Don’t let your love grow cold (Matt. 24:9-14)
Greetings my brothers and sisters in Christ,
After meditating a while on Matthew 24:1-14 (which one should take time to do sometime), this verse from an old Vineyard song popped into my mind:
Don't let my love grow cold
I'm calling out, light the fire again
Don't let my vision die
I'm calling out, light the fire again
(by Brian Doerksen 1994)
Are we there yet? Are we close to those times described in verses 9-14, where we are persecuted, put to death and hated all over the world (vs. 9). Maybe close, but not there yet! We can certainly agree that “many are turning away from the faith”; that there is much “betrayal” and “hate” (vs. 10); that many false prophets have appeared and are deceiving many which is contributing to the “falling away” (vs.11). We can probably also agree that there is an increase of wickedness and lawlessness even as crime rates skyrocket in our cities and nation. Friends, the world is at a very unstable place right now with the enemy working on many fronts. For anyone who is a true follower of Jesus and upholds the Word of God as a standard for truth and righteousness, it can be very discouraging to see the state of our world. We as Christians have become the enemy and our sacred texts are being used against us to call us unloving and hate promoting. Our society has redefined what love is and how it is to be expressed, and in many cases has labeled what once was a normal Christian worldview “hateful”. The world has been handed over to pursue its desires because it has rejected the Gospel of truth and love, and created a god in its own image, that calls evil good and good evil.
Living in the 20th and 21st century and seeing the rapid decline of the “North American Empire” through the eyes of Matthew 24 could possibly lead one to believe that the return of Jesus is right around the corner, so we ought to just do our best to hold on till He comes. If we are honest with ourselves and the history we have behind us (what hasn’t been erased yet), we know from this history that every society that turns from God ends up as that described in Matthew 24. A civilization that has exchanged the truth for a lie eventually disintegrates into self-destruction like “the decline of the Roman empire”. Can I remind you of the Gospels that depict a world deep in sin and confusion and false religion, invaded by God Himself who called people to turn from their sins, only to eventually reject their only Savior, and allow false prophets and deceivers to put the King of the world to death. They chose their messed-up world and beliefs over the Son of God. So, I say, even if Jesus Himself was to come back right now and preach what He preached two thousand years ago, He would be crucified by the religious, the media and the “woke” mob alike. What is a follower of Jesus to do?
We know the way our world is going; the Bible tells us so, because we have rejected our only God and Savior Jesus Christ. But followers of Jesus are not to be “corrupted by the world” (James 1:27), but rather are to “keep ourselves in the love of God”. We cannot allow our love for Jesus, His people, and the world He loved so much He died for, to become cold. Jude, Jesus’ brother, who writes about what is coming in the end, writes, “You, dear friends, by building yourselves up in your most holy faith and praying in the Holy Spirit, keep yourselves in God’s love as you wait for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ to bring you to eternal life” (Jude 20-21). Don’t let your love grow cold! We do this by staying close to Holy Spirit; communing with Him, and allowing Him to keep our flame for Jesus burning bright, as the song says: Lord light the fire again! Let the flame of your love burn bright in me! May I not become discouraged and bitter at what is going on in this world, but may I continue to reflect Your love to a world that understands only a convoluted Christ-less love.
Can you take a moment to read Matthew 24:4-14 again, and underline the word “nation”. Nations will be against each other (vs. 7); Christians will be hated by all nations (vs. 9); but the Gospel good news of a loving Savior will continue to be preached as a testimony to all nations (vs. 14). There is still hope for the world as followers of Jesus, the true dispensers of real love – God’s love – continue to proclaim the gospel and witness to its power to set free, heal and deliver. Love entered the world two thousand years ago, a world just like ours is today. And the world has never been the same since! Don’t let your love grow cold, no matter how twisted the world has made “love” to be. Don’t let the vision of what Jesus came to do die. Let’s keep ourselves in God’s love by communing regularly with Holy Spirit and reflecting our Savior’s love to a world that needs to see it. Stand firm till the end…the end will come… with our Savior to welcome us.
Be encouraged! His love is in you (Romans 5:5)
"Advancing the Kingdom of God by releasing Spirit-filled followers to serve Jesus in freedom and joy."
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