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1/12/12 KEEP YOUR WORD

1/12/12 KEEP YOUR WORD

Kevin Jesmer NIU UBF Thursday, January 12, 2012
Numbers 30:1-16             Key Verse: 30:2

“When a man makes a vow to the LORD or takes an oath to obligate himself by a pledge, he must not break his word but must do everything he said.”

Dear Lord, heavenly Father, I come to your at the dawn of a new day. Guide my mind and my heart and my steps to walk in the ways of Jesus Christ. I repent of my lack of trust in you for my future security. I know that you are in control of my life and family. You provided for Jenn’s schooling. You are providing for our whole family. Lord, I can see that Matt 6:33 is true. We must seek first God’s kingdom and his righteousness and all these things will be given to us as well. I pray for open doors to preach the gospel at NIU and in the DeKalb region. Please raise up servant of God who can take leadership and we can provide the resources, the preaching and the music. Grant me one word of God through this passage. I pray in Jesus’ holy name. Amen!

1. He must not break his word (1-2).

Verses 1-2, “Moses said to the heads of the tribes of Israel: “This is what the LORD commands: 2 When a man makes a vow to the LORD or takes an oath to obligate himself by a pledge, he must not break his word but must do everything he said.”

To make a promise is one thing; to keep a promise is another. God is faithful. He always keeps his promises. God also wanted his people to be faithful to the promises they made to him and to one another even if it was costly to do so. To keep our promises helps us to know God’s faithfulness. It also builds trust and respect between people.

I need to keep my vows to others and to Jesus. I must keep my vows to others financially and humanly and spiritually. I don’t ever want to get into credit card debt or loan debt because I don’t want to get into the situation where I can not keep my vow to pay off the debt. I must keep my vows to my family and be faithful and committed and consistent. I must be there for them so that they may know that Jesus is there for them. I must keep my vows to my kids to be the best father that I can be for them and to be the protector and champion of their dreams. (That is what my coffee cup says I should be for the kids.) I need to be consistent and faithful and truthful in all ways. Most importantly I need to keep my vows to my wife, to love, honor and cherish her all the says of my life. And to be faithful to her and be by her side through the thick and the thin. Most important of all I need to keep my vow to God to keep the faith and maintain a humble repentant heart and be true to my calling and my mission to be a shepherd and Bible teacher.

I find it easier to keep my vows to other people in my family than to God. I am basically and unfaithful guy who falls into the rut of taking care of my own needs and being my own grumpy self, working, eating and sleeping and exercising and criticizing others and feeling vague feelings of condemnation. That is when I try to live without Jesus and his mission. I need God’s love and his forgiveness and grace to help me to be faithful to him and to others. I need God’s grace, for without that grace I would be a most unfaithful man. I thank God for keeping me in his love and his grace. I can be faithful because he is faithful. I pray that God may help be a little more faithful today than I was yesterday.

2. Promises and obligations (3-16).

Verses 3-16, “ 3 “When a young woman still living in her father’s household makes a vow to the LORD or obligates herself by a pledge 4 and her father hears about her vow or pledge but says nothing to her, then all her vows and every pledge by which she obligated herself will stand. 5 But if her father forbids her when he hears about it, none of her vows or the pledges by which she obligated herself will stand; the LORD will release her because her father has forbidden her. 6 “If she marries after she makes a vow or after her lips utter a rash promise by which she obligates herself 7 and her husband hears about it but says nothing to her, then her vows or the pledges by which she obligated herself will stand. 8 But if her husband forbids her when he hears about it, he nullifies the vow that obligates her or the rash promise by which she obligates herself, and the LORD will release her. 9 “Any vow or obligation taken by a widow or divorced woman will be binding on her. 10 “If a woman living with her husband makes a vow or obligates herself by a pledge under oath 11 and her husband hears about it but says nothing to her and does not forbid her, then all her vows or the pledges by which she obligated herself will stand. 12 But if her husband nullifies them when he hears about them, then none of the vows or pledges that came from her lips will stand. Her husband has nullified them, and the LORD will release her. 13 Her husband may confirm or nullify any vow she makes or any sworn pledge to deny herself.[b] 14 But if her husband says nothing to her about it from day to day, then he confirms all her vows or the pledges binding on her. He confirms them by saying nothing to her when he hears about them.15 If, however, he nullifies them some time after he hears about them, then he must bear the consequences of her wrongdoing.” 16 These are the regulations the LORD gave Moses concerning relationships between a man and his wife, and between a father and his young daughter still living at home.”

In Moses’ day, a woman living in her father’s household was under her father’s authority. If she was married, she was under her husband’s authority. Her father or husband could nullify a vow she had made, but this could only be done as soon as he heard about it. If nothing was done, the vow stood and the father or husband had to bear the consequences. The Lord’s regulations regarding vows emphasized the seriousness of promises and their effect on others. Our promises affect others, especially when we have obligations to spouses and families. We should not make rash promises.

I have a certain authority. If my kids make a foolish vow then I can negate it. If there are vows made in my house then I can have the final say about that vow. I am the spiritual leader of my household. But I learn here that I need to be “on top of what is going on in my family.” I can not be this unconnected and disjointed father who does not know what his kids are doing. I need to be aware, so that I can pray and counsel with God’s word and godly principles. I need to care and intervene with God’s wisdom. If I let things lapse and miss the opportunity to mentor my family, well then…shame on me.

Prayer: Lord, help me to keep my word even when it is hard to do so. Please raise faithful people in these faithless times.

One Word: Keep my promises by depending on God’s faithfulness.




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