Matthew 24:12-13 Because of the increase of wickedness, the love of most will grow cold, 13 but the one who stands firm to the end will be saved.
I have noticed over these many years that relationships grow cold when the individuals don’t invest time and energy in continuing to stoke the fires of friendship. Friends spend time together; they do things together. They include the other in the details of their life. This is the hallmark of friendship.
But the opposite is also true. When we neglect the relationship, pull back and spend less time and energy, then the relationship will wither and eventually die. This is true of all relationships.
In our section of Matthew, Jesus is speaking to His disciples about things that for them were in the future. Much of what Jesus shares happened in the destruction of Jerusalem in 70AD. But not everything. And like most Biblical prophecies, there is a near and a far application of the message.
One of the warnings to His disciples about the coming difficult times is that some will grow cold in their relationship with the LORD. It is this connection to Jesus that sustains during difficult times, times of intense persecution and betrayal. But not everyone will grow cold. There will be those who stand firm! This is good news!
Complacency is the enemy of productivity. And we are to be bearing fruit, fruit that will last. There is no place in the Christian life for non-production. We can’t stop producing the fruit of the Spirit. We can’t take a break and say, “I don’t want to be like Jesus today.” Holiness never takes a back seat.
Notice what the text says: wickedness will increase. There is a correlation between the increase in wickedness and growing cold. Sin corrupts. Sin cools.
By contrast, standing firm maintains the heat.
Have you ever watched someone walking their dog, especially a BIG dog? The key is to keep a firm grip on the leash and don’t let the dog get ahead. If you do, they think they are the leader of the pack. Not a good thing with a big dog.
But what can be even worse is allowing slack in the leash. This leads to a sudden pull and your arm ending up on the ground. Keeping the distance between yourself and the dog constant is the key to successful dog walking.
It is this way in our spiritual life. Standing in Christ keeps us close to Him. He moves, we move. He stops, we stop. But allowing slack in the connection, a thing we control, leads to problems when the tugs of life inevitably come. And our arms can’t sustain the pull of sin or temptation.
Pull in close to Jesus and stay there.
The Arnold Journey 