Waxing Cold/Insensitivity

Waxing Cold

God has made us in a wonderful and special way. He has given us eyes to see and enjoy all the colors of the rainbow from the deep blue sky above, to the sunburst yellow of the dandelion and deep scarlet of the rose below.

He has given us ears to hear the sounds of the gentle wind as it brushes across the leaves of the maple tree, and the sudden and earth-shaking noise of His thunder from heaven above.

He has given us the sense of smell that we may enjoy the fragrance that is given so freely from the lilies of the valley to the pines of the great mountains and cedars of Lebanon.

He has given us a mind so that we may experience the lifelong adventure of discovering, learning, comprehending, getting to know all about God, who He is, and what He has done for us.

God indeed has created us in a wonderful and marvelous way, and of all the special abilities that the Lord has given us, the most valuable, the most precious, the most important is the ability to love = charity.

Love is the root of the purpose for our being:

• To love God
• To love one another

(1 Corinthians 13:13), “And now abide faith, hope, love, these three; but the greatest of these is love.”

The Lord Jesus warned that there will be a horrible time that will come when the ability to love will be very difficult, and that time has come.

(Matthew 24:3-12), “Now as He sat on the Mount of Olives, the disciples came to Him privately, saying, “Tell us, when will these things be? And what will be the sign of Your coming, and of the end of the age? And Jesus answered and said to them: “Take heed that no one deceives you For many will come in My name, saying, ‘I am the Christ,’ and will deceive many And you will hear of wars and rumors of wars… And because lawlessness will abound, the love of many will grow cold.”

Things That Cause Loss of Sensitivity and Loss of Love to the Needs of Others

In (Luke 10), we have in the account of the Good Samaritan.

(Luke 10:25-37), “And behold, a certain lawyer stood up and tested Him, saying, “Teacher, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?” He said to him, “What is written in the law? What is your reading of it?” So he answered and said, “‘You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your strength, and with all your mind,’ and ‘your neighbor as yourself.’ ” And He said to him, “You have answered rightly; do this and you will live.” But he, wanting to justify himself, said to Jesus, “And who is my neighbor?” Then Jesus answered and said: “A certain man went down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and fell among thieves, who stripped him of his clothing, wounded him, and departed, leaving him half dead. Now by chance a certain priest came down that road. And when he saw him, he passed by on the other side. Likewise a Levite, when he arrived at the place, came and looked, and passed by on the other side. But a certain Samaritan, as he journeyed, came where he was. And when he saw him, he had compassion. So he went to him and bandaged his wounds, pouring on oil and wine; and he set him on his own animal, brought him to an inn, and took care of him. On the next day, when he departed, he took out two denarii, gave them to the innkeeper, and said to him, ‘Take care of him; and whatever more you spend, when I come again, I will repay you.’ So which of these three do you think was neighbor to him who fell among the thieves?” And he said, “He who showed mercy on him.” Then Jesus said to him, “Go and do likewise.”

Some guesses as to why the Pharisee was “cold” to the need of the injured man:

• Inconvenience

Have you ever found yourself confronted with a situation where you sensed that a particular person right in front of you, or one you had knowledge of needed care?  But you convinced yourself to not be of help by saying;

“Don’t have time”

“Can’t be bothered”

“I pay my taxes, let them go to the government for assistance”

There is no doubt that anytime we exercise warmth, love, care and concern to other’s needs, it is going to bring us out of our “comfort zone”. But that is what makes your care for others so special.

• Concerned more about things of less value

Priests and Levites were busy people. They had many responsibilities caring for the work of the temple and its sacrifices. But the Lord makes it clear in this account that there was nothing more important at that moment than to care for that wounded man.

(Psalm 142:4), “I looked on my right hand, and beheld, but there was no man that would know me: refuge failed me; no man cared for my soul.”

Please remember that there are so many people that feel this way. We care about so many things that have so little value. Wouldn’t it be best to value the needs of others far above such minor things of life in light of eternity?

• Vengeance

(Luke 10:30), “…went down from Jerusalem to Jericho.”  Historically, Jerusalem and Jericho were not the best of neighbors – often, they were at odds with each other.  There is a possibility of the priest and Levite desiring vengeance.

Please remember, when Jesus was on the cross, He did not cry out for vengeance, but rather for forgiveness to those who crucified Him.

(Luke 23:34), “Then Jesus said, “Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they do….”

• There is also no pay back, “If I help this person, what is in it for me?” The man had already;

Fell among thieves

Was stripped of his raiment

It is obvious that all the man’s possessions were stolen.

• Lack of receiving charity from others

It hardens you if you are not careful. We think “No one has helped me, so why should I help others?”

Remember the widow and her two mites?

(Luke 21:1-4). “And He looked up and saw the rich putting their gifts into the treasury, and He saw also a certain poor widow putting in two mites. So He said, “Truly I say to you that this poor widow has put in more than all; for all these out of their abundance have put in offerings for God, but she out of her poverty put in all the livelihood that she had.”

This woman was no recipient of great charity, yet she still gave charitably. As a result, her story will be remembered forever in God’s eternal Book.

How to Overcome Loss of Sensitivity to the Needs of Others

• Start off the day in your quiet prayer time with the Lord, asking Him to direct your path and thoughts throughout the day.

(Proverbs 3:5), “Trust in the Lord with all your heart, And lean not on your own understanding; In all your ways acknowledge Him, And He shall direct your paths.”

 Ask and trust Him to allow only that with which He wants you to encounter.  By doing this, when a need of another arises unexpectantly, you will not see it as an “inconvenience”, but rather part of God’s divine plan for you to be a blessing to others.

• Have compassion for those in need

(Luke 10:33), “But a certain Samaritan, as he journeyed, came where he was. And when he saw him, he had compassion.”

Why should we? Because God had and has compassion on us.

• Go out of your way to care and love

(Luke 10:34), “So he went to him and bandaged his wounds, pouring on oil and wine; and he set him on his own animal, brought him to an inn, and took care of him.”

• Be generous

(Luke 10:35), “On the next day, when he departed, he took out two denarii, gave them to the innkeeper, and said to him, ‘Take care of him; and whatever more you spend, when I come again, I will repay you.”

The Blessings of Keeping Our Hearts Warm Towards the Needs of Others

• Promotes happiness in our lives

(Proverbs 14:21), “He who despises his neighbor sins; But he who has mercy on the poor, happy is he.”

• God promises we will not lack

(Proverbs 28:27), “He who gives to the poor will not lack, But he who hides his eyes will have many curses.”

In the last days, the love of many will WAX COLD.

Keep your hearts warm with charity amongst yourselves.