1 Corinthians 13:5c Love is not easily provoked

That doesn’t say love cannot be provoked, just that it isn’t easy. We are talking agape love being provoked. If we are going to compare apples to apples then we must not include those things which provoke us in the natural. Who we are in the natural is not God, nor God’s perfect love. When I lose it, it is not God who loses it and is not an agape love response. So let us be clear on what provokes agape love aside from what provokes us in the flesh, because we still have flesh.

The way I see it is that the abiding love of God in us is only provoked by our rebellion, not by anything that is happening to us externally. Would He prefer that we turn the other cheek? Yes. If we don’t He understands and goes to work correcting what needs to be corrected to elicit a better response.

There needs to be a serious self-examination of those things that easily provoke us. As my example, I am more aware of drivers around me and give place for people to cut me off in traffic because I know they will. They no longer provoke me because I know that road rage is a personal issue that only I can manage.

Are the things that provoke you within your control? Probably not since I have witnessed so many ugly responses on social media. It is so easy to be ugly there because it’s a computer screen you face and not a person. How much of that attitude gives place to bad actions in the real world? It makes it easier to be provoked in the real world if you cannot keep your emotions in check privately.