One of the clearest markers of a person’s humanity is the ability to feel emotions. An initial search on ChatGPT requesting an exhaustive list of human emotions returned a list of over 106 different emotions, with the caveat that the list of emotions was only extensive and not exhaustive because emotions are “very nuanced and influenced by a wide range of factors.”
A cursory review of ChatGPT’s list will reveal many familiar emotions. Classic emotions like love, joy, anger, delight, guilt, shame, compassion, frustration, loneliness, hope, despair, and contentment can all be found on the list. Each emotion listed was varied and nuanced. Glee and happiness carry the same elation as the emotion of joy, but our experience of each reveals how nuanced and unique each is. Bitterness, contempt, and fury find their roots in anger but are also uniquely different, according to our experience.
Reviewing the list of emotions reminds me of Psalm 139:14. “Thank you for making me so wonderfully complex! Your workmanship is marvelous—how well I know it” (NLT). These emotions are a beautiful facet of the character and nature of God intricately expressed within each of us. Within humanity, he has intricately woven a myriad of the emotions that he experiences. God, in all his omnipotence and perfection, exhibits feelings and expresses himself throughout scripture.
Zephaniah 3:17 speaks of the Lord delighting in his people. Isaiah 62:5 refers to God’s rejoicing over his people, Israel. Psalm 147:11 speaks about God’s pleasure. Ephesians 4:30 speaks of God experiencing sorrow. Exodus 34:6-7 speaks of God experiencing compassion and mercy. Psalm 78:40 speaks of God’s grief. Mark 3:5 expresses the sadness of Jesus. And in John 2:13-17, we have a straightforward story of Jesus experiencing anger.
In many contexts, emotions carry a negative connotation. People have been wounded by and hurt by others who have allowed their emotions to lead them to act in sinful ways, thus marking certain emotions as “inappropriate” or “out of control” or, in some instances, even forbidden. In my experience, particularly during adolescence, anger became a taboo emotion. But today, I propose that how we respond and react to emotions is sinful, not the emotions themselves. If God, in all his perfection, righteously experiences the full gambit of emotions without sin, I think that we, too, can do the same (with his support). According to Galatians 5:16-26, our response to those emotions is what matters. When experiencing difficult emotions, we can choose to walk under the guidance of Holy Spirit and choose to behave righteously, or by our sinful nature and respond unrighteously.
Only as we walk in unity with God and his spirit will we truly experience the exuberance of our humanity as expressed in the entire range of emotions. With him, we can endure anger, sadness, grief, overwhelming joy, regret, sorrow, expectation, anxiety, loneliness, or whatever emotion we are most impacted by. Together with Christ, we can be fully human.
About the Author
Mike enjoys spending time with his wife and four kids. He loves Jesus, art, music, and poetry. He currently works as the Manager of Learning Technology Solutions for Los Angeles Pacific University and is passionate about adventuring outdoors.