The Humor of Jesus
Luke 5: 27-34; Matthew 7:3-6; 16:18, 19:24; 23:23-24
Sid Batts
First Presbyterian Church
Greensboro, North Carolina
May 9, 2014
Last week I proclaimed Holy Hilarity Sundays at First Pres, recapturing an ancient tradition from
the Eastern Church, which some American churches are now modeling. The idea comes from the
comic theological notion that Easter was God’s joke played on the devil, with the idea that the
weeks after Easter should be times of joy, joke telling and sharing humorous stories.
So welcome to Holy Hilarity Sunday, part two. Last week I talked about how we became such a
humorless faith, that the tragic nature of Holy Week and the somberness surrounding it has at
times overshadowed both the Easter Good News, and the theme of joy that runs through the New
Testament; I talked about how the Reformation was so dark with conflict and violence between
Catholicism and Protestantism, that there was not much humor to go around and that Puritanism
and our own John Calvin seemed to view laughter, amusement or pleasure with a dour pietism
absent of joy.
I also threw Calvin under the bus, saying I would not invite him to my cocktail party. So, if I
could pull him partially from out from under the bus, this week I discovered, to my delight, this
writing from Calvin in his classic: The Institutes of the Christian Religion. I quote: “We are
nowhere forbidden to laugh… (nor forbidden) to be satisfied with food or delighted by music or
to drink wine.”
And the people said: Amen
Thank God, the last century ushered in a refreshing breeze of seeing joy, humor, and
cheerfulness as an important ingredient in the Christian life. Humor is good for the soul, and if
we can unloose ourselves from hearing the Gospel with such a serious filter, I think we find
scripture to be full of humor and wit.
But of course, at the heart of any Christian thinking is looking to Jesus. Today, I hope we can get
a taste of what I see as the humor of Jesus.
Now it is not my intention to make Jesus a stand-up comedian. He was not. And though the
gospels never say specifically that Jesus laughed or Jesus smiled, I think he must have…and
there is good evidence that Jesus taught with humor and used irony, and exaggerated comic
images to make his point and reveal hypocrisy.
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One of the early church controversies is trying to understand the two natures of Jesus, human and
divine. Docetism is a general term for those who believed that Jesus only appeared to be human,
but that he was not really human. Eventually the church said that such thinking was heresy, that
Jesus was both divine and human, without one nature overriding the other.
But seeing Jesus as some wooden figure who did not have the personality balance and
integration to laugh and smile could put us in the same camp as the docetists because we strip
away his humanity. I mean, do you know of anyone who is emotionally balanced and welladjusted who is totally absent of a sense of humor, who does not smile or laugh? The
psychological community associates that kind of humorlessness with depression or connected
emotional disorders.
So here is how I see the humor of Jesus:
I
First, we see Jesus calling together his disciples, his followers, friends, and strangers to eat and
drink with him. Indeed, that was one of the accusations of his critics: “The Son of Man has come
eating and drinking: look, a glutton and a drunkard, a friend of tax collectors and sinners!”
Jesus was often, it seems, eager to share table fellowship with the people around him. Jesus lets
Levi throw him a huge banquet with all Levi’s tax collector buddies.
So it does not take much imagination on our part to see these table gatherings as evidence of the
good-cheer of Jesus. We know that dinner gatherings and dinner parties are for us times of
laughter, joy, and community. Right?
And do you remember Jesus’ first miracle? At the Wedding at Canna, the after-party reception is
where they run out of wine and Jesus turned the water into wine.
Does that sound like a somber Jesus, void of joy or humor?
Then, one of the most important metaphors Jesus uses to teach is that of the banquet. He tells
parables of the Wedding Feast and the parable of the Great Banquet. Remember: “Someone gave
a great banquet and invited many;” and, “When you are invited by someone to a wedding
banquet, do not sit down at the place of honor.” Jesus also compared the kingdom of heaven to a
king who gave a wedding banquet for his son.
I don’t see a killjoy – Jesus using the banquet metaphor as a way to teach – do you?
II
We can also see the humor of Jesus in how he interacted with others.
At the start of John’s gospel is the amusing story of Nathaniel, who has been told by others that
the Messiah is from Nazareth.
His response? “Can anything good come out of Nazareth?” This is a jab, a joke on how
insignificant the town of Nazareth was.
“What, the Messiah is from McLeansville? You gotta be kidding me!”
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But Nathaniel’s humor doesn’t bother Jesus at all. In fact, he seems to enjoy it. He says, “Here
is truly an Israelite in whom there is no deceit!” In other words, this is a guy who is straight, I
can trust. Nathaniel, then, is included to be one of the apostles. Then near the end of his ministry,
Jesus renamed Simon with a nickname which would translate today to Rocky. It was like
nicknaming an over-weight guy, Slim.
It took place at Caesarea Philippi and Peter was then anything but a Rock. Just moments after
Peter’s profound insight that Jesus is The Christ he proceeds to rebuke Jesus on another matter.
And Peter would later prove himself cowardly and vulnerable, folding under pressure, a flipflopper and anything but a steady Rock. When Jesus called Simon, Rocky, I imagine the disciples
rolling their eyes and perhaps muttering, “What a preposterous notion!” Nevertheless, what
seemed a humorous, incongruent nickname became for Peter a name he would live into, as he
played a critical role in the emerging Christian church. So this renaming was about potential not
only do we see Jesus’ wit but his purpose in using it.
On Mother’s day, we remember Jesus’ mother and brothers came to visit him. There were so
many people that Jesus’ mother and brothers could not get close to him. Someone said to Jesus,
“Your mother and your brothers are standing outside. They want to see you.” Jesus answered
them, “My mother and my brothers are those people that listen to God’s teaching and obey it!”
If we hear this with our so serious mindset, we think Jesus is not giving his mother much respect,
or that she is unimportant. But can’t you see Jesus saying that with a smile? Of course his mother
is important but he is using hyperbole to make a point: that those who follow him are also his
family!
III
Perhaps the surest way to see the humor of Jesus is in the comic, exaggerated images he uses in
his teaching. His images and words border on absurdity:
 a camel going through the eye of a needle
 a log extending from a person’s eye
 the blind leading the blind
 a father giving his son a snake when he asked for a fish
 of being born a second time
 of putting pearls on a pig’s neck
 of loving your enemies
 of praying for those who persecute you
 of forgiving someone….how many times? Seventy times seven
Jesus used these comic images and hyperbole to grab attention, to make a point, to ridicule
hypocrisy. His point was not to get laughs. Rather he was seeking to inform and to transform.
Even when the humor is directed at certain groups, such as the humorless, rigid Pharisees, it is
still humor born of love and compassion. Jesus mocks their self-righteous as he tries to get them
to open their eyes, to see, to taste the joy and richness of the abundant life that he is offering.
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The point is not to see Jesus as David Letterman but to encourage us to see and hear his message
with fresh eyes and ears, to discover a new aspect of Jesus’ divine brilliance, to meet him with
renewed joy and laughter in our hearts.
It is odd that the humor of Jesus is so often ignored. Laughter is simply good for the soul and
allows us to confront the darker side of life with grace and compassion. Without humor, life
would sometimes be unbearable. So I am glad this story turned up recently from an ancient
manuscript found in a Middle Eastern cave. I can’t verify its authenticity.
Jesus was wandering around Jerusalem when he decided he needed a new robe. After looking
around for a while, he saw a sign for Finkelstein, the Tailor. He went in and made the necessary
arrangements to have Finkelstein prepare him a new robe. A few days later, when the robe was
finished, Jesus found it to be a perfect fit! He asked how much he owed.
Finkelstein brushed him off: “No, no, no, for the Son of God? There’s no charge! However,
may I ask for a small favor? Whenever you give a sermon, perhaps you could just mention that
your robe was made by me.” Jesus agreed and as promised, extolled the virtues of his Finkelstein
robe.
A few months later, while Jesus was in Jerusalem, he happened to walk past Finkelstein’s shop
and noted a huge line of people waiting for robes. Jesus went in and when Finkelstein spotted
Him he said: “Jesus, look what you’ve done for my business! Would you consider a
partnership?”
“Certainly,” replied Jesus. “Jesus & Finkelstein it is.”
“Oh no,” said Finkelstein. “Finkelstein & Jesus. After all, I am the craftsman.”
The two of them debated this for some time. Their discussion was long and spirited, but
ultimately fruitful and they finally came up with an acceptable compromise.
A few days later, the new sign went up over Finkelstein’s shop.
The sign read: Lord & Taylori
May our faith bring us a lens of humor.
Sources
“The Humor of Christ” by Elton Trueblood, HarpersCollins Publishers, 1964
“The Institutes of the Christian Religion,” by John Calvin, Book III, 19:9
“Jesus Was Funnier Than We Think” by James Martin, adapted from “Between Heaven and Mirth,” 2011,
HarperOne
“The Humor of Jesus” by Ken Westby at www.godward.org
“The Often Overlooked Humor of Jesus” by Tim Schenck, 5/30/2013 at www. wordpres.com
“The Humor of Jesus” by Ron Forseth at www. churchleaders.com
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