{"id":18213,"date":"2009-03-23T20:14:00","date_gmt":"2009-03-24T01:14:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/?p=18213"},"modified":"2020-01-10T20:16:23","modified_gmt":"2020-01-11T02:16:23","slug":"what-is-meant-by-speaking-the-truth-in-love","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/what-is-meant-by-speaking-the-truth-in-love\/","title":{"rendered":"What is meant by “speaking the truth in love?”"},"content":{"rendered":"\n\t

Question:<\/h2>\n

“That we [henceforth] be no more children, tossed to and fro, and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the sleight of men, [and] cunning craftiness, whereby they lie in wait to deceive; But speaking the truth in love, may grow up into him in all things, which is the head, [even] Christ:” (Ephesians 4:14-15).<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

What does the verse “speaking the truth” in love mean?\u00a0 Does it only apply to doctrine or can it also apply to talking to our brothers and sisters in Christ about behavior that is not Christ-like?<\/p>\n\t

Answer:<\/h2>\n

“And He Himself gave some to be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, and some pastors and teachers, for the equipping of the saints for the work of ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ, till we all come to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to a perfect man, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ; that we should no longer be children, tossed to and fro and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the trickery of men, in the cunning craftiness of deceitful plotting, but, speaking the truth in love, may grow up in all things into Him who is the head — Christ — from whom the whole body, joined and knit together by what every joint supplies, according to the effective working by which every part does its share, causes growth of the body for the edifying of itself in love<\/em>” (Ephesians 4:11-16).<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

In the larger context, we see that Paul is discussing how the various roles or offices within the church all work toward the goal of causing the church to grow. “Speaking the truth in love<\/em>” parallels “the edifying of itself in love<\/em>” in verse 16.<\/p>\n

It is the teaching of doctrine so that the church knows what it must do, but it also includes rebuking those who stray because that too is a part of growth. “All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work<\/em>” (II Timothy 3:16-17). The Scriptures is given for four things:<\/p>\n

    \n
  1. To teach us what is right<\/li>\n
  2. To teach us what is not right<\/li>\n
  3. To teach us how to become right<\/li>\n
  4. To teach us how to stay right<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    It takes all four aspects of the Scriptures to make a person complete or mature.<\/p>\n

    The phrase “in love” qualifies how truth is to be taught. No matter whether we are teaching someone the way of righteousness or scolding them for doing wrong, the motivation behind all our words must be love for the person (I Corinthians 13:4-8). It is because you want to see that person saved and in heaven that you make the effort to see that the understand what they need to do be saved.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

    Question: “That we [henceforth] be no more children, tossed to and fro, and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the sleight of men, [and] cunning craftiness, whereby they lie in wait to deceive; But speaking the truth in love, may grow up into him in all things, which is the head, [even] Christ:”…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"advanced_seo_description":"","jetpack_seo_html_title":"","jetpack_seo_noindex":false,"jetpack_seo_schema_type":"","footnotes":"","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[20],"tags":[451,76],"class_list":["post-18213","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-answer","tag-teaching","tag-terminology"],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":1790,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/must-a-member-of-the-church-follow-the-truth\/","url_meta":{"origin":18213,"position":0},"title":"Must a member of the church follow the truth?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"September 17, 2004","format":false,"excerpt":"Question: Is it true that if a member of the church of Christ is shown a truth from the Scriptures, they are bound to follow that truth? Answer: Jesus said, \"If you love Me, keep My commandments\" (John 14:15). Hence, any true follower of Christ (a Christian) will strive to\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Answer"","block_context":{"text":"Answer","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/answer\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":96691,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/agree-with-the-sound-words-of-jesus-christ\/","url_meta":{"origin":18213,"position":1},"title":"Agree with the Sound Words of Jesus Christ","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"July 15, 2026","format":false,"excerpt":"by Edwin Crozier \"Teach and urge these things,\" Paul tells Timothy. He's already told him the purpose of this letter is so folks will know how to behave as members of the church of the living God, which is the pillar and support of the truth. He's also told Timothy\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Article"","block_context":{"text":"Article","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/article\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":55023,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/the-appeal-of-ketchersides-teachings\/","url_meta":{"origin":18213,"position":2},"title":"The Appeal of Ketcherside’s Teachings","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"October 7, 2006","format":false,"excerpt":"by Herschel Patton via\u00a0Truth Magazine\u00a0- April 1974 We have been saddened lately by a few brethren, mostly among the young, abandoning strict adherence to a \"thus saith the Lord\" and casting their lot with liberal brethren, even to the extent of \"open fellowship\" with the denominations - as advocated by\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Article"","block_context":{"text":"Article","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/article\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":12161,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/does-christian-love-demand-a-willingness-to-lay-down-your-life-for-a-friend\/","url_meta":{"origin":18213,"position":3},"title":"Does Christian love demand a willingness to lay down your life for a friend?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"September 7, 2007","format":false,"excerpt":"Question: While teaching the adult class I made the statement that a true characteristic of Christian love is that one would be willing to lay down his\/her life for his\/her friends.\u00a0 One lady stated that she could not do that.\u00a0 What are your thoughts?\u00a0 How would you answer this lady's\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Answer"","block_context":{"text":"Answer","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/answer\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":5950,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/why-did-jesus-say-not-to-forbid-the-non-follower-from-casting-out-demons\/","url_meta":{"origin":18213,"position":4},"title":"Why did Jesus say not to forbid the non-follower from casting out demons?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"June 11, 2006","format":false,"excerpt":"Question: I was wondering what Jesus meant in Mark 9:38-40 where John told Him of a man who was casting out devils in Jesus' name but forbade the man from doing so because he didn't follow with them. How does the verse \"For he that is not against us is\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Answer"","block_context":{"text":"Answer","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/answer\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":87311,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/why-do-people-change-the-teachings-of-christ\/","url_meta":{"origin":18213,"position":5},"title":"Why do people change the teachings of Christ?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"May 29, 2025","format":false,"excerpt":"Question: Hello there! My primary question is this: How can \"Christians\" claim to love the Lord and accept the Bible as truth, block out, look over, or misconceptualize truths in the Bible that cover their salvation and how to worship? 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