The good news of something like the Golden Rule in particular and the Sermon on the Mount in general is that they not only tell us what God expects of us, but God empowers us to live the way that we ought to live. They are not just pleasant and inspiring moral precepts that we can nod our heads at, but they are the commands of God which, by means of his Spirit in us, he helps us to live out.

I was recently asked about the so-called Golden Rule. The person was quite right to ask a question regarding it, namely: Are we simply to do for others whatever they want to be done? A good question, and one that deserves a closer look. And the context of this passage, and the way it is written, should help us to rightly understand it.

Let me first share our brief social media exchange:

Her: Hey Bill, Aren’t we meant to treat people how we would like to be treated? I heard today it was treat people how they wanted to be treated???

Me: Well, the “Golden Rule” says that we should “do to others what you would have them do to you” (Matthew 7:12) – although there is more to the Christian life than just that.

Her: Yes but if we treat people how they want to be treated we could end up condoning things we don’t want to?

Me: Sure, the teaching of Jesus presumes we want to be treated rightly, properly and in a godly manner, so we are to treat others that way. But as I say, all the other teachings of Jesus also need to be considered, not just this one. It is similar to when he said we should love our neighbour as ourselves. But it is a good question you are asking. Maybe I will write an article on this!

And thus this piece. Note first of all what the passage (found in two of the four gospels) actually says:

Matthew 7:12 “So whatever you wish that others would do to you, do also to them, for this is the Law and the Prophets.”

Luke 6:31 “And as you wish that others would do to you, do so to them.”

In both cases we are not to do for others whatever it is that they want done to them. For example, they might want you to lie or steal or kill for them. They might want you to supply them with illicit drugs. They might want to do something immoral with you.

Obviously Jesus did not have those sorts of things in mind. He refers to how you want to be treated. Most folks want to be treated kindly, fairly, honestly, decently and with respect. And that of course is how we should treat others. So the whole point of the Golden Rule is the good we want done to us is what we should extend to others.

And by bracketing this with the words “Law and the prophets” Jesus makes it clear that good, holy and righteous things are what we should want for ourselves, and for others. As I said above, this really is not unlike what Jesus said about the great commandments: loving God with all of our being, and loving our neighbour as ourself (Matthew 22:36-40; Mark 12:28-32; Luke 10:25-28).

In loving ourselves, Jesus does not mean living a selfish, carnal and sinful life. We should want the very best for ourselves, and that means walking in accord with God’s will for our lives. It means keeping his commandments. And this is what we should want for others. As Scot McKnight comments:

Twice Jesus probes into the essence of the Torah by appealing to self-love: here and in the Jesus Creed (22:34-40). As his followers were to love their neighbors as they loved themselves, so they as disciples were to do to others what they would want others to do to them. This principle is neither selfish nor narcissistic but expansive—we are to extend our self-care to others.

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