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James 5:12
James 5:12
“Let your yes be yes; and your no, be no; lest you fall into condemnation.” You’ll find those words in James 5:12 and you know they sound a good deal like Jesus said in the Sermon on the Mount. He said “Let your yes be yes and your no be no.” If you have to use a lot of words to get people to believe you there’s something wrong with your character. “But above all things, my brethren, swear not, neither by heaven, neither by the earth, neither by any other oath: but let your yes be yes, and your no be no, lest you fall into condemnation.” James 5:12.
In other words; words are very important in our lives. We say talk is cheap, but it’s not cheap. Words are very important. A judge speaks words and somebody goes off to prison. A doctor speaks words, and somebody goes off to surgery. A police man speaks some words and you pay a fine. Words are important, words are powerful. The strength of our words is not in the quantity of the words but in the quality of our character. There are some people who don’t say a great deal, they’re swift to hear and slow to speak. But when they speak, people listen. I have the privilege of sitting on several boards in Christian ministry and I’ve noticed that in some of these boards that there are some board members who don’t say a great deal, but I want you to know that when they speak we all listen.
This is what James is saying; don’t depend on the quantity of your words. If you have to be verbose to get your point across there’s something wrong. It’s your character that counts. And be very careful that when you speak people believe! You say “yes” you mean it, you say “no” you mean it; because if we are hypocrites then our words are going to get us into trouble.
I don’t think James is talking here about being under oath in court; there’s some people who take it that way and that’s perfectly alright. What he’s saying is this: in your everyday life you don’t have to swear or take an oath. You don’t have to use extra words to get people to believe you, if you do your in trouble. Build a life of character, build quality into your life and there will be quality in the words that you speak.
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By Back to the BibleJames 5:12
“Let your yes be yes; and your no, be no; lest you fall into condemnation.” You’ll find those words in James 5:12 and you know they sound a good deal like Jesus said in the Sermon on the Mount. He said “Let your yes be yes and your no be no.” If you have to use a lot of words to get people to believe you there’s something wrong with your character. “But above all things, my brethren, swear not, neither by heaven, neither by the earth, neither by any other oath: but let your yes be yes, and your no be no, lest you fall into condemnation.” James 5:12.
In other words; words are very important in our lives. We say talk is cheap, but it’s not cheap. Words are very important. A judge speaks words and somebody goes off to prison. A doctor speaks words, and somebody goes off to surgery. A police man speaks some words and you pay a fine. Words are important, words are powerful. The strength of our words is not in the quantity of the words but in the quality of our character. There are some people who don’t say a great deal, they’re swift to hear and slow to speak. But when they speak, people listen. I have the privilege of sitting on several boards in Christian ministry and I’ve noticed that in some of these boards that there are some board members who don’t say a great deal, but I want you to know that when they speak we all listen.
This is what James is saying; don’t depend on the quantity of your words. If you have to be verbose to get your point across there’s something wrong. It’s your character that counts. And be very careful that when you speak people believe! You say “yes” you mean it, you say “no” you mean it; because if we are hypocrites then our words are going to get us into trouble.
I don’t think James is talking here about being under oath in court; there’s some people who take it that way and that’s perfectly alright. What he’s saying is this: in your everyday life you don’t have to swear or take an oath. You don’t have to use extra words to get people to believe you, if you do your in trouble. Build a life of character, build quality into your life and there will be quality in the words that you speak.