him it is not lawful to do such a thing. Herodias, being upset and wanting to kill John because her royal position is on the line, realizes she can’t because the people consider John the Baptist to be a prophet.

So she persuades Herod and puts him in prison instead. Herod later would visit John and listen to him in person, and he actually enjoyed his company; he knew John was a holy man. (Mark 6:20)

Later, Herodias devises a terrible plan to secure her position with King Herod and to make sure no one interferes with her after. Herod’s birthday comes around, and he invites all his royal friends and captains of his kingdom; it becomes a big event. Then Herodias, knowing this, while the day is being celebrated, sends her daughter to King Herod, and she dances in front of him and all his guests.

It pleases him, and then after Herod makes a great promise to her and says, “Ask of me whatsoever thou wilt, and I will give it thee. And he swore unto her, Whatsoever thou shalt ask of me, I will give it thee, unto the half of my kingdom.” (Mark 6:22-23)

What a great promise, huh!? Half of his kingdom!? But continue reading…” And she went forth and said unto her mother, What shall I ask? And she said, The head of John the Baptist. And she came in straightway with haste unto the king and asked, saying, I will that thou give me by and by in a charger the head of John the Baptist.” (Mark 6:24-25)

”And the king was exceedingly sorry; yet for his oath’s sake, and for their sakes, which sat with him, he would not reject her. And immediately the king sent an executioner, and commanded his head to be brought, and he went and beheaded him in the prison and brought his head in a charger, and gave it to the damsel, and the damsel gave it to her mother.” (Mark 6:26-28)

Friends, here are the consequences of promises made. Not only did Herod do something he deeply regretted, but he was also pressured by all his captains there because he swore in front of them. It’s called social pressure, and oftentimes it produces terrible results. Instead of Herod saying no and breaking his own image and pride, he goes along with an immoral decision.

When going back to Matthew 5:33-37, Jesus lets us know that we should not make any promises at all but rather simply say yes or no instead.

How will we know if we can even live the next day to fulfill that promise? Jesus says we can’t even add life to our current lives.

“Neither shalt thou swear by thy head, because thou canst not make one hair white or black.” (Matthew 5:36)

In another part of the gospel, it is recorded that Jesus said to beware of the rising of making promises, as in the rising of Herod. “And he charged them, saying, ‘Take heed, beware of the leaven of the Pharisees, and of the leaven of Herod.” (Mark 8:15)

James, Jesus´ brother, repeats what Jesus taught as well in this verse. ”But above all things, my brethren, swear not, neither by heaven, neither by the earth, neither by any other oath: but let your yea be yea; and your nay, nay; lest ye fall into condemnation.” (James 5:12)

Even in places like the U.S. and the U.K., swearing an oath is a common requirement when having an appointment in certain cases with the judge or transitioning to citizenship in that country.

There are people throughout history who have stood up to this blatant disobedience to Jesus about promises. A notable group of people are called the Quakers. They argued that they didn’t have to make promises to communicate things, especially in court; later in time, the Quakers passed a bill that allowed people to affirm things instead of promising things or swearing under oath.

So the next time you are pressured to swear something, whether it is in court or by a friend or family member, remember Jesus said not to do it. If you do still practice promising things to others, God will hold you accountable for disobeying. The promise you made will also be looked at, and you will be judged on how you acted on that promise. Because every idle word you speak, you will be judged, and if the promise you made is an empty promise, you will be considered a liar. So my advice: don’t even try to make promises, in obedience to our LORD.

”But let your communication be, Yea, yea; Nay, nay: for whatsoever is more than these cometh of evil.” (Matthew 5:37)