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Comedian in the pulpit

Discussion in 'General Baptist Discussions' started by Alive in Christ, Jul 2, 2013.

  1. Alive in Christ

    Alive in Christ New Member

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    I have never felt comfortable, either on tv or in church, when the man bringing the message wants the message to be a blending of the spiritual..with a blatant comedy routine.

    I do NOT have a problem if something unforeseen comes up and everyone gets a good lahgh. Thats fine.

    But when its clear that the brothers agenda is to blend the message with comedy, I cringe.

    To me the gosple is spiritual life and death. There is nothing "funny" about people being lost

    Am I just an old fuddy duddy??
     
  2. JohnDeereFan

    JohnDeereFan Well-Known Member
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    I think it depends on the joke and on the sermon.

    To make a funny comment is fine, as long as it's not irreverent or inappropriate, but I've seen some preachers do what you describe and treat the pulpit like open mic night down at the comedy club.

    Ed Young, Jr is notorious for this.
     
  3. Alive in Christ

    Alive in Christ New Member

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    John Hagge as well. Also..one of the "word of faithers", Jesse Duplantis
     
  4. Revmitchell

    Revmitchell Well-Known Member
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    I am sure there are bigger things to nitpick about.
     
  5. Baptist Believer

    Baptist Believer Well-Known Member
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    The Bible has some funny scenes (think about Rhoda leaving Peter shut outside the house because she was so excited that he had been miraculously released from prison and the people praying for that exact thing didn't believe her testimony - apparently because they didn't have much faith that God would hear their prayers) and intentional humor in it. I think we do a disservice to the text if we don't bring out the humor.

    It is also part of good and effective communication. If you can get an audience laughing with you about themselves or a familiar situation that they face everyday, they let their guard down and become more receptive to what you have to say. Many people think that the pastor/preacher somehow doesn't live in the same world they do. As part of incarnational preaching, we need to break down that perceptual barrier.

    Of course, this needs to be done in moderation. The humor must not supersede the message and become the most memorable thing. The humor must be tied to the text and the message of the sermon so that it becomes an aid to memory and application, not merely something funny that happened in church.

    Jesus used a fair amount of humor in His sermons (consider the speck in the eye vs. the beam) to make His points memorable. We should follow His example where appropriate.
     
  6. Mexdeaf

    Mexdeaf New Member

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    I would not be a "clown" in the pulpit, but I also do not want to be so staid that I put folks to sleep.
     
  7. Tom Bryant

    Tom Bryant Well-Known Member

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    I probably introduce my sermon with something humorous 90% of the time. It is NOT because I think that it's funny that people are lost. The Gospel is life or death, and ought to be dealt with seriously. But sometimes humor engages a lost person's mind and heart to listen to the gospel message.

    Spurgeon:
    On the question of "humor" in the pulpit, he relates:

     
  8. Alive in Christ

    Alive in Christ New Member

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    I just want to reiterate, I am not bothered by a bit of humur. it does indeed loosen people up.

    It is when the service becomes more of a comedy routine than an oportunity to witness for Jesus Christ.
     
  9. InTheLight

    InTheLight Well-Known Member
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    It depends. If the message is given as a sermon in a church service setting and it's essentially a comedy routine, I would not like that. On the other hand, if it is billed as a comedy routine and there is a message inside the routine, I'm all for that. Jeff Allen has a wonderful testimony and is hilarious. Same thing with Tim Hawkins.
     
  10. convicted1

    convicted1 Guest

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    I was thinking quite the same way that Brother Tom Bryant was. Not that I tell a joke in the pulpit, mind you, but rather, the lost may "loosen up" and actually be a little more engaged in what that preacher has to say. But, to go to the extreme that one makes it a 30-45 minutes comedy skit, as John Pinette says, "I say nay nay".

    A rabbi, priest, and a pope, walk into a bar and the bartender says, "What is this, a joke"?
     
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