God Laughs

“Why do the nations conspire and the peoples plot in vain? The kings of the earth rise up and the rulers band together against the Lord and against his anointed, saying, ‘Let us break their chains and throw off their shackles.’ The One enthroned in heaven laughs…” – Psalms 2:1-4

What an incredible picture. The psalmist describes the entire world, with its leaders, with its weapons, with its best intellects, with its cutting edge technology, gathering together to rebel against the rule of God. They have bought into the lie of the serpent in the garden, “You will be like God”. They long to throw off any accountability to the Almighty and His Messiah (This is one of those psalms which is also a prophecy about the future coming of Jesus Christ).

I don’t know about you, but if I were God that picture would scare me. For that matter, I get anxious when just one or two people are out to get me. Too often the fear of what people think about me paralyzes my ability to boldly follow Jesus Christ. But God responds in a completely different way.

This passage reminds me of the one of the stories of Elisha in the 2 Kings 6. Because he was a prophet, he could predict for the king of Israel the troop movements of the kingdom of Aram (who was at war with Israel). The Aramean king found out that Elisha was informing on him so he sent his army to surround Elisha’s house. While his servant was freaking out, Elisha calmly asked God to open his servant’s eyes. At that moment, Elisha’s servant saw the armies of heaven in all their glory and splendor filling the heavens. “Those who are with us are more than those who are with them,” Elisha commented.

I also think of Jesus talking with his disciples in the garden. When the soldiers came to arrest Him, his disciples resisted and in response, Jesus told them to stop. “Do you think I cannot call on my Father, and he will at once put at my disposal more than twelve legions of angels?” (Matt 26:53) These verses show us that God is not worried at all about the evil of our world.

In response to such open, blatant rebellion, God…laughs! He scoffs at the utter ridiculousness of his creation having any power or authority over Him. He spoke them into existence, a mere word would snuff them out again. In fact, Jesus is described in Colossians as the sustainer of our world. All God has to do is stop – take a break, cease to give - and everything would come undone.

These passages teach us that even in the darkest moments of our lives, the question is not, “God, can you?” but “God will you? We must never doubt God’s ability. That is never in question. When those times of difficultly come, the question is “God what is your will in response to this crisis?” This is another way of saying (as Jesus taught us), “Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done.” Sometimes God will do something miraculous – like take the situation away; sometimes the miracle is giving you strength to endure. We ought to trust in God’s love, God’s care, and God’s faithfulness to bring about His saving purposes in our world. Unlike the wicked pagans described in Psalms two, the people of God joyfully submit their futures, desires, longings and wellbeing to the One who is all-wise and all-powerful. The One enthroned in heaven.