Nepaug Bible Church - http://www.nepaugchurch.org - Pastor's Evening Sermon Notes - http://www.nepaugchurch.org/ev/ev19960317.htm

MATTHEW: JESUS AS ISRAEL'S MESSIAH AND HIS MESSIANIC KINGDOM
Part VII: Discerning True Kingdom Righteousness From Mere Religiosity
D. Christ's TRUE Righteousness As Contrasted With Religiosity's Bankrupt Practices
5. Contrasting Fallen Man's Golden Rule With God's RIGHTEOUS Golden Rule
(Matthew 7:12)
  1. Introduction
    1. Paul writes that all men have sinned and come short of the glory of God, Rom. 3:23.
    2. However, convincing a very religious person that he is short of God's glory is difficult, for his abstinence from acts of murder, immorality, theft, etc. leave him feeling that no one can justly charge him with sin.
    3. Thus, the most effective way to expose the lost religious man's failure to attain God's uprightness is achieved by dissecting His view of righteousness as expressed in his Golden Rule, and comparing that with Christ's Golden Rule as follows:
  2. Contrasting Fallen Man's Golden Rule With God's RIGHTEOUS Golden Rule, Matthew 7:12.
    1. A number of different religious sources in the ancient world asserted their Golden Rule concept as follows:
      1. The ancient Persians said: " . . . nature alone is good which shall not do unto another whatever is not good for its own self," Edward McNall Burns, Western Civilizations, sixth ed., p. 94.
      2. An ancient Greek king, Nicocles, wrote: "Do not do to others the things which make you angry when you experience them at the hands of other people," John MacArthur, Matthew 1-7, p. 447.
      3. Confucius taught his followers: "What you do not want done to yourself, do not do to others," Ibid.
      4. Greek Philosopher Epictetus said, "What you avoid suffering yourself, do not afflict on others," Ibid.
      5. The Greek Stoics held: "What you do not want to be done to you, do not do to anyone else," Ibid.
      6. The Jewish translators of the Greek Septuagint wrote in correspondence to another party, saying, "As you wish that no evil befall you, but to be a partaker of all good things, so you should act on the same principle toward your subjects and offenders," Ibid.
      7. The Apocryphal book of Tobit taught, "What is hateful to yourself do not to someone else," Ibid.
      8. The famous Rabbi Hillel taught, "What is hateful to yourself do not to someone else," Ibid.
    2. Jesus' Golden Rule reads as follows: "Therefore all things whatsoever ye would that men should do to you, do ye even so to them: for this is the law and the prophets," Matthew 7:12.
    3. We compare Jesus' Golden Rule with the eight Golden Rule definitions in the ancient world we have just listed and find a clear CONTRAST as follows:
      1. Every one of the Golden Rules of the religious sources besides Christ's is negative, looking only at avoiding practicing towards another what one would not want done to himself.
      2. Also, a number of the Golden Rules of the religious sources besides Christ's are passive, looking only at being mistreated by another, cf. Nicocles (#2), Confucius (#3), the Greek Stoics (#5) and the translators of the Greek Septuagint (#6).
      3. Central to the negative and passive connotations of these non-Christian Golden Rule outlooks is a preoccupation with SELF:
        1. The purpose of not inflicting on another party what one would not want inflicted on himself is to avoid tempting another party to harm one's SELF.
        2. Thus, a preoccupation with SELF has led the non-Christian sources into a negative and sometimes passive means of practicing righteousness, and that is far short of God's glory where true love is OTHER-centered instead of being SELF-centered!
      4. On the other hand, Jesus' Golden Rule is both positive and other-centered, causing true love to flourish:
        1. Without a concern as to what another party might do to one's self, Jesus taught that we ought to consider how we would like to be treated as insight in positively treating OTHERS!
        2. Thus, the Christian is not to live defensively in relation to others, but affirmatively in TRUE love!
Lesson: The best of fallen man as displayed in his loftiest concept in his Golden Rule reveals him to be a sinner, for he is steeped in SELFISHNESS, and that makes him live defensively with an artificial love toward others! The person made righteous by God's grace can live Christ's Golden Rule as a SELFLESS person, and that affords him the luxury of living affirmatively with true love toward others!