It was Willie who started first, I swear.
We sat in the second or third row from the front. The reverend was preaching earnestly. But Willie and I were trying our best not to laugh out loud. What for, I can’t remember. Maybe it was someone in the row in front of us who fell asleep.
We knew full well you weren’t allowed to laugh in church. It is sacred territory. But if you’re full of laughter, and you know you may not laugh, and you see your friend’s shoulders shaking as he shuts his mouth with one hand, then it’s hilarious. And if he utters a muffled snoring sound, you just have to contain yourself or else the dam wall that is retaining the laughter signals on the way to the laughing muscles, is going to disintegrate, with the result that the flood of accumulated laughter impulses will sweep you to an unstoppable guffaw. And so, for I don’t know how long, we sniggered on the pew.
And when the service came to its end and we walked towards the exit, suddenly a firm hand appeared from the side, gripping my upper arm.
“Why are you laughing in church?”, hissed an old gray lady with angry eyes.
“I laughed? No, I didn’t laugh!” I lied. In the church, to make it worse.
“Watch it!” And she let me go…
I’m not sure if the reverend saw us. But I’m sure God did. He doesn’t miss anything. And I believed Willie and I were in big trouble. You don’t play with Him. You might still get away with Jesus. He had more understanding of what it was like to be human. But God the Father was like the school principal: strict, stern, and stiff, with no time for funniness.
Much laughter leads to weeping, I have heard so many times from older people and teachers. Subconsciously, I assumed this “truth” probably came from the Bible as well.
The view that God is harsh and angry comes from my childhood. I don’t think it was ever taught explicitly, but it was more like an underlying mental picture woven into our culture.
After all, the first man messed up everything in the Garden of Eden and since then man has disappointed God, time after time. God had reason to wipe out all mankind with one sweep. They killed His Son. Satan has deceived people by and large, and virtually the whole world is godless and wicked. The vast majority are on their way to hell.
Yes, God has reason to be angry and frustrated.
This was my thinking, for many years.
From my mid-twenties, God gradually lifted the veil for me and I could see that there was a side of God that I did not know.
In 1 Timothy 1:11 we read in most English translations,
…. according to the glorious gospel/glad tidings/good news of the blessed God….
The Greek word that is translated “blessed” is makarios.
Vine’s Expository Dictionary describes it as “blessedness… an ascription of blessing rather than a state.” It is related to makarizo… “to pronounce happy…”
The same Greek word occurs in what is known as the Beatitudes in Matthew 5 and Luke 6 where it translates as “happy”, for example, “Happy are you who are poor…”.
In Acts 26:2 Paul says,
I think myself happy, King Agrippa… [same Greek word]
In 1 Corinthians 7:40:
But she is happier if she remains as she is… [same Greek word}
The only English translations I know of that correctly translate the passage with “the happy God” are the Concordant Version and the Rotherham’s Emphasized Bible.
Why do the translators hesitate to describe God as a happy God? I can only surmise this is because the concept of a happy God goes against their preconceived perception of Him.
God is a happy God. Why wouldn’t he be like that? Everything happens exactly according to His will. He is in total control of everything.
… who works all things according to the counsel of His will…. (Ephesians 1:11)
Declaring the end from the beginning, and from ancient times things that are not yet done, saying, ‘My counsel shall stand, and I will do all My pleasure…’ (Isaiah 46:10).
Yes, but what about the verse in Genesis 6 which says God was sorry for making man? – you might ask.
For us to understand more about God, God will sometimes reveal Himself in human terms. God, who is invisible Spirit, will have Himself described as if He had hands and feet. This is a type of figure of speech known as condescension. So, in human terms, from man’s perspective, God seems sorry that He created human beings. But the fact is, it is not so (cf. Hebrews 2:5-8).
If the verse in Genesis 6 is to be taken literally, it would mean that God was mistaken. Man would then have turned out much worse than He foresaw. It cannot be, because God is GOD and He can see everything ahead because He is the Author and in total control of what is happening.
What about the wrath of God, which we read about in the Bible, for example in Revelation? How can God be happy when He is angry? – you might wonder.
God’s wrath arises from His love for man. It is His indignation over sin and the pain it brings. In any case, it is only temporary and it does not make Him an unhappy God, because even that is part of His own counsel. See the article on the Wrath of God on this website.
Joy is one of the attributes of the Spirit of God (Galatians 5:22). Jesus is the embodiment and visible expression of God’s character (Colossians 1:15; Hebrews 1:3), and although He knew sorrow, He was a cheerful man who mixed easily with sinners (Mark 2:15-16; Luke 7:34).
When He told his disciples, “These things I have spoken to you, that My joy may remain in you, and that your joy may be full” (John 15:11), they did not question Him or gave Him a puzzled look.
If everything that exists comes from God (Romans 11:36; 1 Corinthians 8:6), then this includes the enjoyment of good things, humor and laughter.
… God, who gives us richly all things to enjoy (1 Timothy 6:17).
To everything there is a season… a time to weep and a time to laugh (Ecclesiastes 3:1, 4).
In God’s presence, there is no morbidity or despondency — rather excitement and praise. David, the man after God’s own heart, wrote about what it is like to be in God’s presence:
In Your presence is fullness of joy; at Your right hand are pleasures forevermore (Ps 16:11).
If God is happy, we can be happy too.
Knowing He manages everything and has it under control; that He is steering everything toward a perfect magnificent world without end, should fill us with joy and praise. The words of Nehemiah to Israel speak also to us:
Do not sorrow, for the joy of the Lord is your strength (Nehemiah 8:10).
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