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Inner Vows

In the Old Testament, making and keeping vows was often quite public. It would be very hard, for example for a Nazarite to keep his vow hidden. (See Numbers 6) In our own time, marriage vows are intentionally made publicly. Every jurisdiction I know requires at least two legal witnesses at a wedding and usually a lot of informal witness, friends of the bride and groom are invited as well.

Generally speaking, making vows, swearing on a holy book, taking an oath, and the like are not looked at favourably in the New Testament. The reason people do these things is to add weight to their words. It suggests that under normal circumstances we might expect them to lie or misrepresent themselves in some way, but when they swear, testify under oath, or make a vow, we should trust them to tell the truth.

In Jesus first great sermon He took on this idea. In Matthew 5, He admonished his listeners to always tell the truth. There is no need of these verbal accessories. Our "yes" should always mean "yes" and our "no" should always mean "no." In his letter, James reiterated this when he wrote: "Above all, my brothers, do not swear—not by heaven or by earth or by anything else. Let your 'Yes' be yes, and your 'No,' no, or you will be condemned." (James 5:12) Many other passages from the New Testament emphasize the need for Christians to simply speak the truth.

While historically, vows are made publicly, far more common (at least in our day) is something which has been called inner vows. These are usually hidden, sometimes we even hide them from ourselves. Not only do we not verbalize them, we are not even conscious of them. Yet they control our lives as effectively as a public vow which we keep with everyone else watching.

Some inner vows are negative. They protect us from doing something we don't want to do by giving us something to point to for an excuse. From the outside, these things may even look pretty good. The hard-driven acquisitive types look like big successes, but they may be slaves to the vow: "I shall never submit." The strong solitary single may look as if he or she has risen above the needs which are satisfied in a marriage relationship, but may be in bondage to the vow: "I shall never marry a man like my father (or a woman like my mother)." As soon as something shows up in the character or behaviour of the other which reminds them of their parents, they bolt. The busy, spiritual over-achiever who always seems to have gotten to church before you did may provoke your admiration, but may be missing their potential because of the vow: "I shall never be a missionary."

Some inner vows are positive. They shape our outlook, our attitude, even our character to some extent. People who make them give themselves permission to blurt out things that hurt people because of the vow: "I shall always speak my mind." They excuse the neglect of their personal relationships, even their relationship with God, as they keep their vow: "I shall always be wealthy." Sometimes they miss their potential, refusing to take even modest risks because of the vow: "I shall always be safe." Others drive everyone away with vows to always be in charge or to be an expert on everything.

Some inner vows are conditional. They traffic in extremes. These vows follow patterns like these: If I don't get this new job, I am a total failure. If I can buy a house in this neighbourhood, I'll be a success. If I make a fool of myself in public, I'll kill myself. If my child's marriage fails, I'll die.

I don't have to do much cranial excavation to discover thoughts like these in my own head. And I am convicted about this because it is a purely human response to things in my past. Instead of the freedom of the Spirit, it is the bondage to the flesh. Knowing the truth brings freedom (See John 8:32). Paul wrote that being free from the law, he would not be brought under the power of any (See 1 Corinthians 6:12).

Inner vows often slip in under our spiritual radar. We're unaware that we are living in slavery to them. We need to pay attention to ourselves (1 Timothy 4:16) and be diligent (2Peter 3:14) about living our lives in the liberty God intends for us to enjoy. "It is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Stand firm, then, and do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery." (Galatians 5:1)

Ron Hughes
© January 2008