In Ephesians 4:15, Paul mentions that one of our aims should be 'speaking the truth in love'. So much wisdom is contained within this small phrase that it can be easy to miss. It is a principle that we at Nucleus need to take to heart, as well as one which every Christian must live by.
We serve a God of truth in whom there is no falsehood. If we will strive to reflect his character and to serve him on earth, we must also be truthful. We should take care to give a truthful portrayal of ourselves to others. It is so easy to put across an image which is false or at the very least rose-tinted. We need to be able to admit our faults and failings, not trying to maintain a misleading aura of super-spirituality even when we feel like swearing inside.
As well as our sins of commission, truth must also challenge our sins of omission. How many times have we failed to be truthful to our friends concerning their eternal destiny, simply because it would have caused us embarrassment to do so? The surgeon may cause pain and distress by operating, but failing to tell a patient that they have resectable malignancy is negligence of the highest order.
With this in mind, we must not forget the other half of Paul's admonition. In being truthful to others, we cannot escape the fact that we ourselves fail in many ways (Rom 2:1-4). God's denouncement of sin is perfectly balanced by his love for the sinner. His righteous judgement would be unleashed on us just as much as anyone else, if it were not for the fact that he loved us enough to take our punishment upon himself. In our truthfulness we must never presume to speak as anything other than wretched sinners, saved by God's grace.
Let us, therefore, make every effort to be truthful about ourselves and others, remembering at all times God's immeasurable grace and mercy towards us in the Messiah, Jesus.
