-Truthing in love. Truthing in love. We’re talking about the verb form of the Greek word for ‘truth’, truth in action, living out and manifesting that which is not hidden nor concealed. The primary instinct of fallen man is to hide (from God, from one another, cf Gen 3.7-8). But those in Christ are set free from the fear of condemnation, of rejection. Think about it - why do we hide? I hide from God (and those in authority) because i’m afraid of getting in trouble. I am consequence-averse. And I hide from my fellow man because I don’t want him or her to reject me. I like to be liked. I want people to want me to be around, to accept me. Well, in Christ consequences and rejection are all ultimately done away, removed as far as the east is from the west. There is now no longer any condemnation for those who are in Christ. And the whole point of what Paul is trying to communicate here is that those in Christ stick to one another. No need to hide, no fear of rejection. We accept and live openly with one another, warts and all, just like Christ accepts us. Thus as His people we can and should be flying in the face of all forms of falsehood, of hiding and deceit and tricks, of schemes and subterfuge, living into truth.
-Truth. Unchanging, unwavering, a steady rock and anchor in the tossing seas of uncertainty and compromise. Truth does not tune its finger to which direction blow the winds of popular opinion, political correctness, practical expedience. It is concerned not with expedience, nor convenience, nor comfort. Truth is all about the character of Almighty God, because all truth derives from this One Who Himself does not ever change nor give in to the oscillating currents of popular opinion. He is neither hidden nor is He silent. God is, and He is Truth. His Word is Truth. Jesus is The Truth. Yes, virginia, there is such a thing as timeless absolute truth. Absolutely.
-Here we find the anchor for our soul and the building block for spiritual maturity as well as for oneness in the Body. Notice however that there is not truth apart from love. Love is the atmosphere in which truth goes forth - warm, caring, gracious, gentle. Truth delivered in the absence of relationship and lived out in cold and austere harshness dies a thousand deaths. But this loving truthing is turns out to be the key which unlocks guaranteed progress in the faith. And since we are talking about we and not just me, we thus are talking about a steady diet of God’s truth served up in an atmosphere of kind, committed, open relationships. A veritable smorgasbord of honest, caring two-way communication not only with my heavenly Father but also with those in my faith community. Assuming I have one (I should)... If not, I desperately need to find one, a place where I can be in community and experience that comm(on)-unity. I need them, and they need me.
-Because here we find a surefire recipe for real spiritual growth. This truthing-in-love within a caring faith community creates a fertile spiritual climate where abundant verdant growth is virtually assured. ‘We should grow’ is aorist subjunctive, which is tantamount to saying that growth should AND WILL happen, as long as the antecedent condition is met. Truthing-in-love with like-minded others is not just words on a page. THIS is how we grow to become more like Christ.
-WHAT WOULD IT LOOK LIKE IF I COMMITTED MYSELF TO LIVING INTO TRUTH? truth AND love. HOW MIGHT I LIVE AND RELATE DIFFERENTLY, TO GOD, TO MY SPOUSE, TO MY BOSS, TO MY PASTOR, TO MY FELLOW BELIEVERS?
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