Therefore, in everything do to others what you would have them do to you, for this sums up the Law and the Prophets.
—Matthew 7:12
Following the Call—chap. 47: The Golden Rule
What a “therefore” is there for. A golden “rule”? Love is enough. Your turn.
No external form of action, no rule is enough.
— Roger L. Shinn
What a “Therefore” Is There For
The “Golden Rule” is the culmination of Jesus’ teaching about the greater righteousness, which begins with Matthew 5:17, “I have not come to abolish the Law and the Prophets,” and ends here at 7:12 with, “For this is the Law and the Prophets.” These two verses act as bookends, framing the central core of what constitutes life in the kingdom. Jesus sums everything up by saying, “Therefore, in everything do to others what you would have them do to you.”
Notice the “therefore” at the beginning of this verse. In addition to concluding Jesus’ extended teaching, this verse is directly connected with the preceding passage, which ends with, “How much more will your Father in heaven give good gifts to those who ask him!” The Golden Rule, therefore, must be seen in light of God’s generosity. Just as God generously gives us good gifts, we are to bestow good deeds to others. We are to do good to others as God does good to us!
The Golden Rule is thus not a version of Kant’s categorical imperative. We are to do more than put ourselves in another’s place, or treat them as we would wish to be treated under similar circumstances, or refrain from dealing with them as we would not wish to be dealt with. Jesus’ standard is not a maxim based on reasonableness but a guide based on the radical goodness of God. To treat others solely in reference to how we ourselves want to be treated is not enough.
This becomes even more evident in Luke’s Gospel, where the Golden Rule concludes the paragraph that starts with, “Love your enemies.” God’s mercy is the standard. He makes the sun to shine and his rain to fall on the unrighteous. Or, as Roger Shinn points out, “Love, mercy, forgiveness, the spirit of the Beatitudes—hear we find the spirit in which Jesus meant the Golden Rule.” God’s unconditional love is what should shape the way we treat others. Glen H. Stassen puts it this way:
Let God’s love for the enemy shape the nature of our love for our enemy. Let God’s presence in secret call us to give our loyalty to God in secret. Let God’s reign and delivering justice guide us as we make our financial investments. Let God’s forgiveness and faithful guide us as we practice forgiving others rather than judging the. Let God’s trustworthiness guide us giving our loyalty to God rather than to the temporarily powerful. Let God’s giving us good gifts shape our love toward others. These teachings point to the source for a profound understanding of love. (Living the Sermon on the Mount)
A Golden “Rule”?
In one way or another, most of us feel the impact of the Golden Rule. We know what is right and how others are to be treated. Yet we often lack the necessary virtues to treat others as we ourselves wish to be treated. This is not an ethical problem. It’s an existential one. The Golden Rule is like a golden goblet; it remains empty until it is filled with the love of God. “We love because he first loved us” (1 John 4:19).
It is this “profound understanding of love” the Golden Rule is getting at. The apostle Paul writes, “Love is the fulfillment of the Law” (Rom. 13:10). James refers to the perfect law as the “royal law” of love. This law gives freedom because “Mercy triumphs over judgment!” (James 2:8ff).
All this is to say that respecting the rights of others, or treating others as you yourself want to be treated, is never enough. The Golden Rule cannot be grasped apart from what Jesus calls the “greater righteousness.” New Testament scholar Dale Allison sums it up as follows: “Everything, without exception, which is demanded by love and the commandments of Jesus you should do for other people” (The Sermon on the Mount: Inspiring the Moral Imagination).
In this light, “rule” is somewhat a misnomer. For Jesus’ teachings transcend rules. He calls us first to follow him, only then can we begin to grasp what he says. He alone is our gold standard. Unlike Moses and Elijah, who appeared with Jesus high up on a mountain, only Jesus shines like the sun (Matt. 17:1ff). It is no wonder his disciples had their eyes fixed on him, not on Moses or Elijah. And so should we.
Love Is Enough
The following story, as told by E. Stanley Jones, of a father who came home after a long absence and was welcomed by his little son, vividly illustrates the difference between doing one’s duty and showing love.
As the father sat in the house, the little fellow, scarcely able to contain himself with joy, came up to him and eagerly said, “Daddy, can’t I do something for you?” The father, wishing to respond to the boy’s eagerness, told him that he might bring him a glass of water. The little boy, nearly tumbling over himself, ran pell-mell across the room to the water pitcher, poured some water in the glass and some on the table, clutched the glass, one little finger in the water, and then ran to his father, the water spilling over the edge of the glass. When he pulled his finger out of the glass there trickled down inside a muddy stream from his not very clean little finger, but the father drank every drop in the glass, while the little fellow stood there rubbing his wet hands on his shirt and saying, “Daddy, can’t I do something else for you?” That may not be perfect service, but it was perfect love.
Treating others rightly may be sign of good character. But perfect love, which Jesus calls us to exercise (Matt. 5:48), is a power that compels us to do more than what is morally required of us. Love is the fruit of the Spirit (Gal. 5:13ff) that God promises to give to all who ask and keep asking. God not only gives good gifts, but through the Holy Spirit he empowers us to translate those gifts into doing good for the sake of others. No rule, however golden, can compare to this.
Your Turn
How important is the Golden Rule in your life? Just reply to this email to leave a comment.
Thanks for your input and I'll keep your suggestion in mind.
I like your commentary in these emails a lot, sometimes more than the selections in the book. Would you consider publishing a second edition that includes what you have given us in these emails?