Unfaithfulness

In SaLT with WaLT (small group) today, we discussed unfaithfulness. The study author, Bill Hybels, pointed out that when people are asked to make a list of the things they do not like about some people, unfaithfulness often tops that list. I said to myself that's not something I would think of right off that bat!

But Hybels went on to explain that when you say things like "I don't like how so-and-so says one thing then does another" or "it really irks me when people say 'count me in' but when the chips are down they say, 'count me out'". Then there are always those promise breakers.

One thing Katie has taught me is to never make a promise. She says promises are too easily broken. Also, making promises isn't biblical. Breaking a promise is unfaithfulness, and so is simply not doing what you say you are going to do.

Matthew 5:33-38 "Again, you have heard that it was said to the people long
ago, 'Do not break your oath, but keep the oaths you have made to the Lord.' But
I tell you, Do not swear at all: either by heaven, for it is God's throne; or by
the earth, for it is his footstool; or by Jerusalem, for it is the city of the
Great King. And do not swear by your head, for you cannot make even one hair
white or black. Simply let your 'Yes' be 'Yes,' and your 'No,' 'No'; anything
beyond this comes from the evil one.

Simply let your 'yes' by 'yes' and your 'no', 'no'. If you say you will do it, do it! It is that simple! If you can't be trusted with something as simple as that, what is it you can be trusted with? If you say "I'll help you paint your house", then you better be there to help with paintbrush in hand! If you say "Sure, I'll go with you to the movie next week", then you better be there with your friend! Oh, here's one....have you ever said "I'll pray for you"? And have you prayed for them?

If you feel a need to say "I promise I will do it", or you say "I'm not gonna lie", what does that mean about anything you have said prior to you prefacing what you now say when you "promise". Tom shared in class today that one of the people he used to work with had a habit of saying "I'm telling you the truth, the truth here" anytime he was telling a story or something, and Tom always wanted to ask him if he normally lies, since he feels he needs to emphasize that he is telling the truth this time. So, I live by Katie's idea to never promise anything. I try to do what I say I'm going to do as well.

Something else that was noted in class today when we read the Matthew verses aloud, "Simply let your 'Yes' be 'Yes' and your 'No', 'No'; anything beyond this is from the evil one.

Anything beyond that is from the evil one! He will trap you into unfaithfulness!

That was something I hadn't noticed before, and then in class today Katie verbalized the importance of the end of those verses we read. She said that when those verses are taught, the end is usually left off, and because the ending is often ignored, the teaching "let your 'yes' be 'yes'..." loses its punch.

It has always made sense that if we go beyond our "yes" by trying to validate it with "swearing to God" or "making promises", it is from the evil one. Feeling the need to validate something with a "promise" or "by swearing" actually invalidates everything else you say! That's powerful insight! But then to consider that doing that is from the evil one, that is not something to take lightly at all! It is precisely how significant faithfulness is to God, and why deceit is attributed to the evil one!

Great is Thy Faithfulness!