Building Up or Tearing Down?

TEARING DOWN OR BUILDING?

I watched them tearing a building down,
A gang of men in a busy town;
With a heave-ho and a lusty yell
They swung a beam and a building fell.

I asked the foremen, “Are these men skilled,
And the men you’d hire if you had to build?”
He gave a laugh and said, “No, indeed,
Just common labor is all I need;
I can easily wreck in a day or two
What builders have taken a year to do.”

And I thought to myself as I went my way,
Which of these roles have I tried to play?
Am I a builder who works with care,
Measuring life by the rule and square?

Am I shaping my deeds to a well-made plan,
Patiently doing the best I can?
Or am I a wrecker who walks the town,
Content with the labor of tearing down?

This little poem by Roe Fulkerson (Church Bulletin Bits) may sound outdated and trite, but it carries a valuable message. The apostle Paul wrote it this way: “Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen” (Eph. 5:29 NIV).

I am thinking here of how we talk about fellow Christians. I am also thinking of how we discuss family members, neighbors, co-workers, bosses, church leaders, and, yes, government officials. Not that most of us intentionally spread false rumors or accusations. It is easy to use the truth like a wrecking ball – to swing it in a way that benefits no one and builds nothing; instead it lowers others and (we think) elevates us and serves no God-ordained purpose.

Do we think God doesn’t care about the other person (even if He is displeased with them)? And if He does care, what does He think of our insensitivity to His feelings? Of our destructive attitude and damaging words? How does He feel when we eagerly tell what we know, when we enjoy the power of the wrecking ball, when we thoughtlessly shatter someone else’s image? What does God think of us then?

Agape love does not delight in evil (1 Cor. 13:6). It doesn’t enjoy dismantling reputations. But love is not the natural way, or the quick way or the easy way. The discipline of building up everyone we meet and casting the best possible light on those we talk about is hard-learned and often a slow process – just as the builder requires longer training than the wrecker.

But it’s the assignment we’ve been given. The design for Christ’s members. The way of love.