“Truth without love is brutality and love without truth is hypocrisy.”- Warren W. Wiersbe, On Being a Leader for God
“Instead, speaking the truth in love, we will grow to become in every respect the mature body of him who is the head, that is, Christ.”- Ephesians 4:15 (NIV)
In Chapter 8 (“Why is It Hard for Christians to Love?”) of Fractured Faith, Lina AbuJamra revisits her own experience of church hurt. Therefore, Lina understands how you feel when the church hurts you or shuns you. Yet even though the church may have failed you, God’s love remains steadfast. Consequently, just because people let you down, don’t give up on God. He’ll never let you down.
However, Lina notes, it’s hard to love in the way of Jesus. Because we struggle to love:
- difficult people
- people who don’t seem to change
- through setting the right boundaries
- people without constantly needing to persuade them of the truth
Above all, Lina stresses, it’s not either truth or love. It’s always both truth and love. Hence, God’s Word = the truth that pierces us. And God’s love = the power that changes us. In addition, the author exhorts, we need to step away from the culture wars and fix our eyes on Jesus.
In conclusion, Lina discusses the concept of being set apart. Most significantly, it takes courage to be set apart without isolating. Thus, God calls His people to invite others in – not to keep them out. Furthermore, Christ’s set apart call involves a call to be like Him. So, it’s not about judgment. Also, Lina ties this call to the holiness of God:
“Holiness is God’s expectation for His followers. . . . It turns out that our holiness, our striving to live set apart, is not only an act of obedience to our Hold God, but it is also an act of love for those who do not yet know this God. . . . Love doesn’t diminish the truth of the gospel and God’s Word or minimize its power. Love paves the way for others to hear the truth and maximizes its impact.”
Today’s question: How do you respond to Warren Wiersbe’s quote about truth without love? Please share.
Tomorrow’s blog: “That moment in the pigsty”
