JESUS MAKES US LAUGH

April 13, 2024

Scripture: Psalm 126:1-3

Dad was reading Matthew 7 to his four-year-old son from a children’s Bible. As he read along, feeling serious about that portion of Scripture, his son suddenly started to laugh. Dad tried to quiet his son and told him to pay attention to God’s word. His son objected, “But Dad, the picture is funny!” Dad looked at the picture related to the Scripture. He realized that his son was correct. The image that Jesus had painted with words was indeed preposterous. It was the image of a man with a trunk of tree sticking out of his eye, trying to remove a speck of sawdust from the eye of a friend. (Elton Trueblood, author of the book, The Humor Christ).

Most adults have the perspective that Bible study is a serious matter. Some have the perspective that God is up there with His arms crossed making sure we do not get out of line. Others might think that Jesus spoke some very weighty words, so we need to get down to business and learn them. This four-year-old did not know and when he heard a funny story, he laughed.

Laughter is good medicine. For example, according to a study conducted by the University of Maryland in Baltimore. Dr. Michael Miller, who conducted the study, stated laughter releases chemicals into the blood stream that relax the blood vessels. In addition, hearty laughter reduces blood pressure and heart rate. Miller, who is the director of the Center for Preventive Cardiology at the University, interviewed 150 patients who had suffered heart troubles and 150 who had not. Each patient was asked questions to measure their response in typical day-to-day situations. The results showed that individuals with heart problems were 40 percent less likely to respond with laughter. We lighten our burdens with laughter. Laughter is simply good for the soul.

This illustrates the point of Proverbs 17:22, A cheerful heart is good medicine, but a crushed spirit dries up the bones.

Scripture over and over calls us to rejoice or instructs how to be happy. For instance, Philippians 4:4, Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice! The beatitudes in Matthew 5 teach principles in how to be happy. For instance, Jesus said, Blessed or happy are those whose hearts are pure, for they shall see God (Matthew 5:8).

Psalm 126:1-3 notes, When the Lord restored the fortunes of Zion…their mouths were filled with laughter and their tongues with songs of joy…They were filled with joy!

G.K. Chesterton said that joy is the gigantic secret of the Christian. C.S. Lewis notes that the purest laughter on earth dwells in the kingdom of joy. Humor is a component of a glad heart.

Now there is cynical laughter. For instance in Matthew 9, Jesus was called to the home of a ruler of a synagogue as ruler's little daughter has just died. Jesus comes into that place of death, and he says: The girl is not dead but asleep." Scripture says, But they laughed at him. (Matthew 9:24). They thought he was joking. It was the cynical laughter of disbelief. Because of our sinful nature, cynical laughter comes naturally.

Sarah, Abraham’s wife, also at the age of 90, had this type of laugh when she first heard that she was going to become pregnant. Yet, 9 months later she laughed with overwhelming joy. In fact, Abraham and Sarah named their child Isaac. Do you know what Isaac means? It means laughter. This is referred to as holy laughter.

Since a holy God created humor, it makes sense that Jesus would use humor to communicate with humanity. Humor is used as a means to deal with the difficulties of life.

Despite what some people seem to think, Jesus was no stranger to the role of humor in lifting the stress and seriousness from people’s shoulders. In the Gospels, the serious people are not Jesus and His disciples, but it is the religious leaders. They refuse to join in the fun. Jesus did not come to take away our laughter, He came to bring us an abundant life full of even more things to laugh about.

It is difficult to understand how one could conclude that Jesus was not a man with a sense of humor. How could one who was popular with children and who encouraged his followers to become as little children not be cheerful? How could one accused of associating with those who indulge in food and drink not laugh? How could one who told his followers that they were at a wedding party while they were in his presence not be jovial?

Luke 10:21 notes that when the disciples reported back joyfully, Jesus rejoiced and prayed. At that very time He rejoiced greatly in the Holy Spirit, and said, “I praise You, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that You have hidden these things from the wise and intelligent and have revealed them to infants. Yes, Father, for doing so was well pleasing in Your sight. We can assume that Jesus and the disciples were smiling and rejoicing with laughter!

Please also realize an expert storyteller would never forsake humor to reach an audience. Humor sets people at ease and leaves them receptive to the speaker’s message. Jesus had a wonderfully vibrant sense of humor, but it was not employed merely to “get laughs.” It was humor that wanted to inform and convert. The humor of Jesus is rich, deep, insightful, and most of all, intentional. His humorous stories and witty remarks were always for the purpose of making a point and getting people to think about what they believed.

Let me give you a few illustrations of Jesus’ humor. Jesus used statements of irony, hyperbole, or exaggeration. Jesus said in Mark 4:21, Do you bring in a lamp to put it under a bowl or a bed? We see nothing funny, but if I said in modern language, what do you think of the person who built his home with all the light fixtures under the bed? You would chuckle and say how stupid you can get! That is what Jesus is saying. You do not get a candle and then stick it under the bed. This is a humorous way of saying how ridiculous for a Christian to hide his testimony, sharing God’s love when that is the very reason for his existence, to let light shine.

Jesus said in Matthew 6:27, And which of you while being anxious is able to add one cubit upon his lifespan? In other words, can you add 18 inches, one step, to your life’s span? Worry does not add to your lifespan. Jesus demonstrated how nonsensical it was to worry.

Peter was impetuous, an overly eager disciple. Yet, Jesus gave him the name, Petros/Rock. Time after time, Peter was anything but a rock in difficult situations. The other disciples probably chuckled at Peter being called the rock. Yet, Jesus used this to give Peter a new identity, a new perspective.

Jesus stated that it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for someone who is rich to enter the kingdom of God (Matthew 23:24). We use similarly outrageous comparisons when we speak of a snowball's chance of surviving in hell.

In explaining the Heavenly Father gives good gifts, the Holy Spirit, Jesus asks, What father among you, if his son asks for a fish, will give him a snake? If your son asks for an egg, will you give him a scorpion? (Lk 11:11-12). What father would give his son a poisonous snake or a scorpion? This was a ridiculous, but memorable question.

Jesus also used exaggeration when he denounced the Pharisees. He noted the Pharisees being like a cup all clean on the outside, but inside filthy.

Another use of a camel exaggeration is when Jesus' accuses the Pharisees of straining gnats and swallowing camels (Matthew 23.24). He is noting the pursuit of ritual purity by not eating flying insects (Leviticus 11). Yet, by this meticulous observance of the law one manages to swallow a camel. This is a much larger unclean animal and thus commits a greater sin. This exaggeration also included a pun or word play as in Aramaic the word gnat is “kalma” and the word camel is “gamla.” It is like the man who gave up fishing because the dock was too crowded, he could not stand all the pier pressure.

The parable of the unforgiving servant has several humorous remarks (Matthew 18:23–35). The servant owes the king a lot of money, 10,000 talents. We might not get the joke, but Jesus’ listeners would have. That is more money than the Roman government had! It is like the national dept. Then man pleads to have a little more time to pay it off (Matthew 18:26). Even if he worked every hour of every day, he would never be able to pay it off. What is a king to do? He forgives the debt. It is like calling the credit card company or the IRS forgiving you the thousands of dollars that you owe after you whine a little bit. Then the servant leaves and finds someone who owes him a hundred denarii—10 bucks. Not only does he demand the money, but he chokes the poor guy. He is downright cruel. In the end he gets tossed in jail until he can pay in full, which he never will. Jesus tells one exaggeration on top of another until the audience cannot help but see how utterly ridiculous it is to hold a $10 dollar grudge against a neighbor when God, the gracious king, has wiped clean a fortune’s worth of sin. Sometimes He got His point across by making people see the ridiculous side of life.

Jesus also would like to tease or banter with people.

Mark 7 gives us an example of how Jesus teases others. It has always been difficult to understand how our Lord could be as cruel as He is verse 27 when the woman asks Him to deliver her daughter from a demon. He responds, It is not right to take the children’s bread and toss it to the dogs. The only explanation for Jesus’ words is that they were said with a smile. What we cannot see is the playful expression which must have accompanied what sounds like unpleasant words. She must have known he was kidding. This is clear in the fact that she responds with some wit of her own, Yes Lord, but even the dogs under the table eat the children’s crumbs. Jesus bantered with her, and she bantered right back.

It has been said that banter is the art of playful conversation. It serves as a powerful tool in building and maintaining healthy relationships. Banter adds a pinch of fun, a dash of humor, and a sprinkle of playfulness to conversations. When we engage in playful banter with others, it creates an enjoyable atmosphere that helps break down barriers and fosters a deeper sense of connection.

The Lord’s teasing is both humorous and harmless. Jesus kids the Pharisees and Sadducees so hard and pushes them so far for only one reason. He hopes by the lightness of humor to soften their hearts, to help them turn from their own righteousness to His perfect grace.

In Luke 12 there is Jesus’ joke about the rich fool, the man who has no place to put all his stuff. One night he produces a plan to tear down all his barns and build bigger ones. He goes to sleep dreaming of years to come taking it easy. And God shows up and says “You fool! You are going to die tonight. Who is going to get all your stuff now?” It is a painful comedy, designed to make us smile, but also to make us think.

The stories in Luke 15 of the lost sheep, the lost coin and finally the lost son all have their humorous aspects. But the message in the laughter is the ultimate hope of God’s saving grace. A man who leaves 99 sheep by themselves so he can hunt for one is a bit silly, but the point is to be taken to heart of God’s unconditional love.

Jesus had a way for people to laugh as he taught. In Luke 13:10-17, Jesus heals a woman who had been crippled for eighteen years. Afterwards, a synagogue ruler being mad that Jesus healed on the Sabbath said to the people, "There are six days for work. So come and be healed on those days, not on the Sabbath."  15The Lord answered him, "You hypocrites! Doesn't each of you on the Sabbath untie his ox or donkey from the stall and lead it out to give it water? 16Then should not this woman, a daughter of Abraham, whom Satan has kept bound for eighteen long years, be set free on the Sabbath day from what bound her?"  17When he said this, all his opponents were humiliated, but the people were delighted with all the wonderful things he was doing.

People found the teaching of Jesus "fun" to listen to. His stories were captivating. Jesus’ teaching was filled with humor, satire, wit, and irony. His vision of God and his kingdom was filled with joy. Jesus is the Lord of laughter. May we remember that he never used coarse jokes or off-color humor. He never laughed at what ought not to be laughed at. Funny need not be filthy.

The validity of Christian humor is confirmed forever in God’s best joke. Some of the early church fathers thought it was a joke on Satan. The most wonderful and humorous irony in history is the great reversal after Jesus was crucified. The greatest one liner ever told is “Jesus is risen!” It turned tears to laughter; sadness to joy; fear to courage; guilt and shame to peace with God; confusion to clarity.

As the Psalmist writes, The Lord has done great things for us, and we are filled with joy. He has restored a right relationship with Almighty God through his Son, Jesus so that we might have life! Jesus has risen and that calls for joy and laughter.

Jesus came to gives life and gives it abundantly now and for eternity. In return, he asks that we joyfully and wholeheartedly follow him.

In 1555, Pope Paul IV issued a decree that the Jews would have to live within a confined area. The degree also abolished all the rights of the Jewish community and placed harsh religious and economic restrictions on Jews. The Roman Jews faced the real possibility of total banishment.

Let me close with this supposedly humorous Jewish apocryphal tale from that time which helped deal with their adversity. The Pope made a deal. He would have a religious debate with a member of the Jewish community. If the Jew won, the Jews could stay. If the Pope won, the Jews would leave. The Jews realized that they had no choice. So the elders of the people picked a respected Rabbi to represent them. The Rabbi was flamboyant in his expression, so they asked for one addition to the debate. To make it more interesting, and safer, neither side would be allowed to talk. The Pope agreed.

The day of the great debate came. The Rabbi and the Pope sat opposite each other for a full minute before the Pope raised his hand and showed three fingers. The Rabbi looked back at him and raised one finger.

The Pope waved his fingers in a circle around his head. The Rabbi energetically pointed to the ground.

The Pope pulled out a loaf of bread and a glass of wine and he broke the bread and ate, then sipped the wine. The Rabbi pulled out an apple and took a bite from it.

The Pope then stood up and said, "I give up. This man is too good. The Jews can stay in Rome as long as they want."

An hour later, the cardinals were all around the Pope asking him what had happened. The Pope said, "First I held up three fingers to represent the Trinity. He responded by holding up one finger to remind me that there was still one God common to both our religions. Then I waved my finger around me to show him that God was all around us and is Lord over the church. He responded by pointing to the ground and

reminding me that God may be all around, but God was also right here with us and is God of the Jews as well as of the church. I broke bread and drank wine to show that God absolves us from our sins. The rabbi ate of the apple to remind me of original sin and how it still affects us. He had an answer for everything. What could I do?"

Meanwhile, the Jewish community had crowded around the Rabbi. "What happened?" they asked. "Well," said the Rabbi, "First he said to me that the Jews had three days to get out of here. I told him that not one of us was leaving. Then he told me that this whole city would be cleared of Jews. I let him know that we were staying right here." "And then?" asked a woman. "I don't know," said Moishe, "He took out his lunch and I took out mine - and now we can stay as long as want."

Humor is one of the most effective ways of confronting adversity and coping with difficult situations. Humor can diffuse the severity of situations. Humor also allows us all to reflect on ourselves and our circumstances.

My hope and prayer are that you will have a joy of the Lord, that you your mouths be filled with laughter knowing and experiencing the LORD has restored you, redeemed you, given you His Spirit, given you an assured hope beyond this sick world, and poured out His love for you by His amazing grace in Jesus Christ!