“Treat others the way you want to be treated,” The Golden Rule, also known as Matthew 7:12

“So whatever you wish that others would do to you, do also to them…” 

Seems easy enough. Treat people with kindness, be fair and use wise judgment, be a good person. But is this really enough? Is this what Jesus meant when he gave these instructions in his sermon on the mount? 

Last week was a weird week. I settled into a funk like when one of those stormy rain clouds follows the cartoon characters that are having bad days. I was moody, I was depressed, people were getting on my nerves, I was just overall agitated with life.

Thursday night was Women’s Bible Study and I thought it would be a good day for resetting my attitude. Surely God would have a word of encouragement for me to get out of the funk I was in.

Our current Bible study is over Jesus’ sermon on the mount found in Matthew chapters 5-7. The author of the study, Jen Wilkin, goes into depth on each section of the sermon and breaks it down for the readers to fully understand what Jesus is trying to teach. Jesus’ teaching at the time was pretty radical, and I would say it seems even more radical today. The basic teaching behind this sermon is to put others above yourself in everything you do. 

In a culture of self-love, self-centeredness, and self-obsession, yes I would still say that Jesus’ teachings are completely opposite of our society today, making him a radical teacher. Following Christ isn’t easy, we are called to deny ourselves if we want to follow Jesus (Luke 9:23). Denying myself does not come easy and I struggle with it daily, but our God is so full of grace that he helps me every second of the day.

But even knowing all this, I was still in my funk and feeling rather self-pittyish about everything. And then, what I thought would be a nice Thursday of righteous reset to lift me up from my little cloud of darkness, turned into a self-examination wrestling match with the Holy Spirit.

You see, in this particular lesson we dove deeper into the meaning of the Golden Rule. Jesus said, “So whatever you wish that others would do to you, do also to them, for this is the Law and the Prophets.” Matthew 7:12 ESV. When I read this statement, I think I rather deserve a pat on the back. I treat people pretty well if I do say so myself, but Wilkin would disagree. And I think God would have a thing or two to say about my premature congratulations.

Wilkin explained that if we were really to treat others the way we wanted to be treated it would look much differently than being kind or fair. In fact, most of us want to be treated like royalty. We want to be pampered, we want only the best things, we want to skip the lines, we want to be treated more than fair-we want to be special. In her words, we want preferential treatment.

Wow, I was completely taken aback at the truth in this statement. The clarity of her words and the way the Holy Spirit pressed them into me was suffocating. It’s true, I don’t want to just be treated fairly, I want to be treated like a super special clientele that must be catered to. And because I want to be treated this way, I have to treat others the same? Even when they don’t deserve it?!? Even when I think they are being complete imbeciles with their lives? Even when they keep breaking the rules over and over again when I have been following them to a T? 

Radical teaching is an understatement.

This whole sentiment made me fume with rage, and then immediately with guilt. I think I even startled a few ladies in our class when I exasperatedly cried out, “that is so hard!” after the discussion from Wilkin. My mood went from in a funk, to a muddy mess of can’t and won’t live up to this life-depression . How was I possibly going to treat others with preferential treatment when I knew they didn’t deserve it? To make matters worse, I know I don’t deserve any grace from God and yet I still get it daily, but I still felt this inexplicable rebellion toward the Golden Rule. I felt discouraged. And disgusted with myself. But the feelings were still there.

I let myself stew in this brewing pot of depression and disobedience for a few days, but even I couldn’t stand myself anymore. I knew that I needed a word. And so, on Sunday as I was driving into the Church parking lot, I asked God to give me a word about all of this. I couldn’t stay in my funk any longer, being without joy is a terrible and lonely feeling.

God came through with my word that Sunday. Our Pastor’s message was on discouragement, and he used the book of Nehemiah as an illustration on how to overcome discouragement. In the book of Nehemiah, the Israelites are attempting to rebuild the walls of Jerusalem after the Babylonian captivity, but it seems like such a daunting task because of the destruction as well as the enemies that were still lying in wait. Nehemiah says a prayer and it is this prayer that the Pastor used to demonstrate how to overcome discouragement, even in the worst of situations. Nehemiah’s prayer is all about coming into fellowship with God, aligning yourself with his commandments, repenting of sins, and asking for help.

 Pastor said that we sometimes isolate ourselves in these times of discouragement, and in my case- my funk. In these times of discouragement, we can come into disagreement with God’s commandments, in my case- being mad about the Golden Rule. When this happens, we need to repent, ask God for help, and get back into the routine of fellowship with God. 

This message hit me right through the heart. I had been slacking on my fellowship with God the past couple weeks, thus the funk. I had been in disagreement with his commandments. I didn’t want to love my neighbor as myself because they were getting on my nerves and annoying me. But wasn’t I annoying God by being disobedient and ignoring him by not spending time with him? I had no right to be wallowing in the funk that I had put myself in. Jesus died for everyone. Everyone. And so, I have no say in who I should treat preferentially. I have to treat everyone that way, no exceptions, no discussion, period. That was a hard pill to swallow. And I’m sure it’s something I will have to work on for the rest of my life. Never-the-less, I want to follow Christ and so I will follow all of his teachings.

Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ forgave you.

Ephesians 4:32 ESV

Pastor had some good pointers for coming out of discouragement. He said that when we are discouraged, we are tired, so we need to rest. We get frustrated easily, so we need to reorganize and reprioritize. We feel like failures, so we need to remember that no feeling lasts forever. And lastly, we are fearful in our discouragement, but we can turn to God and ask for help. Pastor continued his reading in Nehemiah in chapter 4 verses 1-23 where the people who were rebuilding the walls around Jerusalem used these tips to come out of their state of discouragement and into a place of peace and accomplishment.

I knew this word was exactly what God wanted me to hear as I wallowed in my funk and disobedience about the Golden Rule. I could apply these same tips to my own situation. 

I knew I needed to rest from some of the social engagements I had been piling up around me. I was letting myself be pulled in too many directions and I need to focus on the events that really matter to me. 

Next, I need to reorganize and reprioritize my routines so that I can come back into obedience with God. I usually listen to praise and worship music every morning, but for the past two weeks or so I hadn’t been doing it. Praising God for the day ahead really helps me to set the tone for the day and so I knew I needed to get back into this habit. 

I also need to be intentional about the way I’m treating people around me and treat them the way I would want to be treated regardless of anything they say or do. I know that if I can keep thinking about the grace that God gives me every day in the back of my mind, then I will be able to treat others around me better than I have been.

And when I feel like I’m failing at life and the funk tries to creep back up and pull me under, I need to remember that no feeling lasts forever. Any fear that I may have about my depression or sour mood I can give to God, and he can help me forge a path forward. 

Since Sunday’s message, I’ve been moving forward with these tips in mind and slowly but surely the funk is seeping away. My mood is feeling better, and I can thank God for his patience with me and the merciful way he shows me the areas of my life I need to change. 

Winter is a hard time in Wyoming. It’s a hard time for all people living in places where the sun isn’t up by the time you go to work and is already set by the time you get off. Everyone gets down now and again. Please know that the feeling won’t last forever, and you have someone you can ask for help. God is always around; he will always be there when you need him. 

And be encouraging to others, treat them better than you think you need to. That might be the little push they need to get out of their funk too. Remember, we are all part of God’s kingdom. We all need each other every now and then. 

 “For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world and forfeits his soul?” Matthew 16:26