“Let each one of you speak truth.” Ephesians 4:25 NKJV
“You could never make truth more than it is, but neither should you make it less.”
Lauren, my thoughts today are about “speaking truth.”
You have to be very careful with handling the truth. You need to prize truth, when you speak it and when you hear it. You can’t change or adjust truth, nor customize it as it suits you, lest you make it less than it was. You could never make truth more than it is, but you can make it less.
Our nation’s judicial system requires every witness in a court case to be sworn in by affirming these words. “Do you solemnly swear to tell the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth. So help me God.” That’s because the truth is essential, especially when the fate and well being of another’s life is at stake.
Obviously, it is possible to tell what is true, yet be tempted to conveniently leave out some of the truth that would be inconvenient. Likewise, you could possibly tell the whole truth, yet add something that was not equally true, therefore misrepresenting what is. Something is either true or it is not; there are no shades of truth. Truth for some can be a slippery proposition, it would seem. Much of our world is as confused today as Pilate when he asked Jesus, “What is truth?” John 18:38.
In contrast, have you ever known someone who always seemed so determined to tell the truth, that their virtue became their vice? You know the kind. They often claim a Bible verse as their license to speak freely however badly or many it hurts, as long as they can claim they are “speaking the truth in love.” Ephesians 4:15 NIV. Unfortunately they are often more careful about their perception of truth than they are about love. See Philippians 4:8-9 NLT.
I think love is not a feeling that you have but a demonstrated and caring relationship in which the other person unquestionably knows your love for them would only wish their highest and best. Where that is not true, you likely are not the best one to speak that truth if you want it to be helpful and accepted. Why not hold onto the truth until after you build or repair your relationship sufficiently to have earned the right to speak into another’s life? I assure you the results will be much better, and leave fewer scars – on them or you!
They often say something similar to this, “I am only saying this because I love you.” Watch out when you hear that preface to a conversation. Somehow I just do not picture Jesus saying or doing that. He never spoke anything but the truth, and He certainly never spoke it with anything but the truest and purest, selfless love. There was a time when even Jesus said to His disciples, “I have many things to say to you, but you are not able to bear them now.” John 16:12-13 NLT. It is Christ-like also to be considerate of others’ feelings. See Colossians 4:6 NIV/ Ephesians 4:29-32 NIV.
You know what I have found? My eagerness to speak truth though it may be hurtful may well be a warning that I feel the need to be heard more than they yet need to hear. I am trying to be a bit more cautious of my timing when I find myself much more eager to speak the truth about another than to hear it about myself. Jesus said a good rule to follow is Luke 6:31 NIV.
My prayer for you today is: live the truth with integrity; speak the truth with compassion.