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Opening Scripture

Why Does God Laugh? Another Musing on Psalm 2

The early church evidently got the joke discussed in the previous post. The rebellious peoples of this earth and their leaders conspire against God and His anointed –and in their free conspiracy they accomplish the Lord’s purposes. That is the joke in general. There is a more specific element as well. The kings set themselves, and the rulers take counsel together not only against the Lord, but also against His anointed. As the early church confessed, “For of a truth against thy holy child Jesus, whom thou hast anointed, both Herod, and Pontius Pilate, with the Gentiles, and the people of Israel, were gathered together for to do whatsoever thy hand and thy counsel determined before to be done.” (Acts 4:27,28). This tells us not only that Psalm 2 is Messianic and that Jesus is the ultimate anointed one, but also that in the specific, dramatic opposition to the Lord’s anointed a specific purpose was accomplished. What is true in overarching general terms, is of course also true when it comes to specifics. The rulers reject Christ as the king (John 19:15). Thinking to do away with Him, they crucify Him (John 11:46-53). But what do they actually accomplish with this? It is from the cross that Christ ascends to the throne, that is to say, it is in view of His obedience even unto death that He is highly exalted (Philippians 2:5-11). Little did they know that when they gave Him a crown of thorns it was in fulfillment of God’s plans to give Him the throne of the universe. If the princes of this world had known the wisdom of God they would not have crucified the Lord of glory (1 Corinthians 2:8). But in the cross and its consequences it was manifested that the ‘foolishness’ and ‘weakness’ of God are wiser and stronger than the wisdom and power of men. Some have applied 1 Corinthians 2:8 to elemental spirits, to minions of the devil. But that gives us the same result, as far as God’s laughter is concerned: because it was in the cross that Christ “having spoiled principalities and powers, he made a shew of them openly, triumphing over them in it” (Colossians 2:15). Why does God laugh? Because, “He taketh the wise in their own craftiness: and the counsel of the froward is carried headlong” (Job 5:13).

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Opening Scripture

Why Does God Laugh? Musings on Psalm 2

Psalm 2:4 states “He that sitteth in the heavens shall laugh: the Lord shall have them in derision.” In context it is very clear at what God is laughing. The peoples have imagined a vain thing. Their kings and rulers have taken counsel against the Lord and against His anointed. And God’s response to all of this is to laugh. It is clear from that, of course, that God does not feel threatened. He is no way intimated or alarmed by these tumults. As the prophet said, “Behold, the nations are as a drop of a bucket, and are counted as the small dust of the balance: behold, he taketh up the isles as a very little thing” (Isaiah 40:15). But I think there is more to God’s laughter than just that. After Peter and John have been commanded not to teach in the name of Jesus and threatened they are let go and bring their report to the church. Upon which, “And when they heard that, they lifted up their voice to God with one accord, and said, Lord, thou art God, which hast made heaven, and earth, and the sea, and all that in them is: Who by the mouth of thy servant David hast said, Why did the heathen rage, and the people imagine vain things? The kings of the earth stood up, and the rulers were gathered together against the Lord, and against his Christ. For of a truth against thy holy child Jesus, whom thou hast anointed, both Herod, and Pontius Pilate, with the Gentiles, and the people of Israel, were gathered together, For to do whatsoever thy hand and thy counsel determined before to be done” (Acts 4:24-28). And here is the nub of the joke. The kings rise up, the rulers take counsel together with the aim of breaking God’s bands, and casting away His cords from them. But what is the actual result? “For to do whatsoever thy hand and thy counsel determined before to be done.” The spectacle is one of people trying madly to rebel against God and yet fulfilling His purposes all along. This of course has implications: laughter is not God’s only response to this rebellion. But those are topics for another post. For now, it is enough, that we too can laugh with the one sitting in the heavens. We too can have the nations in derision. For all of the setting themselves against God they accomplish exactly what He pleased. Which seems to me like an adequate reason to laugh.

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Opening Scripture

Blessed Vs. Happy

Is it legitimate to correlate ‘blessedness’ and ‘happiness’? ‘Happiness’ can be an equivocal term, as it is used in different ways. If I were going to be precise I would describe the blessed man thus: one who is in a condition essential to true happiness and ultimately culminating in perfect happiness. This would guard against several misconceptions. It would prevent, for instance, the thought that in this life even the holy man’s happiness is without admixture of sorrow or pain. It would serve, by the addition of the adjective ‘true’ to distinguish ‘happiness’ from ‘pleasant sensation’. It would emphasize not so much the emotional condition as the objective grounds for that condition –not the rejoicing, but the reason. However, I think there is an advantage to using happiness without making these qualifications. For one thing, ultimately, happiness and evil are absolutely opposed. In this time things are not yet in their full development; the wheat and tares are yet together. And so in this time certain forms of happiness do coexist with certain forms of evil. But this is only because neither happiness nor evil has yet come to its mature condition. In principle they are utterly opposite; and that entire opposition will be manifest at the end of the age.

A text which could seem to be against this statement is: ‘blessed are they that mourn’ (Matthew 5:4) points us to the more technical description of happiness given above; and by its paradox it invites us to think more deeply. Those who truly mourn will be truly comforted; their position is a happy one, though the process of mourning is not always attended immediately with subjective comfort. To put it simply: blessedness is objective and subjective. In time, of course, these two shall meet and merge when God wipes away all tears from our eyes. In the present time, we recognize the objective blessedness; in recognizing it, of course, we also partake of the subjective element, the happiness.

Are we happy? Yes. God is our God, and “happy is that people whose God is the Lord.” Do we always feel happy? By no means; but there are always grounds for happiness, and those grounds are totally opposed to evil.

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Opening Scripture

Happiness Vs. Evil

The first Psalm tells us about the happy man, and thus about the nature of happiness, through a series of five constrasts. The first contrast is very simple: happiness and evil are opposed. Blessed is the man that walketh not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor standeth in the way of sinners, nor sitteth in the seat of the scornful. The ungodly have a counsel concerning happiness; but according to this Psalm such counsel is utterly false. Sinners are often found in hot pursuit of fun; but happiness does not come to those who stand in that way. The scornful are mockers; but happiness is not there either. No, the happy man is the man who avoids all of that. To state it more simply still: without holiness there is no happiness. This of course, contradicts the quotidian notion derived from the counsel of the ungodly that true religion is misery; that God is a killjoy; that Puritanism is the fear that somewhere, somehow, someone might be having fun. It is perfectly clear that there is an absolute opposition between Biblical counsel and worldly counsel on this point. Each tells us of happiness; but as they are diametrically opposed only one can be correct. Happiness is inseparable from holiness; I think Charles Williams would be pleased if I stated as well that holiness is inseparable from happiness.