10 Jesus called the crowd to him and said, “Listen and understand. 11 What goes into someone’s mouth does not defile them, but what comes out of their mouth, that is what defiles them.” Matthew 15:10-11

In computer terms, Jesus is describing GIGO, Garbage In – Garbage Out. The output of processed data is only as good as the data that goes in.

If you input faulty and flawed data, the computer will output equally flawed results.

The religious leaders were highly concerned about the outward appearances of what a person ate or drank. It didn’t seem to bother them that a person was peace-loving, generous, and loving. What mattered was the physical external input.

Jesus was making a spiritual point about some of the nonsense that goes into us and processed by our “systems”: false teaching, secular thoughts and ideas, bitterness, anger, doubt, and the like. Add to that the stresses and rigors of daily life. Eventually, that bad “data” will manifest itself outwardly in one form or another.

You’ve probably experienced this phenomena yourself. You’re having a conversation and all of a sudden you blurt out something out of nowhere that is just out of character. You then recall an incident – probably earlier in the day – that was totally unrelated to the outburst but was probably linked. What was inside manifested itself for others to see and hear.

It’s also why it’s important to input positive, uplifting “content” prior to falling asleep.

What goes into our minds and hearts throughout the day is as important as the healthy food we eat (or should eat).