Humor- When is it too much?

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B

blueorchidjd

Guest
#1
Okay.
I guess you could say that many people have different types of senses of humor, and for some people certain types of humor may be deemed offensive.
Some people may live their entire life as a joke,
Some may find their lives in the balance of trying to find the methods of what is acceptable
And the last group may seemingly hold the persona that ALL types of humor are unacceptable.

Where do we draw the line?

There is this scripture:

Ephesians 5:4-Let there be no filthiness nor foolish talk nor crude joking, which are out of place, but instead let there be thanksgiving.

and then

1 Corinthians 1: 27-31
[SUP]27 [/SUP]But God chose what is foolish in the world to shame the wise; God chose what is weak in the world to shame the strong; [SUP]28 [/SUP]God chose what is low and despised in the world, even things that are not, to bring to nothing things that are, [SUP]29 [/SUP]so that no human being[SUP][a][/SUP] might boast in the presence of God. [SUP]30 [/SUP]And because of him[SUP][b][/SUP] you are in Christ Jesus, who became to us wisdom from God, righteousness and sanctification and redemption, [SUP]31 [/SUP]so that, as it is written, “Let the one who boasts, boast in the Lord.”

Where do we believe that the Lord expresses humor in our lives?

But where do we hang in the balance here when we do live our lives with Thanksgiving through Christ , or at least the best we can through him and we are still in this stage where
We find it offensive that maybe, the people around us are still confident in the flesh in both the spectacle that people take themselves too seriously and you want to bring them back to reality, or that you almost have a sense of anxiety over the chaos on the world and you can't help but laugh through it?

Thoughts, opinions, scripture.
Danke :p
 
Last edited by a moderator:
Oct 31, 2011
8,200
182
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#2
Okay.
I guess you could say that many people have different types of senses of humor, and for some people certain types of humor may be deemed offensive.
Some people may live their entire life as a joke,
Some may find their lives in the balance of trying to find the methods of what is acceptable
And the last group may seemingly hold the persona that ALL types of humor are unacceptable.

Where do we draw the line?
When we love the Lord with all our heart, soul, and mind it brings joy into us. It isn't the kind of joy that thinks everything around us has a funny side, it is goodwill, love, and a contentment kind of joy.

I had a daughter I loved so dearly she seemed to just be part of me. When she was 21, she died. As her casket was being lowered a bird in a nearby tree was singing his heart out. All wasn't lost, there was still God and still joy in the world!!
 
B

blueorchidjd

Guest
#3
that's beautiful :) Thank you for sharing
 

posthuman

Senior Member
Jul 31, 2013
36,486
13,065
113
#4
this seems like it goes in this thread:

Like a madman who throws firebrands, arrows, and death
is the man who deceives his neighbor
and says, “I am only joking!”

(Proverbs 26:18-19)
 
R

Richie_2uk

Guest
#5
humor- when is it too much? when one steps over the tine with it. It becomes other than humor.
 

PopClick

Senior Member
Aug 12, 2011
4,055
136
63
#6
Okay.
I guess you could say that many people have different types of senses of humor, and for some people certain types of humor may be deemed offensive.
Some people may live their entire life as a joke,
Some may find their lives in the balance of trying to find the methods of what is acceptable
And the last group may seemingly hold the persona that ALL types of humor are unacceptable.

Where do we draw the line?

There is this scripture:

Ephesians 5:4-Let there be no filthiness nor foolish talk nor crude joking, which are out of place, but instead let there be thanksgiving.

and then

1 Corinthians 1: 27-31
[SUP]27 [/SUP]But God chose what is foolish in the world to shame the wise; God chose what is weak in the world to shame the strong; [SUP]28 [/SUP]God chose what is low and despised in the world, even things that are not, to bring to nothing things that are, [SUP]29 [/SUP]so that no human being[SUP][a][/SUP] might boast in the presence of God. [SUP]30 [/SUP]And because of him[SUP][b][/SUP] you are in Christ Jesus, who became to us wisdom from God, righteousness and sanctification and redemption, [SUP]31 [/SUP]so that, as it is written, “Let the one who boasts, boast in the Lord.”

Where do we believe that the Lord expresses humor in our lives?

But where do we hang in the balance here when we do live our lives with Thanksgiving through Christ , or at least the best we can through him and we are still in this stage where
We find it offensive that maybe, the people around us are still confident in the flesh in both the spectacle that people take themselves too seriously and you want to bring them back to reality, or that you almost have a sense of anxiety over the chaos on the world and you can't help but laugh through it?

Thoughts, opinions, scripture.
Danke :p
I think that (as indicated in the first verse you posted) jokes about gross, crude, excessively personal stuff are off-limits. And before you joke around with someone, try to make sure that the other person shares a similar sense of humor. This will help keep offense and misunderstandings from happening. I usually don't joke around with someone very much unless I'm sure they will understand and not be offended, although I have had my moments where I took things too far. I try my best to learn from my mistakes and not repeat them. But people usually aren't shy about telling you when they're offended.

"A merry heart doeth good like a medicine: but a broken spirit drieth the bones."
 
Dec 19, 2009
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#7
I like to be funny a lot of the time, in a tongue-in-cheek sort of way. Sometimes people react in a hostile way to my humor. That is a good time for me to take a moment to reflect on whether or not the person misunderstood my intentions.
 

Descyple

Senior Member
Jun 7, 2010
3,023
48
48
#8
I also tend to be the type of person who jokes around a lot, but being on CC over the past 4 years has really helped me to learn when to joke around and when to hold back. For example, in the first couple of years on CC I tended to write jokes a lot in threads that were dealing with very serious issues (which I am truly sorry for). I don't believe my jokes were in bad taste or disrespectful, but just done with bad timing. So I have definitely learned in my time here that there is a "time for everything" (Ecclesiastes 3:1), a time to joke and a time not to joke (that's my own paraphrase of verse 4). I might not yet be perfect in my joke-placement timing yet, but I have definitely improved and hopefully will continue to improve so I do not spoil or ruin serious threads about important subjects that are greatly important to people here. If I do make that mistake again, anyone please feel free to call me out on it.

Regarding my jokes themselves, as far as I know I have not offended anyone with them, especially since 90% of my jokes are actually about myself. It is so incredibly easy to make fun of myself, why should I bother putting in extra effort to make fun of someone else (that's what we in the comedic world refer to as "The Lazy-Man's Laugh"). Self-deprecating jokes are the poor comedian's rich reservoir (okay Descyple, enough with the awful analogies).

Now having said all that....................... Did you hear the one about the Baptist who was chased through a church by a bunch of Presbyterians because he stole their offering to buy a fresh supply of towels for his own church's upcoming baptism service? The Baptist was able to elude his pursuers by "immersing" himself in the baptismal tank, because he knew that Presbyterians never go below the surface of the water.

Okay, how was that joke I wrote? Good, bad, or just bad timing???
 

gb9

Senior Member
Jan 18, 2011
11,606
6,259
113
#9
it stops being humor when it hurts or offends someone. you have to be selective who and how you joke around with. joked around about global warming with an older gentlemen at church at few years ago. he kind of got upset and gave me a short lecture about it. on the way home I said Lord, why are some of your people so tight? I felt the Sprit say well, how about you watch what you say. hmmmmm.
 

p_rehbein

Senior Member
Sep 4, 2013
30,066
6,458
113
#10
From OP:

Where do we believe that the Lord expresses humor in our lives?

End Quote:

........so, just guessing here.........but you ain't spent a lot of time people watching at Wal-Mart?
 

tourist

Senior Member
Mar 13, 2014
41,234
16,243
113
69
Tennessee
#11
it stops being humor when it hurts or offends someone. you have to be selective who and how you joke around with. joked around about global warming with an older gentlemen at church at few years ago. he kind of got upset and gave me a short lecture about it. on the way home I said Lord, why are some of your people so tight? I felt the Sprit say well, how about you watch what you say. hmmmmm.
Perhaps they are anal because they don't drink enough coffee. Something to ponder.
 

p_rehbein

Senior Member
Sep 4, 2013
30,066
6,458
113
#12
Question: Does God have a sense of humor? Well consider this excerpt from an Article found online........

An example of God's humor is the instance in which the Israelites were using the Ark of the Covenant like a good-luck charm in taking it to battle, and the Philistines ended up capturing it and placing it in their temple before their idol of Dagon. They came into the temple the next day and found Dagon flat on his face before the ark. They set him back up. The next morning, there he was again, but this time he had his hands and head cut off as a symbol of his powerlessness before the God of the ark (1 Samuel 5:1-5). God’s putting Dagon in a position of submission to His ark is a comical picture.


Read more: Does God have a sense of humor?
 

gb9

Senior Member
Jan 18, 2011
11,606
6,259
113
#14
how about Elijah mocking baal , asking if he was asleep or using the bathroom. very funny stuff.