Jesus Had A Sense Of Humor Series

this book is determined to prove beyond any reasonable

doubt. Jesus is our example and the pattern for life. If he did

not smile and laugh then he makes the ideal life for the

believer one of a sad and solemn face only, and not the joyful

and vibrant face of one who has assurance of sin forgiven and

eternal life.

It is foolish to try and understand the nature of Jesus by

what is not said of him. We need to look at what is said, and

what He said Himself to know about His sense of humor and

laughter. Before we look at examples of this we want to quote

those who have studied the life of Jesus and have come to the

conclusion that He was, and is, the Lord of laughter.

Max Lucado has written much on the life of Jesus, and he

make some strong statements about His humor. In his book

God Came Near he writes, "In Nazareth he was known only

as Jesus, the son of Joseph. You can be sure he was

respected in the community. He was good with his hands.

He had many friends. He was a favorite among the children.

He could tell a good joke and had a habit of filling the air

with contagious laughter."

Lucado does an excellent job of getting Jesus down on a

level where He can appeal to the world as He did in his

ministry. Jesus was not some ivory tower philosopher, or

some hidden high priest seldom seen by the masses. He was

down where the rubber meets the road. He was among the

people, and not just the important people of leadership. He

was among the common people, and He was at their

weddings and their banquets, and their parties of all kinds.

He was such a party person that His critics called Him a wine

bibber and a glutton. He was having far too much fun in life

for the sad sack Pharisees who looked like death warmed

over because of their fasting to show how holy they were.

Jesus did not fast, nor did his disciples. He was a feaster and

a fun lover, and He loved to be with the people who were

rejoicing because they were being healed, fed, and blest in

many ways for which they were praising God.

Chuck Swindoll in the forward to the book Choosing The

Amusing wrote, "Of all the things God created, I am often

most grateful that he created laughter. How I love to have

fun! In all honesty, I can hardly imagine a day spent without

at least a few moments(preferably many) of sidesplitting

laughter...either alone or with someone who can enjoy them

as much as I. What healing it brings to our heavy hearts!"

Millions of pastors and lay people through history would

agree, and because of this they cannot imagine that Jesus did

not love laughter as well.

It is the conclusion of wise men of all time that laughter

and a good sense of humor is a vital characteristic of any

ideal personality. Jesus was the only perfect man to ever live,

and it is a logical conclusion that this means he had an ideal

sense of humor. This should also be a characteristic of those

who follow Jesus.

Elton Trueblood wrote the first book I ever read years ago on

the humor of Jesus. It is called The Humor of Christ, and it

got its start with the laughter of a child at a funny thing that