Do Unto Others

“Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives; the one who seeks finds; and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened. “Which of you, if your son asks for bread, will give him a stone? Or if he asks for a fish, will give him a snake? If you, then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give good gifts to those who ask him! So in everything, do to others what you would have them do to you, for this sums up the Law and the Prophets.

"Do unto others what you would have them do to you." If we — regardless of faith — can practice this one principle, the world would become a much better place than it is. We can extract many lessons from this simple statement, but we will look at just three of them. One: Treat others as you would have them treat you. Two: Put into something what you would have take out of it. Three: Don't do anything to someone that you wouldn't have them do to you. Let's take them in turn.

One: Treat others as you would have them treat you. We are generally very egoistic and self-centered. Unless we consciously decide to die to ourselves, as Christ tells us to, we are the center of our universe. Consequently, we expect everybody to treat us with respect. However, we are often disrespectful of others, looking down upon them in disdain or scorn. How can we expect respect if we don't extend it? If we were to treat others with respect, we are more likely to receive it. And when we do this, we also begin to die to ourselves, so it's like killing two birds with one stone. This applies to everything in life: mercy, forgiveness; you name it!

Two: Put into something what you would have take out of it. This is especially good advice when it comes to relationships. We often expect a lot from the person we are in a relationship with, whether it is affection or affirmation. Well, we will get what we put in. The more affectionate and affirming we are to someone, the more likely they will be affectionate and affirming to us. If this doesn't work, then there are in self-centered mode! Make them read (or watch) this reflection!

Three: Don't do anything to someone that you wouldn't have them do to you. This is the negative side of the argument, but perhaps even more important than the positive side. We often believe that we can do whatever we want, usually bad stuff, and get away with it. But the saying, "what goes around, comes around" is very true. Jesus says we will reap what we sow, and we do. If we break somebody's heart, it is almost certain that someone will break ours, and the pain will be ten times worse! 

So, let us do until others what we would have them do to us. And make the world a better place.