What’s a personal mantra or philosophy you live by?
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Luke 6:31
31 Do to others as you would have them do to you.
Some of the teaching of Jesus was new, and some raises all sorts of debates. For example, here’s what Jesus said immediately before this:
Luke 6:27-30
27 “But to you who are listening I say: Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, 28 bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you. 29 If someone slaps you on one cheek, turn to them the other also. If someone takes your coat, do not withhold your shirt from them. 30 Give to everyone who asks you, and if anyone takes what belongs to you, do not demand it back.
If a teacher in school gave the class this advice, no doubt it would raise all sorts of discussions and debates. Perhaps that’s the very reason why a teacher might say something like that. I suspect that something similar happened with Jesus. And the gospel writers wouldn’t have had time or space to record all the debates and questions and answers. But perhaps Jesus was targetting the sort of person who is full of revenge and hatred and constantly thinks in terms of injustices done to him. Maybe he was asking them to swing in the other direction. I sometimes think of the outcome of World War II. Let’s suppose Germany and Japan had become bitter and spent the last 80 years engaged in terrorism and trying to take revenge and win back terriroty lost to them. They didn’t do that. And they became hugely successful – the sorts of countries that we all looked up to.
When Jesus and his disciples had a little fund for the poor, surely they would have assessed whether a person really was poor rather than the kind of person who goes through life living off others. Later in the New Testament, the Apostle Paul discouraged supporting people who sought to take advantage of the church (2 Thessalonians 3:6-15 and 1 Timothy 5:3-16).
And when Jesus spoke about disputes in Matthew 18:15-20, he didn’t suggest you simply give in to the other person. That shows the importance of viewing the wider picture of the New Testamnet and not plucking verses out of context.
But Luke 6:31, sometimes known as the Golden Rule, is a very simple verse. The notion wasn’t invented by Jesus. It’s a known principle throughout the world, and it was known even in ancient religions. It’s common sense.
I like my post to get read and liked – so I try to read and like other posts. That’s a little thing, but even little things can provoke you to enter into the broader spirit of the Golden Rule.
Here are a couple of secular songs about love and kindness:
I also notice a few hymns based on it:
