Truth and Love | The Institute for Creation Research

Truth and Love

"But speaking the truth in love, may grow up into him in all things, which is the head, even Christ." (Ephesians 4:15)

There are many Christians who are sticklers for what they consider sound doctrine, but who are abrasive and unloving in their attitude toward those who hold other doctrines. There are far more Christians, on the other hand, who talk much about Christian love, but who consider doctrinal integrity of secondary--or even negative--significance.

Both groups of professing Christians, however, are only babes in Christ, at best. As our text makes clear, the mature Christian (one who has "grown up into Christ in all things") speaks the truth in love. That is, he is not a babe, "tossed to and fro . . . with every wind of doctrine" (v. 14), but he understands, believes, and teaches the truth of God as revealed in His Word. At the same time, he does so in love, making "increase of the body unto the edifying of itself in love" (v. 16).

One cannot really do the truth or teach the truth without manifesting true love, nor can one manifest true love except in a context of genuine truth. "The fruit of the Spirit is love" (Galatians 5:22), but that Spirit who produces such fruit is "the Spirit of truth" (John 15:26). Truth and love are not in conflict with one another, as many Christians seem to think (or at least practice), for they represent two different--not competing--categories. "Truth" is not even included in the nine-fold "fruit of the Spirit" (Galatians 5:22-23), because truth is, itself, the tree on which the fruit must grow.

It is especially important not to be led away from sound biblical truth by popular preachers and teachers who downgrade doctrine in favor of what they may call "love." "My little children," says the apostle John, "let us not love in word, neither in tongue; but in deed and in truth" (1 John 3:18). HMM

The Latest
NEWS
Dino Footprints Down Under
Dinosaur trackways1 are once again making the news. Australia is the setting of a remarkable series of dinosaur tracks attributed to ornithischian...

NEWS
April 2025 ICR Wallpaper
"But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name, He will teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all things...

NEWS
Human Evolution and the Inner Ear
The vain attempt by evolutionists to make an evolutionary connection between people and ape-like ancestors continues. This time, it is in regard to...

CREATION PODCAST
Defending the Faith with a Rocket Scientist | Creation.Live Podcast:...
How do engineering principles, biological complexity, and a solid understanding of apologetics work together to further the cause of Christ? Why...

NEWS
Aerobic and Anaerobic Hot Spring Bacteria
God designed a domain of prokaryotes called Archaea that thrive in harsh and extreme environments. In 1969, two microbiologists, Thomas Brock and Hudson...

CREATION PODCAST
The Soulless Hominid Theory: A Fatal Flaw in Old Earth Creationism...
Welcome to the second episode in a series called “The Failures of Old Earth Creationism.” Many Christians attempt to fit...

NEWS
Humpback Whale Calls Echo Creation
There is nothing simple about the system of communication called language, whether animal or human.1 Human language is a very sophisticated...

NEWS
Mary Parker, Creation Ministry Partner of Dr. Gary Parker, Is...
Mary Parker, the wife and co-laborer of Dr. Gary Parker, went home to be with her Lord on March 20, 2025. Dr. Parker was a popular and effective...

NEWS
Plants Rely on Quantum Mechanics
Scientists will probably never fully understand photosynthesis as additional research uncovers even more fascinating mysteries.1,2 ICR’s...

NEWS
Martian Polar Ice Cap ''Surprisingly Young''?
A team of German planetary scientists has concluded that a three-kilometer-thick northern polar ice cap on Mars has a “surprisingly young”...