Part 62
We must remember then, that this rule does not mean to oblige us to give all that to another, or do all that for another, which we could possibly desire or wish to be bestowed upon us, or done for us; but whatsoever we could reasonably desire, and justly expect another should do to us, that we ought to do to him when he is in the like circumstances. All that in our calm and sedate thoughts we judge fit and proper another should do for us, that we should practise and do for him. Such requests as we could make to others, and could justify them to ourselves in our own consciences, according to the principles of humanity, the rules of civil society, and the rights of mankind, such we ought not to deny to others when they stand in need. Not all that a fond self-love would prompt us to ask, but all that our conscience tells us we might with reason expect.
I shall mention an instance or two, which will more fully explain what I mean.
A criminal under righteous condemnation for murder or robbery, may think thus with himself, _Surely I would pardon the judge or the prince, if he were in my circumstances, therefore he ought to pardon me_; Or the judge himself might think, _I should be glad to be pardoned or not condemned if I were in the case of this criminal, therefore I will not condemn him_. This sort of thoughts arising from unreasonable and unjust principles, either of a sinful self-love, or indulgence to iniquity, are not to be the measure of our actions nor expectations; these are not just and reasonable desires, nor can our own conscience in our sedate and calm enquiries judge so concerning them.
Again, if we were poor and starving, it may be we would be glad if our rich neighbour would settle upon us a competent estate sufficient to maintain us for the term of our lives; but this we cannot reasonably expect, or reasonably desire and demand; therefore we are not bound, be our circumstances never so large, to settle such a competency upon our poor neighbours, be their circumstances never so mean. We cannot rationally expect these things should be done unto us, we cannot equitably desire them of another, therefore we are not bound to do thus to another.
But if we are placed as criminals at the bar of judgment, we may reasonably expect that all the favourable circumstances which attend our accusation, should be well weighed, and all the kind allowances made, which the nature of the charge or crime will admit; for our consciences would think it reasonable to allow so much to any criminal, if we ourselves were placed in the chair of magistracy. Or if we, through the frowns of providence, are poor and starving, we may reasonably expect our rich neighbour should bestow upon us a little of his bread, a little of his clothing, to supply our extreme necessities now and then; and thus much our neighbour may expect from us, when he is fallen into decay by the providence of God, while our circumstances are large, and we are well furnished for such bounty.
Thus you see the true intent and meaning of this universal law of equity, _viz._ That we practise toward our neighbour in such a manner as our own hearts and consciences would think it reasonable he should practise towards us in the like case.
The _Second_ enquiry was this. What special argument doth our Lord use to enforce the observance of this sacred precept?
When our Saviour had laid down this general rule, he adds, “This is the law and the prophets;” that is, this is the summary of all the rules of duty, which are written in the law of Moses, concerning our carriage to our neighbour, and of all the laws which are explained by the succeeding prophets, and sacred writers under the Old Testament. They are all comprehended in this short line; _Do to others, as you would have others do to you_. It is very nearly the same thing, in other words with the law of Moses, _Love thy neighbour as thyself_; Lev. xix. 18. but it is much plainer and more intelligible: And indeed this rule of Moses is to be understood and interpreted, and applied in practice according to this plainer rule of Christ, thus, “Let thy love to thy neighbour be as great as thou canst reasonably expect or desire thy neighbour’s love should be to thyself.”
When our blessed Lord gives an abridgment or abstract of the ten commandments, he doth it in these words; Mat. xxii. 37, 38, 39. _Love the Lord thy God with all thy heart and soul, that is, love God above all things: this is the first and great commandment._ _And the second is like unto it; love thy neighbour as thyself_; that is, consider him as a piece of human nature, as a second self, and imitate thy love to thyself in thy conduct toward him: Or, according to my text, it may be explained thus; enquire of thy own heart how thou wouldst have him love thee, and let this be the rule and measure of thy love to him. All our duties to God or man, all the commands of the first and the second table, all the dictates of the law and prophets depend on these two commandments.
Then we answer the design of the law, then we obey the prophets, then we fulfil the commands of Moses, and of Christ, when we give to God our supreme love, and when we put ourselves in the room of our neighbour, and then carry it toward him, according to the love we expect he should bear us. This is _loving our neighbours as ourselves_, and this _love is the fulfilling of the law_; Rom. xiii. 10. When our Saviour delivers the words of my text, it is as if he had said to us, “If ye would practise all the duties that you owe to your fellow-creatures, and fulfil all the laws of the second table, in the most compendious and perfect manner, remember and practise this one general direction, deal with the rest of mankind as your conscience judges they should deal with you.” But this leads me to the:
_Third_ enquiry, _viz._ wherein do the peculiar excellencies of this rule appear:
This golden rule hath many excellent properties belonging to it. I shall mention a few on purpose to impress it on your consciences with more conviction, pleasure and power.
I. It is a rule that is easy to be understood, and as easy to be applied by the meanest and weakest understanding. It is so plain, that what is said by Isaiah concerning all the precepts of the gospel, is more eminently true of this; _it is a highway of holiness, and the wayfaring man, though a fool, shall not err therein_; Is. xxxv. 8. The laws of man are often expressed in such obscure language and terms of art, that they puzzle us to find out the meaning of them: And the nice distinctions and subtle reasonings of men, oftentimes add to their darkness, and raise new disputes: But this is a law that every man understands; nor is it easy to be clouded by the comments and glosses of crafty men, if we are but sincerely resolved to judge and practise according to it. By the means of this rule, they who never studied the civil law, nor took pains in enquiring the moral dictates of the light of nature; they who never examined the statutes of a nation, nor the rules of natural justice, are all furnished with a law or rule of equity in their own minds, by which to manage their whole practice, with regard to their neighbours. Those who are not capable of long trains of reasoning, or of applying several general rules to all their particular cases: yet are able to look into their own hearts, and to ask this easy question, “Would I myself be content to have others deal thus with me? Why thou should I deal thus with another?”
II. It is a very short rule, and easy to be remembered: The weakest memory can retain it; and the meanest of mankind may carry this about with them, and have it ready upon all occasions. It is of admirable use, to solve a thousand cases of conscience that may arise on the sudden, and may perplex our minds with difficulty. “It lies ready,” says a considerable author, “for present use upon all exigencies and occasions. We can scarce be so far surprized by an immediate necessity of acting as not to have time for a short recourse to this rule, or room for a sudden glance, as it were, upon it in our minds, where it rests and sparkles always like the urim and thummim on the breast of Aaron.”
If we have no written cases of conscience, no books at hand to direct our practice, if we have no faithful minister near us, no wise and pious friend to consult on a sudden occasion, this one rule, written in the heart, may serve instead of all other helps. This blessed precept strikes a sudden and sacred light into the mind, where the case may seem intricate: It shines upon our way, and makes our path plain, where an honest and scrupulous conscience might be just before bewildered in the dark, and not know how to act. “Practise that, O man! toward thy neighbour, which thou art convinced thy neighbour should practise toward thee.”
III. This excellent precept of Christ, carries greater evidence to the conscience, and a stronger degree of conviction in it, than any other rule of moral virtue. As I said before, that a little reason will serve to apply it, so I say now, there is not much need of reasoning to find it out; for we fetch the proof of it from within ourselves, even from our own inward sensation and feeling. If we would know what is just and equitable to do to our neighbour, we need but ask our own inward sense, and our conscience together, what we would think equitable and just to receive from him? Thus there is but one and the same measure of justice, by which we must mete it out to ourselves and others; and that measure lies within us, even in the heart. We are very sensible of benefits and injuries that we ourselves receive, and this very sense of injuries and benefits, is, as it were, transcribed into our conscience, from the tenderest part of our own souls, and becomes there a rule of equity, how we should treat our neighbours.
It is a most righteous precept of the ancient Jewish law, and of universal obligation; Deut. xxv. 13, 14, 15. _Thou shalt not have in thy bag, or in thine house, divers weights, and divers measures; a great and a small: That is, one wherewith to buy, and another wherewith to sell; but thou shalt have a perfect and just weight; a perfect and just measure shalt thou have._ This precept as soon as it is mentioned, strikes the conscience with conviction of the justice of it: And what is said here of traffic and dealing, holds as truly of the general commerce between man and man, in all the ordinary and extraordinary affairs of life: That mutual exchange of good offices, whereby society is upheld, must be regulated in the same manner, and by the same rule; and the immediate conviction of the equity of it, doth as strongly strike the conscience. “There must be a perfect weight, and a just measure,” saith the author before-cited, “by which all men are mutually obliged to regulate their conduct, in acting and suffering, in commanding and obeying, in giving and receiving: and this can be no other than the equal and righteous rule of the text; the doing in all cases and to all persons, even as we would be done unto. There is no one so absurd and unreasonable, as not to see, and acknowledge the absolute equity of this command in the theory, however he may swerve and decline from it in his practice.” For, it is founded not only in the reason of things, and in the common share, and equal interest that we all have in human nature; but it is also written in the most sensible and the tenderest part of our constitution; and from thence it is derived to the mind and judgment, as a law of behaviour towards our fellow-creatures.
IV. Hence it comes to pass, that it is a precept particularly fitted for practice, because it includes in it a powerful motive to stir us up to do what he enjoins. This character of it, I borrow from the same author, who talks thus upon it: “Other moral maxims propose naked truths to the understanding, which operate often but faintly and slowly on the will and passions, the two active principles of the mind of man: But it is the peculiar character of this rule, that it addresseth itself equally to all these powers, even to the passions, and the will, as well as the understanding. It not only directs, but influences; it imparts both light and heat; and at the same time that it informs us clearly what we are to do, excites us also in the most tender moving manner, to the performance of it; for in truth, its seat is not more in the brain, than in the heart of man: It appeals to our very senses themselves, and exerts its secret force in so prevailing a way, that it is even felt as well as understood by us.”
“There is nothing that we know, that gives a man so true and lively a sense of the sufferings of others, or restrains him so powerfully from doing unrighteous and oppressive things, as his having smarted formerly himself under the experience of them. Now the supposing another man’s ill usage to be our own; is the giving ourselves a present sense, as it were, and a kind of feigned experience of it; which doth, for the time serve all the purposes of a true one.”
V. It is such a rule, as if well applied, will almost always secure our neighbour from injury, and secure us from guilt, if we should chance to hurt him. God will not impute guilt to us, if we should happen to mistake in a point of doubtful enquiry, and to hurt our neighbour by a conscientious obedience to this rule.
I say, it will almost always secure us from injuring our neighbour, I cannot say, it is always an absolute, infallible, and certain rule of right and wrong; for our knowledge of the eternal rules of right and wrong is but imperfect; neither our own heads or hearts, are furnished with all the various and particular principles of equity. A mere enquiry into our own hearts or consciences, can never give us a perfect knowledge of the abstracted rules of justice: Nor can it determine us to the certain practice of it, in all the most intricate cases, unless these perfect rules of justice were fully written in the heart of every man. But under the present circumstances of mankind, in this poor, ignorant, and corrupt state of human nature, it appears to be the best, the most righteous, the most secure, and the most universal rule that ever could be invented or given to men; for it will certainly secure and prevent every man from injuring his neighbour in all cases, except where he himself is willing and content to receive equal injury: And I am sure, self-love will tell us, that these cases are exceeding few.
It is evident therefore, that an honest man will scarce ever mistake in keeping close to this rule. And if I should then happen to do an injury to my neighbour, instead of strict equity, yet I can appeal to God, and say, I endeavoured to apply this rule to my conscience, in the present circumstances, with the utmost sincerity. I acted no otherwise to my neighbour, than I desired or judged it reasonable for my neighbour, to act towards me in the like case. And surely my unavoidable mistake will not be imputed to me as a crime, where I have honestly followed the rule my Saviour has given me, and acted therein according to the best capacity of my judgment.
VI. It is a rule as much fitted to awaken us to sincere repentance upon the transgression of it, as it is to direct us to our present duty. This rule abides in the bosom of a christian, it dwells so near him, that it is, as it were, mingled with conscience itself; and by this means it becomes not only a safe guide, but a sharp reprover too: It soon puts us in mind where either inclination or practice warps toward injustice and deceit. Have we never felt our conscience sting us with a bitter reflection derived from this rule, when we have neglected in any instance to fulfil our duty to our neighbour? I am sure if we kept it much in view, we could neither practise injustice with ease of mind, nor dwell long under this guilt, without some inward reproaches: If the precept had not power enough to restrain us from present sin, yet it would spur us on to serious and speedy repentance.
[Here the sermon may be divided, if it be too long to be read in a family at once.]
VII. It is a most extensive rule, with regard to all the stations, ranks and characters of mankind: for it is perfectly suited to them all: And I think it may be said, that it is equally useful to the rich and the poor, to the buyer and the seller, to the prince and to the peasant, to the master and the servant: They all come under the single rule of duty and justice: This should govern them in all their conduct. Be your condition, O christians, what it will in the world, do but put yourselves into the circumstances of one another, in your own thoughts, for a moment, and ask what is reasonable to be done to yourselves? And your consciences will return a speedy and easy answer what you should do to others.
Let the tenant say, “If I were a landlord, what should I think reasonable that my tenant should pay me?” And the landlord should ask himself, “Were I a tenant, what should I claim of my landlord?” I would have the master enquire, “What should I expect, if I were a servant, at the hand of my master?” And let the servant say, “What, if I were a master, should I expect from the hands of one that served me?” Parents should ask themselves, “if I had been a negligent child, and guilty of some trifling offence, could I think it just my father should be in such a passion with me?” And the son should enquire, “if I were a father, would I not think it reasonable my child should obey me in such
## particular instances or commands?” Thus the landlord and tenant, thus
the master and servant, thus the father and the son may come to an adjustment of their mutual obligations.
The merchant should say to himself, “if I were an artificer, should I think it reasonable that the labour of my hands, and the sweat of my brows, should be screwed down to so cheap a price?” The seller of goods should say, “If I were the buyer, would I think it just to have such corrupt or faulty wares put into my hands? Am I willing to have my necessity, my ignorance, or unwariness thus imposed upon?” And the buyer should ask himself, “If I were the seller, should I bear to have my goods thus run down and depreciated below the just value?”
The learned professions may also learn their duty from this rule. The lawyer should say to himself, “What if I were the client should I think it equitable to have my cause so long delayed, by so many shiftings and escapes, from a determination?” The physicians and the surgeons should put themselves in the places of their sick and wounded patients, and say, “Do we prescribe never a potion, or use never a plaster more than we would think proper for ourselves, if we were languishing under the same sickness or wounds? Do we take the same safe and speedy methods of relief for others that we would have applied to ourselves?” And the preachers of the gospel should place themselves in the room of their hearers, and say, “Do we labour in our closets, in our secret hours of retirement, and in our public ministrations, for the conversion and salvation of those who hear us, as we would have ministers do for us, if we were perishing in our sins, and in danger of eternal death? Do we take such pains to awaken the slumberers upon the borders of hell, as we ourselves would have others take, in order to awaken us out of such fatal slumbers? Do we study and contrive with what divine cordials we shall refresh and comfort the mourners in Zion, even as we should desire to be comforted and refreshed?” Such sort of self-enquiries as these, will lead us to the practice of our present duty, and solve many a difficult case of conscience better than turning over the largest volumes.
VIII. This sacred rule is a most comprehensive one, with regard to all the actions and duties that concern our neighbours. It is not confined merely to the practice of justice, but it extends much wider and farther: It is of mighty influence in the direction and practice of meekness, of patience, of charity, of truth and faithfulness, and every kind of social virtue, and a most happy guard against every social vice. It would be endless to enter into all the special cases of vice and virtue, which relate to the social life, and to shew how much they are affected by this rule, and what divine advantages we may attain for the practice of morality, by keeping this one sentence ever upon our thoughts. Yet I cannot pass over so important a theme, without giving a short specimen of some of these advantages.
This golden precept would teach us how to regulate our temper and general behaviour in the world. Am I not willing to be treated in an affable and civil manner by those who converse with me? Let me treat others then with all becoming civility, and make it appear that christianity is a religion of true honour, and that a christian is indeed a well-bred man. Do I think it unreasonable that my neighbour, though he be my superior, should assume haughty airs and disdain me? Let me watch therefore against all such scornful speeches and disdainful airs, when I converse with one, who is inferior to me. Do I think it a grievous thing, that a man should break out into sudden passion against me, if I happen to speak a word contrary to his sentiment, or to set himself in a rage for a trifle? Let me set a strict guard then over all my passionate powers, and learn to bear opposition without impatience. Let me quench the first risings of sudden anger, lest they kindle into an ungoverned flame, and hurry me on to the practice of what I condemn in others.