Five Half Truths - #3 God is Love - August 23, 2026

There are statements that sound so good, so positive, and so comforting that we rarely stop to ask whether they are completely true. One of those statements is, “God is love.” And, of course, the Bible says exactly that. First John 4:8 tells us, “God is love.” But here is the danger: a truth can become a half-truth when we take something the Bible says about God and make it the whole truth about God. If God is only love, then we can easily redefine love to mean that God accepts whatever we do. If God is only love, there is no room for His holiness, His justice, His righteousness, or His judgment. Sin becomes unimportant, repentance becomes unnecessary, and obedience becomes optional. “God is love” can become a permission slip to live however we want. But the God of the Bible is much greater than that. He is loving, but He is also holy. He is merciful, but He is also just. And nowhere do we see the fullness of God's character more clearly than in Jesus Christ. God's love was not demonstrated by ignoring our sin. It was demonstrated by sending His Son to save us from our sin. At the cross, we see God's love, holiness, justice, and mercy meeting together. That is the whole truth. Series: Five Half Truths Scripture: 1 John 4:8,16; John 3:16; Romans 5:8; Romans 3:25-26 Speaker: Pastor David Hallett