A. One of the foremost precepts for the conduct of God's
people is commonly called the "golden rule.”
1.
The golden rule
is most often recited as, "Do unto others as you would have them do to you.”
2.
Jesus gave the
golden rule Himself in His Sermon on the Mount.
He said:
a. "Therefore, however you want people to treat you, so treat
them, for this is the Law and the Prophets.” (Matt. 7:12)
b. "Treat others the same way you want them to treat you.”
(Luke 6:31)
3.
Notice that Jesus
said the Law and the Prophets were summarized by the succinct commandment of
the golden rule. Therefore, we
understand that the golden rule was not a new concept when Jesus gave it in the
Sermon on the Mount.
a. In Leviticus 19:18, God had told Israel in the Law of
Moses, "You shall not take vengeance, nor bear any grudge against the sons of
your people, but you shall love your neighbor as yourself; I am the LORD.” This commandment is equivalent to the golden
rule.
b. Jesus referred to this passage from Leviticus in
Matthew 22:35-40 when He was asked which was the greatest commandment in the
Law. He said,
"‘You shall love the Lord your God with all your
heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind.' This is the great and foremost
commandment. The second is like it, ‘You
shall love your neighbor as yourself.'
On these two commandments depend the whole Law and the Prophets.”
c.
The apostle Paul
also referred to the Law in Galatians 5:14, saying, "For the whole Law is
fulfilled in one word, in the statement, ‘You shall love your neighbor as
yourself.'”
d. Thus, the essence of the golden rule is contained in
the commandment, "You shall love your neighbor as yourself.”
4.
Although Christ's
teaching of the golden rule was not a new concept, He gave a deeper meaning to
it than had never been known before as we will see.
B. Presently, we will consider the Lord's golden rule,
how it compares to similar teachings by others, and why Christ's teaching of
the golden rule is superior.
II. THE GOLDEN RULE OF JESUS AND THE SILVER RULE OF OTHERS
A. Many teachers and religions have laid claim to the
golden rule.
1.
Consider a few
examples of similar teachings from sources other than God's word.
a. From ancient Egypt: "That which you hate to be done to
you, do not do to another.”
b. From ancient Greece: "Do not to your neighbor what you
would take ill from him.”
c.
From Confucius: "What
you do not wish for yourself, do not do to others.”
d. From Hinduism: "One should never do that to another
which one regards as injurious to one's own self.”
e.
From the
Apocrypha: "Do to no one what you yourself dislike” (Tobit 4:15).
2.
Some have
suggested that all religions are basically the same because these foundational teachings
are similar to one another and to Christ's golden rule. We will see that this suggestion is
completely false.
B. Jesus gave a truly golden rule that is positive in its
meaning, whereas most others taught a negative meaning in their inferior
"silver rule.”
1.
Rather than
simply prohibiting His followers from mistreating others, Christ's golden rule
requires them to actively engage others.
a. No one can comply with Christ's golden rule without
being active. One cannot "do unto
others” while doing nothing.
b. In this way, the golden rule of the Bible is very
broad and entails all of God's commandments regarding our conduct toward one
another. For this reason, Jesus said
this rule was the foundation of the Law and the Prophets.
c.
The similar
teachings mentioned before do not require any action whatsoever. One may comply with these "silver rules”
without doing anything. This falls
woefully short of "pure and undefiled religion” (Jas. 1:27).
2.
The positive
golden rule of Jesus requires a balanced view of oneself and of others.
a. The primary perspective in the golden rule is that of
a sympathetic doer and giver. To keep
Christ's commandment, one must be mindful of the needs and desires of others.
b. The secondary perspective in this rule is that of a
receiver. To be sympathetic to others,
one must consider what he would have them do unto him. This raises the prospect of what Christians
should honestly and fairly expect from each other.
c.
When properly
discerned, the golden rule of Scripture teaches us to treat one another fairly
with mercy and lawfulness. We should not
mistreat one another, but rather we should help one another as needed. At the same time, we should not expect more
of one another than we are willing to give ourselves or more than God requires
or allows.
d. This balanced approach is evident in Galatians 6,
where we are told to "bear one another's burdens” (v. 2) and that "each one
shall bear his own load” (v. 5). This is
not a contradiction, but it is a consideration of both sides in the likeness of
the golden rule.
III. WHAT IS SUPERIOR ABOUT CHRIST'S GOLDEN RULE?
A. Christ is the source of the golden rule.
1.
The golden rule
is objectively true and right, and this is because it has come from Jesus, who
is the Word of God and the truth (John 1:1; 14:6).
2.
Even if others
have taught this same truth, they were not the source of it. Even if they did not receive this truth
directly from the Lord, they did derive it through the world which He made
(Gen. 1:1; John 1:1-3; Heb. 11:1-3).
3.
When Jesus
taught, He spoke with authority unlike any other man (Matt. 7:29; Mark 1:22;
John 7:46). The golden rule is true,
right, and binding because of His authority.
B. Christ exemplified the golden rule as no one else has
done.
1.
In Philippians
2:3-8, Christians are told to regard one another as more important than themselves
and are given Christ as an example. No
one can "do unto others” more than Christ has done for every sinner by giving
His life as an atoning sacrifice.
2.
Jesus not only
taught the golden rule, but He demonstrated its meaning. As disciples of Jesus, we are to imitate
Christ's pattern of selfless love for others (John 13:15; 15:12-14; 1John
3:16).
3.
No other teacher
has done more to exemplify the meaning of his teachings than Jesus. No one even comes close.
C. Christ will judge all men by His law, which includes
the golden rule.
1.
Jesus said, "He
who rejects Me and does not receive My sayings, has one who judges him; the
word I spoke is what will judge him at the last day” (John 12:48). The words of the golden rule will be part of the
standard of Christ's judgment (Matt. 25:31-46).
2.
No other teacher
has the authority to hold man accountable to his teachings and to judge the
ultimate destination of man's soul. This
makes Christ's teaching of the golden rule superior to all the teachings of
men.
IV. CONCLUSION
A. The golden rule is a testament to the simplicity and
power of God's word. If all people would
abide by this simple instruction, then all of the problems that we have with
one another would be solved.
B. Therefore, let us follow the instruction of Christ's
golden rule, which is superior to all others because of the Christ who gave it
and exemplified it for us all.
