Therefore, whatever you want others to do for you, do also the same for them-this is the Law and the Prophets.
Matthew 7:12 HCSB
We all know the Golden Rule, do unto others as you would have them do unto you. Do you live by this rule? Jesus said this in our Scripture passage for today, but many other Bible verses reiterate this.
For starters, the Ten Commandments tell us how to treat others. The first four commandments deal with our relationship with God. The last six deal with how we treat others. Let’s look at the last six commandments and what they teach us about relationships with others.
Commandment five tells us to honor our father and our mother. It doesn’t say to do this only if they honor you, there are no exceptions given in this commandment. There are verses where parents are instructed not to provoke their children such as Ephesians 6:4 and Colossians 3:21, but God commands us to honor our parents.
Commandment Six tells us not to murder. Now Jesus goes on to say that murder begins in the heart and if we hate someone this is like murdering 1 John 3:15.
Commandment seven tells us not to commit adultery. As I was going over this commandment in children’s church one of them asked what this meant and then quickly answered her question by asking, does this mean you’re not supposed to cheat on someone? The Biblical term for adultery means any sex outside of marriage. So, while it covers cheating spouses, it also covers any type of sex outside the bonds of marriage. Jesus also said that to lust after someone is like committing adultery. Like murder, adultery begins in the heart.
Commandment eight tells us not to steal. We shouldn’t take anything that does not belong to us. We should not take anything that belongs to someone else.
Commandment nine tells us not to bear false witness against our neighbor. Simply put, we are not supposed to lie.
Commandment ten tells us we are not to covet or want something that belongs to someone else. This includes any type of property or even their spouse or children or animals.
These commandments provide the foundation for how we are to treat others. We are to show honor to our father and our mother. We are not to hate anyone and certainly not murder anyone. We are not to have sexual relations with or lust after anyone we are not married to. We are not to take anything that doesn’t belong to us. We are not to lie about anyone. We are not to desire to have anything that belongs to someone else. We should also not lust after someone else’s spouse. Jesus tells us that to lust after someone is like committing adultery.
How we relate to others is a reflection of our relationship with our Lord and Savior. If we love the Lord with all our heart, our soul, and our mind as Jesus instructs us to do in Matthew 27:38, we will love others as we love ourselves as He instructs us to do in Matthew 27:39.
We are told to love each other as we love ourselves because if we are honest with ourselves, we love ourselves a great deal. We show this love by treating ourselves well. Jesus knows that if we truly love others as we love ourselves, we will be good to others.
If you love the Lord, you will love others and want to treat them well. You will imitate Christ (Ephesians 5:1). Jesus said in John 13:35, “By this, all people will know you are My disciples if you have a love for one another.”
Take a good look at how you treat others. Can everyone see you are a disciple of Christ by the way you treat others?
And please keep in mind, it doesn’t say how you treat lovable people, but how you treat others, all others. Jesus said it’s easy to love those who love us in Matthew 5:46-47, but in verse 48 He tells us to be perfect as our heavenly Father is perfect.
None of us can be perfect, we need a Savior. We need our sins to be forgiven or to be covered and we are told in 1 Peter 4:8 to love deeply because love covers a multitude of sins.
We will be spending the next few days talking about how we treat other people. Hope you can join me.
Have a great day!