Week 33: Do Unto Others

You know, it has been our desire here at SeaCoast to be a healthy multi-cultural, multi-generational church. Multiple generations, cultures from all over the world, a myriad of stories and experiences all in one room. And today's entry into the Fifty Things that Jesus asked us to do - is truly a multi-generational, multi-cultural entry. Maybe in more ways that you realize. In Matthew chapter 7, as part of His sermon on the mount, Jesus says

Do to others whatever you would like them to do to you. This is the essence of all that is taught in the law and the prophets.Matthew 7:12

The Gospel of Luke records it this way -

Do to others as you would like them to do to you.Luke 6:31

So #31 on our list of Fifty Things is-

#31 - DO UNTO OTHERS

You may have heard this particular command referred to as

"The Golden Rule"

Now, fun fact- it wasn't Jesus who coined the term "The Golden Rule." In fact, that particular label didn't even really gain popularity until the 17th century when British, Anglican theologians like Charles Gibbons and Thomas Jackson started referring to it as such in the early 1600's.

Second fun fact and we already saw this is alluded to in Matthew 7:12 - but

"Jesus wasn't the first to advocate for this principle of do unto others."

This principle had been echoed in many places before Jesus addresses it in Matthew 7 and Luke 6. Now obviously, a version of it existed in Judaism under the law of Moses under the command

Love your neighbor as yourself.Leviticus 19:18

And it is restated as it applies to foreigners within your own borders regardless of their origin or status -

The stranger who resides with you - shall be to you as one of your citizens; you shall love him as yourself, for you were strangers in the land of Egypt.Leviticus 19:34

Certainly a verse that some of our so-called 'Christian' leaders and influencers could use a remedial course on.

Hillel the elder was a Jewish rabbi and the head of the Sanhedrin, a collection of 70 Jewish elders, high priests, scribes and legal experts that served as the highest authority of Jewish law. He actually predated Jesus - likely passing away shortly after Jesus' birth. And Hillel was known for his compassionate, gentle interpretation of the Mosaic Law. He famously said -

"What is hateful to you, do not do to your fellow. This is the whole Torah; the rest is the explanation; go and learn." - Hillel the Elder, Babylonian Talmud, Tractate Shabbat 31a (also Ethics of the Fathers)

Now, you'll notice this is a parallel teaching of "Do Unto Others" that Jesus referenced. But it's the negative version. It's Don't Do unto others as you would prefer them NOT to do unto you.

But this concept - it shows up in more places than just the law of Moses and the writings of Hillel in the Talmud. The same concept shows up in the teachings of Confucias as

What you do not wish for yourself, do not do to others."Confucius, The Analects 15:23, 6:28

Confucius predated Jesus by nearly 500 years.

"That which you hate to be done to you, do not do to another"

Is an ancient Egyptian maxim that appears in many works, but is directly stated in a papyrus from the Late period specifically from sometime between 664 BCE to 323 BCE - predating Jesus' teachings by anywhere from over 300 to 600 years. Adherence to the principle is referenced in chapter 125 of the Papyrus of Ani, but the earliest stated version of this maxim can be found way back somewhere between 1650 and 2040 BCE - literally thousands of years before Jesus in a story from Egyptian wisdom traditions in The Story of the Eloquent Peasant"

In ancient India, one of the two important epics of Hinduism, a smririt text known as the Mahabharata expresses this philosophical tenet -

"Do not do to others what you do not wish done to yourself. This is the whole of Dharma."Mahabharata 18.113.8

We also see it written as

Do not unto others which would cause pain if done to you.Mahabharata 5:15:17

This is a pre-6th century BCE text, written over 500 years before Jesus. I'd say stop me if you heard this before - but I'd like to keep talking

"Hurt not others in ways that you yourself would find hurtful"Udanavarga 5:18

is a tenet of Buddhism, contained in the Udanavarga written roughly 500 years before the birth of Jesus.

But all of those versions seem to be examples, not of the Golden Rule, but of the Silver Rule.

"The Silver Rule"

Anybody know why these are considered "The Silver Rule" and not "The Golden Rule?" If you look at all of these - with the exception of the command that Jesus references, they are statements formed in the 'negative.' IE -

"Don't do what you wouldn't want someone to do to you."

Okay. Which is a great rule. It's a good rule to live by. If you wouldn't want someone to do it to you, don't do it to somebody else.

But Jesus takes it a step further.

See - "The Silver Rule" is kind of a policy of non-harm. Right? Don't hurt somebody. Don't insult somebody. Don't make other people's lives harder than it already is.

It's a passive ideology. "Avoid being mean" "Don't be evil."

But what Jesus references is the Gold Standard - because Jesus flips a negative and makes it positive.

Do to others whatever you would like them to do to you. This is the essence of all that is taught in the law and the prophets.Matthew 7:12

Jesus raises the bar. It's not just 'avoid being mean.' 'Don't hurt other people.' 'Don't do evil.' Those are passive ideas. And while that's a great philosophy - you all know that you can be passive aggressive too right? Let me show you where I think Jesus would say "the silver rule" falls short -

"I didn't insult that person." Great. Silver rule. Good job. But did you encourage them? Did you say something nice to them? Did you demonstrate the love of Jesus through your words or actions to them? That's raising the bar. That's the Golden Rule.

"I didn't hurt that person." No. But did you help them?

Jesus said

DO to others AS YOU WOULD LIKE THEM TO DO unto you.Luke 6:31

That's active goodness. Not Don't do. What DID you do. What ARE you going to do? What ARE you DOING?

Jesus isn't just calling His followers to a policy of non-harm or non-intervention or non-interference. If you are a follower of Christ, realize this, Jesus is calling us to a higher standard of

PROACTIVE LOVE

This is not a side quest like in a video game. This is not optional. This is not - "well, you could do good for people if you wanna take time away from the main quest or if you're going for that 100% completion achievement." Nuh-uh.

DO to others as you would like them to do to you.Luke 6:31

It's one of the Fifty Things that Jesus asked His followers to do and it is important, because you see the parallel between another passage that we state in here all the time about loving our neighbors -

This is the essence of all that is taught in the law and the prophets.Matthew 7:12

Avoid doing bad - that's not the essence of all that is taught in the law and the prophets. Not hurting other people - yeah, clearly that's part of it. Okay the Silver Rule is a PART of the Golden Rule. But the essence of all that is taught in the law and the prophets is to

DO GOOD TO OTHERS

The Golden Rule since being stated by Jesus has made it's way into many religions and philosophies and even international governmental policy.

In Islam, it is stated as

As you would have people do to you, do to them; and what you dislike to be done to you, don't do to them.Hadith 13

There's a legend that says Roman Emperor Alexander Severus valued the Golden Rule so highly that he had it inscribed in gold on public buildings 1400 years before Gibbons and Jackson popularized the phrase.

In 1958, Israel would quote Leviticus 19:18

Love your neighbor as yourself.Leviticus 19:18

when it commemorated the Universal Declaration of Human Rights on a postage stamp.

The Parliament of the World's Religions, a global dialogue of faiths which first began meeting in 1893 comprised of spiritual, civics and grassroots leaders and individuals declared in 1993 "we must treat others as we wish others to treat us." They declared the Golden Rule as the common principle for many religions in a "Declaration Toward a Global Ethic" signed by 143 leaders of all the world's major faiths including Bahai, Brahamanism. Buddhism, Christianity, Hinduism, Indigenous People's beliefs, Islam, Judaism, Native American beliefs, Sikhism, Taoism, Unitarian Universalists and even Zoroastrianism.

The Golden Rule was called the "shared moral foundation of humanity."

The Golden Rule has been referred to as "the preeminent, most valuable and universally applicable principle for ETHICAL conduct." Treating others with the same kindness, respect and empathy you wish to receive -

It is acknowledged and revered in almost every ethical tradition, religious tradition and organized government…

And yet…

Have you looked at the world lately? Have you watched the news? Have you gone outside recently? Have you worn a Ducks jersey at a Kings game? (Nah. I'm kidding. Sort of . That was a cheap shot, Kings fans. I know it goes both ways. We have Ducks fans that act like jerks too. The kind of 'lame ducks' most of us Ducks fans wish we could disown. Come see me after the service if you'd like to hear what we call those kind of fans when it's not a family show.

But I digress. If The Golden Rule is the foundation of human ethics and government and interpersonal relations, why does the world look like it does? Why are so many of us getting it so wrong? If "Do Unto Others As You Would Have Them Do Unto You" is the foundation of religious beliefs, human ethics, and modern human rights- then why does humanity look like it skipped pouring the foundation and went straight to drywall? Cause the human structures are there, but something important is missing…

Maybe… it's

COMPASSION

Maybe the reason we suck at carrying out the Golden Rule sometimes is because we're lacking in compassion. Jesus says something in Luke 6:36 - five verses after He says

Do to others as you would like them to do to you.Luke 6:31

He says,

You must be compassionate just as your Father is compassionate.Luke 6:36

Ultimately, doing unto others… it shouldn't be just a command that we're following. Why are you doing this? Because Jesus tells me to do it. Okay - but why? We should be showing love and doing unto others as an act of compassion - that's the traits and tenets of Jesus and our Heavenly Father that we are emulating here. Compassion.

And what does that mean? What does that look like? The Amplified Bible describes it as sympathetic, tender, responsive, filled with compassion. The definition is feeling or showing sympathy or empathy and concern for others. Showing an understanding of others, often with a desire to help alleviate their pain.

We don't do unto others out of necessity. We don't do unto others because it's the polite and neighborly thing to do. We don't do unto others out of obligation. We do unto others because we are moved with compassion.

To illustrate loving our neighbor - right, basically the same command as doing unto others - all the laws and the prophets hang on this… Jesus tells a story - the parable of the Good Samaritan. We find it in Luke 10 starting in verse 30. It says,

"Jesus replied with a story: "A Jewish man was traveling from Jerusalem down to Jericho, and he was attacked by bandits. They stripped him of his clothes, beat him up, and left him half dead beside the road. By chance a priest came along, But when he saw the man lying there, he crossed to the other side of the road and passed him by. A Temple assistant walked over and looked at him lying there, but he also passed by on the other side. Then a despised Samaritan came along, and when he saw the man, he felt COMPASSION for him. Going over to him, the Samaritan soothed his wounds with olive oil and wine and bandaged them. Then he put the man on his own donkey and took him to an inn, where he took care of him. The next day he handed the innkeeper two silver coins, telling him, 'Take care of this man. If his bill runs higher than this, I'll pay you the next time I'm here." "Now which of these three would you say was a neighbor to the man who was attacked by bandits?" Jesus asked The man replied, "The one who SHOWED HIM MERCY." Then Jesus said, "Yes, now go and do the same"Luke 10:30-37

So in this story - a man is beaten and left half for dead. Religious leaders walk by. They do him no harm. Technically I guess you could say they're following the silver rule. Though the silver rule just doesn't seem to cut it here when you hear it laid out in this situation does it? Cause it's lacking compassion. Sympathy. Empathy. It's lacking a concern for his neighbor. It's lacking mercy.

So the religious leaders - they walk by. They cross to the other side of the street. We can talk about motivation in a second…

But it's the Samaritan - not just an outsider, but a hated outsider - Jews and Samaritans did NOT get along going back to long standing religious and political divisions - which then became territorial disputes and I'm just gonna call it out right now there was some racism there because Jews viewed Samaritans as "half breeds" who intermarried with foreigners. But neither side was perfect in this - there was not a good guy and a bad guy per se - there was wrongness on both sides - centuries of mutual aggression - somewhere between 6-9AD, when Jesus was young, a group of Samaritans broke into Herod's Temple, the second temple of Jerusalem and defiled it. So definitely a heated rivalry there - but one without compassion wouldn't make a good Netflix series.

Anyways - it is the Samaritan. The hated Samaritan. The natural enemy. The rival. The other… who stops. He bandages wounds, pours oil and wine, puts the man on his own donkey, and you know he needed a donkey wash after that - all that blood and dirt… that does not just come out of plush donkey fur seating easily. Probably needed a full donkey detailing after that. The Samaritan then pays for the Jewish mans lodging and food and promises to return.

He stepped into somebody else's crisis. He inserted himself for the purpose of doing good - in a manner in which that person would've wanted good done to them, in a manner that the Samaritan would've wanted good done to himself - and not for any selfish reasons or obligation or even ideas of nobility or because he could get a Samaritan Scout badge for helping someone attacked by outlaws. The Samaritan displayed

EMPATHY

He thought - "what would that feel like?" "What would I hope people would do for me if I was in the same position?" And he showed tender compassion.

So - why did the priests - why did the religious leaders cross to the other side? Maybe it's the same reason why you look outside and though we claim that the golden rule is a principle that our country is built on and our religion is built on and if you're a Christ follower your LIFE should be built on - maybe the reason they pass is the same reason why it's still so ugly out there and we don't really see the Golden Rule lived out in action…

WE JUSTIFY OUR BEHAVIOR

See - we can come up with reasons NOT to abide by the Golden Rule. When you don't want to do something any excuse will do. So maybe the priests didn't want to get involved because maybe they would be ceremonially unclean for something they were getting ready for and they didn't want it interfering with their duties. They put their duties or their jobs or their status or the letter of the law above love… compassion… empathy… sympathy… mercy…

Our human, sinful, missing the mark, does not reach Jesus' standard justification of our own behavior can be the reason why we decide not to practice the Golden Rule in reality even though we hold it up in theory. I want you to see what Jesus says before He tells the story -

Jesus just got through getting an expert in religious law who was testing Jesus to arrive at the conclusion that the most important commandment was to love God with all your heart, soul and strength and to love your neighbor as you love yourself. And Jesus said,

Right!" Jesus told him. "Do this and you will live!Luke 10:28

Awesome. Pretty easy - break down 613 unlivable laws to 2 livable ideas and Jesus says YOU WILL LIVE! This should be a time for joyous celebration - but then look at what happens verse 29

And we read -

The man wanted to JUSTIFY HIS ACTIONS, so he asked Jesus, "And who is my neighbor?Luke 10:29

Why don't we live out the golden rule?

WE JUSTIFY OUR ACTIONS (OR LACK THEREOF)

I mean, that's a big reason why we suck at the Golden Rule. We hold it up in principle but when push comes to shove - do we have compassion or do we justify our actions? I look at these people who are making billions. Individuals who are worth more than like 90% of the total income of everybody else. And you see people starving and places where you can help, and homeless people… and you go - no one needs that much money. You have more money than your great-grandkids great grandkids can spend in their lifetimes… you could do so much good with that money - but you choose to hoard it and make more… you gotta justify that behavior somehow. But I don't think it lives up to the Golden Rule.

I lived through the AIDS epidemic - in the 80's. I was working in Hollywood as a kid during that time. And you know - here were thousands of people dying. Just a scary time for whole communities of people and their friends and families and loved ones. And God bless the ones who showed compassion and demonstrated the Golden Rule. Because disappointingly a lot of Christians and Christian mouthpieces on television decided to condemn instead of show compassion. They decided to mock instead of show mercy. Something I heard a lot of these people say was that AIDS was a homosexual disease and this was God's judgment and that 'these people' didn't deserve help. Clearly none of those statements were correct or compassionate like our Father or Jesus is compassionate. But that's an example of justifying your behavior. In 1 Peter 2 we read that all believers in Christ are priests… well a lot of priests justified their behavior and crossed the street and looked the other way instead of being Good Samaritans and doing unto others and loving our neighbors during that time. We still do. Pick a group. Pick a political movement you don't like. Pick a lifestyle you don't agree with. Pick somebody who has wronged you or who represents someone who you think has wronged you in your past… will you justify your behavior? Maybe think the silver rule is enough? Or will you be a Good Samaritan and rise to the standard that Jesus set with the Golden Rule?

This "othering" of people as justification not to help… there's a reason Jesus picked the Samaritan as the good guy in this parable when He was talking to Jewish religious leaders… whenever we "other" people and we don't see them the way Jesus does or the way God who created them does - we are 100% guaranteed to fall short of the Golden Rule.

Rabbi Simeon ben Azzzai who was considered to have an extraordinary understanding of what was BEHIND torah law - his writings are in the collection of Mishnah - he had this too say - and I'll paraphrase here and do my best with this idea-

He taught that loving one another - flows from ideas presented in the very begging of scripture - in Genesis 1. This realization that "all humanity is made in the image of God." And he said that Adam represents the unity of humankind. From one source comes breathtaking diversity. And he says that's why Leviticus 19:33-34 says

Do not take advantage of foreigners who live among you in your land. Treat them like native-born Israelites, and love them as you love yourself. Remember that you were once foreigners living in the land of Egypt.Leviticus 19:33-34

So a couple of quick takeaways here -

THE GOLDEN RULE IS ROOTED IN THE IMAGE OF GOD

Every human being - regardless of race, color, creed, nationality, sexual orientation, political alignment, class, caste, belief or upbringing bears the image of God. They were made in the image of God. They are a special creation of God. And therefore they matter. Every person deserves dignity. Every person is worthy of compassion and sympathy and empathy and mercy and love. We do unto others as we would like them to do unto us because of a mutual recognition that "you matter as much as I do." There is reciprocal dignity. Even between Ducks fans and Kings fans. And that reciprocal dignity and right not just to exist but to thrive as a loved creation of God is at the heart of modern human rights and social justice. You know that whole thing Jesus says in

Matthew 25:40

Whatever you did for the least of these you did for me? The hungry that you fed - the thirsty who you gave a drink to - the STRANGER that you invited into your home - extrapolate that out people - the naked that you clothed, the sick you cared for, the person in prison you visited…

That's the Golden Rule. And that's also social justice lived out. There's a weird re-routing of Christianity going on by some people who wouldn't recognize Jesus if he smacked them up side the head with his nail-scarred hand… a real bastardization of Christianity - mixing it with machismo and political nonsense and they treat "social justice" like it's a bad word. And whenever I hear someone who claims to be a Christian say they're against social justice or the application of ideas and concepts of social justice - I get confused. Because the Golden Rule is social justice. In a nutshell. The Golden Rule, the Good Samaritan - it's about sticking your neck out to help other people. It's about sacrificing yourself for the good of others. It's about empathy. Selfless love. When I hear someone say "the problem is empathy." There's literally books out there right now about "the sin of empathy." If I hear someone ascribing to or espousing those beliefs than I know they either don't get what Jesus said or OR they really don't CARE or BELIEVE what Jesus said.

WE JUSTIFY OUR ACTIONS

What they care about is defending a religion or a political stance that is wholly manmade where they don't have to select the compassion of God and follow the Golden Rule. Where they can have their cake and eat it too - by feeling religious and puffed up and good about themselves without actually putting aside differences, and reaching out to those who are not like us, and getting the hands and feet of Jesus dirty and messy and sacrificing ourself to actually DO the good that the golden rule requires.

At the end of the day -

SIN

Gets in the way of us living out the golden rule. Selfishness. Hatred. Greed. Pride. All the usual crap. And at the end of the day - sin is usually about self

SIN = SELF

And when we put ourselves first, it's so hard to love our neighbors and do unto others as we would have them do unto us. Saint Augustine of Hippo - a theologian and philosopher considered an early church father - he described sin as "incurvates in se" -

"curved in on ourselves"

The Golden Rule requires us to look outside of ourselves and show compassion. In Matthew 9 we're told that

Jesus traveled through all the towns and villages of that area, teaching in the synagogues and announcing the Good News about the Kingdom. And He healed every kind of disease and illness. When He saw the crowds, He had COMPASSION on them because they were confused and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd. He said to the disciples, "The harvest is great, but the workers are few. So pray to the Lord who is in charge of the harvest; ask Him to send more workers into His fields.Matthew 9:35-38

Jesus had

COMPASSION on the crowds.

By the way compassion is derived from the Latin compati which means

"to suffer with"

Compassion in its original meaning - is the deep awareness of another person's suffering coupled with the desire to alleviate it. It goes BEYOND EMPATHY by moving from feeling to action, involving entering into another's pain rather than just mere observing it. It is about walking with someone in their pain. Presence and proximity. It is about action and shared humanity. Compassion is empathy with action and without judgment.

So take a hike with that "sin of empathy" thing - as both Jesus and Hillel the Elder said "go and learn"

But see, empathy is hard. You have to stop and be able to put yourself in someone else's shoes who might not be very much like you. You have to be able to imagine yourself in their situation. You have to be able to step outside of your comfort zone.

Like Jesus did… think about it. He didn't just tell us to live Golden Rule - He lived it out for us to follow. He touched lepers. He said "let the little children come to Him." He ate with sinners and He didn't say "wow they made bad choices. Sucks to be them." He felt their pain and addressed their needs and offered a path forward. He dignified women in places and areas where they were not honored. He forgave His enemies. He washed feet.

And then He went even further - Jesus said

There is no greater love than to lay down one's life for one's friendsJohn 15:13

The Golden Rule is not abstract ethics or applied civics… it's the love of Jesus on a cross. That's the ultimate example of "Do Unto Others." A compassionate, empathetic Savior puts Himself in our situation - leaves Heaven, comes to earth to live as a human - experiencing all the pain and sorrow and confusion… He shares humanity with us. His presence and proximity is there. He walks with us. He heals us and desires to alleviate our suffering - and he inserts Himself into our situation so that we can experience freedom from sin and suffering when we leave this world, so we can be reunited with our Heavenly Father, and so we can experience abundant life - life with true meaning and purpose when we follow Jesus here on Earth.

Until next time, remember, we were saved, God's masterpiece, created anew in Christ Jesus so we can do the good things He planned for us long ago. May SeaCoast be a church where the Golden rule shines… no more hidin', we'll be shinin' like we're born to be. Cause we're God's children, voices strong and I know I believe…

"We're going up, up, up it's our moment you know together we're glowing' gonna be gonna be golden Oh up, up, up with our voices 영원히 깨질 수 없는 gonna be, gonna be golden.

Now I'm done hidin', now I'm shining' like I'm born to be Of our time, no fears, no lies that's who we're born to be…"