¿Will your love grow cold? 

The Mount of Olives prophecy contains a grave warning about the cooling of the heart that was to spread. But Jesus also encourages us to help us counter that deadly spiritual threat . 

Jesus' chilling warning still echoes in today's vile and violent world: "And because evil has multiplied, the love of many will grow cold" (Matthew 24:12).

His disciples asked him, "When will these things be, and what will be the sign of your coming, and of the end of the age?" (v. 3). He had told them that times of destruction would come but they wanted to know when they would come and when they would end.

When will Jesus assume the role of king of the utopian Kingdom of God?

The prophecy of the Mount of Olives

Jesus answered their questions with a series of prophecies and parables that are often referred to as the Mount of Olives prophecy because they were given on the Mount of Olives overlooking the main city of Jerusalem.

The apostle John wrote the prophecy of the four horsemen of the Apocalypse based on the conditions that Jesus predicted (compare Matthew 24: 5-7 with Revelation 6: 2-8). This includes religious deception, wars, famines, and epidemics.

As horrible as these things may be, "all this will be the beginning of pain" —literally, labor pains (Matthew 24: 8). The world is going to suffer terrible labor pains before the birth of a new and peaceful world ruled by Jesus Christ.

Within this context, Jesus exposed the terrible trials and persecutions that innocent Christians will suffer — from false religious leaders and from the hands of the traitors among them (vv. 9-11).

Why will the world get worse? Why are there even Christians who will grow cold in heart and betray others? The Bible teaches a cause and effect relationship between breaking God's laws and receiving destructive and painful results.

The results of rebellion

The widespread rebellion of the end times will have a dangerous influence even among the followers of Christ! How can Christian love undermine rebellion?

Being surrounded by evil, hatred and injustice can offend, discourage and disappoint a Christian. It can also start to distort our view of normal and abnormal, right and wrong.

Attractive temptations can blind us to the consequences of sin.

Rebellion is motivated by selfishness - and selfishness is the antithesis of love. (Compare the 19 destructive elements of selfish end-time thinking in 2 Timothy 3: 1-5 with the opposite pole of God's characteristics of love in 1 Corinthians 13. )

Breaking God's laws causes pain and destroys relationships.

Sin is a trap — it very easily becomes a habit, and our feelings of guilt can create gaps between God and us, as well as lead us to be defensive and difficult to live with. Instead of repenting, we may be tempted to take all the pain out of our guilt against our closest ones.

These and other negative results from ignoring God's laws can dispel a Christian's love and commitment. They can make our love cool.

Avoid coldness

Jesus' Mount of Olives prophecy gives a few more simple warnings. He teaches and exhorts his followers to avoid losing the fervent love and commitment that must characterize a true Christian (John 13:35; Revelation 3:19).

Immediately after the warning of the chilling, Jesus gives two antidotes:

Persevere: "But he who endures to the end will be saved" (Matthew 24:13)

The mission to share their good news: “And this gospel (good news) of the kingdom will be preached throughout the world, as a witness to all nations; and then the end will come ”(v. 14).

The rest of Matthew 24 and 25 contains other keys to maintaining love according to God and enthusiasm in these times of spiritual darkness just before the beginning of the wonderful Kingdom of God.

Through prophecy, Jesus gave prophetic signs for us to avoid religious deception that destroys fervor and love.

He assures us that in the end he will return — his promises are sure (Matthew 24:30, 34-35). But we cannot know the day and time to mark our calendar. Instead, we must remain alert and prepared — not giving in to temptation by saying, “My lord is late in coming” (vv. 44, 48).

Jesus exhorts us to be "faithful and prudent" servants, taking care of the house, "giving them food on time" (v. 45). "Blessed is that servant whom, when his master comes, finds him doing so" (v. 46).

Being wise and faithful and being motivated by the needs of others are key to preventing our hearts from getting cold. Jesus elaborated on these aspects in the next chapter.

Three parables

Matthew 25 has three parables that contrast the right and wrong way to keep your Christian love alive.

The parable of the 10 virgins shows the importance of wisdom and spiritual preparation. The five wise virgins not only had oil in their lamps, they also carried an extra portion with them. Oil is often used to represent the Holy Spirit of God, which is given by Him to all who repent and are baptized (Acts 2:38).

So we can use this parable as an example not to quench or neglect the Spirit (1 Thessalonians 5:19) and stay in communication with God through prayer, Bible study, meditation, and occasional fasting.

The parable of the talents shows the importance of being diligent and faithful. The servants who used what was given to them to increase and gain were congratulated, but the lazy one who went and fearfully buried what had been given, was exiled. God wants us to learn to be faithful in what little we have been given so that he can know that we will be faithful in how much he wants to give us!

The parable of the sheep and the goats focuses on the inner motivation that can help us demonstrate God's love at all times. Let's see the recognition for the "sheep":

“Then the King will say to those on his right: Come, blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world. Because I was hungry, and you gave me to eat; I was thirsty, and you gave me a drink; I was a stranger, and you picked me up; I was naked, and you covered me; sick, and you visited me; in prison, and you came to me ”(vv. 34-36).

The response of the righteous "sheep" confirms that everything they did was without the intention of seeking recognition or being seen by others. His motivation came from a kind heart of compassion and love. "Lord, when did we see you hungry and sustain you?" (v. 37)

The answer in verse 40 shows God's love for everyone and his appreciation for those who have his perspective and his love: "Truly, I say to you, as soon as you did it to one of these my younger brothers, you did it to me" .

We must see beyond the actions and attitudes of people in this evil world. Even people who are regarded as less by others - even people who abuse us - have incredible potential in God's eyes.

Jesus told us that: “But I say to you: Love your enemies, bless those who curse you, do good to those who hate you, and pray for those who abuse you and persecute you; so that you may be sons of your Father who is in heaven, who makes his sun rise on the evil and the good, and who rains on the just and the unjust ”(Matthew 5: 44-45)

God "wants all men to be saved" (1 Timothy 2: 4), and He wants us to see that potential. He wants us to learn to love others as He does.

Real life examples

Interestingly, right after the Mount of Olives prophecy, the Gospels record two totally opposite real-life examples.

First, the good example: “Then Mary took a pound of perfume of pure tuberose, of great price, and anointed the feet of Jesus, and wiped them with her hair; and the house was filled with the smell of perfume ”(John 12: 3). Jesus understood that this wonderful gift and fervent commitment was a sign of his love and appreciation for his next sacrifice. She did not allow her sadness to cool her love, on the contrary, she approached God and sought to please Him. She did not give in to selfishness, but was motivated by selfless love.

On the other hand we have Judas Iscariot: “And one of his disciples, Judas Iscariot son of Simon, the one who was to deliver him, said: Why was this perfume not sold for three hundred denarii, and given to the poor? But he said this, not because he cared for the poor, but because he was a thief, and having the bag, he took what was thrown into it "(vv. 4-6)

At first Judas surely loved and believed in Jesus. But as time went by, things did not go as Judas and others expected. And suddenly afterwards Judas began to withdraw money little by little, somehow justifying himself in his mind. But the more he sinned, the guilt and trap of sin robbed him of his closeness to God.

In the end, Judas allowed his love to grow cold. With an ice heart, he even sold his teacher and delivered him into the hands of his enemies (Matthew 26: 14-16)

We must take Jesus' warning very seriously. Our closeness to God, our character, and our eternal life are at stake.

Don't let your love get cold!