"The Golden Rule" - Fulfilling The Law And The Prophets

"Today's Devotion" For March 7, 2006

Read: Matthew 7:7-12; Galatians 5:1-15

"THE GOLDEN RULE" - FULFILLING THE LAW AND THEPROPHETS

"So 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)

Jesus' words in Matthew 7:12, "Do to others what you would have them do to you" is popularly called "The Golden Rule." There's even an insurance company that uses "Golden Rule" as its name (given the opinions many have about insurance companies, using "Golden Rule" as a name isn't a half bad marketing strategy). The whole point of "The Golden Rule," as popularly understood, is that we should treat others as we want to be treated, including not being called to account for our misbehavior by others. The application of "The Golden Rule" is popularly based on what human beings consider to be "proper" behavior, which is frequently at odds with what God considers "godly behavior."

Jesus didn't speak these words in a vacuum. He spoke them in His "Sermon on the Mount" to His disciples - those who believed He was the Son of God and the promised Messiah. He spoke them in the context of God's Word - "for this sums up the Law and the Prophets." He spoke them in the context of the two overarching principles that are the foundation of the Ten Commandments - God's Law - "Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: Love your neighbor as yourself. All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments" (Jesus words in Matthew 22:37-39). Rather than interpreting "The Golden Rule" based upon human standards of what constitutes good behavior, Jesus intended His words to guide His disciples of all times and places in godly living, as they seek to obey God's Word and live according to the Gospel.

Ultimately, from a human perspective, following "The Golden Rule" is more frequently defined by human standards and cultural norms and mores, than it is by paying attention to "the Law and the Prophets" - God's Word. All too often, "the Law and the Prophets" are interpreted in a way that is more palatable to human beings. Humanity is frequently at odds with God's Word, believing it to be an evolving document in the same way that human thinking, human laws, and human values evolve. Yet the one constant, fundamental, foundational source of truth is God's Word. It never changes - only people change. It's meaning is ever the same - only people choose to interpret it and understand it differently. Thus, our ability as human beings to truly follow "The Golden Rule" - the Law and the Prophets - falls woefully short on a daily basis.

Into this morass of confused values, principles, and "situational ethics" comes the Lord of life and the Savior of the world. Jesus takes on our human flesh and fulfills the Law and the Prophets for us. We seek to understand and grow in our relationship with the Father because Christ has set us free to do so. In His suffering and death He shows us what it means to be obedient to the Father and "fulfill the Law and the Prophets" - to love God above all things and our neighbor as ourselves. He put God's Will above everything and bore the sins of the world on His head upon the Cross so that by faith in Him all might have God's forgiveness for all of their sins and life with God forever. We may debate among ourselves what constitutes behavior in keeping with "The Golden Rule," but if we don't see "The Golden Rule" as the fulfillment of the Law and the Prophets - God's Word and Will - then we'll never be on the same page. That's why we need Jesus - His obedience becomes ours by faith in His blood and righteousness. Through faith in Him we are empowered to "fulfill the Law and the Prophets" and truly live "The Golden Rule" according to God's standards and not our own.

Prayer: Father, I often find myself disagreeing with Your way of doing things. I'd like to put You in a box that allows me to determine what I want to believe and how I want to obey, rather than being obedient to You, which is awfully difficult. The world believes that You are a changeable being (if they even believe that You exist) and that, therefore, like us, Your Will and Word are malleable, changeable, and evolving in the same way as our human institutions. Forgive me for falling into that trap and growing equivocal about my obedience to You and faith in Christ as my Redeemer and Lord. Strengthen me in my faith and trust in your Word that I might treat others with dignity and respect according to Your purposes and Will. Help me to realize that part of loving others is also holding them responsible for their behavior - as I expect them to hold me responsible for my behavior. Guide me to live in a way that is always pleasing to You, loving toward my neighbor, and truly a witness to Your Will, Your Word, and Your love for all people in Christ; in whose precious name I pray. Amen.
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--Pastor Boeck

Copyright © 2006 Rev. Richard J. Boeck, Jr. All rights reserved.