One of the questions the disciples asked Jesus in Matthew 24 was, "...what will be the sign of Your coming, and of the end of the age?" Jesus said several things throughout the chapter, but what He said in verse 12 has always stayed with me, and that was...
"And because lawlessness will abound the love of many will grow cold."
Every time I think of this statement, I remember the story of Ruth in the Old Testament. In this book we have the story of a young Moabite woman named Ruth who lived in a day much like we live in today. A day where there was not much respect for authority and everyone did what was right in their own eyes. It was in this type of setting that the life of Ruth teaches us the power of commitment.
She does this by her faithfulness to her mother-in-law, Naomi. Ruth is faithful to minister to Naomi even though it wasn't required of her and in fact, Naomi even tried to get Ruth to leave her and go back to her homeland. Because of her refusal to quit and her determination to be faithful, she attracts the attention of the rich land ruler, eventually becomes his wife, and gives birth to a son and becomes a part of the lineage of Jesus Christ. This is a true picture of what I call "covenant loyalty".
Whenever you are being tempted to let your love grow cold because of the evil around you, think about Ruth and let the story of her hard work and faithfulness re-inspire you.
I know your future rewards will be great also!
Meditation Scripture: Matthew 24:12; Ruth 1 & 2