N
ncjohn
Guest
I was listening to a talk on CD last night and heard the quote–as closely as I can remember it–“Only love can be trusted with the truth.”
I gave a lot of thought to that the rest of the way home and realized how true that really is. I have seen and heard many–including many at this site–claiming to have or know “the Truth”. Yet that “truth” is so often delivered with a sledgehammer, and in such a hurtful way, that it is clear that they don’t really know the truth at all, at least not at more than a head level.
St. Paul said in one of his letters (1 Corinthians, I think) that Truth without love is a noisy gong and a clanging cymbal. I don’t think it could be stated more clearly. Many of those using the sledgehammer approach will jump up and claim a “tough love” that is necessary to bring the wayward back to their senses. In my mind though, that “tough love” only works with someone who has great credibility with the listener and who the listener knows to have their best interests at heart. It cannot be heard from a stranger on a message board whose motives are not known. True love will recognize that and find a way to state even the hardest of truths in a way that doesn’t attack the person and drive them even further away.
It’s amazing how quickly some will totally cast aside the most important teachings of Jesus while trying to make someone else “obey the rules”. One of the most important teachings was to remove the beam from one’s own eye before attempting to remove the splinter from someone else’s. How arrogant we get in thinking we can even begin to understand God’s ways and God’s mercy and willingness to break His own rules out of love for us. How arrogant to think that we can begin to understand “the Truth” without standing in His shoes with divine wisdom and mercy. How totally and completely arrogant to think that we can cast our judgments on others while living such completely imperfect lives ourselves, holding them to a much higher standard than we hold ourselves. How completely ridiculous to think we can claim to speak for God while disregarding the very words of His son!
Father forgive me for the innumerable times I have laid my unjust judgments on others, possibly driving them further from you by misrepresenting Your face. I cannot know the Truth either for I cannot love perfectly as You do. My ways are indeed as far from yours as the east is from the west. But I believe that you can take even my misguided attempts and use them for Your purposes and Your glory. And when I don’t believe as I should, help me in my unbelief. Help me to hold Your people in my hands as You would and to never to further wound one of Your beloved flock.
Only love can be trusted with the Truth, and far too many times I don’t meet that standard. But I’m trying…
I gave a lot of thought to that the rest of the way home and realized how true that really is. I have seen and heard many–including many at this site–claiming to have or know “the Truth”. Yet that “truth” is so often delivered with a sledgehammer, and in such a hurtful way, that it is clear that they don’t really know the truth at all, at least not at more than a head level.
St. Paul said in one of his letters (1 Corinthians, I think) that Truth without love is a noisy gong and a clanging cymbal. I don’t think it could be stated more clearly. Many of those using the sledgehammer approach will jump up and claim a “tough love” that is necessary to bring the wayward back to their senses. In my mind though, that “tough love” only works with someone who has great credibility with the listener and who the listener knows to have their best interests at heart. It cannot be heard from a stranger on a message board whose motives are not known. True love will recognize that and find a way to state even the hardest of truths in a way that doesn’t attack the person and drive them even further away.
It’s amazing how quickly some will totally cast aside the most important teachings of Jesus while trying to make someone else “obey the rules”. One of the most important teachings was to remove the beam from one’s own eye before attempting to remove the splinter from someone else’s. How arrogant we get in thinking we can even begin to understand God’s ways and God’s mercy and willingness to break His own rules out of love for us. How arrogant to think that we can begin to understand “the Truth” without standing in His shoes with divine wisdom and mercy. How totally and completely arrogant to think that we can cast our judgments on others while living such completely imperfect lives ourselves, holding them to a much higher standard than we hold ourselves. How completely ridiculous to think we can claim to speak for God while disregarding the very words of His son!
Father forgive me for the innumerable times I have laid my unjust judgments on others, possibly driving them further from you by misrepresenting Your face. I cannot know the Truth either for I cannot love perfectly as You do. My ways are indeed as far from yours as the east is from the west. But I believe that you can take even my misguided attempts and use them for Your purposes and Your glory. And when I don’t believe as I should, help me in my unbelief. Help me to hold Your people in my hands as You would and to never to further wound one of Your beloved flock.
Only love can be trusted with the Truth, and far too many times I don’t meet that standard. But I’m trying…
