Your lifestyle matters especially if you desire to help care for the spiritual nurture of other people. The Golden Rule, given to us by Jesus, states, “In everything do to others as you would have them do to you; for this is the law and the prophets” (Matt. 7:12). Jesus goes on to say in Matt. 19:19 “Love the Lord your God” is to “love your neighbour as yourself.” The central idea in both of these verses is that we want to be loved and treated in healthy, life-affirming ways, and that’s how we are to treat others too. These verses also suggest that we know what is best for ourselves and that we are consciously aware of how we want others to care for our spiritual nurture. Some people may not know or love themselves and therefore do not know the best way to treat themselves, much less others.
As we want to be like Jesus, then our eyes must inevitably move from ourself to others.
Even though we may believe the Golden Rule in theory, we may think that certain people do not deserve to be treated in loving and edifying ways. But Jesus did not put any exceptions or qualifications on the Golden Rule. Jesus did not say, “Do to others as you want them to do to you unless it is someone who is mean to you, irritates you, or even does something harmful or hateful.” Have we wished, only if Jesus had made some exceptions?
Yet if we want to follow the Golden Rule, we must be loving and kind. That is the path to soul healing, and it’s not always an easy one. The Apostle Paul writes, “Do not repay anyone evil for evil. Be careful to do what is right in the eyes of everyone. If it is possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone” (Rom. 12:17-18). Don’t let evil get the best of you; get the best of evil by doing good.