Speaking the Truth in Love
In this sermon on Ephesians 4:15 titled “Speaking the Truth in Love,” Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones speaks of one of the most misunderstood and misapplied statements in all of Scripture: to always speak the truth in love. Many use this verse to argue against criticizing the views of others on the basis that it is unloving. They say that to criticize other Christians is to disrupt the unity of the church and God’s people. But this grossly misses the point of both what it means to speak in love and what it means to live in unity with other Christians. As Dr. Lloyd-Jones points out, the apostles and Jesus never hesitated to criticize false teachers and refute their teachings. In fact, many of the New Testament epistles were written just for this reason, to correct false teachings that had infiltrated the church. Not only this, but the whole history of the church has seen many creeds and confessions drafted in order to lay out clear doctrine and by this, protect the unity of the church. Because God has revealed the truth about Him and His Son in the Bible, the church must proclaim the truth and refute all that contradicts God’s word.