The Last Laugh [2 versions]

All of us, at one time or another, have experienced the strange physiological reaction of zygomatic stimulation and subsequent larynx strain. This strain upsets the respiratory system, which results in deep, noisy gasps. The mouth opens and closes as the lungs struggle for oxygen. The struggle for oxygen causes the face to turn various shades of red and strange, unique noises emerge from deep within. What is this strange, physiological reaction I am describing?(1) It is laughter!

We normally associate laughter with humor. But, GELOTOLOGY, the study of laughter, suggests another trigger for laughter called the incongruity theory. This theory suggests that laughter arises when logic and familiarity are replaced by things that don’t normally go together — when we expect one outcome and another happens. Generally speaking, our minds and bodies anticipate what’s going to happen and how it’s going to end based on logical thought, emotion, and our past experience. But, when circumstances go in unexpected directions, our thoughts and emotions suddenly have to switch gears and laughter emerges out of the tension between what we expect — and what actually happens.

Now as I thought about the incongruity theory of laughter, I wondered if it might shed light on the nature of faith, particularly as it relates to Sarah and her laughter at God’s promise of children in Genesis 18:11-15. I’ve always been amazed that the letter of Hebrews counts Sarah among the faithful in the “hall of faith.” Sarah, we’re told by the author, is one of the faithful witnesses because she “received the ability to conceive by faith, even beyond the proper time of life SINCE SHE CONSIDERED GOD FAITHFUL WHO HAD PROMISED” (Hebrews 11:11). Yet many commentators, and perhaps most of us, see Sarah’s laughter at this announcement as evidence of a lack of faith. Perhaps we see a lack of faith because we have difficulty believing that faith can be found in the gap between what we expect and what actually happens. Or, we believe that faith never doubts, nor questions, nor struggles with the seeming incongruities of life.

I will concede that Sarah’s laughter indicates a level of disbelief. And, frankly, who can blame her? Who wouldn’t laugh at the promise of a child to someone barren and long beyond the childbearing years? But, I also believe Sarah’s laughter contains a glimmer of faith; faith that is really found in incongruity — in holding together belief and disbelief in the face of incongruent circumstances and situations.

God’s promise to Abraham and Sarah that they would indeed have a child from whom God would “make a great nation” seems too good to be true. God tells them one thing, but Sarah’s experience tells her another: age made it physically impossible to bear children. And so Sarah laughed when God came calling that day. She laughs out loud! And I believe her laughter was filled with the tension stemming from disbelief, incredulity, doubt, and that tiny glimmer of hope beyond hope that what God was saying, despite all she experienced to the contrary, was the truth.

Sarah’s story helps us to see that faith is the tension between belief and unbelief. For long before, when the Lord first made this promise to Abraham, the text tells us that Abraham “believed God and it was counted as righteousness.” Twenty-five years transpire after this initial declaration of faith; twenty-five years of barrenness, and futile attempts to have children in other ways, and twenty-five years of God seeming silent, of not making good on what was promised. So, when you look at what it meant for Abraham and Sarah to believe God, it meant taking a journey of following God in faith, even when God did not clearly show them the way. Abraham and Sarah believed God, but that belief was not absolute certainty. It was a journey filled with tension between what was expected, and what actually happened! Sarah’s laughter reveals a FAITH THAT FILLS THE GAP BETWEEN WHAT WE EXPECT AND WHAT ACTUALLY COMES TO BE, AND A FAITH THAT ENABLES US TO PLACE OUR TRUST IN A FAITHFUL GOD EVEN WHEN WE DON’T ALWAYS SEE HIS FAITHFULNESS.

Sarah’s story shows us that the laughter of faith is the laughter of incongruity. But, ultimately, like Sarah and Abraham, real faith casts us wholeheartedly upon the God who is free to act and to do as God wants, in God’s time, and in God’s way. Faith is the ability to answer “yes” to the God for whom nothing is impossible, even when our lives tell us the answer is “no.” More than this, faith is not dependent on us but is rooted in the God who time and time again proves faithful. The apostle Paul affirms this idea as he retells the Abraham and Sarah story in his letter to the Romans: “That promise God gave Abraham and Sarah…was not given because of something they did or didn’t do….it was based on God’s decision to put everything together for them. As we throw open our doors to God, we discover at the same moment that God has already thrown open the door for us” (Romans 4, THE MESSAGE).

And just like that, the doors open and God gets the last laugh. Isaac is born, and Isaac’s name means, “one who laughs” (Genesis 21:6). Sarah declares in the laughter of faith, “God has made laughter for me; EVERYONE WHO HEARS WILL LAUGH WITH ME!”

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1. Research on laughter from http://people.howstuffworks.com/laughter4.htm
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Another version from April 22, 2008:

THE INCONGRUITY THEORY OF FAITH

Most of us associate laughter with humor. We’ve all experienced the side-splitting guffaw in response to a good joke, a funny story, or to an embarrassing moment. But gelotologists, scientists who study laughter, suggest another trigger point altogether. This trigger is formally called the incongruity theory for laughter. The theory suggests that laughter arises when logic and familiarity are replaced by things that don’t normally go together; when we expect one outcome and another happens. Generally speaking, our minds and bodies anticipate what’s going to happen and how it’s going to end based on logical thought, emotion, and our past experience. But when circumstances go in unexpected directions, our thoughts and emotions suddenly have to switch gears and laughter emerges out of the tension between what we expect and what actually happens.

Now as I thought about the incongruity theory of laughter, I wondered if it might shed light on the nature of faith, particularly as it relates to the biblical story of Sarah and her laughter at God’s promise of children in Genesis 18:11-15. I’ve always been amazed that the letter of Hebrews counts Sarah among the faithful in the “hall of faith.” Sarah, we’re told by the author, is one of the faithful witnesses because she “received the ability to conceive by faith, even beyond the proper time of life since she considered God faithful who had promised” (Hebrews 11:11). Many commentators, and perhaps most of us, see Sarah’s laughter at God’s promise as evidence of a lack of faith. Perhaps we see a lack of faith because we have difficulty believing that faith can be found in the gap between what we expect, and what actually happens, or that faith never doubts, nor questions, nor struggles with the seeming incongruities of life.

On one level, Sarah’s laughter does indicate a level of disbelief. And frankly, who can blame her? Who wouldn’t laugh at the promise of a child to someone barren and long beyond the childbearing years? But I also believe Sarah’s laughter contains a glimmer of faith — faith that is really found in incongruity — in holding together belief and disbelief in the face of incongruent circumstances and situations.

God’s promise to Abraham and Sarah that they would indeed have a child from whom God would “make a great nation” seems too good to be true. God tells them one thing, but Sarah’s experience tells her another — age alone made it physically impossible to bear children! And so Sarah laughed when God came calling that day. She laughs out loud! And I’m certain her laughter was filled with the tension between disbelief, incredulity, doubt, and that tiny glimmer of hope beyond hope that what God was saying, despite all she knew to the contrary, was the truth.

Sarah’s story helps us to see that faith is the tension between belief and unbelief. For long before, when the Lord first made this promise to Abraham, the text tells us that Abraham “believed God and it was counted as righteousness.” Twenty-five years transpire after this initial declaration of faith, twenty-five years of barrenness, and futile attempts to have children in other ways, and twenty-five years of God seeming silent, of not making good on what was promised. So, when you look at what it meant for Abraham and Sarah to believe God, it meant taking a journey — of following God in faith, even when God did not clearly show them the way. Abraham and Sarah believed God, but that belief was not absolute certainty. It was a journey filled with tension between what was expected, and what actually happened.

Sarah’s story shows us that the laughter of faith is the laughter of incongruity. But ultimately, like Sarah and Abraham, real faith casts us wholeheartedly upon the God who is free to act and to do as God wants, in God’s time, and in God’s way. Faith is the ability to answer “yes” to the God for whom nothing is impossible, even when our lives tell us the answer is “no.” More than this, faith is not dependent on us but is rooted in the God who time and time again proves faithful. The apostle Paul affirms this idea as he re-tells the Abraham and Sarah story in his letter to the Romans:

“That promise God gave Abraham and Sarah…was not given because
of something they did or didn’t do….[I]t was based on God’s
decision to put everything together for them. As we throw open
our doors to God, we discover at the same moment that God has
already thrown open the door for us.”(1)

And just like that, the doors open and God gets the last laugh. Isaac is born. Isaac’s name means “one who laughs.” And Sarah declares in the laughter of faith: “God has made laughter for me; everyone who hears will laugh with me!” (Genesis 21:6).

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1. Romans 4 as translated in THE MESSAGE.

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[Original illustration at this number was a duplicate of HolwickID #5855]