Matthew 7:12 “In everything do to others as you would have them do to you; for this is the law and the prophets.” This episode talks about the Golden Rule and how we can apply that in various circumstances. Music:"Adding the Sun" Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 4.0 License http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
The Golden Rule
Matthew 7:12 “In everything do to others as you would have them do to you; for this is the law and the prophets.”
Did you know that the golden rule was actually in the Bible? I knew it was something that I was taught growing up. I knew that it was a nice thing to do, but I did not realize that it was found in the Bible. I didn’t know it was a command from our Heavenly Father. I am not sure if it was ever presented to me as if it were God telling us to do this. I figured it was just something that parents told their kids to get them to behave better. You know what I mean? Similar to how they tell us that the magic words are please and thank you. Even though I didn’t know this was a bible verse, I did try to embrace this advice.
I feel as though this simple, short verse can be a guiding principle for how to live our life. If we are not sure what to do in a certain circumstance, we can think of this verse and it can help us make a decision. For instance, if we are not sure if we should tell someone something, think about whether or not we would want them to tell us. This can apply in many different circumstances. When we are interacting with our children, when we are driving, when we are at work, no matter the circumstances we can ask ourselves what we would like someone else to do to/for us and then decide what we will do.
I feel like the world would be a much better place if more of us remembered and lived by the golden rule. When I read some of the comments that people write to other people on social media I wonder what they are thinking. The definitely are not thinking about how they would feel if someone said that to them. They write comments that are very unkind. One of the people I follow on social media made a post about the comments people made on her posts. They wrote comments about how annoying she is and how they can’t stand her. This is crazy because if you think someone is annoying you can not follow them, or you can click on a button and hide their posts so they don’t show up on your screen. You do not have to share you unkind thoughts with them.
This golden rule also makes me think of the Matthew 25:34-40 “Then the king will say to those at his right hand, ‘Come, you that are blessed by my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world; for I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me, I was naked and you gave me clothing, I was sick and you took care of me, I was in prison and you visited me.’ Then the righteous will answer him, ‘Lord, when was it that we saw you hungry and gave you food, or thirsty and gave you something to drink? And when was it that we saw you a stranger and welcomed you, or naked and gave you clothing? And when was it that we saw you sick or in prison and visited you?’ And the king will answer them, ‘Truly I tell you, just as you did it to one of the least of these who are members of my family, you did it to me.’
When is the last time we fed the hungry or clothed the naked? When is the last time we gave someone a drink, or went to visit someone that was lonely in prison or sick? My sister and her husband and daughter used to make meals for those the homeless people in Worcester. It wasn’t anything fancy, it was just a brown bag with a sandwich, an apple, a bottle of water and maybe a granola bar. Then they would drive around and give them to those they saw on the streets. I have always admired this and wanted to do it, but never have. Her daughter is an adult now and last year she was going to college in Boston. She would carry around in her car a basket of granola bars, water, chips and other snacks so if someone came up to her car, she could give them something to eat. Kindness is contagious. If we have it, we can spread it. The world definitely needs more kindness right now.
Another thing I have always admired and yet not actually done yet was something I read in Matthew Kelly’s book “Resisting Happiness.” If you have not read this book, I highly recommend it. It was so good. In this book Matthew Kelly talks about how his mentor at the time use to take him to a nursing home on Saturday afternoons for an hour or two. It was not a lot of time, but he said it was so powerful. He said the elderly that lived there were so happy to have a visitor and they were so wise and had so many stories to tell. How are we treating the elderly in our society? How are we treating our own parents as they get older, or the people at our church? Are we patient and understanding? Are we empathetic to the fact that growing old isn’t easy? Are we treating them like we would want to be treated when we are their age? If we are lucky enough to live to be their age? Do we respect their wisdom and their experience?
What about clothing the naked? There are plenty of people that can not afford clothes. What are we doing with our clothes? Are we donating them to others when we no longer want them? What about buying new clothes for those that need them? For instance in the winter time, we could donate fresh, new, socks to the homeless shelter. It is cold out there in the winter in a lot of places and dry socks are a commodity. What about donating winter jackets? These don’t even have to be new, but if we have more than we need, we can donate some. Also, we could go to the thrift store, or Goodwill and buy a few winter jackets and bring them to a homeless shelter. There are plenty of people living on the streets and although we can’t clothe them all, we can do our small part.
Do you see how this golden rule can apply to so many circumstances. God is looking for us to treat others how we wish to be treated. He is wanting us to be kind and loving towards all we meet as this is how we would want to be treated. However, He doesn’t want us to just stop there. He wants us to go out and search for those that are lost, hungry, sick, thirsty, and take care of them the way we would want God to take care of us. God wants us to be His hands and feet on earth and help Him take care of all of His children. Will you accept this challenge? Will you continue to try and live by the golden rule? What is one thing you can do today, or this week to feed the hungry, clothe the naked, welcome the stranger, or visit someone that is lonely?
Dear Heavenly Father, I ask you to bless all those listening to this episode today. Lord, help us to live by the golden rule. Help us to be your hands and feet in this world. We want to be your instruments Lord, put it on our heart how you want us to help. Lord, help us to see that it doesn’t have to be a big thing that we do all the time. Help us to spend less time thinking and planning and more time doing. Help us to know what you want us to do and let us not get side tracked by all the options. There are so many ways to help those in need, let us just pick one and do it. We love you Lord, you are so amazing. You do so much for us and we want to do more for others. We just need your help. We ask all of this in accordance with your will and in Jesus holy name, Amen!
Thank you so much for joining me on this journey to walk boldly with Jesus. I just want to remind everyone that my prayer group is putting on a Life in the Spirit Seminar tonight at 7:00 P. M. (EST) If you are interested in learning more about the Holy Spirit and how to invite Him more into your life, email me and I will send you the zoom link. Catherine@findingtruenorthcoaching.com. I look forward to seeing you tomorrow. Have a blessed day!