For many years now, my motto has been “since you’re either going to laugh or cry about it, you might as well laugh about it!” And I do try.…to laugh….as much and as often as possible! In fact, I just bought a wall plaque before the holidays (from Kohl’s because I had some Kohl’s cash AND a coupon for 40% off) that says, “life is better when you’re laughing.” So, based on what I just shared, can you tell that I love a bargain as much as I like the “live, laugh, and love” motivational jargon?! It’s true, and believe me, I’ve been kidded about these attributes, but guess what? I just laugh about it! I also admit to alphabetizing my spices and I’ve been kidded about that, but guess what? I laugh about that too! On Sunday, I had the pleasure of working with some young adults and I told them I was so excited to be working with them because most of the people I knew were old! And guess what? We laughed about it! I meant no disrespect over my age or anyone else’s; I was just trying to break the ice. And I didn’t feel bad when they laughed because I felt they were laughing with me, not at me.
Since I love a good laugh, there’s a story in the Old Testament that has always made me wonder why one person’s laugh was considered a show of faith while another person’s laugh…over the same news…was rebuked. Since one of the gigglers was a man and one was a woman, I even wondered whether God, the rebuker, was a little bit “sexist”? (Just a thought!)
The story I’m referring to is found in Genesis and goes like this:
God also said to Abraham, “As for Sarai your wife, you are no longer to call her Sarai; her name will be Sarah. I will bless her and will surely give you a son by her. I will bless her so that she will be the mother of nations; kings of peoples will come from her.” Abraham fell facedown; he laughed and said to himself, “Will a son be born to a man a hundred years old? Will Sarah bear a child at the age of ninety?” When he had finished speaking with Abraham, God went up from him. (Genesis 17:15-17, 22)
God appeared to Abraham and told him that he and his wife (respectively 100 and 90 years of age) were about to become parents! And Abraham laughed…
Now, let’s skip ahead in Genesis to where heavenly visitors came to see Abraham, and Sarah overheard their news:
“Where is your wife Sarah?” they asked him. “There, in the tent,” he said. Then one of them said, “I will surely return to you about this time next year, and Sarah your wife will have a son.” Now Sarah was listening at the entrance to the tent, which was behind him. Abraham and Sarah were already very old, and Sarah was past the age of childbearing. So Sarah laughed to herself as she thought, “After I am worn out and my lord is old, will I now have this pleasure?” Then the Lord said to Abraham, “Why did Sarah laugh and say, ‘Will I really have a child, now that I am old?’ Is anything too hard for the Lord? I will return to you at the appointed time next year, and Sarah will have a son.” Sarah was afraid, so she lied and said, “I did not laugh.” But he said, “Yes, you did laugh.” (Genesis 18:9-15)
Hey, wait a minute! Abraham laughed when he heard the news but he didn’t get rebuked! Sarah heard the news, laughed, and she got called out on it. That doesn’t seem fair, does it? Especially when both of them expressed the same concern…that they can’t believe they will have a child in their old age.
But here’s the difference…when Abraham laughed, he was facedown on the ground (Gen. 17:17). I think Abraham was laughing with God. It seems that when God told Abraham the news, it was like Abraham and God shared an inside joke, a joke about Abraham’s inability to father a child in his old age with the punchline of God’s capability to make anything possible, to give life when it seems that everything is dead, to bring blessing when it seems like all hope is gone.
The reason Sarah was rebuked is because it seems she laughed at God. There was no sharing of an inside joke. She didn’t fall facedown. She laughed because in her human condition, she recognized that there was no way she’d be able to have a child with Abraham whose condition was no better. Given all the evidence, she couldn’t believe that what the visitor said could possibly be true! So, she laughed….to herself! But God knows what’s in our heart and He knew she was having a hard time believing Him. When the heavenly visitor points out her unbelief by asking, “Is anything too hard for the Lord,” Sarah tries to backpedal and denies ever having laughed in the first place.
But the laughter doesn’t end there:
Now the Lord was gracious to Sarah as he had said, and the Lord did for Sarah what he had promised. Sarah became pregnant and bore a son to Abraham in his old age, at the very time God had promised him. Sarah said, “God has brought me laughter, and everyone who hears about this will laugh with me.” (Genesis 21:1-2, 6)
Sarah now laughs without fear of rebuke because she “gets” the inside joke – God has explained the punchline. Anything is possible with Him! Nothing is too hard for Him! He can give life even when it seems that everything is dead! He can bring blessing even when it seems like all hope is gone! She’s not laughing at God; she’s laughing with God! And she knows that hers is a good story and everyone who hears it will be laughing with her, not at her!
Finally, as if to show Abraham and Sarah (and future generations) what a good sense of humor our God has, God told Abraham to name his son Isaac. What does Isaac mean? It means “he laughs!” Since names in Biblical times were given to children based on circumstances of their birth, it seems God wanted to remind Abraham and Sarah of their laughter over their circumstances and the laughter and joy this son would bring them.
Doesn’t it just tickle your funny bone to consider that God loves to bring laughter to His children? That He loves to give us great stories to tell of His amazing, surprising provision? After all, doesn’t everyone love a good laugh??
Our mouths were filled with laughter, our tongues with songs of joy. Then it was said among the nations, “The Lord has done great things for them.” The Lord has done great things for us, and we are filled with joy. (Psalm 126:2-3)
