Matthew 7:12
Few phrases are more famous and appreciated worldwide than "Do unto others as you would have them do unto you." Sounds like a great proverb on interpersonal relationships and even world-care. It has been criticized by some (Freud, Nietzsche) as hindering human progress and defying natural laws of evolution. Nonetheless, great and small religious groups, political entities, and non-profits have praised this bit of advice for a long time.
And yet, it is a curious verse. Simply based on the wording, it is different form most other biblical commands because it is subjective. God does not tell us how to behave or what is right. Rather, we become the determiner of morality. It is assumed that because we would want others to treat us well, then we would treat others well. Is this always so? Do we always want to be treated well? What if other people have needs we do not? What if I am filled with self-hate?
Further, the verse begins with the word "So," a conjunctive transition term connecting the Golden Rule with "how much more will your Father in heaven give good gifts to those who ask of him?" ...not an obvious connection... I spent a while mulling over this weirdness this morning and something struck me. If we ask/seek/knock God, then God will seek us in return. The Golden Rule could apply to God as well. The more time we devote to seeking Christ, the more he will respond by seeking us. We do to God as we would have God to us. Hmmm...
One more interesting tidbit. Jesus says the Golden Rule "sums up the Law and the Prophets." Really??? It would seem like this phrase is all about subjective treatment of others, and yet the First Testament (containing Law and Prophets) is full of divine commands, and directives on worshiping GOD. Perhaps this rule fulfills the "Love your neighbor" half, but what of the "Love the Lord your God" half. Only if what I wrote above about seeking God works do I see this summing up the Tanakh. Thoughts?
If the golden rule applies to God... and he wants us to do for him what he has done for us...and he died for us...well, shoot, there goes the American dream.
ReplyDeleteOne thing that struck me as I read your pondering is that this is a command of Christ that is much more prescriptive and relational than the "list rules" of the First Testament. The things that Jesus asks us to do can never be finished. We don't get a check list to complete and feel good about ourselves. Jesus calls us to CONTINUOUS action - unto others as we would have them do unto us!
I fail horribly at this, but thanks for the reminder
Good point! Jesus died and lived for us, so we should live and die for him!
ReplyDeleteI think you could see it as being fulfilled if you look at it as a true love for our neighbor stems from our love of God. Doing unto our neighbor what we would have done to us is an acknowledgment of their dignity, and being able to see God in them. God is good. Thus, when we are living life to the fullest in union with Him, we want what is good for ourselves.
ReplyDeleteEveryone has different needs. I think the hardest thing is being able to get out of our own heads, and really empathize with each other. If we can truly look at things from someone else's perspective, right action just seems to flow from there.