edəfiˈkāSHən/
by biblical definition is the Greek word oikodomē (pronounced oi-ko-do-mā'). The meanings of this word are:
- (the act of) building, building up
- metaph. edifying, edification
- the act of one who promotes another's growth in Christian wisdom, piety, happiness, holiness
- a building (i.e. the thing built, edifice)
You hear this word quite often in “Christian circles” – most
commonly used in conjunction with Ephesians 4 in reference to our brother in
Christ, Paul’s descriptions of various “jobs” or “offices” given to those in
the Kingdom. Those particular offices were to be used for the edification and “perfecting”
of the body of Christ. This can also be found in 1 Corinthians 13, where Paul
once again speaks of using certain spiritual gifts for “the Body’s”
edification.
I want to look at this word closely. I think many bypass its true meaning. Often times, many look at “edifying” or "edification" just to mean “make me happy” or "encourage me". In other words, “building up” has become synonymous with only coming together to make each other feel good, boost our morale, and to encourage our Christian walk. To be edifying has a connotation of positive feelings to help us “weather the storm”.
But, this is not the full meaning of what it is to “edify” or to “build” or even grow. What do I mean? Well let’s use a parable (I’m making this up, walk with me on this lol)
You have a home you want to build, so you ask around and get a suggestion for a general contractor from a friend. You trust your friend’s judgment and hire the contractor. The contractor comes in and never checks the land – instead he says, “WOW! Look at all this land you have. I know the market around here is tough, but you did a great job in getting this deal. You were wise in your decision making.” You beam with happiness and it bolstered your self-esteem. You now know if you should ever need to buy land again, you have the “know how”.
The next time you meet with the contractor, you bring a friend along. You see the contractor laying the foundation. Your friend notices and tries to point out something isn't quite right. Your friend has had experience in home-building, he just did the same thing a few years ago. He knows the contractor never checked the land, and while your friend is no expert, he is almost sure the foundation doesn’t look exactly level. You aren’t sure of the ins and outs of contracting, so you just continue with the process believing that this contractor knows what he is doing. When the contractor notices you two in discussion, and finally comes to speak. He says, “So, we are laying your foundation today. This is going to be the BEST laid foundation. It will make your home so sturdy. Trust and believe, with this foundation, all will be well!” Your friend still feels a little uneasy, not quite sure. But you leave with your hope and trust bolstered – the foundation will be well.
I want to look at this word closely. I think many bypass its true meaning. Often times, many look at “edifying” or "edification" just to mean “make me happy” or "encourage me". In other words, “building up” has become synonymous with only coming together to make each other feel good, boost our morale, and to encourage our Christian walk. To be edifying has a connotation of positive feelings to help us “weather the storm”.
But, this is not the full meaning of what it is to “edify” or to “build” or even grow. What do I mean? Well let’s use a parable (I’m making this up, walk with me on this lol)
You have a home you want to build, so you ask around and get a suggestion for a general contractor from a friend. You trust your friend’s judgment and hire the contractor. The contractor comes in and never checks the land – instead he says, “WOW! Look at all this land you have. I know the market around here is tough, but you did a great job in getting this deal. You were wise in your decision making.” You beam with happiness and it bolstered your self-esteem. You now know if you should ever need to buy land again, you have the “know how”.
The next time you meet with the contractor, you bring a friend along. You see the contractor laying the foundation. Your friend notices and tries to point out something isn't quite right. Your friend has had experience in home-building, he just did the same thing a few years ago. He knows the contractor never checked the land, and while your friend is no expert, he is almost sure the foundation doesn’t look exactly level. You aren’t sure of the ins and outs of contracting, so you just continue with the process believing that this contractor knows what he is doing. When the contractor notices you two in discussion, and finally comes to speak. He says, “So, we are laying your foundation today. This is going to be the BEST laid foundation. It will make your home so sturdy. Trust and believe, with this foundation, all will be well!” Your friend still feels a little uneasy, not quite sure. But you leave with your hope and trust bolstered – the foundation will be well.
You meet with the contractor again. It has been about three weeks since your last meeting. The contractor has half the home done. From what you can tell, the house looks great. The contractor lauds over the state of the art materials used. He speaks highly of your floor plan choices. But what he fails to do is point out that there were faults with the support beams. He chose to overlook that and continued building.
Fast forward three years. There is a terrible rainstorm passing by. All homes are withstanding the rain and the battering wind, but something is happening to your home. The dirt around your home begins to shift; the foundation begins to crack; the ceiling of your home begins to sag. What’s wrong? What happened? You were told how great this home was, how sturdy it was, and all would be well.
All along the edification/building process, you the buyer were getting the “good side” of things. One the one hand, your friend tried to point out the weak spots - and had you listened, could have saved yourself heartache, pain, and thousands of dollars. On the other hand, the contractor was constantly building your confidence, assuring you all will be well. What that contractor failed to do during the building process was to point out the faults – the areas that needed correcting, fixing, or strengthening. This too was a very important part of building your home. Choosing to ignore that caused the whole home to become unstable and even possibly crumble to the ground when the storm came.
This is the same that happens when we choose to ignore the whole “building/edification process” in our lives. We cannot choose to ignore faults just to keep to building. We must be willing to see them. We must also be willing to be told about them. In order to edify, we not only have to see the "good" and encourage, but we have to see weaknesses, point them out and shore them up. Edification can’t be seen as a “feel good” festival – that is not the way to become “perfected” – for if we are already “good” how would we become better?
Edification requires balance. It also requires us all to be honest and truthful, both
with ourselves and those around us. Edification must also give way for those
who see faults to be able to point them out, for the strengthening of the person
and/or the body. If that atmosphere is not provided, the very thing that has been carefully built will not only be able to stand, but it will crumble into a heap of ruins.
Whoever rebukes a man will afterward find more favor than he who flatters with his tongue.
