“So whatever you wish that others would do to you, do also to them, for this is the Law and the Prophets.” (Matthew 7:12)
Contrary to the way some view life, we live with others … we interact with others … we must learn to get along with others and we must learn how to develop relationships with others. The statement “no man is an island entire of himself” penned by John Donne way back in the 1600’s is just as true today as it was back then. People need people!
What has come to be known as “the Golden Rule” might also be noted as ‘the ethic of reciprocity.’ Variations of this concept have appeared throughout history which certainly hints at its value for mankind.
But drilling down closer to our own lives and the value of its principle in our lives reflects just how much we would like for it to be put into practice more than it is. Perhaps one of the biggest challenges of this ‘golden rule’ is that we are often more concerned about its practice when it comes to how others are treating us.
This statement of the Lord is truly the bare-bones model for living in this world, for as we arrive at a better understanding of God and the value He places upon the value of each one of us, we must strive to be more like Him in every aspect of our lives and how we are to treat others.
It is true, is it not, that all of us fall short of what we know is true, right and appropriate. All of the excuses including ‘that is just the way I am’ does not relieve us of personal responsibility to be better people. Being human is to never be heralded as an excuse to sin!
Incorporating the “golden rule” statement of Matthew 7:12 should be viewed as the way God’s people should live in every relationship of their lives.
- Can you imagine how much more pleasant our homes and families would be if every member of the family practiced this principle every day?
- Can you imagine how much more pleasant our work place would be if every person practiced this principle every day?
- Can you imagine how much more pleasant the congregation where we worship would be if every member practiced this principle every day?
So, how do we respond when others choose not to practice this principle, especially when they are dealing with us? We must remember the perfect example of Christ who demonstrated exactly how we deal with this principle and countless other situations and challenges with life and those who live it around us. Jesus demonstrated time and time again the kind of life His Father wanted Him to live among men and this is exactly how He wants each of us to live. We are to live in such a way that we please God, not ourselves! There is to be no room for vengeance, retribution, ill will or anything else that resembles the opposite of being Christ-like.
We do not have the ability to somehow make people do what we think they should be doing. The fact is: we cannot ‘make’ people do what they do not want to do! We can with the will our Lord has blessed each one of us with along with His inspired and revealed Word determine to acquire and maintain a better set of attitudes, stronger character and become a people who reflect the image of God’s dear Son!
Folks, we become what we choose to become! We choose who we want to be like, who we want to emulate and we choose how we are going to treat our loved ones, our friends, our neighbors, our brethren and even how we treat our enemies!
We can choose to keep the example Christ showed first and foremost in our hearts and minds (See 1 Peter 2:21-25) or we can ignore His example and choose to live and act like the world! Each of us must make the call!
We can choose to be the ones of our culture and our generation who “shine as lights to the world” (Philippians 2:15)! We can be “the salt of the earth” if we really want to. As someone once said, “I will be as careful for you as I should be for myself in the same need.”
Committing to memory this passage of Scripture is a wonderful thing to do for both young and old. Committing this passage of Scripture to life, well, that’s even better!
Bill Fairchild, Jr.
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