One of the basic laws of
physics is that for every action, there is a corresponding reaction. We
learn this principle as children. I learned early on that certain
behavior would cause me to be spanked, certain behavior would earn me
compliments and praise, certain behavior would cause me to get hurt, and
certain behavior would bring me happiness. Very early in our development
we come to understand that actions carry consequences, therefore we have great
need to control our actions.
In
Matthew 7:12, Jesus gives what came to be known as “The Golden Rule.” The
verse says “Therefore, whatever you want men to do to you, do also to them, for
this is the Law and the Prophets.” (NKJV) The basic principle of this
Golden Rule shows up quite often in a variety of places and forms. It is
unique in that it is stated positively. There are several ancient sayings
from various writers that are comparable to The Golden Rule, but these writers
and philosophers always stated it in negative terms. Probably the
most famous of these sayings comes from the Great Rabbi Hillel who wrote “What
is hateful to yourself, do to no other; that is the whole Law; the rest is
commentary.” (Rabbi Hillel; Shabboth; 31a) Notice his negative
perspective. It has been pointed out that Rabbi Hillel, and other writers
and philosophers, are coming at it from, what is in fact, a selfish
perspective.
The
Golden Rule that Jesus gave us is simple enough that it is one of the first
things children are taught in Sunday School and one of the first verses they
memorize. However, truly living by The Golden Rule is difficult.
Even the secular world recognizes the need for people to live this way
and occasionally makes attempts to get people to follow the concept. For
instance, The Kentucky Department of Motor Vehicles’ final word for those who
must take their safe dirving course is “Treat other drivers as you would want
to be treated.”
Some
have called for the performance of random acts of kindness based on this
verse. You have no doubt heard of persons paying for the person behind
them at a toll booth or a drive through. Most anyone could agree that if
we lived day by day by The Golden Rule, the world would be a much better
place. The implications are limitless but just a few examples make the
point. If you do not want someone littering on your property, then do not
litter on any one else’s property. If you do not want to be laughed at
and made fun of then you should not laugh at and make fun of anyone else.
If you do not want anyone to lie to you, you should not lie to anyone
else. If you do not want anyone cheating you, you should not cheat anyone
else. If you want others to tell you the truth always, then you should
always tell the truth. There really is no end to the practical
implications of what Jesus teaches in Mat. 7:12. Sadly, as sinful human beings,
we often have a double standard. We are much more likely to live by the
adage “Do not do to me what I am doing to you!” Far too many
people live by the “Law of the Jungle” (“Kill or be Killed”) than by The Golden
Rule.
One
mistake many make is trying to follow a social or secular version of The Golden
Rule done only in human strength, will, and determination. It fails
because people fail. The best approach is to start where Jesus taught we
should start and that is with God. How much you really love God and how
committed you are to His Word will determine, more than anything else, how much
you love other people and therefore respect them and treat them properly.
The
Golden Rule is regarded as an exegesis of the great positive commandment of
Leviticus 19:18 which says “You shall not take vengeance nor bear any grudge
against the children of your people, but you shall love your neighbor as
yourself; I am the Lord.” In Matthew 22, the religious leaders had come
to Jesus, questioning Him, and asked Him which is the greatest commandment of
all. Jesus’ response is given in vs. 37-40. “Jesus said to him,
‘You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and
with all your mind. This is the first and great commandment. And
the second is like it. You shall love your neighbor as yourself. On
these two commandments hang all the Law and the Prophets.’” (Mat.
22:37-40). Until we love God properly, we are not going to love people
properly. Nothing should characterize God’s people (the church) any more
than “love.” We should love one another and care for one another!
First John 4:7-8, 11 says “Beloved, let us love one another, for love is of
God; and everyone who loves is born of God and knows God. He who does not
love does not know God, for God is love . . . Beloved, if God so loved us, we
also ought to love one another.” If you claim to be a Christian and the
concept of love, and talk about love makes you uneasy or uncomfortable, then
you might want to consider that you do not know Christ as Savior. Love is
what it is all about! What then sums up the Law and the Prophets?
Love! God gave His law because He loved His people and wanted them to do
what was right. He knew that He needed to tell them what was right or
they would not know. God sent His prophets because He loved His people
and wanted to warn them that they faced discipline for their sin if they did
not return to Him.
One of
the most important things we need to keep in the front of our minds as we go
through life is that we are sinners. If we ever lose sight of our own
“humanity” and subsequent “sinfulness” we will have a highly skewed view of God
and others. The key to success is to keep the proper view of God; then
having the proper view of others will come surprisingly natural. D.
Martyn Lloyd-Jones puts it this way “It helps us to see others as we should see
them. We see them now, no longer as hateful people who are trying to rob
us of our rights, or trying to beat us in the race for money, or position or
fame; we see them, as we see ourselves, as the victims of sin and of Satan, as
the dupes of ‘the god of this world,’ as fellow creatures who are under the
wrath of God and hell bound. We have an entirely new view of them. We
see them to be exactly as we are ourselves, and we are both in a terrible
predicament. And we can do nothing; but both of us together must run to
Christ and avail ourselves of His wonderful grace. We begin to enjoy it
together and we want to share it together. That is how it works. It
is the only way whereby we can ever do unto others as we would that they should
do unto us. It is when we are really loving our neighbor as ourselves
because we have been delivered from the throws of self, that we begin to enjoy
‘the glorious liberty of the children of God.’” (D. Martyn Lloyd-Jones; Studies
in the Sermon on the Mount Vol. 2; 214-15)
Love
must be the motivating factor if we are to live out The Golden Rule. We
must first love God supremely and then because of that love for Him, we are
able to properly love one another and treat others the way, we ourselves want
to be treated.
In Christ,
Dr. Allen Raynor, Pastor
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