Although there is very little written in Scripture about our Lord’s emotional expressiveness, there persists a rather sad notion that Jesus never laughed or smiled. Perhaps this is born from traditional iconography and religious paintings which often portray our Savior as a very serious, somber-minded, almost melancholy figure.
It is true that Jesus came to die for our sin and that He “was despised and rejected by mankind, a man of suffering, and familiar with pain” (Isaiah 53:3). It is also true that He was often rejected by His closest friends and kinfolk, grieved over the tragedy of humanity (Luke 19:41), wept at a friend’s grave (John 11:35), and of course experienced the Passion which culminated with the Cross. However, these facts should not be construed to mean Jesus never had a lighthearted moment or that He never had occasion to laugh.
Taking into account the entire body of Scripture, we find our Lord to be a decisively well-rounded individual with a personality that drew people to Him. Little children routinely ran to Him and He carried them in His arms. What child would want to be around someone who never smiles, laughs, or enjoys life? In fact, there is even one instance in which Jesus was accused by the Jews of appearing too joyful (Luke 7:34).
Because we are made in God’s own image and imbued with His attributes, the very fact that we humans have a sense of humor indicates that God does, also. And since Jesus and the Father are One (sharing equally in His Father’s essence and energy), it stands to reason that this would include a sense of humor as well. Therefore, to say that Jesus never expressed joy through laughter is akin to denying His full humanity – a heresy known as Docetism.
