Let's Party!

It's Christmas time. Parties, festivities, food, ... all pleasantly punctuated by smiles and laughter. Ever wondered if all this reveling has God's stamp of appoval?

Puritans, poor guys, had the reputation of being rather stuffy and dour. I grew up in a "holiness" denomination that could have given them a run for their money, if you get my drift. With this background, no wonder the topic draws me like a lodestone.

Ephesians 5:4 does admonish followers of God to refrain from "filthiness, foolish talking, (or) jesting, which are not convenient." Ergo, the belief that a jest--and the laughter that often accompanies it--is out of line in God's economy. This is where those handy-dandy Greek lexicons come in pretty useful. A look at the Greek makes it clear that Paul is talking here about more than just a simple jest.

The "foolish talking" in that verse is from morologia, a combination of two words that mean stupid and speaking, respectively. It's a smooth segue from the "filthiness" Paul mentioned first (surely that needs no explanation!). It seems that the "foolish talking" "might include things deemed filthy like 'trash talk,' speaking in ignorance (Proverbs 18:13), or speaking without self-control (Proverbs 12:16; 29:20)" (taken from online BibleRef).

The third word we are told to avoid, "jesting," comes from the Greek eutrapelia, a word referring to "vulgar, lewd, crass, or foul-mouthed humor" (from online BibleRef). So the language it was written in makes it clear that a joke in itself is not anathema to God. It's the dirty version of "humor" that is not pleasing to Him. Makes sense, Him being a holy God and all.

Jesting has held a kind of fascination for me because of all the great men of God with whom I have had the privilege of fellowshipping. Can you believe it? Every single one had a sense of humor. Quite at variance with the seriousness my holiness background had indoctrinated me in. Even die-hard-holiness Grandma Maria eventually broke down into embracing and exhibiting an appealing gentle humor. I still remember the day she used a paper plate like a tamborine and started dancing in the backyard to a silly made-up song. My brother and I stared at each other. Who was this woman who was playing and being silly with us? Did we even know her?????

I looked up that "prince of preachers", Charles Spurgeon, wondering if he ever jested. And guess what. He did. I highly recommend looking up "Should We Use Humor in Our Preaching?" by Jess Robinson. It's a good take on the subject and gives insight into Spurgeon's thoughts and use of jesting.

We're not talking about maniacal rioutous laughing, now; just laughing per se. As in happy laughter and clean jesting.

God did say that He made us in His image (Genesis 1:27). Innocent babies unpolluted by any preconceived notions of anything all smile and laugh. They are the innocent reflection of God in us and what God would have us be--individual cahracteristics bracketed by unalloyed trust and joy in its purest form.

In short, my friends, it's not wrong to laugh and have fun at parties and get togethers. In fact, speaking of parties ... last night Dennis ministered about how God instituted the Old Testament covenant with a party (Exodus 24:9-11) (well, a fellowship with Him that included eating and drinking), just as He did the New Testament covenant (Matthew 26:26-28; Hebrews 8:1,6-13). To read the notes he expounded on, please go to our website, springtimeministries.com. Click under Bible Study Notes, then look for the message entitled, "Invitation of the Highest Order".

One thing Dennis didn't go into was that at the end of the age, God will hold the party of parties called The Marriage Supper of the Lamb. You can read about that coming happy event in Revelation 19:6-9.

There are many other references to eating in the Bible--I love Deuteronomy 14:26 that says "thou shalt eat .. before the Lord thy God, and thou shalt rejoice ... " Eating and being happy seem to go hand in hand in the Bible. But the end of the matter is simply this: God made us to be like Him and He loves to fellowship with us, talk with us, spend time with us, be happy with us. He loves to see us smile and rejoice with one another--and with Him. There is nothing, absolutely nothing, wrong with having good, clean fun. So go out and enjoy the festivities this Christmas season with a light heart! Laugh it up and feel free to party! Make God happy!

"Rejoice in the Lord always. Again I say, Rejoice" (Philippians 4:4).

"The Lord thy God in the midst of thee is mighty; He will save, He will rejoice over thee with joy; He will rest in His love, He will joy over thee with singing" (Zephaniah 3:7).