There seems to be an ongoing controversy within Christianity when it comes to truth and love. One section of Christianity seems to emphasise truth, while another section places emphasis on love. Those who advocate for love often criticise those who emphasise truth, saying that people who focus solely on truth can sometimes be indifferent and even prideful. On the other hand, those who emphasise truth often criticise those who focus on love, claiming they don’t care about doctrine, theology, or soundness, and that they are driven primarily by emotions.

This controversy in Christianity is not only unfortunate—it is unbiblical. When we come honestly to the Scriptures, we see that truth and love are interconnected. Truth without love is dead, just as love without truth is dead. Truth and love are not separate virtues that a Christian can pick and choose between; rather, they are two sides of the same coin and the fruit of the Spirit.

In his second epistle, John gives a message that powerfully intertwines truth and love. He tells us that he loves “the elect lady and her children,” and that the other Christians also love this church and its congregants in truth and love. John writes that Jesus Christ is the Son of the Father “in truth and love.” So, any theology, any doctrine, or any practice that separates truth from love is not only erroneous but contrary to the testimony of Scripture. It’s essential for Christians to understand what truth and love are, as defined by the Bible.

The world, however, has its own definitions of truth and love, which often make their way into the church. Many churches, instead of being shaped by Scripture, adopt these worldly definitions, reinterpreting truth and love according to the standards of society. Let’s briefly examine, through the words of the Apostle John, what biblical truth and biblical love really are.

Biblical Love

The key passage on biblical love is found in 1 John 4:7–12. Let’s look at the passage (NKJV):

“Beloved, let us love one another, for love is of God; and everyone who loves is born of God and knows God. He who does not love does not know God, for God is love. In this, the love of God was manifested toward us, that God has sent His only begotten Son into the world, that we might live through Him. In this is love, not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son to be the propitiation for our sins. Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. No one has seen God at any time. If we love one another, God abides in us, and His love has been perfected in us” (1 John 4:7–12 NKJV).

There are many things we could say about this passage, but it can help our minds and hearts to limit it to a few observations to give us a structured view of biblical love. So, there are two main observations I want to highlight here:

1. Biblical Love is Sacrificial

Biblical love is sacrificial. We cannot understand love apart from God, as He is the One who has revealed love to us. When we see God’s manifestation of love, we see that it is sacrificial by nature. This stands in sharp contrast to the world’s concept of love. The world’s love is transactional, not sacrificial. Worldly love exists as long as something is offered in exchange; it gives with the expectation of receiving something in return. In contrast, God’s love is sacrificial and unconditional. It gives without expecting to receive anything in return, and its sole aim is to benefit the person receiving it.

We see this perfectly in God Himself, who sacrificed His only Son, the one He loves, for the benefit of the church, that we might be saved. We see it also in Jesus Christ, who gave Himself to die on the cross because of His love for the church. Both the Father and the Son gave sacrificially, without expecting anything in return from those who would benefit from their love. They gave unconditionally, embodying true sacrificial love.

Furthermore, biblical sacrificial love gives from what is precious, not from what is abundant. In human love, we often give what is common or easy to spare. But in divine love, we give what is most valuable. God didn’t choose something from creation to offer for the church; He gave His only begotten Son, the most precious One to Him, in exchange for a people who did not deserve such love. This is the depth of biblical love—sacrificial by nature, not transactional, as is the love of the world.

2. Biblical Love is Divine

When we read about sacrificial love, we may feel the burden of trying to fulfil it. How can we be sacrificial in our love? How can we love others in this way? The answer is simple: it is impossible in our own strength. Biblical love, sacrificial in nature, is not human love; it is divine love. Only God, who is love, can produce such love in us.

If we want to love in this way, we must first receive God’s love by abiding in Him. John’s passage tells us, “We love because He first loved us.” This love is divine and originates with God Himself. We can only manifest it when we have first received it through faith in Jesus Christ. When we truly know the love of God through Jesus, we are then able to reflect that love to others. Our love for others is meant to be a reflection and an outflow of the love that God the Father has for us in Christ.

The Role of Truth in Receiving and Applying Love

The question then becomes, “How can I receive this love? How can I know and apply it?” This is where biblical truth comes in. Truth is the means by which we know, receive, and apply the love of God. Without truth, we cannot understand or access God’s love. Truth and love are intrinsically and inseparably connected; they are two sides of the same reality. John says in 1 John 4:16 that we “know and believe the love that God has for us.” Romans 5:5 tells us that “the love of God has been poured out in our hearts by the Holy Spirit who was given to us.” It is by faith in this truth that we know, believe, and experience God’s love.

However, truth is not defined by personal interpretation. People often adopt their own perspectives, saying, “This is my truth,” or “This is how I see things.” This is a grave error. We must understand the two defining characteristics of truth.

1. Truth is spiritual

First, truth is spiritual. John tells us that there is a “Spirit of truth” and a “spirit of error.” When a person believes in the Lord Jesus Christ and encounters God’s love through the Gospel, they receive the Holy Spirit, who illuminates the spiritual truth of God and connects them to His love. Truth comes from the Spirit of God, not human understanding. Without the Spirit, we cannot know or apply God’s truth. We need the Spirit of God to reveal the truth of God and to connect us with the love of God.

2. Truth is apostolic, rooted in the Scriptures.

Second, truth is rooted in the Word of God. In 1 John 4:5-6, John says, “They are of the world. Therefore they speak as of the world, and the world hears them. We are of God. He who knows God hears us; he who is not of God does not hear us. By this we know the spirit of truth and the spirit of error.” We receive the truth of God through the apostles’ teachings, as recorded in the Scriptures. The Bible is the framework through which we receive and understand God’s truth, which in turn reveals God’s love. We cannot separate truth from love because Scripture shows us that both are essential to knowing and experiencing God.

God is both truth and love. The Bible tells us that Jesus is the truth—He is the way, the truth, and the life, and no one comes to the Father except through Him. Jesus is the truth that sets us free and, at the same time, the very embodiment of God’s love. If we abide in God, we will possess both truth and love. That’s why John tells us that Jesus is the Son of the Father in truth and love, and that we are to relate to one another in truth and love.

Living in Truth and Love

The Apostle John rejoices when he sees his brothers and sisters walking in truth and love. Why? Because the Spirit of God is in them. We eagerly hope and pray that all our brothers and sisters will obey God’s commands to walk in truth and love. These are powerful commands for the Christian life, and they can only be fulfilled by faith in Jesus Christ. Only when a person is born again, forgiven of their sins, and freed from the bondage of guilt can they live in true love and true truth.

This freedom—freedom in truth and love—is found only in Jesus Christ. He is the way, the truth, and the life, and He enables us to experience the glorious riches of the Gospel. If you are reading this and have not yet come to Jesus, I invite you now to repent of your sins. Without repentance, you remain in guilt, and the result of that guilt is eternal separation from God. But if you come to Jesus, confess your sins, and believe that He is the Son of God who took the wrath you deserve, then the Bible promises that you can come freely to Him. He will receive you, forgive you, and set you free from the bondage of sin, the law, and the world.

In Christ, you will find true freedom and life—freedom to walk in truth and love as God intended. Only in Jesus can you truly know and experience the love of God that will prepare you to be with Him forever, where there will be no sin, no suffering, and no death. Come to Jesus, believe in Him, and trust Him as your King and Lord.

In Christ,

Nelson David Moncayo

If you desire to listen to the whole sermon I preached on this topic you can find it here: