I have heard a lot of people debate on this issue and I feel like sharing my opinion. So, is breaking a promise a sin?

Before I share my thoughts, I want to state that you can make a promise to God, you can make a promise to man and you can also make a promise to yourself.

Promise is also referred to as a vow in the Bible. A promise means making a statement of intent, indicating that you will do something.

A promise is a commitment to do something or to behave in a certain way. It is a statement of intent that is made to another person or to oneself. Promises can be made verbally, in writing, or through actions.

A promise could also be as deep as making a covenant. A covenant is an agreement that is usually legal or binding for example a contract between two people. Another good example of a covenant is a marriage between a man and a woman.

I will be discussing these three scenarios differently so that we don’t mix things up.

Promise to God

If you make a promise to God and you don’t fulfil it, that is a sin. It is not bad to make a promise to God and it is also not bad not to make a promise to God but if you make a promise to God, make sure you fulfil it.

Ecclesiastes 5:4 says “When you make a vow to God, do not delay to pay it; For He has no pleasure in fools. Pay what you have vowed.”

This goes to show that God does not delight in someone who makes a promise to Him and breaks it.

Promise to man

On one hand, If you make a promise to a man ( your family members, friends neighbour, colleague or business associate) and you intentionally break it even when you can fulfil it, it is a sin.

On the other hand, if you make a promise to a man and you break it because you forgot or cannot fulfil it then I don’t think it is a sin.

For instance, if you promise to be at an event on a particular and when that day comes, you fall sick to the extent whereby you have to go treat yourself in the hospital thereby not being able to attend the occasion.

But if you are healthy and purposely did not go for the event then I feel it is wrong.

Nevertheless, it is only good you notify the parties involved when you are breaking a promise and give them your reasons so that they can understand and see things from your point of view.

I do not think you have sinned by not going to the occasion even though you promised.

When you break your promise to other people, it will lead to a lack of trust especially when it becomes a regular occurrence and it can break relationships.

Promise to yourself

If you make a promise to yourself and you break it, that is your business. If you feel keeping to the promise is not beneficial to you anymore then you have the right not to go ahead.

But if keeping your promise will be beneficial to you and you don’t keep it because of laziness, you will face the consequences.

In life, you will face the consequences of your actions. So, if you make a promise to yourself and it will be beneficial to you, you should keep to your promise. That is a wise thing to do.

Conclusion

When you make a promise to God, make sure you fulfil your promise as soon as you can. Better still, don’t bother making a promise to God.

God won’t be annoyed with you if you don’t make a promise to Him. God loves you already and HeHis always will to help you.

But God hates it when you don’t have integrity when dealing with Him. This is why it is good we keep every promise we make to God as it is a sign of integrity.

Also when making a promise to people, the most important thing is your intention, if you have the intention of breaking your promise even before making it, that is wrong.

Some people make promises (without thinking about it) as bait to help them get out of a situation. That promise was made with the wrong intention.

Do your best to keep to your promises because people are watching you, when you keep to your promises, people will build trust in you but when you don’t keep to your promises, people won’t trust you.

Always think deeply before making a promise, do you have the capacity, do you want to do what you have said?

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