criticism is to be condemned. One cannot correct the faults of others
until one has corrected one's own faults. One cannot even get a good
hold on one's self, and find the right estimate of one's self, until
one learns to see only good in others, and to {210} struggle with one's
self to overcome faults. Moreover, fault-finding and criticism, like
anger, hate, and envy, destroy one's peace of mind. One who judges and
condemns cannot possibly maintain mental and spiritual health. Harsh
judgment is far more hurtful to the man who exercises it than to the
man whom he judges.
"Judge not!--thou canst not tell how soon the look of
bitter scorn
May rest on thee, though pure thy heart as dewdrops
in the morn.
Thou dost not know what freak of fate may place
upon thy brow
A cloud of shame to kill the joy that rests upon it now.
Judge not!
THE REFERENCES
Matt. 7:1-5.
THE QUESTIONS
1. What was wrong in the action of the two little school girls?
2. Why is it wrong to find fault, and to criticize?
3. What did Jesus say about the mote and the beam?
4. Explain Jesus's saying, "Judge not that ye be not judged."
5. Show that it is the spirit of fault finding that is sinful, rather
than the act.
6. Who is most injured: the man who criticizes or the man who is
criticized?
{211}
{212} PICTURE: JERUSALEM FROM THE MOUNT OF OLIVES, From a Photograph
{213}
XXVIII
THE GOLDEN RULE
[Sidenote: Positive instruction.]
Jesus was not content to teach merely "Judge not, that ye be not
judged." In a way, that is only negative teaching. It exhorts men to
withhold judgment, but does not exhort to positive action. But the
nature of the teaching of Jesus is generally constructive. His "don'ts"
are always directed against prevailing evil, and are almost immediately
followed up with constructive directions as to what to do. So now He
continues, "first cast out the beam out of thine own eye"; and further,
from place to place. He instructs men how they shall deal with their
fellowmen. One's duty is not fully done when one merely withholds
judgment; there remains yet to be done some positive act of good--a
kind word, a charitable deed, an effort at reconciliation with one of
ill-will if such a one there be.
[Sidenote: The doctrine of reconciliation.]
In the matter of friendly association, good-will, and forgiveness,
Jesus spoke very definitely. "If thy brother shall trespass against
thee," said He, "go and tell him his fault between thee and him alone:
if he shall hear thee, thou hast gained thy brother. But if he will not
hear thee, then take with thee one or two more, that in the mouth of
two or three witnesses every word may be established. And if he shall
neglect to hear them, tell it unto the church: but if he neglect to
hear the church, let him be unto thee as an heathen man and a publican."
{214} [Sidenote: The attitude of a citizen of the kingdom.]
Long suffering, slow to anger, not vengeful, and without condemnation,
should the citizen of the kingdom be. How many of us follow the course
here outlined, when an associate "trespasses" against us? How many
of us go to him first and talk it over? If the matter is not settled
then, how many of us try again, and take two or three friends along to
help arbitrate the difficulty? And if still a reconciliation is not
effected, how many of us appeal in a spirit of love to the church--the
court of last appeal in matters spiritual? Unfortunately, most of us
are prone to cast off the brother who has done us wrong without looking
into the causes that prompted him to act as he did. If we take steps
to settle the difficulty, it is too often not through the mediation
of friends or the spiritual influence of the Church, but through the
cold procedure of the civil court. And worst of all, we yield not
infrequently to the temptation to talk. We gossip; we slander; we start
scandal; we wrong much more than we have been wronged. Jesus would not
have it so. Agree with thine adversary quickly.
[Sidenote: The doctrine of forgiveness.]
Sometimes it happens that a brother offends more than once. How many
times shall he then be forgiven? This question troubled Peter. He of
came therefore to Jesus and asked, "Lord, how oft shall my brother sin
against me, and I forgive him? till seven times?"
"Jesus saith unto him, I say not unto thee. Until seven times: but
until seventy times seven." Of course, Jesus did not mean that one
should forgive an offender exactly seventy-seven times, no more, no
less. He {215} meant that there is no limit to the number of times that
we should exercise the gift of forgiveness; but that we should forgive
freely and cheerfully as often as the offender repents. Then, in order
that there might be no question as to the meaning of His teaching,
Jesus told the parable of the unforgiving servant.
[Sidenote: The parable of the unforgiving servant.]
"Therefore is the kingdom of heaven likened unto a certain king, which
would take account of his servants. And when he had begun to reckon,
one was brought unto him which owed him ten thousand talents (or about
$10,000,000). But forasmuch as he had not to pay, his lord commanded
him to be sold, and his wife, and children, and all that he had, and
payment be made. The servant therefore fell down, and worshipped him,
saying, Lord, have patience with me, and I will pay thee all. Then the
lord of that servant was moved with compassion, and loosed him, and
forgave him the debt.
"But the same servant went out, and found one of his fellowservants,
who owed him an hundred pence (or about $20): and he laid hands on him,
and took him by the throat, saying, Pay me what thou owest. And his
fellowservant fell down at his feet, and besought him, saying, Have
patience with me, and I will pay thee all. And he would not: but went
and cast him into prison, till he should pay the debt.
"So when his fellowservants saw what was done, they were very sorry,
and came and told unto their lord all that was done. Then his lord,
after that he had called him, said unto him, O thou wicked servant, I
forgave thee all that debt, because thou desiredst me: shouldst not
thou also have had compassion on thy {216} fellowservant, even as I
had pity on thee? And his lord was wroth, and delivered him to the
tormentors, till he should pay all that was due unto him.
"So likewise shall my heavenly Father do also unto you, if ye from your
hearts forgive not every one his brother their trespasses."
[Sidenote: The Meaning.]
About the meaning of this dramatic story there can be no question.
Our indebtedness to God the heavenly Father is incalculable; our
dependence upon Him is infinite. God recognizes our helplessness, and
our inability to pay, and He forgives us our shortcomings, even as
we pray, "Forgive us our debts." The indebtedness of our fellowmen
to us is slight in comparison; their dependence upon us is nil. Yet,
we are likely to render harsh judgment against them, and to withhold
forgiveness from our hearts, even though we utter in prayer the words,
"as we forgive our debtors." But if we deal harshly with our fellowmen
who owe us so little, can we expect God, whom we owe so much, to deal
gently with us? If we want the Great Creditor to forgive us our large
indebtedness, should not we--small creditors that we are--forgive
without the asking, and from our hearts, the little debts of our
fellowmen?
[Sidenote: The right attitude toward our enemies.]
Such was the teaching of Jesus concerning our association with
our friends and fellowservants. But Jesus's teaching of love and
reconciliation did not stop there. It is our duty--since we all want
God to bless and favor us--to love even our enemies, and those whom
we are by nature prompted to hate. For, said Jesus, "Ye have heard
that it hath been said, Thou shalt love thy {217} neighbour, and hate
thine enemy. But I say unto you, Love your enemies, bless them that
curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which
despitefully use you, and persecute you; that ye may be the children of
your Father which is in heaven; for He maketh His sun to rise on the
evil and on the good, and sendeth rain on the just and on the unjust.
For if ye love them which love you, what reward have ye? do not even
the publicans the same? And if ye salute your brethren only, what do
ye more than others? do not even the publicans so? Be ye therefore
perfect, even as your Father which is in heaven is perfect."
[Sidenote: The Golden Rule.]
So, then, it appears that the practicing of the Golden Rule makes a
large stride toward perfection. We should do good to all, forgive all,
love all. Then can we come in strength before the Lord and plead for
patience and forgiveness.
"He prayeth best, who loveth best
All things both great and small;
For the dear God who loveth us,
He made and loveth all."
Jesus put it thus: "Therefore all things whatsoever ye would that men
should do to you, do ye even so to them: for this is the law and the
prophets."
THE REFERENCES
Matt. 18:15-17. Matt. 5:43-48.
Matt. 18:21-35. Matt. 7:12.
{218} THE QUESTIONS
1. Why could not Jesus be content to teach merely "don't"?
2. Of what does the doctrine of reconciliation consist?
3. What is the proper attitude of a citizen of the kingdom toward his
fellow-citizens?
4. How often should one forgive an offender?
5. How does the parable of the unforgiving servant show why we should
forgive our fellowmen?
6. What should be the attitude of a citizen of the kingdom toward his
enemies?
7. What is the meaning of tolerance?
8. Show how the Golden Rule may be made to enrich your own lives and
make them happier.
{219}
{220} PICTURE: THE GOOD SAMARITAN, Van Diepenbeek
{221}
XXIX
THE GOOD SAMARITAN
[Sidenote: The law of love.]
There is, perhaps, no principle of conduct that Jesus emphasized
more in His teachings than the law of brotherly love. As we have
already learned, the first great commandment requires that we love
God; and the second requires that we love our neighbor as ourselves.
It is not enough, then, that we withhold judgment and condemnation;
nor that we do unto others--even unto our enemies--as we would have
others do unto us. We must forget self; bury self, as it were; and
cultivate for others a real affection--such an affection as God has
for us, for God is love. The reward of such a God-like love of our
fellowmen is beautifully expressed in a poem--oft but never too often
quoted--written by the English poet Leigh Hunt.
[Sidenote: The reward of brotherly love.]
"Abou Ben Adhem (may his tribe increase)
Awoke one night from a deep dream of peace,
And saw, within the moonlight in his room,
Making it rich, and like a lily in bloom,
An angel writing in a book of gold:--
Exceeding peace had made Ben Adhem bold,
And to the presence in the room he said,
'What writest thou?'--the vision rais'd its head,
And with a look made of all sweet accord,
Answered, The names of those who love the
Lord.'
'And is mine one?' said Abou. 'Nay, not so,'
Replied the angel. Abou spoke more low,
But cheery still; and said, 'I pray thee then.
Write me as one that loves his fellow-men.'
The angel wrote and vanish'd. The next night
It came again with a great wakening light,
And show'd the names whom love of God had
bless'd
And lo! Ben Adhem's name led all the rest."
{222} [Sidenote: Questions of the tempting lawyer.]
There came a lawyer to Jesus one day and asked Him what to do to
inherit eternal life. Jesus, knowing that the lawyer came only to make
trial of Him, answered, "What is written in the law? how readest thou?"
The lawyer--who knew well the law--was forced then to reply, "Thou
shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul,
and with all thy strength, and with all thy mind: and thy neighbour as
thyself."
"Thou hast answered right," said Jesus: "this do and thou shalt live."
But the lawyer was not satisfied; and desiring further to justify
himself, he asked, "And who is my neighbour?"
[Sidenote: The parable of the good Samaritan.]
"And Jesus answering said, A certain man went down from Jerusalem to
Jericho, and fell among thieves, which stripped him of all his raiment,
and wounded him, and departed, leaving him half dead. And by chance
there came down a certain priest that way: and when he saw him he
passed by on the other side. And likewise a Levite, when he was at the
place, came and looked on him, and passed by on the other side. But
a certain Samaritan, as he journeyed, came where he was: and when he
saw him, he had compassion on him, and went to him, and bound up his
wounds, pouring in oil and wine, and set him on his own beast, and
brought him to an inn, and took care of him. And on the morrow when he
departed, he took out two pence, and gave them to the host, and said
unto him, Take care of him; and whatsoever thou spendest more, when I
come again, I will repay thee.
{223} "Which now of these three thinkest thou," asked Jesus, "was
neighbour unto him that fell among the thieves?"
The lawyer answered, "He that shewed mercy on him."
"Then said Jesus unto him. Go, and do thou likewise."
[Sidenote: A discussion.]
The priest, who was the specially appointed servant of God among his
people, and the Levite, who was closely associated with the priest
in his ecclesiastical duties, ought to have had compassion upon the
unfortunate traveller. It is to be assumed that he was a Jew. He was
therefore of the chosen people. He might lay claim to the services of
the priest and the Levite who officiated in the temple of his God.
Moreover, these men above all others should have known the passage
quoted by the lawyer in answer to Jesus's question, "What is written in
the law?"--a passage repeated by every Jew in each morning and evening
prayer. But these men had seen only the letter of the law; they had
never felt the spirit of it. At the most, the love of neighbor meant
only the Jewish interpretation of the passage, "Thou shalt not avenge,
nor bear any grudge against the children of thy people, but thou shalt
love thy neighbour as thyself." Of the broad interpretation placed by
Jesus on the meaning of the word "neighbor," these men of the temple
service knew nothing.
[Sidenote: The real neighbor.]
The Samaritan however who was an outcast in the eyes of the Jew, for
whom God Himself could hold no love; an apostate and a degenerate
from the rich blood of Israel as unclean in {224} the opinion of the
orthodox Jew as the loathsome leper--the Samaritan felt the thrill of
the spirit of the great commandment "Thou shalt love thy neighour as
thyself." He manifested that divine love--and that to one from whom
he was an alien--which Jesus enjoined when He said, "Be ye therefore
perfect, even as your Father in heaven is perfect."
[Sidenote: The fulness of the answer.]
Jesus could not have answered the lawyer more completely; neither could
He have silenced more quickly the man who came to make trial of Him.
The story of tender love and sympathy was of such compelling nature
that the lawyer himself was forced to admit that the good Samaritan was
the real neighbor. And that conclusion forced upon the lawyer the plain
answer to his question, "Who is my neighbor" Why, he is my neighbor
whom it is within my power to help, no matter what may be his creed, or
his nationality, or his color. There was no room here for the splitting
of hairs. The lawyer was used to the refined arguments of the learned
rabbis as to the meaning of the word neighbor. Here it was plainly set
forth in a simple little story. There was no more to say.
[Sidenote: The lesson clinched.]
But as He concluded his story, and received the lawyer's answer, Jesus
drove home the lesson. "Go," said He, "and do thou likewise." It was as
if He had reverted to the opening question, "Master, what shall I do
to inherit eternal life?" If you would inherit eternal life love your
neighbor as yourself; consider him your neighbor whom you can help;
hold no class distinction; despise no man for his creed or his color;
but hold yourself always in {225} readiness to do good, to serve, and
to help those who need your help. Remember the Good Samaritan. Do not
pass by on the other side, but show your love in deeds of love. Then
shall you inherit eternal life.
[Sidenote: The command renewed.]
The Savior's law of love is a principle of divine beauty. And so
important is it in the Gospel plan of salvation, that it has been
specially renewed in our own dispensation. Said Jesus to Joseph Smith,
"Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, with all thy
might, mind, and strength; and in the name of Jesus Christ thou shalt
serve Him.
"Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself."
"Every man (shall seek) the interest of his neighbor and (do) all
things with an eye single to the glory of God."
THE REFERENCES
Luke 10:25-37. Doc. and Cov. 59:5, 6.
Lev. 19:18. Doc. and Cov. 82:19.
THE QUESTIONS
1. What more must men do besides withholding judgment and observing the
golden rule?
2. Explain the lesson of Abou Ben Adhem.
3. What did the lawyer seek of Jesus?
4. What conclusion was forced, upon the lawyer by the story of the Good
Samaritan?
5. How was this story a complete answer?
6. Why did it silence further questioning?
7. What does Jesus's admonition, "Go, and do thou likewise," imply?
8. How do these commandments affect us in the dispensation of the
fulness of times?
{226} PICTURE: CHRIST IN THE HOME OF MARY AND MARTHA, Hofmann
{227}
XXX.
NO ONE CAN LIVE TO HIMSELF.
[Sidenote: The fable of the body and its members.]
In the ancient book of wisdom ascribed to Aesop, there may be found the
following fable with its moral: "The Members of the Body once rebelled
against him. They said he led an idle, lazy life at their expense. The
Hands declared that they would not again lift a crust even to keep him
from starving, the Mouth that it would not take a bit more food, the
Legs that they would carry him about no longer, and so on with the
others.
"The Body quietly allowed them to follow their own courses, well
knowing that they would all soon come to their senses, as indeed they
did, when, for want of the blood and nourishment supplied from the
stomach, they found themselves fast becoming mere skin and bone.
"No one can live to himself."
[Sidenote: The time of Aesop.]
Aesop lived in the long ago. Tradition declares that he was born five
hundred and fifty years before the time of Jesus. But already in that
remote age men had learned to appreciate the value of organizing
themselves into communities and churches and governments. Already, men
had discovered that to live to oneself was to fight alone a losing
fight against all the forces of the world.
[Sidenote: The growth of society.]
From the time that Adam and Eve were driven out of the Garden of Eden,
and their children began to settle two and two in the land to till it
and to cultivate it, man has understood the advantages of friendly
association. First it was the family. The family has always been, {228}
and is still the actual basis of society. The members of the family
clung together, and each one worked for the interest of the whole.
Then, when the families increased they became associated in clans and
tribes. Then, with the increase of population, came the organization of
communities, religious association, governments. For protection, for
worship, for education, for commerce and trade, for civilization, men
have banded themselves together, and have worked for larger units, of
which the individuals were but members. Only by such banding together
can a community become socially efficient.
[Sidenote: A football squad.]
Now, we may easily understand what this means if we apply the principle
to the organization of a football squad. There are eleven men, you
know, in the "team." One of them is the captain. When the squad is
in action, playing hard against an opposing team, no single man can
hope alone to win the game. The strength of the squad depends upon its
team work. While each individual must put forth the best that is in
him, whether in bucking the line or in playing the open field, that
best must be so directed as to add to the sum total of the strength
and efficiency of the united eleven. No member of that team may live
or play to himself. And the orders of the captain must be obeyed.
Some player in the line may think the orders poor--wholly wrong in
fact--yet he must obey those orders. If he does not, he will go down
to ruin himself, and he may possibly drag his team with him to shame
and disaster. For, as is clearly evident, when he neglects to follow
the command of the captain, he stands alone; the other ten obey
orders. {229} Alone he can accomplish nothing. Nor is that the worst;
by disobeying orders, he may spoil the premeditated play and lose the
game. The football man is required to learn, therefore, that he is only
a member of a body; that he must act with the body; that if he attempts
to act in opposition to the body calamity is sure to follow; that
success can come only through concerted effort. The football squad is
an organization of society for efficiency.
[Sidenote: The teachings of Jesus.]
As it is with the football squad so it is with society in the large.
Men and women are organized into communities and associations of
various kinds for greater efficiency, and are subject to the laws
governing organized society. Now, since Jesus was not primarily a
social reformer, nor a social teacher, we should not be surprised if He
had little to say about man's duties to organized society. Yet since He
touches in His teachings nearly all phases of temporal and spiritual
life, we might expect that somewhere He has something to say about the
larger aspects of society. And we do really find it so. The three chief
social institutions in the world are the family, the state, and the
church. About man's duties to each one of these Jesus has something
significant to say. Let us consider briefly the most important sayings
of Jesus concerning these three fundamental institutions.
[Sidenote: The family.]
In the teaching of Jesus, marriage is presented as a divinely appointed
sacrament, and the family as a sacred institution One day the Pharisees
came to Jesus to test Him, and asked, "Is it lawful for man to put
away his wife? And {230} He answered and said unto them, What did
Moses command you? And they said, Moses suffered to write a bill of
divorcement, and to put her away.
"And Jesus answered and said unto them, For the hardness of your heart
he wrote you this precept. But from the beginning of the creation God
made them male and female. For this cause shall a man leave his father
and mother and cleave to his wife: and they twain shall be one flesh;
so then they are no more twain but one flesh. What therefore God hath
joined together let no man put asunder."
[Sidenote: The family sacred.]
Thus emphatically did Jesus teach that the marriage relation was
ordained of God. And in doing so He declared also that the family is
a sacred institution and its claims should never be put aside. The
crying shame of the world today is the common practice of divorce. Boys
and girls who become acquainted with the teachings of Jesus, should
grow up with a horror of the divorce court. They should learn to look
upon marriage as one of the highest privileges accorded to them by
the heavenly Father. And boys and girls in the Church of Jesus Christ
of Latter-day Saints should rejoice in the thought, that, when the
proper time comes, they may go into the House of the Lord and have
there performed the divine sacrament of marriage for time and for all
eternity. For the Lord has said in this generation, "Whoso forbiddeth
to marry is not ordained of God, for marriage is ordained of God unto
man."
[Sidenote: The state.]
Jesus was equally emphatic in His teachings of man's duty to the
state--to organized civil government. Certain of the Pharisees {231}
and of the Herodians were sent one day to try to catch Jesus in his
words. "And when they were come they say unto Him, Master, we know
that Thou art true, and carest for no man: for Thou regardest not the
person of men, but teachest the way of God in truth: Is it lawful to
give tribute to Caesar, or not? Shall we give, or shall we not give?
But He, knowing their hypocrisy, said unto them. Why tempt ye me? bring
me a penny, that I may see it. And they brought it. And He saith unto
them, Whose is this image and superscription? And they said unto Him,
Caesar's. And Jesus answering said unto them. Render to Caesar the
things that are Caesar's, and to God the things that are God's. And
they marvelled at Him."
[Sidenote: The state divinely instituted.]