SUNDAY SERMON - Nephilim, Giants, & Oath-Taking

The concern of these verses is both the 3rd Commandment and the 9th Commandment. The 9th Commandment is in view regarding truthfulness that humans find so difficult to uphold. The tongue is guilty of false witness, lying, gossip, slander, boasting, flattery, cursing, and more. Oaths, promises, and contracts all have the same goal - to bind the consciences of men to the keeping of their word, especially when it is tempting not to. The 3rd Commandment comes into play because in lawful oath-taking the name of God is invoked, and therefore, it must not be invoked in vain. In Jesus’ day, rabbis concocted a system that defeated the purpose of oaths. They taught that oaths might or might not be binding, depending on how one swore: If one swore by Jerusalem it was not binding, but if one swore toward Jerusalem, it was. If one swore by the temple, it was not binding, but if one swore by the temple’s gold, it was. If one swore by the altar of sacrifice, it was not binding, if one swore by the gift on the altar, it was. This illustrates the way in which certain teachers manipulated God’s Word in 1st Century Israel. When they read a challenging law, they reduced it to something manageable. When they heard, “Love your neighbor as yourself,” they redefined “neighbor” so that not everyone counted as one. They refrained from adultery but claimed a right to divorce freely, then take another woman. When they did something similar with oaths, Jesus opposed them.