LAUGHING IN THE SPIRIT

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If you ask me, I don’t find the “laughing in the Spirit” that some of us practice amusing.

I’ve witnessed it several times in the past. I have often observed how preachers “anoint” believers to experience it. I even once attended a conference with an invited speaker from somewhere else who was popularizing this in local churches. But I still find it questionable. Not because I oppose laughing inside the church (our church is loud and loves to laugh), or because I’m against laughing itself (I laugh by myself), but because it lacks strong biblical support.

For those who are not aware, “laughing in the Spirit” (others call it “holy laughter,” or “unspeakable joy”) is what some people call the experience of uncontrollable, hysterical laughter that is supposedly a manifestation of the filling of the Holy Spirit in a believer. Because those who experience it are extremely happy, sometimes they fall down while laughing, lie prostrate, roll on the floor, or even float on the ceiling. (Please disregard the last one.) In evaluating this so-called “work of the Holy Spirit,” we should all go back to the Scriptures. There are a few points we need to consider:

𝗧𝗵𝗲𝗿𝗲 𝗶𝘀 𝗻𝗼 𝗯𝗶𝗯𝗹𝗶𝗰𝗮𝗹 𝗿𝗲𝗰𝗼𝗿𝗱 𝗼𝗳 𝗯𝗲𝗹𝗶𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗿𝘀 𝗲𝘅𝗽𝗲𝗿𝗶𝗲𝗻𝗰𝗶𝗻𝗴 “𝗵𝗼𝗹𝘆 𝗹𝗮𝘂𝗴𝗵𝘁𝗲𝗿.” There are many passages about laughter in the Bible. Many times it is associated with mocking or ridicule (Gen 18:13; Ps 59:8; Ps 80:6; Prov 1:26; etc.). Sometimes it is somewhat negative (Ecc 2:1–2; Prov 14:13; etc.). And of course, there are many verses about joy in worship and thanksgiving. But so far, there is no case where a believer laughed uncontrollably simply because he or she was filled with the Holy Spirit.

𝗝𝗼𝘆 𝗶𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗳𝗿𝘂𝗶𝘁 𝗼𝗳 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗦𝗽𝗶𝗿𝗶𝘁, 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝘀𝗼 𝗶𝘀 𝘀𝗲𝗹𝗳-𝗰𝗼𝗻𝘁𝗿𝗼𝗹. Those who promote “laughing in the Spirit” often cite Gal 5:22 as their basis. That is true. The Lord is not a killjoy. But the next verse also includes “self-control” as a fruit (v. 23). If believers cannot control themselves when laughing, it seems inappropriate to point to the Holy Spirit as the initiator. What was given to us is a spirit of “power, love, and self-control” (2 Tim 1:7). So it is likely that there are other factors to consider, such as mass hysteria (“Others are already laughing—wait, now I’m laughing too.”), personality traits (“I’m a cheerful person anyway, so I might as well laugh too.”), or perhaps just imagination (“Maybe the Holy Spirit is tickling me, so I’ll laugh too.”).

𝗚𝗼𝗱 𝗶𝘀 𝗻𝗼𝘁 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗚𝗼𝗱 𝗼𝗳 𝗱𝗶𝘀𝗼𝗿𝗱𝗲𝗿. It is good to look at what Paul said in 1 Cor 14 about order within the church. If someone is speaking in tongues or prophesying, it should be done in an orderly way; only two or three per meeting (vv. 27–31). Throughout the passage, Paul emphasizes that if what someone does does not encourage others, they should just remain silent. Because the Lord does not want chaos and noise with no one actually benefiting! If even speaking in tongues and prophecy—which are clearly from the Spirit—are regulated by Paul for the edification of the whole church, how much more should the controversial “holy laughter,” which we are not even sure truly comes from the Holy Spirit! Of course, we should also notice that speaking in tongues and prophecy, which are clearly works of the Spirit, are said to be controllable by the believer (vv. 28, 32), unlike “laughing in the Spirit.” That alone is already a red flag! Paul’s priority is what can be understood, because this is what builds up fellow believers (vv. 5, 12, 17, 19, 26, 31). If no one understands anything, then just be quiet.

Does laughing together hysterically really strengthen us spiritually? What revelation from God do we gain if all we are doing is laughing loudly? Entertaining, yes. Edifying? I don’t think so. Paul would most likely not agree that “holy laughter” is holy, because it only disrupts order (not to mention that it’s just noisy!) and does not actually accomplish anything.

Just because something has “in the Spirit” attached to it does not mean we can automatically assume that it truly comes from the Holy Spirit. If it were that easy, then we could just invent all kinds of terms and attach “in the Spirit” to them. “Running in the Spirit” when you suddenly run 25 km after being filled. “Overeating in the Spirit” when you eat too much but are supposedly guided by the Spirit. The best and most effective way to verify the so-called works of the Holy Spirit is to return to His Word, which surely comes from Him. 𝘚𝘵𝘢𝘺 𝘊𝘶𝘳𝘪𝘰𝘶𝘴.

𝗦𝗼𝘂𝗿𝗰𝗲𝘀 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗦𝘁𝘂𝗱𝗶𝗲𝘀:

Rhodes, R. (2010). “Holy Laughter”. 5-Minute Apologetics for Today. Harvest House Publishing
What is holy laughter? (n.d.). GotQuestions.org. Retrieved January 21, 2026, from https://www.gotquestions.org/holy-laughter.html

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