The love of many will grow cold

The love of many will grow cold

Because lawlessness will be increased, the love of many will grow cold. – Matthew 24:12

2 Timothy 3:1-5

 1 You should know this, Timothy, that in the last days there will be very difficult times.

 2 For people will love only themselves and their money. They will be boastful and proud, scoffing at God, disobedient to their parents, and ungrateful. They will consider nothing sacred.

 3 They will be unloving and unforgiving; they will slander others and have no self-control. They will be cruel and hate what is good.

 4 They will betray their friends, be reckless, be puffed up with pride, and love pleasure rather than God.

 5 They will act religious, but they will reject the power that could make them godly.

The Wild West spanned from the Civil War’s conclusion in 1865 until the dawn of the 1900s. It was the result of Western expansion into the “frontier.” The journey westward was driven by a collective drive for freedom and opportunity, technological advancements, and government incentives. It was a period of severe challenges, including widespread disease, frequent violence, and the westward journey itself.

The Wild West is often depicted in movies and books as an era of lawlessness filled with uncertainty, unbridled freedom, and adventure. Cinematic portrayals have painted this epoch as teetering on the edge of anarchy, replete with ongoing conflicts, dire living conditions, and rampant lawlessness across the expansive frontier. However, these depictions amplify the myths, portraying a far more romanticized reality than actual history.

The gunslinger, a mainstay of Western cinema, did exist, but not in the glorified manner often portrayed. Instead, they more closely resembled modern serial killers. They would exploit their superior skills against inexperienced victims. They frequently attacked from ambush rather than face-to-face gunfights.

Contrary to the enduring myth of a perpetually violent Wild West, historical analysis reveals that this era was significantly calmer than many 21st-century American cities, upending the widely held view of an endlessly tumultuous frontier (Independent Institute).

Lawlessness dramatized by Hollywood’s Wild West was far less violent and unrestrained than what is prophesied concerning the last days.

REFLECT & PRAY

In the last days, the spiritual climate will be characterized by sin with an increase in lawlessness and a decrease in selfless love.

Father it is so easy to turn inward, selfish, and hardhearted. Encourage me to rise above it and supersize my love for you and concern for others.

INSIGHT

At first glance, the Lord Jesus Christ indicates a correlation between lawlessness and love. A correlation is a statistical measure that expresses how two variables increase or decrease together. Lawlessness and love are negatively correlated. When lawlessness increases, love decreases.

Matthew 24:12 Lawlessness will increase, and the love of many will grow cold.

The Greek word for increases is plēthúnō. Plēthúnō means to become bigger or greater in amount, to grow or increase. Plēthúnō is not merely additive but multiplicative. That is, it means to multiply. In the fast-food industry, we would say supersized. Lawlessness will be supersized.

The Greek word translated as lawlessness is anomia. Anomia does not simply mean being without law, that is, ignorant of it. Instead, it is far more sinister and pejorative, indicating contempt for law and authority. Lawlessness is a lifestyle that rejects the acknowledgment of any divine command or moral order. Lawlessness violates the Father’s ethical standards and principles, resulting in iniquity, wickedness, or sin.

People will become increasingly coldhearted. The Greek word translated as cold is psucho. It literally means to grow cold. It is used metaphorically with the sense of waning zeal or love. The King James translates it as wax cold.

Matthew 24:12 indicates that as society becomes more lawless, agape or selfless love will become less common. People’s hearts will grow colder, and they will become more indifferent to the needs and well-being of others. This cooling of love is seen as a symptom of moral and spiritual decay, contributing to the breakdown of community and compassion.

The apostle Paul turns up the heat a bit, indicating that people will not merely be coldhearted but become savage in their godlessness.

2 Timothy 3:1 You should know this, Timothy, that in the last days there will be very difficult times.

The Greek word translated as difficult is chalepos. In Matthew 8:28, chalepos describesdemonic vicious ferocity. The word means violent, dangerous, perilous, harsh, fierce, and savage. 

Are the times in which we live becoming more and more lawless and savage?

The last prophecy of the Old Testament speaks of these times directly preceding the return of the Lord Jesus Christ. There is bad news, but there is also good news.

It will be a time of division among families. Fathers and children will become estranged, broken up, and disconnected. This is happening before our eyes in unprecedented ways.

However, the good news is reconciliation and restoration are coming.

Malachi 4:5-6

 5 Look, I am sending you the prophet Elijah before the great and terrible day of the LORD arrives.

 6 He will turn the hearts of fathers to their children, and the hearts of children to their fathers.  

¯\_(ツ)_/¯

© Dr. H 2024