Christian Ethics and the Old Testament - Lesson 35

Not all cursing is sin, and not all oaths are forbidden. Lesson 35 continues the study of the third commandment and moves into cursing and swearing.Teacher Dave Rich distinguishes between sinful cursing, calling for someone's harm out of personal anger or vindictiveness, and the legitimate cursing found in Scripture, including the imprecatory psalms, Paul's warnings against false teachers, and church discipline. Rich shows that a curse becomes sin when it serves personal vengeance rather than God's glory, and that treating words like damn and hell lightly undermines the seriousness of what they actually mean.Rich then turns to swearing and oath taking, working through Matthew 5 and James 5 to argue that Jesus and James were not forbidding all oaths but the dishonest, manipulative oath taking common among the Pharisees. He traces examples of legitimate oaths from God's own promise to Abraham, Christ's testimony before the high priest, and Paul's letters, then walks through categories of prohibited swearing, including dishonest oaths, oaths to sin, and foolish oaths like Jephthah's vow.The lesson closes with practical guidance on the vows Christians do take, including wedding vows, baptism, communion, and oaths of office, and the call to take our own words seriously before God. ★ Support this podcast ★