Nate had a fabulous laugh. If he thought something was funny and once got going, there was no stopping him till he’d slapped his knee pink and used his hankie to wipe tears away. He had what I used to call a “Three Stooges Sense of Humor,” laughing with gusto at slapstick comedy. Although I don’t find the stooges that funny, watching Nate go all-out laughing at them was hilarious.

Laughter, however, can communicate all sorts of things that aren’t especially funny: sarcasm, mockery, scorn, fear, disrespect. We see all of these laughs mentioned in the pages of Scripture (40-some times) but no one would characterize the Bible as a funny read. The several times God himself laughs, it’s out of derision toward nations that rejected him.

Because God is our heavenly Father, he probably enjoys watching our moments of joyful-laughter much like any parent delights in seeing their children happy. But there are times in the Bible when a laugh is inappropriate, and in that context, he disapproves. One interesting example appears in Mark, and though I’ve read the story multiple times, I didn’t notice the laughing part until a week ago.

Jesus was walking from one town to another, healing people along the way as he often did, when he entered the home of a 12 year old girl who’d recently died. The official mourning period had begun with a crowd of people loudly weeping and wailing, but when Jesus walked in, he stopped them. “What’s all the commotion about?” he said.

His comment made no sense to the mourners, but he was about to perform an incredible miracle and was laying the groundwork for it. Knowing that  Jesus was a worker of wonders, the wailers ought to have stepped back in silence, expecting him to say or do something incredible.

But when he said, “She’s not dead, just asleep,” their response was just the opposite. They laughed. (Mark 5:39-40)

Jesus didn’t appreciate their disbelief and immediately insisted everyone leave (except the girl’s parents). Because of the mourners’ mocking laughter, they missed out on what would surely have been the highlight of their lives: witnessing Jesus bring a dead person back to life.

A good question for all of us is, “If I had been there, would I have laughed, too?” Even today, when God tells me something illogical or even preposterous, do I inwardly think, “Like that’s gonna ever happen!”

Or do I drop my jaw in believing expectation and say, “I can’t wait!” God is looking for people who believe in him all the way. No caveats, no partial approval, just full-on acceptance of everything he says.

As for those loud wailers in the little girl’s house, they missed a rare opportunity to have their faith personally strengthened by Christ himself…. all because they laughed.

“The eyes of the Lord search the whole earth in order to strengthen those whose hearts are fully committed to him.” (2 Chronicles 16:9)