DAILY BREAD OF LIFE…..
THURSDAY 12TH NOV., 2020

WORD FOCUS: LOVE IS NOT PROVOKED
TEXT: 1Corinthians 13:5 “Doth not behave itself unseemly, seeketh not her own, is not easily provoked, thinketh no evil;…”

The word provoked signifies irritate, annoy, incite ,vex and so on. The Bible does not forbid anger and does not view anger as inherently evil. God Himself manifests wrath, and Jesus openly expressed His indignation when He cleansed the temple: (John 2:13-17).
Paul exhorted the Ephesians: “Be angry, and do not sin’: do not let the sun go down on your wrath, nor give place to the devil” (4:26-27).Therefore, holy anger can be appropriate at times.
However, it is a dangerous demotion that can explode into uncontrolled rage or simmer into a festering bitterness. God, in His love, is described as being slow to anger. He is not always on the edge of an uncontrolled rage. The love that is not provoked is a love that triumphs over an angry disposition. There are people who always seem to be angry about something and even over everything and who wear their anger on their sleeves as a distorted badge of honor, but love is not like this. Love is not hotheaded. Its’ anger is not unsuitable.
A very famous prolific writer noted four ways in which anger can be undue or unsuitable: in its nature, its occasion, its ends, and its measure.
First, the nature of anger may involve the opposition of a person’s spirit to evil. But not all opposition to evil is necessarily anger. A person may have a calm and reasoned judgment that something is wrong and may oppose it without flying into a rage. Anger is undue when it contains ill will or a desire for vengeance.
Second, anger may be unchristian with respect to its occasion, as when anger is expressed without any just cause. Psychologists speak of situational anger, whereby a situation over which we have no control, such as rain ruining our picnic, provokes anger. The frustration that is provoked by the disappointment may cause people to be irritable with each other as anger seeks some object on which to vent.
The story of Jonah reveals unsuitable anger: (John 4:1-10)
Jonah’s anger was misplaced. He was angry about the wrong things. Infact, he was angry with God without just cause. Rather than being irate, he should have been praising God for His mercy toward Nineveh. Another occasion in which anger may be wrong is when people become upset over trivial matters. Here we violate the love that is to cover a multitude of sins (1 Peter 4:8). Our “peeves”- annoyance need not be domesticated to the point that we cherish them as pets.
Third way of identifying how anger can be evil is with respect to its ends. Sinful anger is anger that has no godly purpose. It is a rash anger that seeks the mere gratification of our own pride.
Finally, anger that is not balanced to its cause. The anger is at a higher level or degree than its cause, or it may be undue in its duration. Paul had this in mind when he warned us not to let the sun go down on our wrath (Eph. 4:26). When the sun sets on our wrath, the wrath will likely persist and become bitterness or a grudge. Read up these Scripture; God wants us to love peace (Zech 8:19,one another Jn 13:34-35,our enemies Mt 5:44 and mercy Mic 6:8).

MEDITATION: Prov 16:32, Ps 103:8

STUDY THE BIBLE IN ONE YEAR:
JAS 1; JER 21&22; PS 129

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