As a priest, I am tasked with delivering and explaining God’s Word to our community, guiding people along the way towards righteousness and purity of the heart. Today, I feel compelled to share the Bible’s views on coarse jesting and crude joking – attempts to provoke laughter by crossing the boundaries of propriety.
Our holy scripture, the Ephesians 5:3-4, sternly warns against such actions as it states, “But among you there must not be even a hint of sexual immorality, or of any kind of impurity, or of greed, because these are improper for God’s holy people. Nor should there be obscenity, foolish talk or coarse joking, which are out of place, but rather thanksgiving.” These inappropriate forms of humor, employing foul language, sexual implications, or disrespectful comments, degrade the very essence of our sanctity and purity in Christ.
Our new life in Christ encourages us towards a transformation that involves renewing our minds and sanctifying our spirits (Romans 12:1-2; 2 Corinthians 10:5; 1 Thessalonians 4:3). We need to understand that we are now walking temples, literally the embodiments of God’s glory (1 Corinthians 6:19-20). In this light, our bodies, and notably our mouths should be platforms for worship, praise, edification, encouragement, truth, and blessings (James 3:9–12). As the Book of James 1:26 states, true religion lies in controlling our words and our mouths.
As God’s creations, we must aim to glorify Him in everything we do (1 Corinthians 10:31), including our attempts at humor. It is vital for us to gauge and judge our words to ensure they honor God and the Holy Spirit within us. We must retreat from any language that is offensive, demeaning, or sexually implicit. Such tones are inappropriate for a body housing the divine.
This is strongly backed up by the Bible’s words, teaching us that our words are powerful and hold great influence (Proverbs 18:21). Gardening our spirit under Christ’s guidance involves learning to filter the substances that exit our mouths. It’s important to remember that just because something is passed off as a jest or joke, it does not provide an excuse to sin (Proverbs 26:19).
Intelligent humor does not rely on shock value or offensive content but should stand on its own merit. Those who resort to crude jokes for invoking laughter are simply indicating a lack of creativity, using discomfort to hold attention.
As we anchor ourselves deeply in God’s Word, allowing it to purify our thoughts, it will naturally reform our speech (Philippians 4:8). As we grow closer to Jesus and the Holy Spirit, coarse jesting and crude joking will feel foreign, leaving a bitter taste in our spirits and sounding like a clashing cymbal in our ears. Such behavior has no place in the life of a follower of Christ.
Therefore, let us refrain from coarse language, crude jokes or any form of speech that imperils our sanctity in Christ, and strive to uphold the teachings of the Bible in our everyday life.
Leave a Reply