Would you eat these? Yes or No? Would they lead to becoming well-nourished or malnourished?
You may wonder why I ask if you would eat them or not. That’s a great question.
The Apostle Paul on Well-Nourished or Malnourished
In the New Testament book of Ephesians, the Apostle Paul uses this example to help us consider our communication with each other. He writes:
29 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).
If you are looking for the question, “Well-Nourished or Malnourished?”, it is there. Notice the details of his command.
The word corrupt refers to rancid fish, withered flowers, and rotten fruit. In the New Testament, it refers to the kind of fruit a bad tree bears (Matt 7:17–18; Luke 6:43) and the kind of fish that need to be thrown away (Matt 13:48).[1] Literally, the term refers to rotten food. In this text, Paul figuratively refers to harmful or unwholesome speech.[2]
Instead, the words of your mouth should be good for necessary edification. To edify means to build up others as the need arises. Here, it is the opposite of corrupt or rotten speech which, as harmful or unwholesome, tears another person down.
Our words should, according to the command here, impart grace to the hearer. In this context, grace builds up and provides help for the hearer. In other words, grace that comes from our words to the hearer should make it easier for the hearer to live a Christ-honoring life where he or she loves God and neighbor better.
Well-Nourished or Malnourished?
As people listen to you today and “eat” your words, will they be well-nourished or malnourished?
- Will your words nourish the other person as they take them in and consider them, or will they tear them down?
- What will your words impart to the one who hears them? Will your words provide grace to the hearer?
- How would you classify your words? As people hear you, do your words produce a beneficial effect on those who hear them?
- Consider the people that hear you the most (like your spouse, family, friends, coworkers, and neighbors), how are they affected by your words?
If someone were to live on a diet of your words, would that person be well-nourished or malnourished?
Think about just one more thought – who hears the words in your head, your thoughts, your heart? Do your words leave your own soul well-nourished or malnourished?
[1] Clinton E. Arnold, Ephesians, Zondervan Exegetical Commentary on the New Testament (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 2010), 305.
[2] Peter Thomas O’Brien, The Letter to the Ephesians, The Pillar New Testament Commentary (Grand Rapids, MI: W.B. Eerdmans Publishing Co., 1999), 344.
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