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God Laughs




4 The One enthroned in heaven laughs; the Lord scoffs at them.
5 He rebukes them in his anger and terrifies them in his wrath ~Psalm 2:4-5
It could seem at first that God has multiple-personality disorder. Or perhaps just an emotional version of ADD, where He's not sure how He wants to feel. Or He could simply be a moody teenage girl, changing moods faster than Clark Kent changes clothes in a telephone booth. (Does he still do that?) 

But God is not suffering from any of the above. 

God laughs... then rebukes... In my head, this is  a funny picture. As my pastor preached on this recently, I had to stifle my own laughter as I pictured God laughing a big, mocking laugh. Then, in my head, God stopped laughing abruptly and got serious. 

Why are we given this picture of God anyway? Why does He seem to change more often than the women in my family when deciding what to wear in the morning? The first 3 verses of Psalm 2 will clear this up.

1 Why do the nations conspire    and the peoples plot in vain?2 The kings of the earth rise up    and the rulers band together    against the Lord and against his anointed, saying,3 “Let us break their chains    and throw off their shackles.” ~Psalm 2:1-3

It's like when my children were younger and they would triple-team me, trying to knock me over. I laughed. Then I would pick up the youngest and use her as a bat to swat the other two away. They were no match for me. 

I laughed. Then I mocked. Then I would get serious again when my wife said it might cause brain damage to swing our daughter like that. So now I don't hold the youngest by her legs. I hold her by her head. 

Nevertheless, a bunch of men ganging up to go at God is a ridiculous picture. It's just not going to go the way they think it will. From this, I take great comfort. God's got this. He's in control. 
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