The opening ceremony of the Olympic Games has given many Christians around the world much to talk about—mostly negative. A pity. There was much to enjoy and celebrate that was good and beautiful not to say anything about the performance by Celine Dion that concluded the ceremony. Given what she has been through these last 5 years or so I couldn’t help but tear up. It truly was a star performance.
As most are now aware, there was one scene that caused outrage: an apparent mockery of Leonardo da Vinci’s painting of the Last Supper by drag queens. Just to be clear, I was certainly taken aback, I instantly thought to myself, “is this really necessary?” and “why pick on an iconic Christian symbol, why not an Islamic or Hindu symbol?” and so on. My Christian sensibilities were offended… initially.
Then I read that the scene was not referencing da Vinci’s The Last Supper but instead was a nod to Greek mythology and the Greek god Dionysius, the god of celebration connected to the gods of Olympus from which the Olympic games were named. The ceremony’s artistic director, Thomas Jolly, emphasized in a conversation on a French news channel, “You will never find in me a desire to mock and denigrate anyone” (BFMTV). I am no scholar of the Classics but, at face value, that sounds plausible.
Then, over the days since, as I thought more about this I realized, “Oh my goodness even in the Bible God is mocked.” Our Lord Jesus was mocked—by Herod and his soldiers (Luke 23:11), by the Roman soldiers (Mark 15:20; Luke 23:36), by a thief on a cross (Luke 23:39), and by the Jewish leaders who passed by the cross (Matt 27:41).
So then, what does Galatians 6:7 really mean when Paul’s words are translated,
“Do not be deceived, God is not mocked; for whatever a man sows, that he will also reap.” (NKJV)
“Do not be deceived, God is not mocked [He will not allow Himself to be ridiculed, nor treated with contempt nor allow His precepts to be scornfully set aside]; for whatever a man sows, this and this only is what he will reap.” (AMP)
“Don’t be misled: No one makes a fool of God. What a person plants, he will harvest. The person who plants selfishness, ignoring the needs of others—ignoring God!—harvests a crop of weeds. All he’ll have to show for his life is weeds! But the one who plants in response to God, letting God’s Spirit do the growth work in him, harvests a crop of real life, eternal life.” (MSG)
As listed in the Zondervan Illustrated Bible Dictionary, mocking in the New Testament occurs often. It manifests as public laughter at a failure, as in the parable of the unfinished tower (Luke 14:29). Jesus foretold his own mockery by the Romans (Matt 20:19) and it came to pass (Matt 27:29). Jesus also was mocked in the Jewish trial (Luke 22:63), repeated with the men of Herod Antipas (Luke 23:11), and by the soldiers at the cross (Luke 23:36). When the apostolic band spoke in tongues at Pentecost, unbelievers mocked, saying the disciples were drunk (Acts 2:13; which the NIV translates as “made fun of”). The members of the Areopagus likewise mocked by gesture and word the message of the resurrection that Paul brought (Acts 17:32). Dedicated Christians will constantly meet scoffers (Jude 18), especially when they speak of the second coming (2 Peter 3:3). Sinners, thinking they can get away with their sins, turn up their noses at God and God’s laws, but they cannot outwit God (Gal 6:7).
As preachers and Bible teachers know well, context is critically important in understanding Holy Scripture correctly. In the Galatians verse, Paul is writing to Christians. Please note this. He is NOT writing to non-Christians. And, what’s more, the Christians at Galatia are doing well by and large. The Galatian Church worshiped the Lord, prayed in the Spirit, and served one another in Christlike love. In effect, Paul is saying to Galatian Christians, and by extension to us who are Christians today, “Hey you guys, be careful. Don’t be deceived (lead astray, deluded, conned, tricked), God is not mocked!”
According to Vines Expository Dictionary, the Greek word used for "mock" in Galatians 6:7 is ‘muktērizō’. It means to turn up the nose at, sneer at, and treat with contempt. Paul seems to have a completely different idea in mind compared to what has been blazing across social media channels these past days. Paul is talking about how we as Christians should live. In the ancient world, turning one’s nose up towards another was considered a sign of contempt and disdain. The action was a physical gesture declaring one’s utter distaste.
Mocking God then is to live contemptuously before God—to turn our noses up before the one who created us and redeemed us. As Dr. Kyle Norman says in his excellent article “Ultimately, mocking God is duplicitous and deceitful. It is asserting one thing while embodying another. Thus, mocking God is closer to hypocrisy than blasphemy” (Christianity.com). If this is the correct interpretation, then sadly this verse has been badly quoted and in doing so we have once again misrepresented our message in the public square.
When we could have used Thomas Jolly’s image as an opportunity for declaring the good news of Jesus, we instead communicated something quite different. And that is most unfortunate to say the least.
Alan Vink began his working life as a high school teacher, followed by 25 years as a Baptist pastor. then fifteen years working in the consultancy and leadership development space including speaking and writing. He has served on governing boards of various Christian organisations and continues to do so. Alan is married to Jeanette, lives in Raglan New Zealand and has 11 grandchildren that keep him both tired and poor.
A Gospel and Culture blog from the desk of Pastor Alan Vink, a speaker, writer and consultant in leadership development based in Raglan, Aotearoa New Zealand.
The views expressed in this or any other opinion article do not necessarily reflect the views of Christian Daily International.
