Wordiness

I was in the Word earlier today, reading through Eph 4. It was actually the fifth time reading that chapter since leaving Stockton; for some reason I keep coming back to it. When I was all packed up, leather jacket on my back, helmet in my hand, I stopped and thought, "You know, I should read Ephesians chapter four." Okay, so it was God telling me I should read it, but either way I did.

Each time I've gone through it since I've learned something new. First, it was that God has given me a specific calling, and even if someone or something matches perfectly with everything in my life except that calling, it needs to be cut out. I am still learning that one! Secondly, it was the manner in which the "futile thinking" of unbelievers seperates them from God. Or more accurately, their understanding was darkened because of ignorance towards God because their hearts were hard, therefore becoming calloused and thereby excluded from the life of God. And because of all that they were given over to sensuality to practice every kind of impurity with greed. Kinda scares me when I see more than my own share of sensuality in my life...

Tonight, though, as I read it something completely different was shown to me. It has to do with words, or at least how we use them.

See, Paul spends a few verses telling us how it was that we came to understand Christ, and because of this understanding we "put on a new self, which in the likeness of God has been created in righteousness and holiness of the truth." Seems to me to be speaking of an individual, coming into a life given by God. Interestingly enough, the focus changes in the next verse, because we are told to speak truthfully to our neighbors because "we are members of one another." Here, laying aside our old selves and becoming new "in righteousness and holiness of the truth" we simultaneously reject corruption through "the lusts of deceit." Once we have shed that heavy cloak, we then speak to our neighbors the truth because we are part of the same body. Interesting. Taking that a wee further (too far?) I would like to make the statement that, based on previous verses, the failure of one part of the body to function correctly hobbles the growth of the whole. Therefore, not speaking the truth to other believers is destructive to the body.
And here is what I want to contrast it with: just a few verses later, Paul writes, "Let no unwholesome word proceed from your mouth, but only such a word as it good for edification according to the need of the moment, so that it will give grace to those who hear. Do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, by whom you were sealed for the day of redemption." Here, it seems that edifying speach provides a comfort --a grace-- to the persons who hear. But who is damaged by unwholesome talk? It says here, "do not grieve the Holy Spirit."
Perhaps, you are saying to yourself, the verse about the Holy Spirit is referring to what happens next. And it could be so. But the immediate verses following are thus: One verse telling believers to put off detructive emotions which could be revealed through speach, then the second verse urges believers to treat each other with contructive emotions which can also be displayed through words (though not limited to!). This leads me to think that the Holy Spirit is grieved when we allow unwholesome talk come from our mouths, not necessarily that the Holy Spirit is grieved by our use of destructive emotions --though certainly God does not approve of such activity. So I find it interesting that, at least in this case, the distinction is made that it is deceit which harms the body and unwholesome talk which harms the Holy Spirit.

Just and interesting thought... maybe?