6/5/2014: There is more to understanding the Golden Rule than meets the eye.
Therefore all things whatsoever ye would that men should do to you, do you even so to them: for this is the law and the prophets. (Matt 7:12 King James version)
This is a great law for directing behavior, but it is without a promise. It simply says that our actions should be to others how we would like to be treated. Period! This does not say that the person will return to you in like kind. It does not guarantee all others or any others will treat you the way you treat other people. It is a simple instruction on how we should behave. It says nothing about what we might receive in return. In fact, there is some truth in the humorous statement, “There is no good deed that goes unpunished!” You may get just the opposite behavior when practicing the Golden Rule. The instruction is solely and independently concerning our actions; no expectation of like kind return from others.
So is there a reward for Golden Rule behavior? Not within the Golden Rule itself. The reward for behavior is in Ephesians 6:8. Knowing that whatsoever good thing any man doeth, the same shall he receive of the Lord, whether he be bond or free. This says that whatever we do for others, the reward will not come from the others, but from God Himself. Thank God! God is a way better promiser and guarantor than other people. Simple stated, “Whatever you do for others, God will do for you”. There is a reward for good behavior. But without faith it is impossible to please Him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him. (Hebrews 11:6)