Truth And Love

Ephesians 4:14-16

We will speak the truth in love, growing in every way more and more like Christ. (Ephesians 4:15)

MANY GREEKS FOUND THE beliefs of the early church absurd because the idea of a resurrection did not fit their philosophical traditions. Romans found their beliefs offensive because they could not accommodate sacrifices to pagan deities and the emperor. Regardless of the reason—the gospel’s emphasis on our fallenness and insistence that we need a Savior, its mandate to deny self and live for Christ, or the seeming absurdity of an incarnate deity who would die by execution—Scripture warned us about this. The cornerstone would be rejected (Luke 20:17-18), and the rock of offense would make doubters stumble (1 Peter 2:8). The pride of humanity is offended by the truth.

The gospel and all its applications are offensive enough on their own without our adding any barriers to them. Even so, many believers become militant in their conversations. They speak the truth out of fear or woundedness; lavish it on others with extra doses of guilt and shame; or add a dash of anger, a hint of bitterness, or a touch of resentment to make sure their point is made. Perhaps we respond this way to build up walls around our hearts, to protect us from whatever backlash we might receive in a difficult conversation. Whatever the situation, and whatever our idiosyncrasies, we have to be able to speak truth from no other motive but love, and to make that love evident in the way we speak.

That will require a change in perspective. Most people have a personal agenda in their conversations about truth—to win an argument, defuse a situation, get relief from a dysfunctional relationship, save themselves from heartache . . . The needs and desires are many. But a heart in sync with God’s is motivated by love and the other person’s well-being. In every conversation, ask God for his perspective on the other person. Let his perspective become yours. And speak the truth—even when it hurts—with no other motive than love.

{Lord, you lovingly, patiently, and persistently spoke truth into my life; may I have the same attitude as I talk with others. Fill my words with grace and peace. Amen.