30 Days On The Mount

-Chapter 25- Do Unto Others (Mt. 7:12)

T his is the most universally recognized saying of Jesus. It had never been said before in all the history of mankind. It is the corner- stone of the newly introduced ‘Kingdom of God’ and has revolutionized civilization and the course of the world. It is ‘the topmost peak of social ethics and the Mou nt Everest of all ethical teaching.’ xiv This small saying was a paradigm shift in the conscience of humanity and when embraced, displays the power of the world to come and the fulfillment of the Old Testament Law and Prophets. ‘The common description of this saying as the “Golden Rule” is tradition ally traced to the Roman Emperor Alexander Severus (A. D. 22 — 35), who, though not a Christian, was reputedly so impressed by the comprehensiveness of this maxim of Jesus as a guide to good living that he had it inscribed in gold on the wall of his chamber. ’ xiv

12 So in everything, do to others what you would have them do to you, for this sums up the Law and the Prophets.

Negative Parallels:

The c oncept of negative reciprocity, ‘not doing to others as you would not have them do to you’ was strong in the ancient world of religion and philosophy. The weakness of this point of view is that it simply rest s on ‘not doing certain things;

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