Does God have a sense of humor?

“God sure does have a sense of humor!”

Have you ever said this?  I know I have and I’ve heard it a lot more than I’ve said it, so I wanted to see if it’s true or not.  I know what you are thinking; what an odd topic and who cares.  Please hang in there and let’s see if it matters.

I recently heard someone say this and it really had me thinking about whether God does have a sense of humor or not so I began a search to see what I could find.  I searched under the attributes of God from Wayne Grudem’s Systematic Theology.   I scoured the incommunicable and communicable attributes of God but couldn’t find anything resembling a sense of humor.

I decided to dig into the scriptures to see what God’s word has to say.  God talks a lot about laughter so this might be a good sign that God has a sense of humor.  So what does God find funny or what does He laugh about?

Psalm 59:8 But You, O LORD, shall laugh at them; You shall have all the nations in derision.

Proverbs 1:26 I also will laugh at your calamity; I will mock when your terror comes…

This doesn’t sound like God is enjoying a good chuckle with the rest of the God Head, far from being comical God the Father seems to be pretty serious about this.  Maybe God the Son is a little more lighthearted.

John 11:33-35 Therefore, when Jesus saw her weeping, and the Jews who came with her weeping, He groaned in the spirit and was troubled.  And He said “Where have you laid him?”  They said to Him, “Lord, come and see.”  Jesus wept.

Isaiah 53:3 He is despised and rejected by men, a Man of sorrows and acquainted with grief, and we hid, as it were, our faces from Him:  He was despised, and we did not esteem Him.

Nope, the Son seems pretty serious, how about Solomon he was very wise, certainly he enjoyed a good laugh now and then.

Proverbs 14:13 Even in laughter the heart may sorrow, And the end of mirth may be grief.

Ecclesiastes 2:2 I said of laughter—“Madness!”; and of mirth, “What does it accomplish?”

Ecclesiastes 7:3 Sorrow is better than laughter, For by a sad countenance the heart is made better.

Ecclesiastes 7:6 For like the crackling of thorns under a pot, so is the laughter of the fool. This also is vanity.

This is just a small portion of what I found and I don’t find a strong biblical example of God having a sense of humor.  The best thought I had is since man is created in God’s image and we have a sense of humor God must also and what I think people are really trying to say is that God had a different plan for my life and they really find that funny when they realize those plans were different from their own.

Proverbs 16:9 A man’s heart plans his way, but the LORD directs his steps.

Proverbs 21:1 A king’s heart is like streams of water in the LORD’s hand: He directs it wherever He chooses. 

Proverbs 3:6 in all your ways acknowledge Him, and He shall direct your paths.

In my flesh I really love the idea of a funny god, a god that I can hang with and laugh and joke and have a good time.  We are buddies, we are pals.  This god dismisses my sin and says “it’s okay Kev, you’ll do better next time” He’s like my grandpa, he loves me no matter how I behave because at the end of the day I always go home to my parents.  He doesn’t have the day to day responsibilities.

In stark contrast to this god is the God of the bible.  He’s serious about correcting the ones He loves (Proverbs 3:12), He cares about holiness (1 Peter 1:16), and He desires a broken and contrite heart (Psalm 51) from those that claim they are His.  He hates sin so much that it pleased Him to crush His Son (Isaiah 53:10).  This God goes to extremes to rescue the lost (Philippians 2:7-8), he is not my buddy, and he is not my pal, He is my Lord and my God (John 20:28).

When I was saved I began a relationship with the God that showed me my sin.  He challenged me to understand that my sin and your sin put His Son on the cross.  Yes I must come to an understanding of that but I must also keep in mind that it was His plan, and the Son went willingly (John 10:18).  I cannot fully grasp the glory of a God that paid such a price and I’m a beneficiary of that grace, for His glory.  Not for my benefit although I benefit but so He can receive honor and praise by His people (Ephesians 2:10).

James 4:9-10 Lament and mourn and weep! Let your laughter be turned to mourning and your joy to gloom.  Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord, and He will lift you up.

If you are a believer remember when you lamented and mourned over your sin.  Remember that God hates your sin so much He killed His Son to pay for it.  If you are a un-believer you are separated from God and the wrath He poured out on His Son will one day be poured out on you, so repent and turn from that sin and be saved (Acts 2:37-39, Acts 8:21-23).

Proverbs 9:6 Forsake foolishness and live, and go in the way of understanding.

It’s no laughing matter.

Kevin