”Do to others as you would have them do to you.
Luke 6:31New International Version (NIV)
Luke 6:31 Devotional (Daily Bible Verse)
Do to others as you would have them do to you
Luke 6:31 reads “Do to others as you would have them do to you“. For you, always doing good to yourself, would not want others to do bad to you.
Therefore, Jesus Christ, in this verse which is part of the Sermon on the Mount, exhorts you to good works. The only difference between Luke’s and Matthew’s accounts is the difference in audience. And the audience in Luke’s account comprised “Jesus Christ’s disciples and a great multitude” (Luke 6:17) while in Matthew’s, the audience was made up of “Jesus Christ’s disciples” (Matthew 5:1).
But Luke chapter 6 verse 31 is similar to Matthew chapter 7 verse 12 which reads “In everything, do to others what you would have them do to you, for this sums up the Law and the Prophets.” And according to Jesus Christ, in Luke 10:27, you need to “Love your neighbor as yourself”.
Apostle Paul’s perspective
The apostle Paul in Romans 12:3 gives an alternative perspective to Jesus Christ’s command. He wrote, “you ought not to think of yourself more highly than you ought, but rather think of yourself with sober judgment, in accordance with the faith God has distributed to each of you”. Therefore, in Philippians 2:3-4, he exhorts you to “do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit. Rather, in humility value others above yourselves, not looking to your own interests but each of you to the interests of the others.”
Apostle Peter’s addition
Apostle Peter, in 1 Peter 5:5-6, adds “In the same way, you who are younger, submit yourselves to your elders. All of you, clothe yourselves with humility toward one another, because, ‘God opposes the proud but shows favor to the humble.’ Humble yourselves, therefore, under God’s mighty hand, that he may lift you up in due time.”
Jesus Christ did not treat us the way we deserved
In addition, Jesus Christ did not treat us the way we deserved to be treated. Because He would have treated us as the sinners we are. But He treated us with grace, compassion, and forgiveness.
Therefore, you ought to treat others well. You cannot treat them the way they deserve. And it is not easy to treat others well when they have treated you badly.
Furthermore, you may be inclined to return their treatment by retaliating or hurting them. But Jesus Christ wants you to treat others well regardless of how they treat you or who they are in society – self-control is your friend here. Because you may be tempted to treat someone well courtesy of their high status in society.
Be good to all people
Consequently, Jesus exhorted you to be good to all people. In fact, others will want to be around you because you are good to them. Because being bad to others will push people away from you.
Prayer/Blessing
Lord Jesus, teach me to do to others as I would have them do to me. And I pray this in Jesus’ Name, Amen.
Daily Bible Reading
Psalms 23-30 (see How to Read the Bible in One Year or How to Read the Bible (for Beginners))
