Often theologians will express statements like, "God is immutable [unchangeable] therefore he cannot have humor or experience emotion."
It is not only bad theology it is bad logic. First the bible does seem to indicate that God is perfect and unchanged. Second the bible does seem to indicate that God laughs, has a sense of humor, and experiences emotion.
You see this is one of the issues of carrying human logic when doing theology. People are changed by events happening to them since we are in flux. Thus if God experiences he is changed.
You see the issue of course is that there is an essence of a person and the things that happen to them. My essence is not exactly changed many times by this or that joke or comment.
You see experiencing emotion in no way necessitates a change of the essence of a person or being. This is of course the great chagrin to parents who wish their children would learn from mistakes!
You see often human essence is not at all affected by experience in the way it should be. God too is not affected by emotion in the form of a change of essence because he is in his perfect state.
You see experience is something that happens. It does not necessitate change in essence.
Another point of course is that experience for people adds knowledge. To God who knows all things as eternally present, however, experience does not even add to knowledge.
He already knows and is not discovering as we are. What is next in history to people is already present to God.
Showing posts with label humor. Show all posts
Showing posts with label humor. Show all posts
Friday, June 13, 2014
Monday, March 3, 2014
Humor as a Part of Theology
Laughter in the bible is portrayed equally as positive and negative. The role is based on context.
God is one who laughs at the folly of men. Jesus promises to bring the oppressed laughter.
There is laughter which is linked to unbelief and thus put into a negative context. But you see that laughter in and of it is good.
Its connection to the fall at times has turned it into an ugly thing, but in its nature there is nothing wrong with laughter.
There are those in the church which seem to have lost the idea of a joke as having an appropriate context. The bible does not follow this viewpoint.
Ultimately the Christian life is about joy. It is about real joy though. Not some canned joy that the world provides that is here today and gone tomorrow.
God wants us to be happy, but not some fleeting happiness mixed with misery and pain. The problem often is that as C.S. Lewis says that "we are far too easily satisfied."
Paul counted all things as loss for the surpassing glory to come. Why? Because to see correctly is to see that real joy and real happiness is found in relation to Jesus.
The bible is concerned with the happiness of men. But it is concerned about eternal happiness and not in a quick fix here and now immediate happiness.
God is one who laughs at the folly of men. Jesus promises to bring the oppressed laughter.
There is laughter which is linked to unbelief and thus put into a negative context. But you see that laughter in and of it is good.
Its connection to the fall at times has turned it into an ugly thing, but in its nature there is nothing wrong with laughter.
There are those in the church which seem to have lost the idea of a joke as having an appropriate context. The bible does not follow this viewpoint.
Ultimately the Christian life is about joy. It is about real joy though. Not some canned joy that the world provides that is here today and gone tomorrow.
God wants us to be happy, but not some fleeting happiness mixed with misery and pain. The problem often is that as C.S. Lewis says that "we are far too easily satisfied."
Paul counted all things as loss for the surpassing glory to come. Why? Because to see correctly is to see that real joy and real happiness is found in relation to Jesus.
The bible is concerned with the happiness of men. But it is concerned about eternal happiness and not in a quick fix here and now immediate happiness.
Saturday, April 7, 2007
Giving
A bit Michelle read to me from her book Disciplines of a Godly Woman:
“Fourth, begin (giving) now. The natural tendency is to put giving off until you feel able to give. Such thinking keeps many from ever giving. There’s an old story about the preacher who came to see a farmer and asked, ‘If you had $200, would you give $100 to the Lord?’
‘I would,’ answered the farmer.
‘If you had two cows, would you give one to the Lord?’
‘Sure.’
‘If you had two pigs, would you give one of them to the Lord?’
The farmer said, ‘Now that isn’t fair! You know I have two pigs’”
- Barbra Hughes
“Fourth, begin (giving) now. The natural tendency is to put giving off until you feel able to give. Such thinking keeps many from ever giving. There’s an old story about the preacher who came to see a farmer and asked, ‘If you had $200, would you give $100 to the Lord?’
‘I would,’ answered the farmer.
‘If you had two cows, would you give one to the Lord?’
‘Sure.’
‘If you had two pigs, would you give one of them to the Lord?’
The farmer said, ‘Now that isn’t fair! You know I have two pigs’”
- Barbra Hughes
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