IS THE GOLDEN RULE INCUMBENT?

But someone may inquire:

Is it necessary for us as Christians to attempt to carry out this Golden Rule in our daily lives?

When we see that very few even of Christian people appreciate the rule, or to any extent seek to carry it out, may we not consider that it is a very good rule, but that its observance is not made incumbent upon us, and that our attainment of eternal life and heavenly glory are not linked with the observance of this Golden Rule?

May we not consider it rather as a good standard to have in mind as the perfect law, but consider that we are not to live up to that standard in any sense of the word?

We answer that this Golden Rule was the one by which our dear Redeemer’s every action was measured, the one according to which he lived, and under which he laid down his life on our behalf, and it is essential to and incumbent upon all those who would be his disciples, his followers.

All who hope to become his joint-heirs in the Kingdom are required to walk in his footsteps as he set us an example (1 Pet 2:21), or, as another Apostle declares, God has foreordained to have an elect Church to be joint-heirs in the Kingdom with Christ, but he has equally foreordained that none shall ultimately be acceptable as members of that glorified Church except such as shall, in the present life, become copies of God’s dear Son, our Lord Jesus: and to copy him means to copy the Golden Rule, which was exemplified in him and in his course. It follows, therefore, that whoever expects to share the Kingdom must give diligence to the formation of character, and that this Golden Rule is necessary in such formation of character – to develop in us not the principles of equity, or justice only, but also the spirit of love, of unselfishly doing good to others. (Rom 8:29).

DIVINE STRENGTH PERFECTED IN HUMAN WEAKNESS.

But here again comes in the question,

How can those who by nature are fallen and imperfect, and full of inherited selfishness and meanness, ever hope to keep this Golden Rule, which is the full measure of a perfect man’s obedience, and which, with all his well-doing and sacrificing, was not more than fulfilled by our Lord Jesus himself?

How could we hope to be approved as keepers of this Golden Rule, in the sight of him who can read, not only the outward conduct, but also the thoughts and intents of our hearts?

We answer that here comes to our relief the gracious arrangement which God has provided for this Gospel age, viz., justification by faith.

Our justification not only covers “the sins that are past” (Rom  3:25), and makes us acceptable to God in Christ, so that we can offer ourselves as living sacrifices upon his altar, but, more than this, it stands with us all the way down the journey of life, and according to God’s grace in Christ it compensates for, or makes up for us all of our unintentional deficiencies, so that, as the Apostle says, “The righteousness of the Law [as expressed in the Golden Rule] is fulfilled in us who walk not after the flesh but after the spirit.” –Rom 8:4.

Since we are not all alike fallen, not all alike selfish (or mean spirited at times), it follows that some walk much nearer to the spirit of the divine Law, attain much closer to the measurement required by the Golden Rule, than can others; yet no fallen creature can walk fully up to the requirements of the Golden Rule, so long as handicapped by the various weaknesses of the flesh: and here the grace of God in Christ makes up our deficiencies; those who are able to follow the pattern most closely are still far from following it absolutely, and consequently need to have the merit of the precious blood of Christ imputed to them to make up for their shortcomings; and those who are still more fallen, and who, with their very best efforts, are still further from measuring up to the grand standard of the Golden Rule, need that much more of God’s grace to compensate for their deficiencies.

Hence the Apostle declares that where sin and imperfection abound the most, there God’s grace (or unmerited favor) correspondingly abounds the more; so that to those who are in Christ (the fully consecrated) and who seek to walk in his footsteps, who are in their hearts measuring themselves with the Golden Rule, and seeking to the best of their ability to live up to its requirements, may be succeeding variously in their endeavors, from the worldly standpoint; but from the divine standpoint all such are reckoned as having their blemishes fully covered with the merit of our dear Redeemer’s sacrifice, and that therefore the righteousness of the Law, (as the Apostle so states) that is, its true meaning, its spirit, and the true measure of the Golden Rule, is reckoned as fulfilled in them to divine acceptance, – perfectly.

But it is not merely to have this Golden Rule thus reckoned fulfilled in us for a day or for a week or for a month that counts us “overcomers,” but that we shall faithfully continue to walk as closely in the Lord’s footsteps as we may be able, faithfully continuing to use his Golden Rule to the best of our ability; and that we shall do this day by day and year by year with continued and increasing zeal, until our Master, watching the process of development of character, shall say, It is enough; the character is fixed; the love for righteousness is permanent and thoroughly developed; the spirit of love is indelibly marked, and although there still remain in the flesh traces of selfishness, yet they are dim and faint in comparison with the original mark, and give good evidence of victory gained, not in the flesh, but in the heart, in the will.

“They shall be mine, saith the Lord of hosts, in that day when I make up my jewels.” – Mal 3:17

Continued with next post.