Should Truth Hurt?

We’ve gotten real good at speaking our minds. Talking straight. Keepin’ it real. Telling it like it is.

We’ve gotten really bad at doing it with any sort of decorum.

“The truth hurts, doesn’t it, Hapsburg? Oh sure, maybe not as much as landing on a bicycle with the seat missing, but it hurts!” —Frank Drebin (The Naked Gun 2 1/2)

I blame social media. And I blame reality TV, which finds the more outspoken, outlandish characters, builds a show around them, and presents us the new norm on how we are to talk and interact with people.

We just say what’s on our minds—the “truth” as we see it—and even worse, we do it with little regard for being loving and graceful. And why should we? After all, what does the old cliché say? Truth hurts.

But should truth hurt?

Whatever happened to love and grace? Consider what John said about Jesus:

“The Word became flesh and took up residence among us. We observed His glory, the glory as the One and Only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth” (John 1:14).

I appreciate John’s own personal experience with Jesus. He was not just writing theologically about Jesus; he knew from personal experiences that Jesus is full of grace and truth.

Full of truth. In my life as a follower of Jesus, I am thoroughly convinced that the truth lies in Jesus. No other worldview, philosophy, or religious system holds water compared to seeing life through the lense of the truth of Jesus.
Full of grace. I am also convinced that Jesus is full of grace. His Spirit confirms in my spirit that I am free from sin, guilt, condemnation, and everything else I fully deserve. I am totally a product of His grace.

Since Jesus is full of grace and truth, then I should be too.

“Therefore, be imitators of God, as dearly loved children” (Eph. 5:1).

My life is to be full of grace and truth as well. Jesus is the truth (John 14:6) and He is the full embodiment of grace, but I want to increasingly display the grace and truth of Jesus.

I want to live with truth, in full integrity.
I want to be honest about who I am, including my failures and weaknesses.
I want to stand on the truth of who Jesus is, what He’s done, and what He is doing in my life.
I want to show grace to everyone even as Christ has shown grace to me.

I’ve come a long way in my journey as a Christian, but I’ve still got a long way to go. Yet even in my struggles to fully impart grace to others, Jesus is gracious to me!