Everybody's got a motto they're living by.
Think of a motto as a flag that you raise every morning.
Maybe it's Carpe Diem, seize the day.
Maybe it's just do it.
Maybe it's Semper Fidelis, always faithful, U.S. Marine Corps.
Well, today, Jesus is going to say,
Oh, dear citizen of my kingdom,
every morning you raise the banner of the golden rule.
You live according to this one rule
which summarizes all I've taught you.
Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.
This is the banner that flies over us as a church.
This is a banner that flies over us individually
as followers of Jesus.
This is what compels us in our interactions
with the people God brings across our path.
So the golden rule is Jesus Christ's all-encompassing command
to seek the good of everyone.
And we do that by putting ourselves in their place,
seeking their good.
So brothers and sisters,
as citizens of the kingdom,
the golden rule must govern all your relationships.
That's the claim Jesus is making on us this morning.
In order to help you see that,
I want to point to four clarifiers of the golden rule.
The golden rule is a conclusion.
The golden rule is a command.
The golden rule is a call to use your sanctified imagination.
And the golden rule completes,
fulfills the law and the prophets.
And so let me read it for us.
Jesus says,
So whatever you wish that others would do to you,
do also to them,
for this is the law and the prophets.
This rule governs all of our relationships as Christians.
And so let's get into this first clarifying point.
The golden rule is a conclusion.
Do you see the word so in verse 12?
It's the first word of the sentence.
The first word of the golden rule.
So.
So whatever in the ESV.
So in everything,
says the NIV.
So.
And so you may be sitting there like,
Hey, yo, hey, so.
So what?
So, so what?
So what's the big deal about so?
Well, insert here
that wonderful after school special
conjunction junction.
You know what?
Conjunction junction.
What's your function?
Hooking up words, phrases, and clauses.
So that word so is a conjunction.
It's connecting two things.
What are, what's that word connecting?
It's connecting all of the body on the Sermon on the Mount,
what Jesus has been talking about,
with this one sentence in verse 12.
It's connecting them.
It's making a conclusion.
That's why that so is there.
It's a conjunction.
This conclusion that Jesus draws from his sermon.
He's saying,
So whatever you do,
whatever you wish that others would do to you,
do also to them,
for this is the law and the prophets.
This conclusion is a summary of the entire sermon.
And so here's what this means for us.
It's, it's,
think about the golden rule as a cliff notes
for the Sermon on the Mount.
You can just bring it wherever you want.
And so let's just say that you're tempted,
you're really ticked off at somebody,
and you want to,
you're like murderous intent in your heart towards them,
and you just want to cut them to pieces with your words,
and something in the back of your mind says,
you know what,
I probably shouldn't do that as a citizen of the kingdom.
In fact,
I think that Jesus said something about that in the Sermon on the Mount,
but I don't know where.
Go golden at that point.
Go golden.
Be thinking,
okay,
if,
if someone were angry with me,
how would I want to be treated by that person?
And then I'm going to treat them that way.
That's how you go golden.
It summarizes the entire sermon.
It's,
it's this,
this little sentence that gets a ton done for a citizen of the kingdom.
Someone does you wrong,
and you want to retaliate.
You want an eye for an eye,
and a tooth for a tooth.
And you start thinking,
oh,
you know what,
Jesus probably said something in Matthew.
I don't remember where he said that,
but I can go golden.
I can apply the golden rule,
because it summarizes everything he said.
So how would I want to be treated?
If someone wronged me,
if I wronged someone,
how would I want to be treated at that point?
And I'm going to do that unto this person.
If you're tempted to judge another believer,
another person,
if you can't remember what Jesus said in Matthew chapter 7,
go golden.
Do unto that person what you would want them to do,
unto you are on safe,
golden ground.
Jesus is giving us a summary of the entire Sermon on the Mount.
It's his,
it's a conclusion he's drawing.
And what he's basically saying is,
put yourself in another person's place,
and then ask yourself how you would want to be treated,
and then you go and treat that person that way.
So the golden rule of the kingdom
is this versatile summary that Jesus gives us
that we can really apply in any situation with any other person.
It's absolutely brilliant.
Jesus is setting us up to live for the kingdom.
You can call this a kingdom code of ethics in one sentence.
J.C. Ryle,
a pastor from a bygone area.
I think he was English,
and I would try to use my English accent,
which ends up coming off as an Australian accent,
so I won't do it.
He says this,
the golden rule,
it settles a hundred difficult points,
which in a world like this
are continually arising between man and man.
It prevents the necessity
of laying down endless little rules
for our conduct in specific cases.
It frees us.
We can bring the golden rule
into any relationship.
It's a versatile summary command
that can be applied
to any relationship
you are encountering right now.
It also goes beyond.
Let's say that you're having an interaction
with somebody,
and nowhere in the Bible
does it address
this particular kind of interaction.
Go golden.
Do unto that person
as you would want them to do to you.
What this means
is that because this is a conclusion,
we cannot snip it
from the rest of the Sermon on the Mount.
We can't take the golden rule in isolation.
It's vitally connected
to the rest of the Sermon on the Mount.
Tell me,
do you recognize these words
from our nation's history?
Fourscore and seven years ago,
our fathers brought forth
on this continent
a new nation conceived in liberty
and dedicated to the proposition
that all men are created equal.
Remember where that's from?
The Gettysburg Address.
Abraham Lincoln.
Four-minute speech,
and here's how he ended it.
Now,
if we just took that last concluding remark
by President Lincoln in isolation,
it would be somewhat silly
because that concluding remark
is driven by,
it is empowered by,
there's force behind it
from the rest of the speech.
The rest of the speech
drives that last sentence
that President Lincoln made.
You cannot take the golden rule
in isolation
because the entirety
of the Sermon on the Mount
drives with force
the golden rule
which concludes it.
So the golden rule
provides a very potent summary
of kingdom ethics
and we are to live
every day
according to the golden rule.
So we can put it this way.
Do you want to live
in light of the Sermon on the Mount?
Live according to the golden rule.
That's what Jesus is giving us here.
Now at this point,
I want to ask you a probing question.
Do you have a relationship
right now with someone
that needs the golden rule applied?
Are you in relationship
with someone that's just waiting
for you to think about them
in a kingdom way?
I do.
I'm guessing everyone
in the room does.
So the golden rule
is a concluding summary
of this greatest sermon
ever preached
by the greatest man
that ever walked
the face of the earth,
Jesus.
Point two.
The golden rule
is a command.
It's a command
from the lips
of our king.
So what we see
happening in verse 12
is that Jesus,
our king,
commands us,
his 21st century disciples,
to relate to others
in a certain way.
To do to others
what we would want them
to do to us.
He commands us
to live
according to the golden rule.
Now,
I realize
that the golden rule
gets thrown around a lot.
It can sometimes
be thought of
as a golden recommendation
or a golden suggestion
or a golden idea.
But for citizens
of the kingdom,
it is a golden rule,
a golden command.
I mean,
just think of the one
speaking the words.
Jesus has a unique
authority.
He's God's anointed one,
the Messiah,
the one of whom
the Old Testament law
and prophets
pointed to
who would come
and establish
God's kingdom,
God's saving reign
on earth.
He is Emmanuel.
He is God with us.
And as God
in the flesh,
Jesus speaks
with an authority
unlike any other.
Just look down
to verses 28 and 29
of chapter 7.
If you were there
when Jesus was preaching
this sermon
on the hillside,
you would be surrounded
by people doing this.
And when Jesus
finished these sayings,
the crowds were astonished
at his teaching
for he was teaching them
as one who had
authority
and not as their scribes.
This is the guy
that spoke of
like this
in Matthew 6.
You've heard that
it was said,
but I say.
Jesus speaks
with the force
of divine authority.
He spoke that way
then
and he's speaking
that way
this morning
here
to us.
the golden rule
is a command.
Now,
if you look back
at 712,
here's where the command
actually shows up.
So whatever you wish
that others would do
to you,
we haven't hit
the command yet.
So whatever you wish
that others would do
to you,
do also to them.
The command
is that word do.
Do also to them
for this is the law
and the prophets.
Do to them.
You've got to
see that do.
You've got to feel it
as packing
a punch
of the Messiah.
Authority
right there.
Do this.
It's not a recommendation.
It's not a suggestion.
It's a command.
A command from the lips
of our king.
And this command
from the lips
of our king
concerns
others.
Do
also
to them.
So here's what's
going on so far.
Jesus,
our king,
is commanding
us as disciples
to do something
to them.
He doesn't
elaborate
on who
they are.
He just calls
them
them.
So he's talking
about people.
But if you look
at the beginning
of 712,
we get a little
bit more clarity.
So whatever
you wish
that others
would do
to you,
do also
to them.
So it's people
we're in
relationship
with.
And that word
others
comes from a word
that we get
the word
anthropology
from.
Just a general
word meaning
mankind,
all men.
He's not
very specific.
He's purposefully
generic.
Because Jesus
is being
hypothetical.
He's saying
anyone
anyone,
whatever you
wish that
others,
whoever,
anyone that
crosses your
path,
whatever you
wish that
they would
do to you,
do also
to them.
And I know
what you may
be kind of
experiencing
right now
when you
encounter a
general word
like them
or others,
it lacks
some specificity.
and what
that means,
what can
happen then
is it's
possible for
us to be
all,
okay,
that's a
good general
rule to
live by.
And we
don't take
it the next
step.
We just
live and
are content
with the
general kind
of vague
word them
and others.
And what I
want to help
you do right
now is go
from them
and others
to concrete
people.
So I
haven't,
I realize
I haven't
yet fully
unpacked what
we are to
do to them,
but I want
to just take a
minute here and
linger a little
bit more on
them.
Who is
them?
Well,
we are to
live out the
golden rule to
real people
in real
time.
Husbands,
you are to
live according
to the golden
rule with
your wives
and wives
with your
husbands.
Parents,
you are to
live out the
golden rule
with your
children.
And children,
you are to
live out the
golden rule
with your
parents.
Brothers and
sisters,
Jesus is
calling you to
live the golden
rule with
each other.
Miracles do
happen.
Extended
family,
in-laws,
even exes,
we are to
live the golden
rule towards.
Classmates and
teachers,
governing
authorities,
supervisors at
work,
people you
oversee,
workmates,
teammates,
coaches,
fellow performers,
orchestra,
thespians,
anyone.
Specific people.
Your neighbor
next door to
you.
What is to
govern your
relationship with
them?
The golden
rule.
It's the
code of the
kingdom.
With all of
his authority,
Jesus is
saying,
you do to
others as
you would
want them to
do to you.
This is a
hallmark of
my kingdom.
I want you to
advance my
kingdom one
golden rule
opportunity at a
time.
now, here's
what I'd like
you to do
this morning.
Pick
somebody.
Pick
someone.
A person
in your
life who
you know
God would
want you
to pursue
the golden
rule with.
Pick
someone.
Now, don't
make the mistake
of thinking that
the golden rule,
because it
concerns others,
is just to be
limited to kind
of a horizontal
relationship.
We treat
others according
to the golden
rule because
Jesus commands
it.
We love
others this
way because we
love our king
and seek to
obey all that
he commanded.
And so, if I
were to ask
you, well, why
would you want
to pursue the
golden rule with
your, this
person?
And you say,
well, you know
what?
I really would
like peace in
our relationship.
I would say, me
too.
I hope that's
the case, but
are there any
other reasons why
you would pursue
the golden rule?
And if you were
to say something
to the extent
that, well,
ultimately, the
reason why I'm
going to live
according to the
golden rule with
this person is
to please my
king, is to
obey what he
requires, is to
do what's good
and pleasing in
his sight because
he commands it
out to me, you're
in a good
spot.
Ultimately, the
golden rule is
something that we
obey.
We live the
golden rule with
others in order to
obey our king.
It's all ultimately
about Jesus.
These aren't
suggestions.
This is not a
recommendation.
This is not a
good idea.
idea.
This is a
command.
We are to do
this to them.
We are to treat
them as we would
want them to
treat us.
Okay, so I've
sought to establish
so far that the
golden rule is a
summary conclusion
and that it's a
command.
It's all about
Jesus, but right
now you may be
asking a question
like this.
Okay, I buy it,
like, okay, I buy
it.
But come on, let's
get down to the
nitty-gritty.
How am I supposed
to do this?
Well, the golden
rule is a call to
use your imagination
for the good of
others.
It's how we do
it.
The golden rule is
technically what's
called a conditional
clause, which means
this.
Remember that command,
do also to them?
It doesn't mean much
until you realize what
Jesus says right in
front of it gives it
its meaning.
So let's look at
verse 12 again.
So whatever you wish
that others would do
to you, do also to
them.
Do that.
Whatever you wish
that others would do
to you, you do to
them.
That's what we do.
So what does Jesus
say?
Treat others the way
you would want to be
treated.
Jesus is wanting
to use us to
bless those people
he has placed us
among.
He wants us to
advance his kingdom
one relationship at a
time by living out
the golden rule.
Let's take a little
bit closer look at
what Jesus is saying
here.
Jesus is saying
put yourself in the
shoes of other people.
Now, you need to
realize that in order
to do that, people
need a reversing of
their natural way of
thinking.
The kingdom of God
is all about people.
The saving reign of
Jesus is all about
people.
And so it makes, it
should not be a
surprise to you that
the command above all
is a command of how
we relate to others.
Jesus is calling us to
a certain way of
thinking.
A reversing of the
natural flow of
thinking in a sinner's
mind.
Naturally, we approach
relationships with a
kind of earthly
thinking that goes
like this.
Well, what can I get
from that?
What can I get from
her?
What can I get from
him?
What can I get from
this situation?
But Jesus is
commanding a new
kingdom approach to
relationships that
requires a new
kingdom way of
thinking.
And it's not what
can I get?
It is what can I
give?
What can I give?
I remember my dad
telling me when I was
a young man, Mike,
there are two kinds
of people in the
world.
There are takers and
there are givers.
You be a giver,
Mike.
Jesus is saying on a
grander scale, as my
citizens of my
kingdom, we seek to
do good to others.
We give.
Now, in order for
this reversing of
thinking to take
place, it requires a
miraculous feat of
divine engineering.
I'm not sure if you
guys know this, but up
until 1900, the
Chicago River ran
through Chicago and
emptied into Lake
Michigan.
And it was causing
all sorts of problems
for the city of
Chicago.
And so someone got
the great idea, well,
why don't we just
reverse the flow of
the river?
So in 1900, through a
real miraculous feat
of civil engineering,
the flow of the
Chicago River was
reversed.
Instead of flowing
flowing into Lake
Michigan, it flowed
out of Lake
Michigan.
And it had quite
the effect.
All of us have a
default thought
flow.
A default thought
flow that falls
into this what can
I get kind of
thinking.
But when a sinner
comes to Christ in
repentance and faith,
God begins a
miraculous feat of
divine engineering.
He begins to
reverse the flow of
our thoughts from
what can I get to
what can I give.
He radically
reorientates our
heart from
ourselves to
Him.
And when our
hearts are living
for Him, we are
going to want to do
good to our
neighbors.
When we love God,
we will want to
love our neighbors.
Matthew 22.
And that's what
Jesus is getting
at here.
Jesus is calling
us to a kingdom
way of thinking.
This way of
thinking begins at
our conversions, but
then is strengthened
day after day,
morning after
morning, as we
seep our minds in
God's Word and pray
and pray and pray.
Hallowed be
Your name.
Your kingdom come.
Your will be done.
Oh, Father, I'm
asking, I'm
seeking, I'm
praying, I'm
knocking, I'm
coming after You,
I'm pursuing this.
I want to think
like a kingdom
citizen.
I want to love
others as You
would call me to.
Help me, Father,
with this.
And as we seek
Him and trust
Him, He
strengthens the
flow.
He gives us the
grace we need to
live the way He's
calling us to
live.
And so this
divine
engineering of
changing the flow
of our thoughts is
a work of God
radically changes
us.
Let's take this
another step.
Now that we've
talked about this
reversal of our
thinking, that we
move from thinking
of ourselves to
thinking of others,
then what?
How are we to
live out the
golden rule with
others?
How are we to
do whatever you
wish that others
would do to you,
do also to them?
How do we do
that?
Well, this is where
you employ your
sanctified imagination.
You've got to think
different.
You've got to think
about people
different.
And here's how it
works.
When there's this
reversing of
heart from me
to others, we
employ our
sanctified
imagination to
put ourselves in the
shoes of others.
white guy living in
Kenosha.
It doesn't really
take a lot of
imagination to do
that because it's
built into me.
But when I'm
confronted with
someone who's
unlike me, who's
not a white
middle class male,
then I'm
challenged in my
imagination.
But I want to
imagine.
I want to
imagine what it's
like to grow up in
Frank neighborhood
as a black male.
I want to put
myself in his
shoes.
do unto others
as you would
have them do
unto you.
I want to
understand.
I want to
imagine what
it is like
to live
under the
poverty level.
I want to
understand what
it's like to
live as a
homeless woman
in Kenosha
when it's
December and
the temperature's
dropping.
I want to
understand what
it's like to
live as a
white 30
year old mom
of three.
I want to
understand that.
I want to
put myself in
her shoes.
That's where
your imagination
comes in.
It is
potent.
Because when
you start putting
yourself in the
shoes of others,
do you know
what happens?
You begin to
dignify that
person.
You begin to
realize, oh,
this person is
of tremendous
worth in God's
eyes.
They are an
image bearer
of God
regardless of
their gender,
regardless of
their race,
their sexual
orientation,
regardless of
their socioeconomic
status.
They are an
image bearer
and therefore
they have
intrinsic worth.
And I will
dignify them
because of
that.
And so when I
start thinking
that way and
you start thinking
that way,
we're going
golden.
Golden.
but it doesn't
end there.
You move from
dignifying someone
through your
imagination to
then identifying
with someone in
your imagination.
Oh, what would it
be like to grow up
in the Wilson
neighborhood if I
was a 13-year-old
black young man?
What would that be
like?
What is it like
during the
summertime when
I'm hanging out
with my friends
and black and
whites are just
cruising around
our neighborhood
all the time?
What effect
would that have
on me?
I start to
identify.
And when I
start to identify
with someone,
I begin to
empathize with
them.
I start to
feel for them.
I'm moved
by that.
Dignify.
Identify.
Empathize.
D-I-E.
Dignify.
Identify.
Empathize.
In order for
me to get
outside of
myself,
I've got to
die to
myself.
I've got to
dignify.
I've got to
identify.
I've got to
empathize.
And when that
falls into
place,
that compassion
compels me
to do
also to
them.
It drives
me.
This just
doesn't happen
when you're
eating your
cereal in the
morning.
You've got to
give this
stuff time.
You've got to
actually let
yourself enter
into somebody's
else experience.
You've got to
be thoughtful,
intentional.
You may not
want to feel
what you will
feel, but you
step in.
You, by faith,
Lord Jesus,
help me to
identify.
Jesus isn't
calling us to
something here
that he
himself didn't
do.
If there's
anybody that
lived the
golden rule,
it's him.
He dignified
us.
Were we
sinners?
Oh, yeah.
Would that
stop him from
doing something?
No.
We were
valuable in his
eyes because we
are his image
bearers.
God's
eyes.
He
and he
actually
stepped into
our shoes
by becoming
a man.
Dignified.
He identified
with us.
He walked
this planet
for 33
years.
He knows
everything that
we've experienced
firsthand.
He is a
sympathetic high
priest.
He empathizes
with us.
Remember at the
end of Matthew
9, Jesus is
walking around
and he sees
these people
who are harassed
and helpless
like sheep
without a
shepherd and
he out of
compassion moves.
He had
compassion on
them.
Where did that
go?
Oh, he died.
He went all
the way for
us.
He lived
out the
golden rule
on a
blood red
cross
for us.
We've got a
king who's
walked it.
He's calling
us to something
he himself has
done.
He knows
the golden
rule firsthand.
In fact,
you are here
this morning
because he
lived the
golden rule
towards you.
Another way
you can sum
up the
golden rule
to do
unto others
as you
would have
them do
unto you
is to
love your
neighbor as
yourself.
Now,
we talked
about this
call to use
our imagination
for the good
of others.
It is a
God glorifying
good.
But I've got
to be honest
with you
about something.
There's no
promise of
reciprocity.
There's no
promise when
you move
towards someone
out of a
heart to
obey the
golden rule
that it's
going to
come back
at you
in the
same way.
Jesus
isn't saying
here,
hey,
you scratch
their back,
they'll scratch
yours.
He's not
saying that.
This isn't
some kind
of utilitarian
social engineering
Jesus has
got going
on here.
No,
he says
this.
He says,
you love
these people,
you put
yourself in
their shoes,
you feel
what they're
feeling,
and you
move to
them,
you do
good to
them,
without
expecting
anything
back.
let me
ask you
a question.
When you
start using
your imagination
this way out
of obedience
to your
king,
you start
approaching
people this
way in
order to
advance
his kingdom,
why would
you do
this?
Why would
you put
yourself in
someone else's
shoes if
you have
no personal
gain from
it?
Why would
you pursue
someone without
any promise
of benefit?
it?
Well,
earlier I
made the
case,
well,
it's a
command,
you obey
Jesus,
that's
enough.
But
Jesus
doesn't
limit it
there.
Look what
he says.
So
whatever you
wish that
others would
do to
you,
do also
to them
for,
means
reason,
for this
is the
law
and the
prophets.
The golden
rule fulfills
the law
and the
prophets.
It
completes the
law and
the prophets.
Not only does
the golden
rule conclude
the sermon,
not only is
it a command,
not only is
it a call to
use our
sanctified
imaginations
for other
people's goods,
it fulfills
the law
and the
prophets.
In other
words,
it's a
summary of
all of
God's
will revealed
in the
Old Testament.
Let me
remind you of
Jesus' opening
words at the
body of
his sermon
in Matthew
5,
17.
Would you
turn there
with me?
Jesus
says,
Do not
think that
I have
come to
abolish
the law
or the
prophets.
I have
not come
to abolish
them,
but to
fulfill
them.
For
truly I
say to
you,
until
heaven and
earth
pass away,
not one
iota,
not a
dot,
will pass
from the
law until
all is
accomplished.
Jesus
came to
fulfill the
law and
the prophets.
And we
can ask the
question,
well how did
you do
that,
Jesus?
And there
are three
ways he
did it.
First
one is
this.
He
fulfilled
the
prophecies
in the
prophets
about the
coming
Messiah.
This
child
born to
us,
whose
government
would be
on his
shoulders,
that his
reign would
never end,
he would
sit on the
throne of
David.
Isaiah
9, 6,
and 7,
that's
talking about
Jesus.
And he
fulfilled it.
He fulfilled
the law and
the prophets
by being the
Messiah.
That's one
way.
Another way that
he fulfilled the
law and the
prophets is in
his teaching.
He
clarified the
true meaning
of the law
and the
prophets.
That's what
Matthew 6,
you've heard that
I would
said,
but I
say to
you six
times over
again.
He is
fulfilling the
true meaning
of the law
and the
prophets.
And finally,
he fulfilled
all the
requirements of
the law and
the prophets
by living a
perfect,
sinless
life.
He
lived out
what he
laid out
in the
Sermon on
the Mount.
Jesus
fulfilled the
law and the
prophets by
obeying the
true meaning
of the law
and prophets
every moment
of every
day,
of every
week,
of every
year of
his 33
years.
Perfectly.
Here's what
this means.
Jesus is the
golden rule
incarnate.
That's what
that means.
He lived
it out.
Jesus not
just commanded
it.
He did.
He didn't
just model
it.
He did
that.
Jesus,
by dying
on the
cross,
the golden
rule on
the blood
red cross,
by dying
on the
cross for
us,
he makes
the golden
rule possible
for us to
actually live.
As new
creations,
born of the
spirit,
we are now
able to live
out the
golden rule.
and not
only are we
able to,
he commands
it.
He calls
us to
it.
So,
Jesus,
the Messiah,
fulfills the
law and the
prophets.
Jesus, the
teacher,
fulfills the
law and the
prophets.
And Jesus,
the perfect
human,
fulfills the
law and the
prophets.
And he did
it all so
that we
could live
out the
golden rule
with others.
And when we
do,
God's
kingdom is
advanced.
This morning,
I sought to
show you that
the golden rule
is the conclusion
of the body
of the Sermon
on the Mount.
that the
golden rule is
a command from
the lips of
our king.
That the
golden rule is
a call to
use our
imagination for
the good of
others.
It's a call to
die, to
dignify, to
identify, to
empathize with
others.
And then
finally, the
golden rule
completes the
law and the
prophets.
When we
live out the
golden rule,
we please
our heavenly
father and
the kingdom
of Jesus is
advanced.
So this
morning, we've
lifted up a
banner over our
church.
The banner of
the golden rule.
And I just
want to let you
know that banner
flies.
It flies off
the blood
red cross
of Jesus.
He made it
possible.
And he calls
us to it.
Let's pray.
God in
heaven,
Father,
we just
confess that
we do not
live the
golden rule
day to day,
hour by hour,
but we want
to.
God, would
you give us
the grace for
the balance
of this day
to do unto
others as we
would have
them do to
us.
That we
would love
our neighbors
as ourselves.
And God, we
would ask that
through our
humble,
broken steps
of obedience
that you
would advance
your kingdom.
Let your
kingdom come.
Let your
will be done
on earth
as it is
in heaven.
In Jesus'
name,
amen.
Amen.
Thank you.