Mathew 24:12 KJV
‘And because iniquity shall abound, the love of many shall wax cold.’
DAILY READING – Acts 18; Judges 9; Job 38
During World War II, a small group of men were captured by the Soviets. They were sent to a forced labor camp, called Gulag, deep in the cold, snowy wilderness of Siberia. Here, the wilderness kills, not because of dangerous animals in the forest — but because of the deep cold and endless snow, mountains, forests, and barren wastelands. The prison authorities didn’t bother putting much walls around the prison, because they were so sure no prisoner could survive the cold, if they escaped.
Notwithstanding, this group of convicts decided to dare an escape. They did the incredible by not only escaping, but also surviving the cold. Walking on foot for over 4000 miles through the killing cold of Siberia, they would eventually cross through five countries. Their survival, despite the insurmountable cold, was possible because they took along with them one very essential element; fire. They had with them a flint and knife with which they could make fire and keep warm. They also survived because they walked briskly generating heat that kept their bodies warm. After a gruesome journey, they eventually escaped from the hostile soviet territory, into safety. Their incredible survival story is recorded in the book, “The Way Back”, which was later made into a movie.
As a physically cold environment kills, so also a spiritually cold environment kills.
Medically we are told that a healthy, safe body temperature has a very narrow window – between 37°C and 37.8°C. And the body must maintain this temperature so as to remain healthy. If the body temperature goes lower by just 3 degrees, to 35°C, a person might experience hypothermia, which can cause cardiac arrest, stroke, or even death.
In the same way you must maintain your spiritual heat so as to stay spiritually alive. If you lose your fire, spiritual coldness will set in. This will lead to gradually losing interest in the things of God, as sin and iniquity takes over.
To be spiritually cold or lukewarm is dangerous. In Revelations 3:15-16 Jesus says ‘So then because thou art lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will spue thee out of my mouth.’
We must be full of fire and fervency to please God in our service. And to maintain this fire, we must stay close to the Word. Proverbs 26:20 says ‘Where no wood is, there the fire goes out.’ Don’t stay days without praying or studying the bible, so that your fire does not go out. Just as germs grow in a cold environment so also sin quickly flourishes in a spiritually cold environment. Sin leads to a cooling of one’s love for Jesus, as love for the world takes over the heart. Mathew 24:12 says ‘And because iniquity shall abound, the love of many shall wax cold.’ Let us keep our love for Jesus and zeal for His house burning in us. This is the way to escape the spiritual coldness sweeping through the world.
Leviticus 6:13 says ‘the fire shall ever be burning upon the altar it shall never go out.’ Let us keep our fire burning, by maintaining a fervent prayer life. And let us keep stoking this fire with wood, by laying up scriptures in our hearts. This way, we remain always hot, escaping the cold hands of spiritual lukewarmness.
PRAYER: Father help me to keep my fire burning, please help me to walk in purity and simplicity, help me to stand strong despite the spiritual coldness and fierce winds of oppositions in the world. I thank you for the grace to stay strong in Jesus Name.
QUOTE
God will never allow the flames of trial to burn you more than is necessary. – WORDBITE 222.
[ADAPTED FROM THE BOOK FAITH CLASSICS]