Was Jesus Funny?

Yesterday I asked folks to send me in whatever ideas they might like to have me blurg about. One especially interesting response that I got read, “I have always wondered if Jesus ever told a joke, or was humorous at times. What do you think?”

Well, I’m no theologian, but if I had to guess whether or not Jesus was ever out-and-out funny, I would guess that he was. He was, we are told, fully human; people are funny; it seems to me a reasonable guess that every once in a while Jesus could be quite the crack-up. Especially given that his whole ministry involved communicating with people—which, of course, almost necessarily entails at least some humor. That Jesus was sometimes funny seems like a simple enough call.

But if there’s one thing I’ve learned about Christians and Christianity, it’s that when it comes to matters of Jesus and Bible, things are never as simple as they might seem. Plus, as I say, I’m hardly a Leading Bible Scholar. What do I really know about it? I don’t speak ancient Greek or Hebrew. And I sure don’t speak Biblical Aramaic; I found it astounding that Mel Gibson was able to locate so many actors who do. I don’t know if it’s how he did it, but I’m guessing that there are a lot of great, very old community theaters in … Aramaia.

Anyway, I know a lot of people aren’t comfortable with the idea that Jesus was ever funny. That makes sense, too. Maybe the proclivity for humor was a human characteristic that, for some reason, the Lord simply chose not to adopt for himself.

Of course, the whole “plank in your eye” metaphor does seem pretty funny.

I think the best thing to do, after we’ve died and come directly into his presence, is to wait, and see whether or not Jesus cracks a joke first.

Frankly, I hope he does. Because if he doesn’t, chances are that, before too very long, I will. And when I do, I want him to laugh.

Can you imagine, cracking a joke to Jesus, and him going, “What? What are you talking about? I don’t get it.”?

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(First published on Christianity.com on August 3, 2007)

The Serious Humor of a Speck and a Plank?

by Greg Laurie 

Commentator Kent Hughes said, “We find it so easy to turn a microscope on another person’s sin, but we look at ours through the wrong end of a telescope. We easily spot a speck of phoniness in another, because we have a logjam of it in our own lives. Wrath toward the speck in someone else’s life may come from the suppressed guilt over the same massive sin in our own lives.”

Jesus was using a little humor when He said, “And why do you look at the speck in your brother’s eye, but do not consider the plank in your own eye? Or how can you say to your brother, ‘Let me remove the speck from your eye’; and look, a plank is in your own eye?” (Matthew 7:3–4). The word plank speaks of a very large piece of wood, while the word speck speaks of a very small bit of wood, even as small as a little bit of sawdust. So to loosely paraphrase, “How can you get the sawdust out of your brother's eye if you have a telephone pole in yours?”

An interesting twist on this statement is that speck and plank are from the same original word, meaning they are of the same substance. In other words, Jesus was saying the reason some people are so adept at finding fault in the lives of others is because they are so familiar with it themselves. They can spot certain things in another person’s life because they are guilty of the same sin—in probably a greater capacity.

Sometimes the people who are nitpicking the sins of others are guilty of far worse themselves. But if we know anything of being forgiven by God, then we will be forgiving people. Forgiven people should be forgiving people.

Taken from "Check the Mirror" by Harvest Ministries (used by permission).

The Power of a Good Laugh: Humor in Times of Crisis

by Chuck Colson

"As anyone who knows me knows, I love a good laugh. I’ve even been known to pull a practical joke or two, like the time years ago my assistant and I hauled a real stuffed bear into the hunting cabin of a friend late one night. Let’s just say he was surprised when he went back to the cabin and turned on the lights!

Why do I mention this? Especially now, when everything seems to be out of control in our society?

It’s precisely because things are so difficult right now that we need to make time to laugh. Over the past month on BreakPoint, we’ve covered a lot of sobering topics: the financial crisis, the mocking of Christians, sexual trafficking, the persecution of Christians in Iraq. And did you hear that an asteroid might smash into the earth in 2029?

In days like these, it’s hard not to get a sour expression—or to succumb to stress. And too much stress, as you know, is harmful to the health. One surefire way to reduce stress is laughing—which reduces stress hormones, stimulates the immune system, and helps stabilize blood pressure. In fact, one medical expert says laughing 100 times a day has the same cardio benefits as a 20-minute aerobic workout!

But humor can also help us keep things in perspective. Someone who laughs, particularly at himself, can never take himself too seriously. It’s the certain cure for pomposity. All humor is, after all, is recognizing human absurdity.

When Malcolm Muggeridge took over Punch magazine, he worried how he’d find funny stories to print every week. Then he went to the theater one night where Godspell was opening in London. At the end, when the crowd rose in applause, the Archbishop of Canterbury shouted, “Long live God!” Muggeridge never worried again.

Jesus understood this. Elton Trueblood, in his 1964 book The Humor of Christ, paints a picture of Christ as a deft comedian—a master at wordplay.

Trueblood writes: “Anyone who reads the Synoptic Gospels . . . might be expected to see that Christ laughed, and that He expected others to laugh.”

He frequently used humor and wit to make His point, as He did when He mentioned a camel going through the eye of a needle. When He said that the Pharisees strain at a gnat and swallow a camel, He was making a good pun because the Aramaic words for camel and gnat are almost identical.

If anyone had cause for being a bit down, it was Jesus. His was no easy life, facing satanic opposition and human scorn.

Yet Jesus could laugh. Why, because He knew that His sufferings could not compare with the joy that awaited Him. And the same should be true for all of us.

Trueblood says, “The Christian is [merry], not because he is blind to injustice and suffering, but because he is convinced that these, in the light of the divine sovereignty, are never ultimate.”

Sure, there is reason to be concerned about things that are happening around us today in the world, but there is even greater reason to put our hope in the King whose kingdom will never be shaken.

So next time you’re worried about the economy or an asteroid crashing into your house, remember, when all is said and done, it is good, not evil, that gets the last laugh.

(This commentary originally appeared on BreakPoint. Used with permission. Published on Crosswalk.com on December 5, 2008)

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