The Law and the Prophets: Matthew 7:12
“In everything, therefore, treat people the same way you want them to treat you, for this is the Law and the Prophets.” Matthew 7:12
The genuineness of our relationship with God shows up in the way we treat people. We are to treat others as we want to be treated by them. Notice, Jesus expects Christians to initiate. We don’t wait for love to return love. We prime the pump because the fruit of the Spirit flows through us.
Then He said, “for this is the Law and the prophets.” What does that mean? It seems that God holds us to a higher standard in our ethics in dealing with people no matter who they are or what the circ*mstances. God expects us to be loving, truthful and honest no matter how others act or treat us. He expects us to treat others with love, respect and dignity.
This verse goes way beyond being a principle for good interpersonal relationships. It is more like a Christian Code of Conduct. It is the standard of how we are to treat people. Stay with me, we are going to take a deeper dive into the meaning of the law and the prophets.
In Romans 13:8-10, Paul says all the commandments are summed up in the statement, “9)… You shall love your neighbor as yourself. 10) Love does no wrong to a neighbor, love therefore is the fulfillment of the law.” The qualifier in this verse is “agape” love. This is the God kind of love.
Jesus implied that we should treat people the way He treats people. 1 John 4:8 & 16 both say that “God is love.” This may sound awkward, but Jesus expects us to “agape” all people we come in contact with because He is our source. Agape love is the sap that flows through the vine of Christ from which every true Christian produces fruit. (See John 15:1-16)
We can now conclude that “lawlessness” boils down to interpersonal relationships without agape love. There is no situation, circ*mstance or occasion that our dealings with people should not be rooted in agape love. We lead with agape love, we maintain agape love and we conclude with agape love.
Here is an important observation, There was to be no wavering on ethics in the Law. The statutes were to be maintained without bias. They were to be applied equally to family, friends, countrymen and foreigners living among them. This was the intent of both the law and the warnings from the prophets.
When you boil all the commandments in the law and the teachings of the prophets down… they scream “agape love.” In John 13:34-35, Jesus said agape love both distinguishes and defines His people. It is what they become in their relationships with others.
Jesus was actually saying something very revolutionary in Matthew 7:12. He was calling them to treat all people with love, respect and dignity. He was telling them to be godly in all their relationships with other people no matter who was at the other end of the encounter. They were to set the standard for wholesome and loving interpersonal relationships.
Now for the big insight. The word “lawlessness” is used later in the context. It is shocking how Jesus applies it. In Matthew 7:23 He says; “23) And then I will declare to them, “I never knew you: DEPART FROM ME, YOU WHO PRACTICE LAWLESSNESS.”
If our definition of lawlessness from this study is correct, we can conclude that “lawlessness boils down to interpersonal relationships without agape love.” We now have an understanding of the basic problem with the people Jesus rejected. They were religious, but they were not filled with agape love. The fruit of the Spirit was not in them. Agape love was missing in their character and conduct. They were not connected to the true vine!
Just as a side note, in Matthew 24 Jesus described signs that will accompany the end times. Verse 12 says, “And because lawlessness is increased, most people’s love will grow cold.” Again we see that Jesus connects lawlessness to an absence of agape love. I see an alarming trend among many who call themselves Christians today. Their love is growing cold. This should be a huge wake-up call!
Daily Bible Commentary By Terry Baxter: Cofounder of GoServ Global
FAQs
What does Jesus mean by the law and the prophets? ›
Jesus is come to fulfill the Law and the Prophets, meaning that He is come to (a) physically accomplish all that the Scriptures say He will accomplish and (b) make clear through His teaching what the Scriptures have already said.
What is the meaning of the law and the prophets in Matthew 7:12? ›“In everything, therefore, treat people the same way you want them to treat you, for this is the Law and the Prophets.” Matthew 7:12 The genuineness of our relationship with God shows up in the way we treat people. We are to treat others as we want to be treated by them.
What is the main message in Matthew 7:12? ›God wants His people to treat others as they want to be treated. This is an incredibly helpful maxim, since it can be applied to most situations in life without need for a specific rule for every possible incident.
How does the golden rule sum up the law and the prophets? ›“So in everything, do to others what you would have them do to you, for this sums up the Law and the Prophets.” – Matthew 7:12. This short statement “sums up the Law and the Prophets?” No wonder we call it The Golden Rule.
What does Jesus say the whole law and prophets depend on? ›Matthew 22:38-40 New Century Version (NCV)
And the second command is like the first: 'Love your neighbor as you love yourself. ' All the law and the writings of the prophets depend on these two commands.”
Terms in this set (18) what did jesus mean when he said he came to "fulfill the law" and the prophets? he would fulfill them by suffering and dying. what was always the theme of the apostles' sermons to Jewish audiences?
What is Jesus telling us about the law? ›Matthew 5:17-20. : “Do not think that I came to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I did not come to abolish but to fulfill. For truly I say to you, until heaven and earth pass away, not the smallest letter or stroke shall pass from the Law until all is accomplished.
Why is Matt 7:12 called the golden rule? ›Matthew 7:12 holds a special place in the hearts of many Christians around the world. It is often referred to as the “Golden Rule,” a statement that commands us to treat others the way we would like to be treated.
What does Jesus say about the law in Matthew? ›ESV "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.
What is the object lesson of Matthew 7:12? ›Matthew 7:12 says that we should treat each other the way we want to be treated. We call that the Golden Rule. Our actions are a lot like this boomerang. If we throw out bad actions and treat people badly what do you think will return to us? (Wait for responses.)
What does Matthew 7 teach us? ›
We should seek the guidance of the Spirit in our decisions. We should limit our judgments to our own stewardships. Whenever possible we should refrain from judging people until we have an adequate knowledge of the facts. So far as possible, we should judge circ*mstances rather than people.
What is the prayer for Matthew 7:12? ›You have blessed me so richly through Jesus. Please move me by your Spirit to be as generous, loving, forgiving, and kind with others as I want them to be with me. Help me as I seek to use the principles of the Golden Rule in whatever the circ*mstances are in my relationship with others.
How did Jesus summarize the Law and the Prophets? ›, Jesus says he came to fulfill “the Law and the Prophets,” a traditional phrase that refers to the whole Hebrew Bible (the Old Testament). And he's not talking about simple obedience to the statutes. For Jesus, following the law's 613 commands matters, but to truly fulfill it, or to “fill it full,” is something more.
What is the most important Law according to Jesus? ›"Teacher, which commandment in the law is the greatest?" He [Jesus] said to him, "'You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind. ' This is the greatest and first commandment. And the second is like it: 'You shall love your neighbor as yourself.
What is the Law of God according to Jesus? ›We have been told by Jesus which is the great commandment in the law: “Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind. “This is the first and great commandment. “And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself.” (Matt. 22:37–39.)
What does Jesus refer to as the law? ›"The Law" referred to the first five books of the Bible, the books of Moses in which God's laws were written down. "The Prophets" referred not only to the writings of the biblical prophets, but also to the historical books of what came to be known as the Old Testament.
What does the law and the Prophets were until John mean? ›This likely means the phrase, “*ntil John,” indicates that the Baptizer was the last of the Old Testament prophets. Jesus was, in effect, announcing that one age has closed—The Law and the Prophets, and a new age was now being preached and offered—The Advent of the Messianic kingdom.
What is the canonicity of the law and the Prophets? ›The Jews at A.D. 70 had a fixed canon of Law and a fixed Canon of Prophets. They also had an amorphous collection of other books that at Jamnia was settled as the eleven Writings. The Christians of A.D. 70 had the same Law and Prophetical books as the Jews.
What is the law, the Prophets, and the writings? ›The law, the Prophets and the Writings are the names for the three kinds of works that appear in the Old Testament (sometimes called the Hebrew Bible). 1. The Law. The Law is also called the Torah or the Law of Moses.