Truth and Love.

Rather, speaking the truth in love, we are to grow up in every way into him who is the head, into Christ, from whom the whole body, joined and held together by every joint with which it is equipped, when each part is working properly, makes the body grow so that it builds itself up in love. – Ephesians 4:15-16 ESV

Some Christians thoroughly enjoy speaking the truth. They get a sort of perverse sense of joy out of correcting others and showing them they’re wrong. These kinds of people can use the Bible like a baseball bat to pound the truth into the lives of those with whom they disagree or deem errant in their views. And while the Scriptures are “profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness” (2 Timothy 3:16 ESV), they are not meant to be wielded like a weapon. Yes, Paul will later on in this same letter describe the Word of God as “the sword of the Spirit” (Ephesians 6:17 ESV), he intended it to be used against “the schemes of the devil”, not one another.

The truth is vital to the life of the church. In fact, Paul told his young protege, Timothy, “I hope to come to you soon, but I am writing these things to you so that, if I delay, you may know how one ought to behave in the household of God, which is the church of the living God, a pillar and buttress of the truth” (1 Timothy 3:14-15 ESV). The church of God is to be a defender and champion of the truth. In a world mired in relativity and immersed in the lies of the enemy, the church is to be the bastion of truth, based on the Word of God. It was Jesus who said, “If you abide in my word, you are truly my disciples, and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free” (John 8:31-32 ESV). The truth as it pertains to sin can be painful and difficult to hear. But God has revealed the antidote or remedy to mankind’s sin problem: Jesus. The Bible reveals the truth about man, sin, God, and the means of being justified with Him. As the church, we have the truth regarding God’s plan of salvation wrapped up in the gospel of Jesus Christ. And we have the Scriptures, which contain all the truth we need regarding everything from how we got here to where we are going. It is the sole source of truth regarding life and death, sin and salvation, God and man, meaning and hopelessness, right and wrong, and every other issue relevant to our existence as human beings.

But the truth must always be accompanied by love. Truth without love can be hurtful and harmful. One of my favorite passages in the Scriptures is found in Paul’s first letter to the Corinthian church. He told them, “Be watchful, stand firm in the faith, act like men, be strong. Let all that you do be done in love” (1 Corinthians 16:13-14 ESV). For years, I only focused on verse 13. I loved its blunt, direct way of commanding men to step up and act like men. It was an in-your-face sort of verse that had a testosterone-laden feel to it. Then one day I happened to notice verse 14: “Let all that you do be done in love.” Oops. I had conveniently overlooked that vital part of Paul’s command. If I attempt to stand firm in the faith without love, I will tend to come across as dogmatic and prideful. I will care more about how I am perceived by others than how much I care for others.

I love how The Message paraphrases 1 Corinthians 13, Paul’s great chapter on love:

If I speak with human eloquence and angelic ecstasy but don’t love, I’m nothing but the creaking of a rusty gate. If I speak God’s Word with power, revealing all his mysteries and making everything plain as day, and if I have faith that says to a mountain, “Jump,” and it jumps, but I don’t love, I’m nothing. If I give everything I own to the poor and even go to the stake to be burned as a martyr, but I don’t love, I’ve gotten nowhere. So, no matter what I say, what I believe, and what I do, I’m bankrupt without love. – 1 Corinthians 13:1-3 MSG

Even good and seemingly godly things, done without love, are worthless. Which is why Peter warned, “Above all, keep loving one another earnestly, since love covers a multitude of sins” (1 Peter 4:8 ESV). Telling someone who is lost that they are a sinner might be true, but it could also be harmful and hurtful. Revealing their sinful state without lovingly introducing them to the hope of the Savior would be nothing short of cruel. In the body of Christ, we are to speak truth to one another, but always in love. Our motivation should not just be for conviction and correction, but redemption and restoration. Which is why Paul told the Galatian believers, “Dear brothers and sisters, if another believer is overcome by some sin, you who are godly should gently and humbly help that person back onto the right path” (Galatians 6:1 NLT).

Paul’s goal for the churches to which he ministered was their growth – not just numerical growth, but spiritual. Certainly, he wanted to see more and more people come to faith in Christ, but he also wanted to see all those who did so grow in their knowledge of and relationship to Christ. And there is really no way for a believer to grow outside the context of the body of Christ. It is together that we make up the body of Christ, with Him as our head. And Paul emphasized that when each part of the body is working properly, according to the Spirit’s gifting, the body grows and builds itself up in love. Love isn’t a feeling. It’s an attitude. It is a relationally-based, God-given power to impact the life and spiritual well-being of another person. Neither truth or love are relative or subjective. God has not left either one up to us to define. We are to speak His truth, not ours. We are to love according to His terms, not our own. And when we blend His truth with His kind of love, the body of Christ grows. Like sun and rain, truth and love are vital to the spiritual well-being of the church.

The Truth.

Deuteronomy 15-16, John 17

Sanctify them in the truth; your word is truth. ­– John 17:17 ESV

One of the things the Israelites were constantly having to learn was to trust God when He spoke. Much of what God told them to do sounded bizarre and far-fetched. His rules and regulations had to have seemed onerous and arbitrary at times. The sacrificial system He commanded them to keep had to have been burdensome and costly to keep. His commands regarding the release of all debts during the sabbatical year had to have seemed unfair and unjust. But God kept reminding them that His laws were to be obeyed and His commands were to be kept – at all times and at all costs. He repeatedly told them, “You shall…” and “You shall not…” God's commands were to be obeyed, even when they seemed to make no sense. His appointed festivals and feasts were to be celebrated on time and in the manner He prescribed. Everything was a reminder of God's faithfulness and goodness. Their expressions of mercy toward one another were to be reflections of the mercy God had shown them. Their celebrations of the festivals and feasts were regular reminders of God's past deliverance and daily provision in their lives. They were to live according to God's word, trusting that what He said was true and trustworthy. They were to listen to His instructions and obey His commands, regardless of what the other nations around them did. God's word was not to be treated as a suggestion or an option to be considered, but as truth to be believed and obeyed.

What does this passage reveal about God?

God's word is truth. It isn't just another version of the truth, it is the truth. It is not to be treated as optional or negotiable. It is not to be considered as one of several options to be considered. God didn't give the Israelites a choice as to whether or not they could obey His word. Of course, they often did disobey His word, but it always came with consequences. Failure to fully comply with His commands always resulted in a less-than-enjoyable outcome. One of the ways the Israelites learned to believe God's word was to disobey it. They often found out the hard way that what God said was true. They inevitably discovered that God's way was always the better way. His word was worth obeying. One of the difficult things about living in this world is our constant struggle with knowing the difference between truth and falsehood. The Israelites would constantly find themselves tempted to worship false gods. They would struggle with listening to alternate versions of the truth. This world is the domain of the enemy. Jesus referred to him as the father of lies. “You are of your father the devil, and your will is to do your father's desires. He was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he lies, he speaks out of his own character, for he is a liar and the father of lies” (John 8:44 ESV). But God is truth. He is the essence of truth. What we see around us is tainted by the effects of the fall. It is not as it should be. It is not as God intended it should be. Injustice, poverty, disease, war, suffering, heartache, and death are not God's invention or intention, but the result of sin entering into the world. God's word brings life. Even when God ordered the seeming death of the innocent, there was always a just and righteous reason for it. Even His command that His own Son die in the place of sinful man was a justifiable, righteous and true. It was right. It was necessary.

When Jesus claimed, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me” (John 14:6 ESV), He was including His own death as part of the equation. His death was necessary for Him to become the way. His death was a required part of God's truth. His death had to happen for eternal life to be possible. And while the disciples had a hard time understanding and embracing the gravity of Jesus' words, it was the truth. It was the revealed word of God. It was His divine plan to deal with the problem on man's sin and separation from His presence.

What does this passage reveal about man?

Man has always been in a desperate search to know the truth. Where did we come from? Why is there suffering in the world? How can we eradicate disease and forestall death? What comes after death? But we are limited in our understanding and prone to believe lies instead of the truth. We turn to just about anything and anyone in our search for the truth. We listen to the lies of men. We embrace the false assumptions of science. We turn to our intellect and rely upon reason. But we continually find ourselves wondering what is true and what is false. We question who we can believe and trust. But unless our search for truth takes us to God, we will constantly find ourselves believing the lie and living with a false sense of hope and an unreliable version of reality. Jesus told the Jews in His day, “If you abide in my word, you are truly my disciples, and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free” (John 8:31-32 ESV). There is only one version of the truth, and it can only be found in God's written word, the Bible, and through the Living Word, Jesus Christ. Anyone who seeks truth in the Scriptures, but fails to see the Son of God, will miss the whole point of God's written word. To turn the Bible into a self-help guide or a manual for living is to distort the truth of God's word. The Bible reveals God to man, and the greatest manifestations of God was Jesus Christ, the very Son of God in human flesh. Praying to His Heavenly Father in His High Priestly Prayer, Jesus said, “For I have given them the words that you gave me, and they have received them and have come to know in truth that I came from you; and they have believed that you sent me” (John 17:8 ESV). Jesus was sent from God. He was the very truth of God revealed to men. He was God's revealed plan for the salvation of mankind. And yet, men refused to believe Him. They refused to acknowledge Him as the way, the truth and the life. He didn't fit their definition of truth. They had embraced a different truth – one of their own making. But for those who believed the truth and placed their faith in Jesus as their Messiah or Savior, Jesus revealed to them the truth of God regarding man's sin and the divine plan for salvation and their own sanctification.

How would I apply what I’ve read to my own life?

Jesus asked the Father, “Sanctify them in the truth; your word is truth” (John 17:17 ESV). The truth not only includes our salvation, but our ongoing sanctification. The Bible reveals man's plight and God's plan for restoring mankind to a right relationship with Him. The Bible tells us the truth about God and man. It reveals to us who God is and tells us the truth about who we are and how desperate our condition. The truth of God's word paints a vivid and realistic picture of the world and mankind's need for a Savior. Even as a believer, I must depend upon God's word to expose me to the truth – enlightening me to my ever-present need for God's ongoing salvation and His Spirit's constant transformation of my life. Just as God's word reveals that no man can save Himself, it also teaches me that I cannot sanctify myself. I can't make myself holy. I can't make myself Christ-like and righteous. Salvation and sanctification are the work of God alone. That truth should be a source of freedom and release for me. The truth is, I must live in this world, surrounded by lies and falsehood. I must attempt to grow in Christ-likeness and increase in holiness. But I don't have to do it alone. My ongoing spiritual maturity and increasing holiness is a result of God's work in my life. As Jesus said, I am sanctified in truth – the truth of God's word.

Father, we are surrounded by lies. We are constantly tempted to believe anything and anyone, except You. Thank You for opening my eyes to the truth regarding Your Son and His offer of salvation. But help me to understand that the truth found in Christ also includes my ongoing sanctification or growth in spiritual maturity or Christ-likeness. You have shown me through Your Word how maturity takes place. Sometimes it sounds farfetched and difficult, but I know it is the truth. Sometimes Your Holy Spirit seems distant and hard to comprehend, but I know He's there because Your Word promises it. Help me trust Your Word and live according to Your truth. Amen