Day 9: The Golden Rule

    

February 26

by Michael Lovett

Reading:

Matt 7:7-12

Reflection:

Read the scriptures above, then you can access the video of this devotional HERE.

When we get mad at others, do we treat them as we'd like to be treated when someone is mad at us? Anger, impatience, rudeness, and many other emotions that we inflict on others hurt them.  And we know what it is to be hurt by others.  So today, we read about the "golden rule." It is so intuitive that most children get the concept.  But like children, we adults can understand, but have a very hard time living up to our understanding.

This is simple enough to memorize as a bumper sticker or pithy statement. That is the power and brilliance of Jesus; sometimes the parable is hard to understand, and sometimes, as in today's case, the clarity is remarkable.

We get annoyed with our children's habits.  Have we thought as seriously about how we annoy them?

Folks bring us their hurts or feedback. Do we accept their feedback with the same level of regard as we expect when we give feedback to others?

People sin against us, and we are absolutely up in arms.  Do we take our sin against them as seriously as when they sin against us?

We arrive late or miss a deadline, and hope or expect some mercy or understanding.  Do we offer that same level of mercy and understanding to someone who arrives late or misses the deadline that was really important to us?

It must cut both ways or not at all.  We cannot expect of others what we are unwilling to do. We cannot be rude and expect others to be respectful and deferential toward us.

As Jesus loved us, so we must love Jesus and others.  Jesus is love incarnate.  He is the standard of love and doing good to us, so we strive to imitate him and resolve to love and do good to others.  Jesus takes the way we love, think, talk, and feel toward others very seriously. When we love others, we love Jesus.  When we are apathetic or spiteful of others, we communicate that apathy and spite directly to Jesus.

This is not a call to transactional relationships (i.e., Do it to me and I'll do it to you); it's a call to humility (I am a person with boundaries. I need grace, compassion, and correction, so I will respect your boundaries and extend grace, compassion, and correction to you). Jesus is calling us in Lent to return to his way (not the world's way). 

x

Song:

Shepherd of My Soul, Rivers and Robots (I lay down my plans, I give up my rights/ Let you take control of this surrendered life)

Content for wisdom and contentment at: urenuf.life