¹² “Do to others whatever you would like them to do to you. This is the essence of all that is taught in the law and the prophets.

Matthew 7:12

Dear God, this is a little like verse 6. It just feels a little thrown in there and incongruous with what comes before it or goes after it. It’s good. It’s important. It’s one of the core commandments we are supposed to follow. But it is preceded by you being a good father to us and then followed by the narrow gate. Maybe it fits more as the lead-in to the narrow gate story than it does as a closing to the part about you being a good father, even though the NIV actually puts verse 12 in the same paragraph as the father stuff (which is weird because the New American Standard 1995 and the New Living Translation give that verse its own paragraph.

So, do to others what I would have them do to me. That sums up the law? Let me just recap the Sermon up to this point and see how this command fits into each one:

• Beatitudes: Yes, those are about showing mercy and being a peacemaker. That fits.
• Salt and light: Yes, that fits.
• “You have heard it said, but I say…”: Yes, all of those, from divorce to adultery to hate fit.
• Turn the other cheek: That fits.
• Love your enemies and pray for them: Check.
• Give to others. Yep.
• Be earnest in your love for God and don’t seek public acclaim: Okay. Kind of, but it doesn’t contradict it. In fact, I suppose if I follow this it, at the very least, makes me an easier person for my neighbors to be around.
• Forgiveness critical part of the Lord’s Prayer: Yeah, that’s important for this all-encompassing commandment.
• Money is a dangerous potential idol: That’s important when it comes to making money a priority over other things. This can fit.
• Worry is a lack of faith: Kind of a fit, but maybe more of a way for me to evaluate how I am doing with you than how I am doing loving others.
• Do not judge others: Obviously, this fits perfectly.
• Bring requests to my good father: Well, not a perfect fit for this concept, but certainly part of worshipping you and developing my relationship with you.
• The Narrow Gate: Yes, the narrow gate obviously calls me to follow this command.
• The fruit of others: This helps me to know how to love them.
• Wise and foolish builder: If I follow these things I will find myself at peace in the middle of the storm.

Father, I guess when we get so worked up about how hard it is to follow the Sermon on the Mount, we can just zero in on Jesus’s top-two commands: Love you with everything we have and love our neighbors. If in doubt, lean into that. Help me to do that today. Help me to do that tomorrow. Help me to do that in this moment.

I pray this in Jesus and with your Holy Spirit,

Amen