I was online recently, and saw the following statement on social media (I won’t mention the person’s name because I don’t know him or her personally). Here’s how the post read:
“He who sits in Heaven laughs. I sit in Heaven so I laugh.”
Multiple problems with this: first of all, this person is taking Psalms 2:4 out of context.
Psalms 2:1 – 6 reads:
“Why do the nations rage and the peoples plot in vain? 2 he kings of the earth set themselves, and the rulers take counsel together, against the LORD and against his Anointed, saying, 3 “Let us burst their bonds apart and cast away their cords from us.”
4 He who sits in the heavens laughs; the Lord holds them in derision. (disdain, mockery)
5 Then he will speak to them in his wrath, and terrify them in his fury, saying, 6 “As for me, I have set my King on Zion, my holy hill.”
This passage in Psalms in speaking of God laughing in mockery at his enemies; God, not us.
Secondly, this person is taking Ephesians 2:6 out of context.
Ephesians 2:1 – 6 reads:
“And you were dead in the trespasses and sins 2 in which you once walked, following the course of this world, following the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that is now at work in the sons of disobedience— 3 among whom we all once lived in the passions of our flesh, carrying out the desires of the body and the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, like the rest of mankind. 4 But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, 5 even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ—by grace you have been saved— 6 and raised us up with him and seated us with him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus…”
Paul completes the thought by adding the exaltation: “and seated us together (with him) in the heavenly places.” Forty days after his resurrection God’s omnipotence seated the Christ in the glory of heaven. This, too, has its resultant counterpart in what God’s grace did spiritually for us: “he seated us together with (him) in the heavenly places.” Paul cannot say as he did in 1:20: “at his right hand in the heavenly places far above,” etc. The counterpart is not a duplicate. The result matches the cause but is not the cause repeated.
The kingdom of the heavens (Matthew’s expression), established here on earth, is heavenly throughout and not of this world (John 18:36). It is the threshold of the kingdom of glory and is located wherever God’s grace has sway. God seated us in his own gracious presence in the church, amid all his children, at the table of his Word and Sacraments, under the shadow of his mercy and love. All the high and prideful places of the world are dung-heaps compared with the heavenly places in the kingdom of grace.
This type of scripture twisting really doesn’t come at a surprise when we have people like Rick Warren who do it all the time. Here is his take on Psalms 2:4 from an article he published on July 15, 2007 https://www.christiantoday.com/article/rick.warren.learn.to.laugh/11582.htm:
“One of my favourite verses in the Bible is Psalm 2:4, “The One enthroned in heaven laughs.” Isn’t that a great verse? God has a sense of humour. God laughs!”
“He who sits in Heaven laughs. I sit in Heaven so I laugh.”
Again, one verse taken out of context with no regard for what the author was talking about. This passage does not, in any way insinuate that God has a sense of humor. God isn’t laughing at the nations in response to something funny; he’s laughing at their utter ignorance as to think they could defeat the Creator of the Universe (similar to the laugh Goliath gave to David in their battle; different outcome though).
Get good commentary and don’t just take the word of someone just because they are a big name preacher or someone who has a lot of followers on Youtube or Tiktok.
Christ warned us there would be many who would come in his name, and on that final day, He will tell them to depart, for He never knew them.
Contending 4 the Faith 