“Speaking The Truth In Love”
Ezekiel 33:7-9 & Matthew 18:1-20
9-6-2026
In the name of Jesus our Savior, dear friends in Christ. Do you think telling the truth is important? Of course you do. Speaking the truth is an essential part of our society. We can’t function without it. Not only that, God thinks it’s important too! In Ephesians 4:15, St. Paul says that Christians ought to “speak the truth in love.” It sounds so simple, doesn’t it? “Speak the truth in love.” It’s easy to say, but when the rubber meets the road, it’s not so easy to put into practice. Our sinful hearts take such a straightforward command and royally screw it up. How, you ask? Well, we mess it up when we shy away from speaking the truth when it’s uncomfortable. We also mess it up when we refuse to hear that truth.
As a Pastor, it feels as though the words in Ezekiel 33 were written directly to me. God very clearly says I am to speak the truth of God’s warning to sinners. And that command comes with a strongly-worded warning to me also. God says, “If you fail to speak these words of truth and somebody dies in their sins because you shirked your duties, Pastor, I will hold you personally accountable for it.” Oh, my job would be so much easier if I could stand here each week and tell you nice things. If I could just talk to you about God’s forgiveness without first confronting your sins, I’d be really popular. If I just told you about the beauty of heaven without talking about the dangers of hell, it would be a whole lot more pleasant. But then I wouldn’t be true to my calling. Frankly, it scares me to think of the punishment I’d be heaping upon myself if I chose that easy route.
Believe it or not, I don’t like pointing out your sins. But it would be a disservice to you if I didn’t shoot an arrow right at your pet sins. If you walk out of church saying, “I sure hope so-and-so heard Pastor talking about their sin today,” then I’ve failed to get the message across. Instead, it’s better that you leave here saying, “You know, it was almost as if Pastor knew my secret sins and was talking about them.” Well, in reality I do know the secret sins you’re dealing with because I wrestle with some of the same ones. Martin Luther used to like quoting from Cicero on this subject and it’s one of my favorites as a Pastor. Cicero said, “There is no better way to reach the hearts of others, than first to be moved yourself.” So, you see, when I’m preaching a sermon, I’m first and foremost preaching to myself and my own sinfulness. And trust me, that’s no fun.
But you need to realize that it isn’t my “job” alone. Those words in Ezekiel are directed at each one of you. As a Christian, God has given you that same command. He says that you too must warn sinners. In some ways, that’s harder for you than it is for me. People expect a Pastor to talk about sin, but not the average church member. For instance, if your relative or friend has stopped coming to church or is living in an open sin, people would rather have the Pastor and the Elders go visit that person. Don’t get me wrong, that is part of our responsibility. But it’s yours also. I know first-hand how hard it is to sit down across the table from a loved one and point out sins like this. After all, they may think I’m arrogant and self-righteous. They may start pointing out my many sins and tell me to clean up my own act before I come preaching to them. So, isn’t it better if the Pastor and Elders handle it? No. God has called all of us to, “Speak the truth in love.”
You see, our greatest downfall is that we only remember the first 3 words of that, “Speak the truth...” But there’s a right way and a wrong way for us to do it. Yes, we’re supposed to “Speak the truth” but that speaking is always supposed to be motivated by love. We must never use God’s Law like a club to beat people over the head. Our goal must always be to turn a sinner from their sin, so that they can experience God’s grace and forgiveness. That’s the principle that Jesus laid down for us in the Gospel when He gave us a guideline for Church Discipline. He said that when a fellow Christian is sinning, you must confront that person. And He gives us a step-by-step guideline for how we are to do it. But notice what Jesus says the goal is. He says that if the erring person listens to you, you have regained a brother or sister in the faith. The goal isn’t to jettison people from the church. But rather, to win them back.
Folks, can I be very blunt with you? We have a problem that not many people are brave enough to deal with. It’s a problem that never seems to end and it’s usually surrounded with heated emotions. That problem is how to deal with our inactive members. Some congregations deal with it by taking a figurative axe to the church roster. One simple letter of warning is sent, a vote takes place, and then you’re out of here. But where’s the expression of love in that? It’s missing, so that makes this approach wrong.
On the other hand, people often misunderstand our intentions even when we do address this problem with love. People get angry or upset over it, so the tendency is to just let people drift away without a word. According to Ezekiel 33, we have no choice but to warn people of the danger in drifting away from Christ’s church. Ignoring God and neglecting the worship of Him is a sin. So, Matthew 18 definitely applies to how we are to handle our inactive members. We need to bring this matter to their attention, one-on-one. And if that doesn’t work, then we take another Christian or two. If all of these attempts have been exhausted, then, and only then, it gets brought before the church assembly.
But notice what Jesus says after that step. He says, “If he refuses to listen even to the church, let him be to you as a Gentile and a tax collector.” On the surface, that sounds harsh. It sounds like Jesus says that after step #3 you should boot these people out of the church and then don’t associate with them. But that‘s not at all what He’s saying. Jesus is telling us to keep on speaking the truth in love. Think about it. How did Jesus treat the so-called “Gentiles and tax collectors”? He evangelized them. He treated them like people who had never heard the message of God’s saving love before. That, my friends, would make all the difference in the world if we approached our inactive members this way. If at every step in the process we remember that love is our motive, then we can’t go wrong. If we must take the difficult step of formally removing someone from our church membership, the love must not end. In love we can continue to reach out to them rather than distancing ourselves from them.
When it really comes down to it, love is what makes the difference in everything we do as Christians. Paul makes that point very clear in the Epistle Lesson. He shows how in our secular world we have an obligation to do certain things. We must obey the authorities who are over us, even to the point of paying our taxes. Paul says that when our government exercises authority over us, it fulfills a very important function. It gives us a safe and orderly society. But there’s something missing. They don’t govern you and they don’t punish you out of love. And to be totally honest, we don’t normally obey out of love either. Rather, we obey out of fear of what might happen if we don’t. But for Christians it’s different. Paul says that everything we do as Christians should be motivated by love. We love God because He first loved us, and now we express our love for Him by obeying His commands. The love that we show to fellow sinners flows out of our love for God.
Earlier I said one of my favorite quotes is: “There is no better way to reach the hearts of others, than first to be moved yourself.” Friends, that doesn’t just apply when I’m speaking the truth to you about your sins. It also applies when I speak to you the truth about God’s forgiveness. I could never tell you about God’s great love if I hadn’t been moved by it myself. God alone knows how sinful and wayward I’ve been in my life. Like St. Paul, I feel as though I am the chief of sinners. And yet, God in His great mercy “speaks the truth in love” to me. He had every right to simply speak the truth that I was a sinner who deserved to suffer in Hell. But instead, He speaks the truth in love to me. Out of Love, He showed me my sin so that I could see my great need for a Savior. He pulled me out of the pit of sin and death. He didn’t just brush off my major sins and leave me bruised and dirty from all the rest. No. He completely washed me clean of all those sins. Now, He calls on me to “speak the truth in love” to others.
That’s what God has done for me. And it’s what He’s done for you too. He wants you to hear the truth about your sins. But He also wants you to hear the truth about His love and forgiveness. If you are a Baptized Child of God, then you too have been washed totally clean and you are free to live in that new life. That is the truth about God’s love for you. No matter how awful you may think your sins are, God wants you to hear the truth that He has forgiven them. He wants you to hear the truth that Jesus Christ has already paid the price for all of your sins. And He wants you to believe it and rejoice in that truth about His love. When you really and truly experience God’s great love, then you will be motivated to obey Him out of love. And one of the ways we obey Him is to “speak the truth in love” to everyone around us. May God bless us as we reach out together in the ministry He has given to us here at Zion. May the Lord give us His courage to speak the truth in love as a congregation even when it’s uncomfortable. And may we always be motivated by His love in everything we think, say, and do. Amen.
Soli Deo Gloria