How important are others to us? What about total strangers? Or even the person who carelessly cuts us off in traffic? The command of Christ Do Unto Others levels the playing field—as we would want to be treated, so we are to treat others.

It is so easy to get in a rut of selfishness thinking that if we are treated properly, we will do the same for others. But Christ calls us to a much higher standard: treating others as we would treat ourselves. Christ exemplified this when He yielded Himself as a sacrifice for our sins. He did this before we ever loved Him and it is with this same selflessness that we are to love others.

Fulfilling this command is only possible one way: Christ living in and through us. As a believer, this can occur if we delight in God’s Word and yield to the Holy Spirit’s control. It is then that our focus will be taken off ourselves and we will become a channel of Christ’s love fulfilling the command, Do Unto Others!

Q: The consuming passion of King Saul was to kill David. When Saul died and David became king, why did David bring Saul’s grandson to his palace and treat him like a member of the royal family?

A: Hated by King Saul, hunted by soldiers, and constantly fleeing for his life, David was subjected to years of persecution. However, David made a covenant before God with Saul’s son Jonathan. Their love and commitment to protect each other was deep and binding.

When Jonathan died, David wanted to honor his covenant with Jonathan, so he asked if there were any surviving members of the household of Saul. David’s servants told him about Mephibosheth, who was a lame son of Jonathan and grandson of Saul. David issued an order for him to be brought to his palace. Mephibosheth may have reasoned that David was going to kill him. However, David said, “Fear not: for I will surely shew thee kindness for Jonathan thy father’s sake, and will restore thee all the land of Saul thy father; and thou shalt eat bread at my table continually” (II Samuel 9:7).

David honored his commitment to Jonathan by being sensitive to the needs that the members of Saul’s family faced after Saul’s death. In order to completely fulfill the command, “Do unto others,” we must have sensitivity towards their needs and remember our own times of helplessness. By envisioning the perfect response we would desire from others during times of crisis and then offering that response, we can be used as channels of God’s love.