Thursday, March 12, 2015
Laughter
Bible Questions Answered:
“I heard them say that Jesus never
laughed. And I don't see where his disciples ever laughed. Is this
correct?...”
Randy/ Nagoya, Japan (Aichi Prefecture)
Bible Answer:
Bible Texts:
Does God Laugh?
Job 5:19-22 NLT
19 From six disasters He will rescue
you; even in the seventh, He will keep you from evil.
20 He will save you from death in
time of famine, from the power of the sword in time of war.
21 You will be safe from slander and
have no fear when destruction comes.
22 You will laugh at
destruction and famine; wild animals will not terrify you.
Psalm 2:1-4 NLT
1 Why are the nations so angry? Why
do they waste their time with futile plans?
2 The kings of the earth prepare for
battle; the rulers plot together against The Lord and against
His Anointed One.
3 “Let us break their chains,”
they cry, “and free ourselves from slavery to God.”
4 But the one who rules in heaven
laughs. The Lord scoffs at them.
Psalm 37:12,13 NLT
12 The wicked plot against the
godly; they snarl at them in defiance.
13 But The Lord just laughs,
for He sees their day of judgment coming.
Psalm 52:1-7 NLT
1 Why do you boast about your
crimes, great warrior? Don’t you realize God’s justice continues
forever?
2 All day long you plot destruction.
Your tongue cuts like a sharp razor; you’re an expert at telling
lies.
3 You love evil more than good and
lies more than Truth. Interlude
4 You love to destroy others with
your words, you liar!
5 But God will strike you down once
and for all. He will pull you from your home and uproot you from the
land of the living. Interlude
6 The righteous will see it and be
amazed. They will laugh and say,
7 “Look what happens to mighty
warriors who do not trust in God.
Psalm 59:1-10 NLT
1 Rescue me from my enemies, O God.
Protect me from those who have come to destroy me.
2 Rescue me from these criminals;
save me from these murderers.
3 They have set an ambush for me.
Fierce enemies are out there waiting, Lord, though I have not sinned
or offended them.
4 I have done nothing wrong, yet
they prepare to attack me. Wake up! See what is happening and help
me!
5 O Lord God Of Heaven’s Armies,
The God Of Israel, wake up and punish those hostile nations. Show no
mercy to wicked traitors. Interlude
6 They come out at night, snarling
like vicious dogs as they prowl the streets.
7 Listen to the filth that comes
from their mouths; their words cut like swords. “After all, who can
hear us?” they sneer.
8 But Lord, you laugh at
them. You scoff at all the hostile nations.
9 You are my Strength; I wait for
you to rescue me, for you, O God, are my Fortress.
10 In His unfailing love, my God
will stand with me. He will let me look down in triumph on all my
enemies.
Proverbs 1:24-27 NLT
24 “I called you so often, but you
wouldn’t come. I reached out to you, but you paid no attention.
25 You ignored My advice and
rejected the correction I offered.
26 So I will laugh when you
are in trouble! I will mock you when disaster overtakes you—
27 when calamity overtakes you like
a storm, when disaster engulfs you like a cyclone, and anguish and
distress overwhelm you.
Luke 6:21 KJV (God's
people.)
Blessed are ye that hunger now: for
ye shall be filled. Blessed are ye that weep now: for ye shall laugh.
Yes, there is no
record of our Lord, laughing, nor His disciples, and this is not hard
to understand, when one realizes the gravity of their their calling
and work.
Yes Solomon
wrote....
Ecclesiastes 3:1,4 KJV
1 To every thing there is a season,
and a time to every purpose under the heaven:
4 A time to weep, and a time to
laugh; a time to mourn, and a time to dance;
but he also
wrote.....
Ecclesiastes
7:2-4 NLT
2 Better to spend your time at
funerals than at parties. After all, everyone dies— so the living
should take this to heart.
3 Sorrow is better than laughter,
for sadness has a refining influence on us.
4 A wise person thinks a lot about
death, while a fool thinks only about having a good time.
What does The Word
tell us?:
I Thessalonians
5:6,8 KJV
6 Therefore let us not sleep, as do
others; but let us watch and be sober*.
8 But let us, who are of the day, be
sober, putting on the breastplate of faith and love; and for an
helmet, the hope of salvation.
*Sober-Greek:-Nepho
(Nay-fo): Keep sober, i.e. be discreet: be sober, watch.
Titus 2:4,6 KJV
4 That they may teach the young
women to be sober, to love their husbands, to love their
children,
6 Young men likewise exhort to be
sober minded.
I Peter 1:13 KJV
Wherefore gird up the loins of your
mind, be sober, and hope to the end for the grace that is to
be brought unto you at the revelation of Jesus Christ;
1 Peter 5:8 KJV
Be sober, be vigilant;
because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about,
seeking whom he may devour:
I Peter 5:8 NLT
Stay alert! Watch out for
your great enemy, the devil. He prowls around like a roaring lion,
looking for someone to devour.
We live in very
dangerous “spiritual,” time. Is laughing a sin, of course not,
but as Christians we should be consecrating our time on serious
concerns, as did our Lord.
Rather worrying
about laughter, let us do what Jesus told us to do!
Matthew 5:12 KJV
Rejoice, and be exceeding
glad: for great is your reward in heaven..."
Luke 10:20 KJV
"...rejoice, because
your names are written in heaven.
Luke 19:37 KJV
And when He was come nigh, even now
at the descent of the mount of Olives, the whole multitude of the
disciples began to rejoice and praise God with a loud voice
for all the mighty works that they had seen;
John 14:28 KJV
Ye have heard how I said unto you, I
go away, and come again unto you. If ye loved Me, ye would rejoice,
because I said, I go unto The Father..."
John 16:22 KJV
And ye now therefore have sorrow:
but I will see you again, and your heart shall rejoice, and
your joy no man taketh from you.