In the Olivet Prophecy, Jesus Christ warns that because lawlessness will abound, the love of many will grow cold, yet He assures that he who endures to the end shall be saved. This love, known as agape, is a dutiful, submissive, obedient love that is first manifested toward God through obedience to His law, and toward others through sacrifice. When lawlessness increases, this agape love diminishes, as it is rooted in a relationship with God that wanes through compromise or the setting aside of His standard of righteousness and holiness. This cooling of agape is linked to the rise of false prophets who deceive many, leading to a separation from God through disobedience. Even when agape love is present, it is often shown imperfectly by God's children, as all fall short of His glory. This imperfection does not mean agape is absent, but that it is not complete in us as it is in Him. Different individuals express and recognize sacrificial love in varied ways, and failing to see these diverse facets may lead to the mistaken belief that love is growing cold. In times when agape seems to wane, Christ calls for patient, active endurance, urging us to suffer long, bear all things, and think no evil, responding with godly love rather than carnality. Whether agape is truly cooling or simply not recognized due to our limited perspective, the responsibility remains to work on perfecting this love in our lives through submission to God and sacrifice for others. Even when loved imperfectly, we are to demonstrate patient endurance, reflecting His love as we strive toward perfection.

In the spiritual journey of God's people, there is a grave warning about allowing love to grow cold. As seen in the warnings to the churches in Revelation, particularly to Ephesus, Christ cautions against forsaking the first love, that intimate, loving relationship with Him. This neglect, a gradual withdrawal, mirrors the spiritual decline where love waxes cold due to lawlessness and neglect of God's commandments. Christ warns that if this is not repented of, He will remove the lampstand, signifying a loss of spiritual light and connection. This could lead to spiritual blindness, and ultimately, separation from Christ, as He declares He will spew out those who do not restore their relationship with Him. In Matthew 24, Jesus speaks of the end of the age, warning that many will be led into sin, causing the love of many to wax cold due to lawlessness. This serves as a solemn reminder to keep God's laws written in our hearts and minds, lest we fall into the same trap of spiritual decline. The danger is real, as history shows with instances where God's people, becoming powerful and wealthy, allowed their love to grow cold, leading to division and loss of identity. Christ stands at the door and knocks, urging a return to that intimate relationship through obedience to His commandments. Spiritually, as God's people today, we must guard against this gradual withdrawal from intimacy with Him. Hosea 4:6 reveals that God's people are destroyed for a lack of knowledge, having rejected intimacy with Him. Because of this, He warns of rejection from being priests in His Kingdom due to forgetting His law. We must never allow our love to wax cold, maintaining a fervent, loving relationship with each other and with our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ and our Heavenly Father through constant repentance and adherence to His commandments.

God's love is the true essence of what the world desperately needs, a love that brings peace, harmony, joy, happiness, fulfillment, purpose, and brotherly unity to all mankind. This love, defined as agape, reflects God's willful direction toward humanity, involving His desire to do what is best for us, even when it differs from our own desires. As John 3:16 reveals, God so loved the world that He gave His Son as a sacrifice, not to fulfill human wants, but to meet our deepest needs, offering justification through repentance and access to His Father. God's love is characterized by benevolence, a disposition to do good, marked by kindness, sympathy, and generosity in individual dealings, while His overarching plan is philanthropic on the grandest scale, aiming to elevate mankind to participate in the Kingdom of God. This love originates from God Himself, reflecting His Spirit in us, and as we exhibit it, we take on the nature of our Father. Those who reflect God's love show they are born of Him, while those who do not, regardless of their knowledge, fail to truly know Him. The proof of God's love is evident in the world He has provided, where rain falls on the just and unjust alike, in His patience toward us, and most profoundly, in sending His Son as a sacrifice to reconcile us to Him. Even when we were ignorant of His ways and opposed to Him, He loved us and sought our ultimate good. As I John 3:16 states, we perceive God's love because He laid down His life for us, and in like manner, we are called to lay down our lives for others, perfecting His love in us through active application in our relationships. This love is not our own but God's love within us, and as the Father and Son love, so must we strive to love our fellow man. John emphasizes that we love Him because He first loved us, underscoring that true love is reflected in our way of living. If we harbor hatred or resentment, we lack God's love, but if we actively love others, even forgiving as He forgave us, we emulate His nature and grow toward perfection. Perfect love casts out fear, granting us boldness to stand before Him, as we become like Him in this world. Jesus Christ taught that the greatest commandment is to love the Lord with all our heart, soul, mind, and strength, submitting every faculty to His will and devoting ourselves to glorify Him. The first four commandments demonstrate this direct love for God, ensuring no idols or other gods stand before Him, honoring His name in all aspects of life, and keeping the Sabbath as holy time to refresh spiritually and honor Him. The second great commandment, to love our neighbor as ourselves, extends this love to all around us—family, friends, countrymen, and even enemies—by seeking their good, denying ourselves if needed, and refraining from harm, even when their actions do not warrant kindness. Attaining God's nature and love requires keeping His commandments, not as a burden, but as essential boundaries that train us to become like Him. True love produces a desire to live God's way, and obedience to His Word perfects this love, establishing an intimate relationship with Him and His Son. If true love exists in the heart, it will be reflected in our actions, showing that we belong to Him and uniting all aspects of His calling in us. Above all, we are to put on godly love, forgiving others as He forgave us, cementing the understanding of His laws and opening His mind for us to emulate.