The Kingdom Manifesto - 21

Kingdom Manifesto – 21

Do to Others

Matthew 7:12

Introduction

- This is a Pufferfish. Cute right? No. It is the second most poisonous vertebrate on the planet.

- This is a Slow Loris. Cute? Looks like a baby Ewok. But incredibly deadly as it releases poison out of its elbows to kill unsuspecting victims.

- This is a Blue-Ringed Octopus. Looks so nice. Only about the size of a quarter. One of the most poisonous animals on the planet. Carries enough venom to kill 26 adults. No antivenom exists and can kill an adult human in only a few minutes.

TS - There things that are just so cute, or maybe small, that we have no idea how much it could hurt. In Matthew 7, Jesus gives to us a little command...so small, so cute...and it seems we have no idea how challenging it really is.

Matthew 7:12 - 12 “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.

We all know this as The Golden Rule. A statement that is so widely known that most people don’t even know it comes from the Bible. A statement so bland now, so overused, so common that it has lost its potency. A statement you can find almost anywhere.

Last week I mentioned that Jesus really gets in our faces in Matthew 7 with the level of difficulty of what he teaches here. Does this one really fit. How is this ‘in your face’? I am coming to the conclusion that this one might be the most ‘in your face,’ the most challenging of them all.

In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus gives a handful of what I would call ‘summary statements.’ A statement that will sum up all that he has been teaching up to that point, or even statements that sum up entire categories of Christian belief and behavior.

Matthew 5:20 - 20 “But I warn you—unless your righteousness is better than the righteousness of the teachers of religious law and the Pharisees, you will never enter the Kingdom of Heaven!

Matthew 5:48 - 48 But you are to be perfect, even as your Father in heaven is perfect.

Matthew 6:33 - 33 Seek the Kingdom of God above all else, and live righteously, and he will give you everything you need.

The Golden Rule is one of those summary statements. It effectively sums up how relationships are to work in God’s Kingdom. Remember, the Sermon on the Mount is God’s Kingdom Manifesto...this is how God’s kingdom people are supposed to live, who we are supposed to be. This is how we are called by God to treat the people around us.

TS - Let’s take the next few minutes and unpack this little command.

TREAT OTHERS LIKE YOU WANT TO BE TREATED.

There are any number of ways to treat someone. Here are a few…

- Treat others like you want to treat them.

This is a major driving force for a lot of people. I treat you like I want to, based on how I feel at the time. So, if you caught me in a good mood, then I will be nice. We know these people, don’t we? Dancing around them hoping they are in a good mood. Walking on eggshells, just in case.

But if they are in a bad mood, got caught in traffic, haven’t had their coffee or Diet Coke yet...you might get your head bitten off. How we treat people is not to be based on the roller coaster of our emotions.

- Treat others like they deserve to be treated.

Jesus has just communicated this twice in the last few verses. As Jesus taught not to judge others in v. 1-5, we aren’t to condemn people or label them as anything based on their actions. And when he quotes a proverb of his day in v. 6 with casting pearls before pigs, he reminds us that we do not have the right to label people as pigs. We aren’t in the judging business, as we cannot see people’s hearts or understand their motivations. He reminds us also a few verses later that God sets the example in this.

In Matthew 7:11 Jesus tells us that God doesn’t give good things to those who deserve it, but to those who ask, regardless of whether they deserve it or not. In Jesus we have received mercy, forgiveness and eternal life. We certainly do not deserve that. It’s interesting, don’t you think, that after Jesus sets God up as the example of this, his very next sentence is to treat others like you want to be treated...not how they deserve to be treated.

This is where this Golden Rule begins to tarnish for us a little bit. We like treating people how they deserve to be treated. It feels right, like we are administering justice.

-A coworker doesn’t hold up their end of the deal, you gossip about them mercilessly, so they get what is coming to them.

-A spouse says something you don’t like so you give them the silent treatment for a few days.

-A friend doesn’t come through when needed, so you harbor bitterness toward them.

You see, here is the problem with treating people like you want to, or treating people like they deserve...it makes you the judge, jury and executioner. As if you are the one in charge of administering justice and ensuring people know what they deserve. It sets you up as the most important one in the room, as the one who has to be pleased...or else. While we may like sitting in that position, we are never supposed to be in that place.

Romans 14:4 - 4 Who are you to condemn someone else’s servants? Their own master will judge whether they stand or fall. And with the Lord’s help, they will stand and receive his approval.

Philippians 2:3 - 3 Don’t be selfish; don’t try to impress others. Be humble, thinking of others as better than yourselves.

We are to view people as better than us. To lift them higher than ourselves, serve them, love them, meet their needs. Forgive, show mercy...even when we don’t want to, and even when they don’t deserve it.

Ephesians 5:21 - 21 And further, submit to one another out of reverence for Christ.

This great relationship principle is to guide all Christian relationships, not just marriage. The most important part of this is ‘out of reverence for Christ.’ Treat people this way because of your level of respect for Jesus, who has treated you this way, and now commands you to do the same.

I emphasize this with couples as they go through premarital counseling. There will be days you won’t want to submit to your spouse. There will be days that they don’t deserve your submission. None of that matters. This has nothing to do with your spouse...this has everything to do with your relationship with Jesus.

The same applies for all relationships. There will be times you don’t want to treat people rightly. There will be times they won’t deserve it. Doesn’t matter. It doesn’t depend on them. It is all about your relationship with Jesus.

TS - so there is the way I want to treat people, the way people deserve to be treated, but there is also a third.

- Treat people like they have treated you.

This one might be the easiest to do. Just mirror their actions and treatment of you.

-If they are rude, do the same.

-If they gossip about you, do the same.

This is the ‘eye for an eye’ mentality. If you want to keep things fair and just, then this is the right way to treat them. But, if you will remember, Jesus already dealt with this. In Matthew 5, Jesus destroyed the ‘eye for an eye’ mentality, and told us to love, even our enemies, because even those that do not know God can love only their friends and be kind to those who are kind to them. But God’s kingdom people are supposed to be different. Noticeably so.

Romans 12:17-21 - 17 Never pay back evil with more evil. Do things in such a way that everyone can see you are honorable. 18 Do all that you can to live in peace with everyone. 19 Dear friends, never take revenge. Leave that to the righteous anger of God. For the Scriptures say, “I will take revenge; I will pay them back,” says the Lord. 20 Instead, “If your enemies are hungry, feed them. If they are thirsty, give them something to drink. In doing this, you will heap burning coals of shame on their heads.” 21 Don’t let evil conquer you, but conquer evil by doing good.

So this is not just about being on defense and fighting off evil. This is about being on offense and overcoming evil with good. You know, this Golden Rule that Jesus says is an ethical statement that you can find in most world religions, among the Jewish leaders of his own day. But there is one distinct difference...they all say the command in the negative. Don’t do to others what you don’t want them to do to you.

Jesus flips it toward the positive. Actively do to them...take the initiative. God’s kingdom people aren’t waiting around to see how others are going to be treating them and then figure it out from there. No, they are on the offensive, initiating good things in the lives of the people around them. Following Jesus is not about merely avoiding bad things, but about actively pursuing good things.

TS - so now that we know all the ways of treating people...how I want to, how they deserve, and how they have treated me...now we see how Jesus would have us do this…

- Treat them like you want to be treated.

And how do you want to be treated? That is easy to figure out isn’t it?

Shown respect

Trusted

Given benefit of the doubt

Judged based on intentions, not actions

Turns out, this is a distinct relational theme in the NT.

When asked what the most important command was, Jesus answered…

Matthew 22:37-40 - 37 Jesus replied, “‘You must love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, and all your mind.’38 This is the first and greatest commandment. 39 A second is equally important: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ 40 The entire law and all the demands of the prophets are based on these two commandments.”

When husbands are commanded to love their wives like Jesus loved the church in Ephesians 5, an illustration is given to help flesh out what it looks like.

Ephesians 5:28-29 - 28 In the same way, husbands ought to love their wives as they love their own bodies. For a man who loves his wife actually shows love for himself. 29 No one hates his own body but feeds and cares for it, just as Christ cares for the church.

The whole point is that we already know how to love ourselves. We meet our needs. We sacrifice for ourselves. Now, do that with your wife. Do that with all others.

Matthew 7:12 - 12 “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.

Jesus is the epitome of this. If I am in a place where I need someone to save my life, I want them to do all they can. If I’m in an ER, I want the doctors to do what they would do if it were them on the table.

We were at a place of death, spiritual death. And we needed life. And Jesus did exactly that. He did all he could do...he stood in our place as our substitute, paying the penalty for our sins so that we could be forgiven and granted eternal life. Jesus is the epitome and example of what this looks like.

COMMUNION