Pain and humiliation

Wicked men…rejoice in the perverseness of evil (Proverbs 2:12-14).

Do you like drama? Do you enjoy hearing gossip and passing it along? Are your favorite jokes the kind that make fun of other people? Do you get a thrill from watching another person squirm as they try to deal with a difficult or painful situation?

Most high schools have cliques—groups of kids who make sarcastic remarks about those who don’t dress fashionably or have no athletic ability. Most neighborhoods have residents who are quick to comment on the failings of the person down the street. Late night TV comedians get laughs by telling jokes that ridicule others.

Mankind has a long history of finding pleasure in the pain of others. In ancient times, Roman citizens would cheer at the spilling of human blood when Christians were fed to wild animals. During the French Revolution, citizens would eat lunch in the city square as they watched members of the aristocracy die by having their heads chopped off. In our own day, there are people who slow down to stare at an accident scene. There are many who get a thrill from violence in their sports, whether it be a brawl at a hockey game or a bare knuckles boxing match. We even see it in our schools, where a child tears the wings from a fly and then watches it limp around, or when a crowd of kids gathers to egg on a fight between fellow students.

Of course, many of us are more civilized than that. But who doesn’t enjoy seeing someone put in their place by a snide remark? How many of you who are reading this tell ethnic jokes? When you’re bored at a party, isn’t it fun to tease someone, just to get a reaction?

Frankly, I don’t understand why we like to see others tortured physically or mentally—but I know that we do. This shows how different we are from God. Yes, He does allow bad times to come into our lives, to shake us out of our self-absorption and draw our eyes towards heaven. Yes, God does send people to hell if they reject His love as it is offered through His Son. But bringing grief to mankind is not something God takes pleasure in. He does not willingly bring affliction or grief to the children of men (Lamentations 3:33). "I take no pleasure in the death of anyone, declares the Sovereign LORD. Repent and live!" (Ezekiel 18:32) Jesus suffered on the cross to bring us release from suffering; far be it from us to find pleasure in the suffering of anyone for any reason!