“a man of sorrows and acquainted with grief . . .” (Isaiah 53:3)
“God, Your God, has
anointed You With the oil of gladness more than Your companions.” (Psalm 45:7)
The Gospels do not
record that Jesus laughed. We may assume that he did, but it would be just an
assumption. The fact is that God did not inspire the Gospel writers to record
moments of laughter or glee on the part of Jesus. Other emotions are recorded. Jesus
“marvelled” (or “was amazed”) at the faith of a Roman centurion (Mark 8:10) and
at the unbelief of his countrymen in Nazareth (Mark 6:6). Jesus was angry and
grieved at the Pharisees’ hardness of heart toward a crippled man (Mark 3:5).
Jesus wept with grief over the unbelief in Jerusalem (Luke 19:41) and with
compassion at the tomb of his friend Lazarus (John 11:35).
A couple of things
come to mind as I ponder the absence of laughter in the Gospel accounts of
Jesus's life.
First, the Gospels
were not intended to be full biographies of Jesus. John wrote that if all that
Jesus said and did were recorded, “I expect that even the world itself would
not contain the books that would be written.” (John 21:25) The Gospels have a redemptive
purpose. Events and discourses were selected under the inspiration of the Holy
Spirit to accomplish that purpose. And that purpose left no room for mirth. It
was serious business. That’s why Isaiah prophesied that Jesus would be “a man
of sorrows and acquainted with grief.”
The second thing I
notice is the important distinction between joy and laughter or mirth. Jesus
had joy, as the psalmist said, even in the midst of sorrow and grief. Some
Christians confuse these things. They think that if one doesn’t display and
“happy” countenance, one lacks joy. That may be an unwarranted judgment. One
may have a heavy heart for any number of reasons, including grief on behalf of
another, and still have the joy of the Lord abiding in the heart. In fact, the
person who can “weep with those who weep” (Romans 12:15) is close to the heart
of Jesus.
Solomon noted that “a
merry heart does good like medicine” (Proverbs 17:22); “But,” he warns, “the
heart of fools is in the house of mirth.” For many people, laughter is drug to
ease the pain of their empty life. “Even in laughter the heart may sorrow, And
the end of mirth may be grief.” (Proverbs 14:13) The “house of mirth” is an
attempt to escape reality, which is a vain pursuit. Reality awaits just outside
the door of the comedy club!
I have friends who are
going through severe trials. And though they may not always display a cheerful
countenance, I know they have the joy of the Lord in their hearts. For them,
Jesus has encouragement:
"Blessed are you
when they revile and persecute you, and say all kinds of evil against you
falsely for My sake. Rejoice and be exceedingly glad, for great is your reward
in heaven, for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you.” (Matthew 5:11-12)
