“As ye would that men should do to you, do ye also to them likewise.” – Luke 6:31
I had the privilege as a child of having my mother for my Sunday School teacher. I was raised in a town less than one eighth the size of Castlegar.
To be exact our little country town boasted a population of six hundred people. This, of course, was before all of the electronic gadgets kids today can occupy themselves with. We became good at entertaining ourselves with activities like swimming in the creek, un-organized sports and ice skating on a local pond. Because all of our interactions were with real live people and not a distant virtual world it was important to learn how to get along with each other. Thus the lesson of the Golden Rule was drilled into my head by my loving mother.
She put Luke 6:31 into her own words like this, “Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.” My sister and two brothers along with myself were constantly reminded of the Biblical principle of treating others the way we would want to be treated. It certainly is not a new concept to treat others with love, kindness and respect. This was Jesus’ teaching to His disciples and is still at the heart of Christian behaviour.
There is something in the nature of fallen man that instead wants to say, “Do unto others as they do to you”. This sense of vengeance is not what we learn from the heart of Christ, who when they nailed Him to the cross said, “Father, forgive them for they know not what they do.”
In fact, there are many statements in the Bible such as 1 Thessalonians 5:15: “See that none render evil for evil unto any man; but ever follow that which is good, both among yourselves, and to all men.” Then there are the really aggressive people who say, “Do unto others before they do it to you”. Here is what the Bible says, “Let nothing be done through strife or vainglory, but in lowliness of mind let each esteem other better than themselves.” (Philippians 2:3)
So whether you are interacting with those who are next to you or even those who are on the internet learn to practice God’s Golden Rule and treat them with the same kindness and respect you would like to receive if you were in their place. The goal of every Christian is to be like Christ who spoke the truth in love.