Truth, Love And Vile Affection

June 4, 2024

An evangelist once mentioned that Andrei Sakharov, a Soviet physicist and Nobel Peace Prize laureate known as the “father of the Soviet hydrogen bomb,” said that after much reflection, the truth was more powerful than the bomb. Initially, he believed the bomb was the most powerful weapon but later changed his mind. He eventually realized that the truth is the most powerful force in our universe. That is a very wise and profound statement. Isn’t it interesting that Sakharov did not say love was the most powerful force in the universe? Could it be that only truth defines love and the kind of love required and prohibited by God? As shocking as it may sound, God does prohibit some ‘love’. Some love or affection is vile in God’s eyes. We will consider this in the article.

Recently, I listened to a debate by the deceased atheist, Christopher Hitchens. He stated, “All truth is relative.” Atheists agree with him, and many so-called Christians seem to agree as well. It is very popular these days. Interestingly, all of these atheists and others who believe that truth is relative do not recognize the inherent contradiction in their position. To claim that ‘all truth is relative’ is to make an absolute truth statement, which refutes and contradicts the ‘all truth is relative’ claim. Why don’t they see this?

Hitchens claims that all truth is relative. If that were true, which it is not, then it would be self-contradictory. Hitchens cannot credibly make an absolute statement about truth if he believes it is relative. How is it that such intelligent, even brilliant, and articulate people like Hitchens can be so blind and arrogant? Now, if he said some truths are relative, there might be a discussion to have. I would want to know exactly which particular truth claim he is referring to, wouldn’t you? But if all truth is relative, that claim is false on its face because it asserts the absolute truth of a statement that is itself relative.

Another well-known atheist, Richard Dawkins, in a talk with Ayaan Hirsi, said that he believed the claims of Jesus Christ and the miracles of the Bible are all nonsense and not to be believed by any rational thinking person. Ayaan went from Islam to atheism to Christianity in her journey. She regrets the opinions she expressed about atheism, realizing the harm it caused to the moral development of the young. Mr. Dawkins sees this discussion centering on the supreme importance of the truth (with which I heartily agree). At the same time, Ayaan considers the value of Christianity because of its message of love, rather than its claims to be true. By truth, Richard Dawkins means naturalistic scientific ‘truth’, even though ‘scientific truth’ has often been wrong. Ayaan, a new Christian at the time of this discussion, may not have understood that the Bible is the message of the absolute truth, first and foremost. Without the truth, accurately defining love is somewhere between improbable and impossible.

Both of these well-known atheists are united in their opposition to the supernatural as an explanation for any truth. Yet neither of them can rationally explain the beginning of life in purely materialistic and naturalistic processes. Spontaneous generation is a supernatural miracle without God, which requires more faith than believing in a supernatural intelligence (God) who created everything from nothing. Dr. James Tour, a chemist and nanotechnologist, states that science today is no closer to explaining the origin of life scientifically than it ever has been. Dr. Warner Gitt developed a scientific theory of information from the laws of nature. His theory provides a scientific explanation for how information, a non-material fundamental entity, is the only rational explanation for life. Information is not physical or material. Information comes from a supernatural intelligence or spirit. The combination of spirit (information) with intelligently designed physical elements is the only plausible explanation for the origin of life, according to Dr. Gitt. Is that not more reasonable than believing everything came from nothing, on its own? Can nothing give rise to anything? Everything? Impossible. Having three-letter credentials following your name is not needed to answer that absurdity.

Furthermore, only God knows all things and all truth. For a person to claim that they know there is no God is to blindly and arrogantly assert that they are omniscient (all knowing). It is a claim to possess an attribute of deity (omniscience) while claiming to know that there is no deity. Is that not ridiculous and pompous?

Consider another way in which our culture has addressed truth. It is said and believed by many, ‘that you have your truth and I have mine’. Again, how is it that people can be so gullible and so easily deceived? Upon reflection, we can see the absurdity of that statement. What if my truth tells me that I can steal everything you own? What if my truth tells me that I can kill you if you upset or offend me? This ridiculous truth claim is the prescription for anarchy, where everyone does that which is right in their own eyes. Sounds a lot like today, doesn’t it?

‘My truth’ might be that I am able to run a four-minute mile, but that claim alone doesn’t make it accurate, does it? I may claim to be able to bench press 800 pounds, but that claim doesn’t prove anything. A man may claim to be a woman, but that claim has no credible evidence or scientific facts to support it. Dressing up and acting like a woman proves nothing that supports the truth claim.

Hard science, through repeatable experimentation, and eyewitness testimony (written or video) are the facts and evidence that validate truth claims. I may claim to be a genuine Christian, but does the evidence provide supporting testimony to that claim? Do I actually live a righteous life before God, my family, and my community? I may claim many things that I wish were true, but they are not. If I lie, cheat, steal, gossip, sleep around, get drunk, and murder people, the truth (facts) reveals the lie of my profession of faith in Christ.

A variation on the theme of the truth being relative is the concept that ethics and morals are situational. That makes ethics relative and dependent on circumstances. With this idea, what was once considered sinful or wrong now becomes acceptable and good. An idea like this provides the justification for lying or not speaking the truth. If lying can make another person feel good, does that justify the lie? If you are hungry, is it then okay to steal someone else’s food? Many would say yes, making theft acceptable under certain circumstances. It is easy to see how this situational truth claim can lead to justifying all kinds of evil behaviors.

The following information is interesting. However, it is a very sad commentary on professing Christians and how they stand on such matters. (taken from the website, Christianity.com)

• “30% of Catholics believe that there are clear standards of right and wrong. 67% believe right and wrong depend on the situation.
• 50% of Evangelicals believe that there are clear standards of right and wrong. 48% believe right and wrong depend on the situation.
• 20% of Hindus believe that there are clear standards of right and wrong. 78% believe right and wrong depend on the situation.
• 29% of historically Black Protestants believe that there are clear standards of right and wrong. 68% believe right and wrong depend on the situation”.

The biggest disappointment for me is that 48% of so-called Evangelicals believe right and wrong depend on the situation. That percentage for Evangelicals should be 1% or less. That is why the term ‘Evangelical’ no longer means much, and the word ‘Christian’ means even less. And that is why the Christian churches in America are mostly filled with carnal, unsaved “Christians.” As for the Black Church in America, which has overwhelmingly voted for baby murderers, this is no surprise. To justify their vote for the Democratic Party, they must view truth as relative and morals as situational.

What is the truth?

Truth is that which corresponds to reality; the way things really are. Reality is evidenced by facts and that which is observable. If I claim to have $ 10 million in the bank, then the truth must be verified by the balance in my bank account statement. If I can’t supply the backup facts and objective evidence, then my truth claim is actually a lie. Truth and reality are the same. I may claim to be 7 feet tall and weigh 370 pounds, but that doesn’t make it accurate. A tape measure and a scale will quickly determine the falsity or truth of my ‘truth’ claim. I may claim to love my neighbor, but if I steal from my neighbor or kill my neighbor, then my truth claim (and my love claim) is a lie.

Have you ever noticed that people of all walks of life lie without thinking about it? Lying comes so easily to many of us. It is the way many people live. They may not lie all the time, but just enough to make it nearly impossible to believe anything they say. This is why many of us do not trust the mainstream media, politicians, educators, scientists, businesspeople, theologians, and scholars. They lie constantly and have no appreciation for the supreme importance of the truth. The truth is the glue that holds everything together. A lie is a corrosive agent to the glue of truth. And by lies, all things deteriorate to destruction and chaos. Without truth, there can be no trust, justice, safety, love, confidence, or unity.

What is the truth about love?

Is there any objective absolute truth about love? For most of us, love is affection and can easily be detached from the absolute moral truth contained in the Bible. But is it possible to really love without telling the truth? I do not believe it, nor do I believe the Word of God teaches this. Yet many do think that love can be or should be detached from truth-telling or a transcendent moral standard. More and more Christians are gay affirming and see nothing wrong with premarital sex. Affection trumps the absolute moral truth that these behaviors are sinful in the eyes of God. Are these not examples of when love (affection) is vile love?

Parents often fail to discipline their children and mistake that for biblical love, when in reality, it is merely parental affection. But parental affection is a natural feeling that we are born with, and is not the whole truth about love. The Biblical discipline of children is love in action. It is much more than mere affection. Enabling bad behavior in your children, at any age, is unloving, notwithstanding intense feelings of parental affection.

To tell a person who is living in sin that God loves them unconditionally, even if they never clean up their act, is not love. It is to lie to them and deceive them. And it reveals that we do not care about them or love them like God loves them. It suggests that we either dislike them or care nothing about them at all. Accepting or rejecting truth has eternal consequences if you are a Bible believing Christian. The Bible must be the only standard for truth and morality. It is absolutely authoritative in God’s moral universe.

What does the Word of God say about truth and love?

The unconditional love of God is sounded forth in many churches today as if God were a sentimental fool like most of us. You would think that love is God’s most important attribute, but is that true? I do not believe it.

In the four gospels, is the love of God mentioned even once? The answer is that it is mentioned only once in the four Gospels. Imagine that. The love of God is mentioned just once in the four gospels. The way some pastors preach, one might think that the unconditional love of God is present in every verse of Scripture in the four Gospels. The love of God is not mentioned even once in the gospels of Matthew, Mark, and Luke. Interesting truth is it not?

Does that mean the love of God is unimportant? Of course not. But it does mean that the truth is the glue that holds all of God’s attributes together. These gospels reveal the truth about Jesus Christ and His role in the redemption of mankind. In John 3:16, the love of God is mentioned once to convey the truth that God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son to make atonement for our sin. But this chapter in the gospel of John also states that there are conditions that we must meet before the love of God will save us from an eternity in hell.

 Therefore, it is accurate to say that the four Gospels do not focus on the love of God, but instead on the truth. The focus is on the truth about us, about God and His will and laws, and the truth about the only way we can be reconciled to God, whom we have offended greatly by our habitual sin.

The truth is not just a primary theme in the New Testament; it is a pervasive theme throughout the Old Testament. For instance, in Exodus 34:6 it reads, “And the LORD passed by before him…..The LORD God, merciful and gracious, longsuffering, and abundant in goodness and truth.” God is abundant in truth because He is the truth. He is not one of many truths. He is the one and only truth. And the truth about God is that He is merciful, gracious, just, holy, long-suffering, and good. God never lies; He always tells the truth. No white or dark lies, no lies ever. It appears that many people rarely tell the truth and often lie. If we were born liars, then lying would not be a sin. And that truth, that we are not born liars, makes lying all the more despicable. It also makes us all the more blameworthy.

“He is the Rock, his work is perfect: for all his ways are judgment: a God of truth and without iniquity. Just and right is he.” Deuteronomy 32:4. Notice that God is the Rock (not Peter). God is perfect because He is the God of truth and without iniquity. God is perfectly good and truthful, not just occasionally, but always. The law and the commandments of God are truthful first, and because of that fact, they are loving. Every word that proceeds out of the mouth of God is perfect and truthful. It would take way too many pages to address even a tenth of what the Old Testament says about the importance of truth.

Let us consider the New Testament gospel of John and what it says about truth and love, and how they work together. In the gospel of John chapter 1, it is said about Jesus (verse 14), “And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us….”. This Word is “full of grace and truth.” In verse 1 of the first chapter, it is written that, “In the beginning was the Word (truth), and the Word (truth) was with God, and the Word (truth) was God”, emphasis added. In this first chapter of the gospel of John, the truth of the deity of Jesus Christ is firmly established. Jesus is the Word of God, and all things have been made through and for Him.

Truth is conveyed or communicated in words, in writing, or verbally. When Scripture says that in the beginning was the Word, it also tells us that in the beginning was the truth. Jesus is both the Word of God and the Truth. Later in John, Jesus will say that He is the truth, the life, and the way. I find it interesting that Jesus never claims to be love, unlike His absolute claim to be the way, the truth, and the life. But we know from scripture, 1 John 4:8 and John 3:16, that God is love. For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten son. Jesus is the Son of God, and greater love hath no man than he lay down his life for his friend, just like Jesus did on the cross for sinners. Love is a sacrifice. The emphasis is on the truth, which gives meaning to the word love.

“That whosoever believeth in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. For God sent not His son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved. He that believeth on him is not condemned: but he that believeth not is condemned already, because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God. And this is the condemnation, that light is come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil. For everyone that doeth evil hateth the light, neither cometh to the light, lest his deeds should be reproved. But he that doeth truth cometh to the light, that his deeds may be made manifest, that they are wrought in God. John 3:15-21. Jesus claims to be the light of the world. Men love darkness (wickedness and lies) rather than light (holiness and truth); therefore, they rejected Him who is light and truth.

Notice that in this section of Chapter 3, the love of God is mentioned only once in the book. You will recall that it is not mentioned even once in the other three gospels. The love of God is mentioned so that it is understood that if men reject the light and refuse to believe in Jesus and repent of their evil deeds, they are already condemned to hell. In love, God provided a way of escape. In truth and love, if this way of escape is not complied with, then only condemnation is left. God does not want anyone to go to hell. Unfortunately, men and women love darkness more than light.

 In verse 21, it is clearly written that those who come to the light (Jesus Christ) live the truth, and their deeds are godly. Yes, God gave us His Son to purge our sins out of His love, but to take advantage of this gift, there are conditions we must meet, such as repentance and faith. In this chapter, we explore the conditional nature of God’s love in the context of salvation. That truth claim is important to grasp.

“God is Spirit and they that worship Him must worship Him in Spirit and in truth.” John 4:24. Why do you think that God did not say that those who worship Him must do so in Spirit and truth, and not mention love? Could it be that love is most often assumed to be affection and something one feels instead of what one does? Truth is essential to worshiping God. Liars, unbelievers, the dishonest, and sinners can’t acceptably worship God, no matter how affectionate they feel towards God.

In verse 26 of chapter 5, Jesus claims to be the Messiah. In Chapter 5, verse 13, Jesus makes Himself equal to God the Father. In chapter 5, Jesus claims that the Father has given all judgment into His hands (verse 22). All should honor Jesus accordingly. And like the Father, Jesus has eternal life in Himself. All of the miraculous works that Jesus did testify to who He is and validate His truth claims. Moreover, the Old Testament speaks of Jesus, for it testifies of Him (John 5:39). Jesus claims that Moses wrote of Him (John 5:46). These absolute truths are critically important to understand and believe. And when we do, our love for Christ will grow based on the truth. Godly affection grows in the truth.

In John chapter six, Jesus claims to be the bread of life, and he who comes to Him will never hunger. He also claimed that the work of God, which people must comply with, is to believe in Jesus Christ (6:29). In verse 6:33, Jesus claims to be the bread of God who came down from heaven and gives life to the whole world. Jesus proclaimed that all who believe in Him have everlasting life (verse 47). In verse 51, Jesus claims to “be the living bread which came down from heaven,” and anyone who “eats of the flesh of the Son of Man (living bread) and drinks his blood” has life in them, verses 51-59. The apostles were questioning these statements about eating His flesh and drinking His blood. Can that be literally what Jesus expects? In verse 63, Jesus clarifies the message, “It is the spirit that quickeneth; the flesh profiteth nothing: the words that I speak unto you, they are spirit and they are life.” When we ‘eat and drink’ the truth, we are feasting on the Word, who is Jesus Christ. If the flesh profits nothing, then it must be talking about the truth satisfying a spiritual hunger. Many left Jesus because of this saying. Jesus asked if his closest disciples would also leave Him. Peter responded, ‘Lord, you have the words of life (truth) and we believe you are the Christ; to whom should we go?’.

In John chapter 7, Jesus said that if anyone is thirsty, they should come to Him and drink of the water He gives. We should drink ‘Jesus’ for He is the Word of Truth, and the Word of Truth is living water. Living water satisfies a spiritual thirst. In Chapter 8, Jesus claims to be the light of the world (verse 12). He told them that they would die in their sins if they did not believe that God sent him as their Messiah.

In chapter 8, it is written, “Then said Jesus to those Jews which believed on him, if ye continue in my word, then are ye my disciples indeed; and you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free,” verses 31, 32. To be a disciple of Jesus Christ, one must continue in His word or continue in the truth. The Jews said that they were not enslaved to anyone (I guess they forgot about the Roman Empire that they were in fact serving!), so how could Jesus set them free? In verse 34, Jesus explains to them that “whosoever committeth sin is the servant of sin.” They were living in habitual sin and were servants of sin, needing to be set free from that bondage. But they did not believe they were sinners. If the Son of God shall make you free, you shall be free indeed, verse 36. The truth, and only the truth, will set us free. There is no salvation without the truth. There is no salvation outside of Jesus Christ, who is the way, the truth, and the life.

Later in this chapter, “Jesus said unto them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Before Abraham was born, I am,” verse 58. Abraham lived around 1800 years before Jesus Christ came to earth. Realizing this was a clear claim to be the God of the burning bush, who had revealed Himself to Moses as the great “I am,” they picked up stones to cast at Him, verse 59.

In John 9:5, Jesus claims to be the light of the world. He then gave sight to a blind man (who had lived in darkness) who was born blind. In chapter 10, Jesus claims to be the door of the sheep (verse 7) and the Good Shepherd of the sheep (verse 11). The good shepherd gives his life for the sheep. Jesus also said that He has other sheep not of the Jewish fold, Gentiles. Later in Chapter 10, Jesus says, “I and the Father are one” (verse 30). Everyone knew this was a claim to be equal with God Almighty.

In chapter 11, Jesus raises Lazarus from the dead. In verse 25, “Jesus said unto her, I am the resurrection, and the life: he that believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live”. The Jews plotted on how to kill Jesus because if they did not murder Him, the whole world would believe in Him and follow Him and not them, verse 48.

In John 14:6, “Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father but by me.” Jesus, the Word and Truth, did not say to them that He was a way, a truth, or a life, but the only way, truth, and life. What else would God, who created all things, say? Anything less than that would indicate that it is not God.

Jesus then begins to tell them that He will send the Spirit of truth to them (verse 17), who is their Comforter, and He will never leave them. The Holy Ghost will teach them all things and bring to their remembrance, whatever Jesus taught, verse 26. Moreover, Jesus states that only those who keep His commandments love Him (verses 22-24). These will then be loved by the Father as well as Jesus because of their loving obedience to their savior. The truth about loving God is that it must produce obedience to His will and laws, or it is not love, but it might be affection. Even today, after 2,000 years, this message remains misunderstood or unheeded. Many Christians believe that obedience is ultimately optional. They believe they can love God and not habitually obey Him, yet still go to heaven. They have believed a lie that will cost them eternal life. We can now see why Jesus emphasized the truth over love. Love is easily misunderstood.

In John chapter 15:1, Jesus says, “I am the true vine and my Father is the husbandman.” His followers are to abide in the vine, which is Jesus. Keeping His commandments is required to abide in Him, the true vine. Jesus said the following, “As the Father hath loved me, so have I loved you: continue ye in my love” verse 9. In verse 10, it reads, “If ye keep my commandments ye shall abide in my love; even as I have kept my Father’s commandments, and abide in His love.” Jesus then commands his followers to love one another verse 17. In verses 13 and 14, Jesus said we are His friends if we do whatever He commands us to do.

For the hard of hearing, Jesus made it ever so clear that to abide in His love, we must keep His commandments. Jesus also told us to “continue in His love.” If His love is unconditional, then telling His followers to “abide in His love and to continue in His love” makes no sense at all. But Jesus was telling us that we must keep His commandments to continue in His love and to abide in Him. If we do not keep His commandments, yet abide in Him and continue in His love, then Jesus is not telling us the truth. Do you believe that Jesus (the way, the truth, and the life) is a liar? I do not think it.

In chapter 16 of John, we are told that, “Howbeit when he (Holy Ghost), the Spirit of truth, is come he will guide you into all truth: for he will not speak of himself; but whatsoever he shall hear, that shall he speak: and he will show you things to come.” The Holy Ghost is called the Spirit of truth, not the Spirit of love. Why is that? Only the truth tells us the difference between true love and false love.

In chapter 17:17, we read of Jesus’ prayer for his disciples, “Sanctify them through thy truth: thy word is truth.” We are sanctified through the truth, not through love, not even the love of God. Could it be that without a proper understanding and definition of love, it will be misused? We need to know the truth about love as it relates to God, others, and morality. The idea and feelings associated with love are insufficient to tell us the truth about the love that God requires. More on this as we look at vile affection in Romans chapter one.

In Chapter 18, we read of Peter’s denial of the truth to Jesus three times. Jesus then stands before Pilate and says the following to Pilate in verses 36-38, “My kingdom is not of this world……Pilate therefore saith unto him, art thou the king of the Jews then? Jesus answered, thou sayest that I am a king. To this end was I born, and for this cause came I into the world, that I should bear witness to the truth. Every one that is of the truth heareth my voice. Pilate saith unto him, What is the truth? And when he had said this, he went out again unto the Jews, and saith unto them, I find no fault in him”, emphasis added.

It would be beneficial to consider the underlying portion of scripture. “To this end was I born, and for this cause came I into the world, that I should bear witness to the truth. Everyone who is of the truth heareth my voice.” Jesus is telling us the truth about His purpose in coming down from heaven, from His lips. He said that He came into this world to bear witness to the truth.

Notice what He did not say. He did not say that He came to save us from just the penalty of our sins, which He did. He did not say that He came to save us from the slavery of sin, which He did. He did not say that He came to save us because He loved us so much, which He did. He could have said all those things, but He did not. Why do you think He said what He said? He said He came to earth to bear witness to the truth. Could it be that the most critical need in the human race was for someone to tell us the truth?

In the beginning was the truth (Word), and the truth (Word) was with God and the truth (Word) was God. Do you know why God is holy? Because He is the absolute truth. Do you know why God is just? Because he is the absolute truth. Do you know why God is impartial? Because He is the absolute truth. Truth is the most potent force in the entire universe. It is more powerful than all the hydrogen bombs in the world.

Summary of the gospel of John as it pertains to the truth and the love of God

Truth is mentioned many times more than the love of God. The love of God is mentioned only once, while truth is a significant theme of this gospel.

 In the beginning was the Word or the Truth. And the Word was with God, and the Word was God. Jesus is the Word and Truth of God. We must listen to Jesus. He is the very Word and Truth about God and everything else in the universe. What exactly does Jesus say about Himself, His role, and His purpose? Here are a few critically important truths that Jesus claims about Himself:

1. Everyone who loves the truth embraces Jesus Christ, the Holy Ghost, and God the Father at the same time;
2. To love Jesus is to keep His commandments;
3. We are to abide in the vine (Jesus) and continue in the love of Jesus, that love is conditional as is abiding in His love;
4. Jesus is the light of the world;
5. Jesus is the bread of God and the bread of life;
6. Jesus is the resurrection and the life;
7. Jesus has eternal life abiding in Himself;
8. Jesus is the door of the sheep and the Good Shepherd;
9. Jesus is the final judge of the universe;
10. Jesus is eternal, “before Abraham was born, I am”, said Jesus;
11. Those who worship God must worship Him in Spirit and truth.
12. Jesus is the one and only way, the one and only truth, and the one and only life. There are not multiple ways to heaven; there is only one way, a very exclusive way. No one comes to the Father but by Jesus Christ. Not any Jesus, but the Jesus who revealed the truth in scripture about Himself and His purpose. Even today, there are many Christs but only one true Christ.
13. Jesus, the Word and Truth, will set us free from the bondage of sin. We shall know the truth, and the truth will set us free. The Word does not say that love will set us free, but only the truth will do that. Most Christians, I fear, incorrectly believe that the love of affection will set us free. Could that explain why there is so much enabling going on? When affection is detached from truth and genuine love, people often help those in bondage to sin to remain in the bondage of sin, rather than freeing them from the slavery of sin.

Final remarks about the gospel of John

          If the many truth claims that Jesus Christ made are not absolute truth, then the following must be true. The claims of Jesus Christ are,

1) lies,

2) half-truths,

3) aspirational thoughts, or,

4) The ravings of a madman.

But the truth claims made by Jesus Christ are absolute, not relative or situational. His truth claims are the most essential information and knowledge possible. Can you think of anything else that is so important? Without the absolute truth, taught by Jesus Christ, we would never know what we must learn to be saved and how to please God.

Without the absolute truth;

• We might mistakenly believe that love is mere affection, and it is not. Biblical love is a choice. It is a decision to live in a way that pleases God and treats others as we wish to be treated.
• We might mistakenly believe that Christian unity comes from compromise. It often does, but that is a grave error. Only in truth is there godly unity.
• We would never know much about the One who created the universe, and that this did not happen by random chance over long ages. Without this truth, we may believe in the myth of evolution and the origins of life without God.
• We would not understand what is actually true about God, His laws, and His will. Every man and woman would have their own idea of truth and God, which is idolatry, resulting in the kind of chaos we are experiencing today.

Why should we trust in the words of Jesus Christ?

Jesus Christ fulfilled many Old Testament prophecies at His first Advent with outstanding accuracy. He came down from heaven to bring eternal life to humanity. He came down to get the absolute truth. While on earth, Jesus healed all kinds of diseases and defects to validate His claims. He performed many miracles, and He rose from the dead as evidence of the truth of His message. He gave the world a visible demonstration of the absolute truth about God, ourselves, and every other crucial moral subject. His words, His works, and sinless life provide ample evidence of the absolute truth claims He made and that we can and must trust. We do not need to imagine and speculate about what God is like (which is idolatry). The teachings of Christ give us the absolute truth about God. If you know Jesus, you know the Father. To create a Jesus in our mind is idolatry and will send us to hell. If you and I are willfully ignorant of the absolute truth, we have no excuse. The Jesus Christ of the Roman Catholic Church, the Mormon Church, the Jehovah’s Witness Church, many Protestant Churches, and Islam is not the Jesus Christ that is revealed to us in the Word of God. (Some of these churches/religions are closer to the truth than others.) That is why the truth is essential. By the truth, we know what we must understand about God and what it means to love God.

The Book of Romans, the preeminence of the truth

In Romans chapter 1, we are told that unsaved humanity holds the truth in unrighteousness.

 “For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who hold the truth in unrighteousness; because that which may be known of God is manifest in them: for God hath shewed it unto them. For the invisible things of Him from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even His eternal power and Godhead; so that they are without excuse.” Romans 1:18-20.

The truth that God created the universe is known by all people, according to this absolute truth claim. It is not something we must figure out on our own. But because we are so selfish, we hold the truth in unrighteousness. Truth must be held in righteousness; we must comply with the dictates of truth. Before we get right with God, we refuse to let the truth direct our thinking and actions. That is why we are without excuse. For if we did not know this absolute truth, then God would never hold us accountable. But God says He put this truth within us. God is the most reasonable and just person imaginable.

 We all know the truth, but many lie and say they do not. Atheists are adamant that they do not believe in God and that God doesn’t exist. Agnostics say that they do not know if God exists. God says both groups are liars. They lie to themselves and everyone else they talk to about such matters. Beginning with this foundational lie, the progression into all manner of wickedness is ineluctable. The rest of Romans chapter one describes this descent into depravity most clearly. And it all starts with the denial of the absolute truth that God is the creator.

This is what the Bible says about these sinners, “Who changed the truth of God into a lie, and worshipped and served the creature more than the Creator, who is blessed forever. Amen.” Romans 1:25. They changed the truth of God into a lie. We either live in truth and righteousness, or we live in a lie and sin. That lie leads to some form of idolatry.

But it gets much worse. “For this cause God gave them up unto vile affections; for even their women did change the natural use into that which is against nature. And likewise also the men, leaving the natural use of the woman, burned in their lust one towards another: men with men working that which is unseemly, and receiving in themselves that recompense of their error which was meet.” Romans 1:26, 27, emphasis added. When a culture and its people reject the absolute truth of the Creator, there is a progression downward into wickedness, evidenced by increased idolatry and homosexuality.

Vile affection is vile love.

This passage states, “For this cause God gave them up unto vile affections.” What does the word vile mean? Vile is wretchedly deviant, highly offensive, repulsive, disgusting, morally debased, and morally depraved. “Vile affection” in this passage is about homosexuality.

But we are constantly told that homosexuals love their partner just like heterosexual couples love each other. No one doubts that truth, but the affection of homosexuals toward each other is vile, according to the word of God. In this case, worldly love and affection is not Biblical love. Vile affections are the judgment and wrath of a holy and righteous God. Vile affection is a curse and not a blessing because it is prohibited by God. Many Christians, and the population at large, think all affection is love and is therefore good. But from a Biblical point of view, some affection (love) is vile and morally disgusting and morally depraved. (This passage specifically calls homosexual affection or love vile. In other places in scripture God condemns fornication, adultery and other sinful sexual expressions. All these prohibited sexual encounters are vile affections, which is vile love.)

What about other Bible translations for verse 26 and the phrase, “vile affections”?

• The NIV uses this phrase, “shameful lusts” instead of “vile affections”.
• The ESV uses this phrase, “dishonorable passions.”
• The Message Bible is very pathetic and the verse reads as follows. “Worse followed. Refusing to know God, they soon didn’t know how to be human either-women didn’t know how to be a women, men didn’t know how to be men.”  Did I mention how pathetic this translation is? I would never use it.
• The NASB uses the phrase, “degrading passions.”
• The NKJV uses this phrase, “vile passions.”
• The New Living Translation uses this phrase, “shameful desires.”
• Other translations use “degrading lust” and “evil passions.”

Only the KJV of the Bible uses the expression, “vile affections.” Why is that important? All the rest of the translations make it appear that this is all about transactional lust and not about affection or love, which is vile in God’s sight. Not all “love” is good, holy and acceptable to God. The emotions, feelings and affection (love) of two homosexuals is vile in God’s sight. It is disordered and degrading even if it was never consummated sexually. It is not what God intended for the same sex. This is a critical distinction. That is another reason why use the KJV.

There is no doubt in my mind that our culture primarily defines love as affection. Unfortunately, many Christians hold the same view. They think of love as affection primarily, which includes strong emotions and feelings. That is why we hear it said that ‘love is love’ and that ‘all love is good’. That is a half-truth, which is a whole-lie, meant to deceive. What some call love is not true love at all. According to the word of God that kind of love is vile affection. The rest of Romans Chapter one describes the decent into depravity that follows rejecting absolute truth and adopting a lie.

 Sinful mankind holds the truth (knows the truth) in unrighteousness. They are not ignorant of it. God then says that they are without excuse. They are without excuse in the present. And they are without excuse in the future time of final judgment. Some day they will stand before God and give and account for their lives. All their excuses will burn up with them. God doesn’t believe in atheists or agnostics. There is no such thing in the mind of God, according to this passage in Roman chapter 1. And atheists and agnostics are not being honest with themselves or anyone else, for God says they know the truth but refuse its dictates. I do not know about you, but I believe the Word of God notwithstanding the advice of atheists such as Christopher Hitchins and Richard Dawkins.

Our enemies of truth and love: Who should we be most concerned with?

Our battle is not just with atheists, who are wolves that look like wolves. Our bigger battles are with wolves in sheep’s clothing. And even worse, we have our struggle with wolves, who disguise themselves as shepherds. These wolves are those scholars and theologians who alter the Word of Truth, based on their ego-driven, depraved minds.  Wolves in shepherd’s clothing tell their sheep that if they refuse to repent of their sins, they will lose a few rewards in the process, but they will still go to heaven. These are the wolves in shepherd’s clothing, who merchandize the gospel of truth for mammon. These are the wolves/shepherds who preach almost exclusively on the unconditional love of God. These are the wolves/shepherds who tell their sheep that there are no conditions to salvation. These wolves/shepherds may even embrace woke Christianity and adopt gay friendly and gay affirming outreaches in their churches. They change the truth of God for a lie. Lies masquerading as truth are relative, situational, and subjective.

A Google search of Romans 1:26, 27, and you will find lots of wolves in shepherd’s clothing attempting to justify same sex attraction, gay lifestyles, gay affection, and gay marriage. It is very sad and very upsetting to know that so many “Christians” are misled and deceived by these wolves in shepherd’s clothing, who lie about the truth of God’s word, condemning homosexuality and homosexual affection (love). Real Christians love homosexuals enough to tell them the truth, even if it offends them and hurts their feelings. Real Christians love their enemies and do want to see them in hell. That is why they tell the truth, to save them.

These wolves in shepherd’s clothing are Christian leaders who compromise truth for the sake of false unity. Many Christian leaders of yesterday and today often compromise the truth to demonstrate their inclusivity. We have evangelicals, charismatics, and Pentecostal leaders (the late Billy Graham, Dr. James Dobson, Rick Warren, and Eric Metaxas, to mention a few names) embracing the lies of the Roman Catholic Church, the Mormon Church, Islam, and the deception of ecumenism. Add to that the big names in Christianity who are woke and embrace same sex beliefs. There can be no God blessed unity without the truth.

Only those who love the truth will be saved!

“And with all deceivableness of unrighteousness in them that perish; because they received not the love of the truth, that they might be saved. And for this cause God shall send on them strong delusion, that they should believe a lie: that they all might be damned who believed not the truth, but had pleasure in unrighteousness.” 2 Thessalonians 2:10-12. There are dire consequences when anyone refuses to face the truth and believes a lie. Lies let us live anyway we want and believe anything we desire. That is why lies are so appealing and prevalent. When a person does this, God sends on them “strong delusion” that they should believe even more lies. Is this not the perfect description of our culture today? It is mind-boggling to see the madness and utter insanity of the elite in our institutions, especially politics and religion. This is all part of the wrath of God being currently poured out on this nation. Everyone who prefers the pleasures of unrighteousness to the love of the truth will be damned, according to this word from God. Could it be any clearer?

The absolute truth about love is that the love God requires to enter heaven is the love that is obedient to His law and His will. His salvific love is conditional. It is not unconditional, no matter how often you are told the lie that God’s salvific love is unconditional. Many preachers leave the false impression that the love of God is His overlooking and excusing our sins. Given that sad fact, it is not hard to believe that many “Christians” embrace universal salvation (everyone goes to heaven eventually) when the lie of unconditional love is constantly preached. Can you conceive of a God who loves everyone unconditionally, sending anyone to hell?

Biblical love is much more than affection and feeling. It is the choice of righteousness and godliness, even when our desires and lusts pull us in the opposite direction. Love is always truthful, and truth is always loving, even when its delivery is sloppy and offensive. We are told to speak the truth in love. There is no tension between the two.

More passages to consider about the meaning of love

             1 John 3:18 says, “My little children, let us not love in word, neither in tongue; but in deed and in truth.” What does the apostle mean? Let me give you a couple of clues.

             First clue. “And every man that hath this hope in him purifieth himself, even as he is pure.” 1 John 3:3. Someday we will see Him as He is. That is the hope that believers have, and that hope will make us pure and holy in our walk, just as Jesus was pure and sinless in His walk.

             Second clue. “Whosoever abideth in him sinneth not; whosoever sinneth hath not seen him, neither known him. Little children, let no man deceive you: he that doeth righteousness is righteous, even as he is righteous. He that committeth sin is of the devil; for the devil sinneth from the beginning. For this purpose the Son of God was manifested, that he might destroy the works of the devil. Whosoever is born of God doth not commit sin;……In this the children of God are manifest, and the children of the devil: whosoever doeth not righteousness is not of God, neither he that loveth not his brother.” 1 John 3:6-10. John is telling followers of Jesus Christ that sin is the exception in the life of a true Christian, not the rule. The rule for a real Christian is righteousness. If our life is characterized by habitual sin, we belong to the devil, not Jesus Christ. We may call ourselves Christians, and your pastor may tell you that you are a Christian, but until your profession of faith resembles what the apostle John says is true of the one born of God, you are deceived and are lost. I know that applies to me. Do you believe it applies to you?

             The Christian Church in the USA is full of unsaved and backslidden ‘believers’. This is what John meant when he said, “let us not love in word, or tongue, but in deed and in truth”. It is a scarce thing to find a pastor who believes and teaches these truths. This is what true love, true faith, and true conversion look like. Listen to Jesus and John.

             Way too many ‘Christians’ love in feelings, affections, and flattery, and not in deeds of righteousness, without habitual sin, and in truth. Remember that Jesus said, “If you love Me, keep My commandments”.

          A large volume might be written describing all the many truths revealed to us in the remainder of the New Testament. These are words of absolute truth that we would not know if God had not revealed them to us.

Let me mention a few other critically important absolute truths that are currently under attack.

Faith alone saves, but saving faith is never alone. Saving faith is never without goodworks and obedience to God’s will. Many professing Christians today believe that a faith, without obedience to the law of God, saves them. That is not what the Bible teaches. Faith without works is dead, and faith without obedience is dead. Biblical love is characterized by obedience to God’s will. Multitudes of Christians want a God (idol) who saves them while they remain disobedient to Him.

How to pray? Jesus taught us how to pray, yet many still violate His commands today. “But when ye pray, use not repetitions, as the heathen do; for they think that they shall be heard for their much speaking.” Matthew 6:7, KJV. The Amplified Bible writes this, “do not heap up phrases (multiply words, repeating the same ones over and over) as the Gentiles do, for they think they will be heard for their much speaking.”

 The pagan Gentiles use repetitive prayers (and eastern meditation), thinking they will connect with God by the volume of their words. Even today, we have Christian leaders in the Evangelical, Pentecostal, and Charismatic churches teaching Christians to use Contemplative Praying techniques such as ‘meditation’ using vain repetition while praying until they have a spiritual experience. These may include visions and physical manifestations of varying kinds. Some also use visualization and repetitive praying or mantras. This heathen practice dates back to well before the time of Jesus Christ, to around 1500 BC. Hinduism, Buddhism, and other pagan religions have employed this method to connect with the spiritual realm and have spiritual experiences. Some of it is occult, according to some writers. This is why Jesus told His disciples not to use pagan methods to pray to God.

Roman Catholic and other Christian faith traditions, including the International House of Prayer (IHOP), are utilizing Eastern meditation, repetitive prayers, and visualization to connect with God and the spiritual realm. Contemplative prayer and visualization, which have pagan origins, are gaining popularity even among evangelicals. They are deceiving many. This helps explain why Charismatics and Pentecostals are embracing the Roman Catholic Church, where pagan practices of prayer have been going on for many centuries. Praying to Mary and dead saints, using repetitive prayers, is commonplace. Visions of Mary are sometimes experienced. Apparitions of Mary happen all over the globe, it seems. There is also a lusting after physical manifestations, signs, and experiences. I recall Jesus saying that it is an evil generation that seeks after a sign. Are Christians today falling into that same trap? The bottom line is that experience and feelings trump truth, which is a grave error and opens us up to deceiving spirits and doctrines of demons.

Jesus Christ came to suffer and die once for the sins of humanity. He did just that, once for all sin. His suffering and death are never to be repeated, like the daily sacrifices and offerings contained in the Mosaic Laws. (See Hebrews chapters 7, 9, and 10). Yet, the Roman Catholic Church demands that Catholic’s believe that Jesus Christ, in the sacrifice of the mass, dies many times every day, all over the world, when a Catholic priest says the mass. Who are you going to believe? Are you going to believe the Word of God or the Word of the Catholic Church? One is dead wrong.

All of the New Testament is written about the absolute preeminence of Jesus Christ. He is our High Priest, and His priesthood is superior to all who came before Him. He is above Moses and the angels. He is a priest according to the order of Melchisedec. Jesus gives us the New Covenant. He is the one and only mediator of the New Testament.

There is salvation in no other name. And that most assuredly includes the name of Mary. Mary has no part in our salvation, past, present, or future. All that the Roman Catholic Church teaches regarding Mary is unbiblical and false. We should not pray to Mary. She has no power to forgive sins, answer prayers, intercede for us, or give us grace. We should not venerate and worship her. We should not look to Mary to intercede for us before God the Father. That is Jesus’s role. Mary is not the primary conduit of grace and truth; Jesus is. Mary was not conceived immaculately. She was not ever virgin, she and Joseph had several other children. The Bible says very little about Mary because the focus of the Old and New Testaments is on Jesus Christ, not Mary.

Any religion that takes the focus off Jesus Christ of the Bible is false. Any belief system that contradicts the truths revealed to us in scripture is false. That absolute truth makes the religion of Islam, the Jehovah’s Witness denomination, the Mormon Church, and the Roman Catholic Church, and even some Protestant Churches false systems, for all of these deny critically important Biblical truth about Jesus Christ. They have a different Jesus Christ. Only the absolute truth allows us to separate lies from the truth revealed to us in scripture.

             The only reason Jesus Christ faced opposition is that people, especially Jewish leaders, did not want to hear the truth. He came to reveal the truth to the whole world about their lost state and the good news of His plan of redemption. He came to reveal the truth about the one true God. He came to get us to repent of our sins and idolatry. From the beginning, humans have envisioned a god (or idol) that meets their desires and needs. Jesus rebuked them, and they hated Him for it. That explains why our world hates hearing the truth. They do not want to be told that their deeds are evil and that if they don’t repent, they will die in their sins. Anyone who tells them that is hateful, according to them. But real Christians know that biblical love requires us to tell them the truth, even when they hate us for it.

             The author, Rod Dreher, in his book, “Live Not By Lies, A Manual for Christian Dissidents”, has a chapter titled “Value Nothing More Than the Truth.” The message of this article is that there is nothing more important and more valuable than the truth.

             Dreher discusses the lives of great men and women who lived by the truth and refused to accept the lies that their governments around the world forced them to live by. Alexander Solzhenitsyn and Vaclav Havel were two such men. Their refusal to accept the lies and propaganda of their government cost them dearly. Their governments were hardcore totalitarianism, while the soft-core totalitarianism of the West is just as dangerous. It will become hardcore soon enough. If we do not speak out and against the propaganda and lies of our leaders in government, education, science, religion, and every other area of life, we will lose more of our freedoms. Free speech is almost gone. Freedom of religion is under threat. While rioting for social justice occurs in the West, our court system and the Department of Justice look and act like something out of Stalin’s Soviet Union. This is what it looks like when lies, not truth, prevail in the land. Think of the Crusades and the Roman Catholic Church’s 600-plus year Inquisition as well when you think of lies, not truth, prevailing.

             Dreher recounts the story of a husband and wife, Vladimir Grygorenko and his wife, Olga Rusanova, who reside in Ukraine and immigrated to the United States in 2000. They grew up in a culture of lies. In school, they learned very early never to tell the teacher what they thought. They were taught always to tell the communists what they wanted to hear. This, they say, deforms thinking and is very difficult to overcome. This partly explains why we are losing our freedoms in the West. The progressive viewpoint on all subjects is forced on our children and parents as well through such initiatives as DEI. DEI is in all public schools, most businesses, and way too many Christian denominations. We have leaders who tell us that we can choose our gender. And they want children to be able to choose their gender as soon as possible. They want us to support the mutilation of children based on their lies. And they will rail against and try to punish anyone who might disagree. That is just one example of the left’s lies. Valdimir is concerned about what he sees in our nation among “younger Americans, who are increasingly intolerant of dissenting opinion. Ggrygorenko sees this as a sign that society prefers the false peace of conformity to the tensions of liberty. To grow indifferent, even hostile, to free speech is suicidal for a free people,” page 103 and 104. He makes an excellent point.

             The author relates the story of a young woman who, at the age of 20, refused the lies of the communist government of the Soviet Union during their occupation of Hungary. She was a hero of the 1956 Hungarian Revolution. In the Soviet court of injustice, she was found guilty and sentenced to death. That sentence was later commuted. For her refusal to submit to the lies of communism, she was tortured and imprisoned for many years. All this because she refused to live in lies and spoke the truth. She weighed less than one hundred pounds by the time she was released from prison. She said, “That a broken body is a price worth paying for a strong and undefiled spirit.” Page 104. She paid a great price for the truth and refused to bow to lies. “You have to live in a world of lies, but it’s your choice as to whether that world lives in you.” Amen! How many Americans and Christians love the truth that much? If only many more did.

             In the USA, we live in the dictatorship of lies and propaganda of the progressives, the political elite, secularists, and the administrative state. Many of us, as conservatives and Christians, recognize the truth of this. But few of us are ready and willing to confront the lies because it might cost us something. The longer we remain silent and inactive, the higher the cost increases each week. The cover of Dreher’s book states, “Too many of us are sleeping through the erosion of our freedoms, assuming that totalitarianism can’t happen in America.” His book is about equipping dissidents and the resistance to take a stand for the truth and to refuse lies and propaganda. To stand for truth is to stand for Christ.

             The history of the world is blessed with those heroes and martyrs who believed the truth was the ultimate prize and were willing to suffer and die to defend it. Speak the truth in love.

             This subject has particular interest for me. Many years ago, it was the pursuit of absolute truth that eventually led me to the Bible. Even in my unregenerate state, I never doubted that there was a one true God, but I had no firm conviction as to who He was. My life was a very godless existence. Although I grew up in a religious home, I never recall reading the Bible. I never remember anyone in my family reading or discussing the Bible. Even as an evil person, I knew there must be absolute truth because the God who created everything must be absolute in all things. That made sense to me then and still does today. Before I turned to the Bible, I read many other books about how everything came to be and about the unexplained. I even looked into and practiced Eastern religions. I was particularly interested in truth, and the Word of God has satisfied that hunger and thirst. When we know the truth, the truth will set us free. Praise God for that tremendous blessing.

             1 Corinthians 13:6, “charity (love) rejoiceth not in iniquity, but rejoiceth in the truth.”