Verse of the day: 1 Samuel 1:22, But Hannah did not go up, for she said to her husband, “Not until the child is weaned; then I will take him, that he may appear before the LORD and remain there forever.”
How careful are we with the promises we make to God or anyone else for that matter? Hannah vowed that if God would give her a son, she would dedicate him to the Lord, for His purpose, forever. In verse 11 it says, concerning her vow, “Then she made a vow and said, ‘O LORD of hosts, if You will indeed look on the affliction of Your maidservant and remember me, and not forget Your maidservant, but will give Your maidservant a male child, then I will give him to the LORD all the days of his life, and no razor shall come upon his head.’” This was not a vow that was made publicly, but one that was between Hannah and God. When God answered her prayer and gave her a son, she could have very easily retracted her promise and kept Samuel at home to be raised by her. Imagine not being able to build a family because a spouse is barren, and making such a promise, then suddenly having a child. How many of us could actually part with that child, especially not knowing if it would be possible to give birth to another? With that said, how often have we made promises to God about what we would give Him if He did “this or that” for us, then back out of our vow or promise? This often happens when we promise to give more tithe or offerings, or promise to increase our giving to missions. Maybe a need comes up and we promise to give something, whether material or time, then as time passes we renege on our promise because something else comes up in our lives that we decide to give greater priority. Where does that leave us in our relationship with the Lord? Sadly, we do not often think of that. There is a simple solution to not finding ourselves in this position. First, we can avoid it by not making the promise to begin with, and secondly, if we do, fulfill it right away before something else gets in the way. As Christians, we should have the reputation of being people of our word. There should not be any need for us to make vows, but to simply say, “Yes I will do it or give it,” or say, “No, I cannot or will not do this or that.” It should be that simple and straightforward. Jesus put if plainly in Matthew 5:33-37, “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.’ 34 But I say to you, do not swear at all: neither by heaven, for it is God’s throne; 35 nor by the earth, for it is His footstool; nor by Jerusalem, for it is the city of the great King. 36 Nor shall you swear by your head, because you cannot make one hair white or black. 37 But let your ‘Yes’ be ‘Yes,’ and your ‘No,’ ‘No.’ For whatever is more than these is from the evil one.” Although we live in an age of grace, God has not changed. We know He will forgive us when we stumble in sin, repent and confess it. However, why would we venture to do that which we already know is not pleasing to the Lord. In Numbers 30:1-2, God’s Word says, “Then Moses spoke to the heads of the tribes concerning the children of Israel, saying, ‘This is the thing which the LORD has commanded: 2 If a man makes a vow to the LORD, or swears an oath to bind himself by some agreement, he shall not break his word; he shall do according to all that proceeds out of his mouth.’” Let us be careful not to bring a blemish to our testimony as ambassadors of Jesus Christ, by being careful about the promises we make. In a world where a person’s word is no longer held in great esteem, let us be the ones who still value our word and a good name. Let us do all we can to honor God with our words, by keeping our promises and avoiding vows. Let our words be true for the sake of honoring God in our lives, especially when our words are promises made to God in our service to Him and those He calls us to serve.
Today, God extends an invitation to you to accept His gift of salvation (Rom 6:23). Will you accept it? Anyone who calls on Jesus, by faith, in repentance, confessing your sins, will receive eternal life. Do not put off calling on Him, and receive Him and His gift of salvation today (Rom 10:13).
No comments:
Post a Comment