The Royal Order of Edifiers: Part Two

“Let no corrupt word proceed out of your mouth, but what is good for necessary edification, that it may impart grace to the hearers” (Ephesians 4: 29).

Is Jesus your prototype for a lifestyle? If He is your exemplar then do as He did. He consistently encouraged His followers. He built them up. Do the same to others that they may see your good work and glorify Him.

Are you a people builder? Or, are you a member of Satan’s demolition crew? Poetically the task of building up people is likened to that of a physical builder.

“I watched them tearing a building down,
A gang of men in a busy town.
With a hove-heave-ho they swung a beam
and a side wall fell.
I asked the foreman, ‘Are these men skilled?
The kind you would hire if you wanted to build?’
He replied, ‘No indeed,
common labor is all I need,
For I can wreck in a day or two
What it takes a builder a year to do.’
I thought to myself as I walked away,
Which of these roles am I trying to play.
Am I worker who builds with care
Carefully measuring life by the rule and square.
Or, am I content to walk the town
Content with the job of tearing down.”

Are you a wrecker or a builder? When people see you coming, do they yell, “Wow! Here comes an edifier!” Or, do they look for a back door? You know the kind of person, they brighten up a room just by walking out of it.

From nature comes an admirable example of edification. Have you ever noticed how geese fly in a “V?” Have you ever noticed one side of the “V” is longer than the other. Do you know why? It has more geese in it.

That “V” is an aerodynamic advantage. The lead goose has the greatest wind resistance. The formation reduces the wind resistance experienced by all others by 40%. All that honking we hear is goose talk. They are saying, “Go get ‘um. You’re the man, Atta boy. You rock.” They are edifying the lead goose. They also rotate when the lead goose gets tired he rotates to the back of the formation and another takes the lead. The relieved goose joins the others in edifying the new leader.

Wouldn’t it be wonderful if when people walk away from a contact with you they would feel edified, built up?

Jesus Christ said, “You shall be My witnesses….”

Your speech makes you a good or a poor witness. As His ambassador what you say and do reflects on Him. Ideally, it should be a commendation of Him to all who encounter you.