Why Serious Preachers Use Humor
Plus: Top 25 Worship Songs
October 1, 2004
Consider some of the metaphors and statements of Jesus, and it becomes obvious that Jesus was not above introducing a comic element to make a point. Speaker and comedian Ken Davis gives the example "It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle," a picture so outrageous it was funny, and yet the subject of salvation could not be more serious.
Elton Trueblood was inspired to write the book, The Humor of Christ, when reading Jesus' words about specks and logs in people's eyes made his four-year-old laugh.
The benefits of humor are many; from overcoming defenses and encouraging community, to showing our humanity and drawing attention to the truth. It is in the flash of humor that truth can sometimes be most clearly seen. That was my purpose in using this Paul Harvey story:
The Butterball company set up a Thanksgiving hotline to answer questions about cooking turkeys. One woman asked if she could use a turkey that had been in the bottom of her freezer for … 23 years. The Butterball expert—how's that for a job title—told her it would probably be safe if the freezer had been below zero the entire time. But the expert warned her that even if the turkey was safe to eat, the flavor would likely have deteriorated and wouldn't be worth eating. The woman said, "That's what I thought. We'll give the turkey to our church."
After the laughter subsided, I said, "Sin first shows itself in what you give God."
Here are a few characteristics of effective humor:
1. Have a purpose.
Pastor John Ortberg believes that since "the ultimate goal of preaching is to have Christ formed in people" humor must always be the servant of the message. If humor does nothing to forward that purpose, then the preacher should jettison it from the sermon.
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