The Dangerous Life Team talks about humor and comedy boundaries for Christians.
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The Dangerous Life Team talks about humor and comedy boundaries for Christians.
Website: www.dangerousfaith.net
YouTube: Dangerous Faith
Rumble: Dangerous Faith
Instagram: nwdangerousfaith
Twitter: @FaithDangerous
Facebook: @NWDangerousFaith
I'm so bad. I'm happy with the good ones. The other day my wife asked me to pass her lipstick, but I accidentally passed her a glue stick. She still isn't talking.
Speaker 2:I have the good ones too. Yeah, I don't.
Speaker 3:Comedy, dark humor. Is there a line to humor? Where is that line? If it exists, where to go? Where to go?
Speaker 3:Anyways that was Blake With me. We have Zeke, chloe, blake, mackenzie and Mariah joining us for this episode, and people have different thoughts on it. Some people are very buttoned up, uptight. Very few jokes will fly. Humor is not that something you really shouldn't take part of, because a lot of it's wrong in their mind. And then you have, on the other end of the spectrum, anything goes, anything, no one is off limits, no groups, no events, nothing. It's all on the table. And so my guess is the answer lies somewhere in the middle, but that's what we're going to talk about. So, to open it up to the group, is there a line in comedy when you're telling a joke that you should not cross? Yes or no? So let's just start with a yes or no question. Zeke, is there a line in comedy? Yes, chloe.
Speaker 5:Yes.
Speaker 3:Blake, yes, someone's got to say no.
Speaker 2:I don't know if that's Blakewood, but I mean I would say, yes, I'm changing mine to no, it's hard because it's comedy subjective. Unless it's in yes, like if you're in a comedy show no rules, no laws. That's why they're like wrong yeah no laws.
Speaker 1:You can murder somebody in a comedy show. It's a joke.
Speaker 3:No one go to a comedy show with Mariah because you might die, because there are no rules. Okay, so there is a line. We all said yes. Now the much more difficult question where is that line and why? Any thoughts?
Speaker 1:I don't know why, but my mind immediately goes to like racist jokes, like to tell them, yeah, to tell them.
Speaker 1:You can tell it's racist jokes, okay, no, it's just weird you can make. Now, I do not condone actual racism, but when you tell like a racist joke, maybe like just a joke about a stereotype, you know, especially if you are from that stereotype. Like, for instance, there's a lot of black comedians, like Dave Chappelle, who make a lot of jokes about black people and he makes just as many jokes about white people as well. You've counted them?
Speaker 4:It is even right. It's pretty even so far. Let me check my notes.
Speaker 1:But no, it's just like. But also, when it comes to making like racist jokes and this why I say it's like subjective, like there are people who can get away with it, like Dave Chappelle, he can make fun of a lot of groups and then there's going to be some groups that get offended, like his LGBTQ scandal, but that doesn't have to do with race. I'm just. I was just throwing out there.
Speaker 4:It's kind of a tangent.
Speaker 1:But but then there are some people like, for instance, the guy from Seinfeld. You know he made a racist joke and it ruined his career. So it's like I guess it's like the intent from where it comes, because the guy from Seinfeld said it as just like a. He was angry, so he said it as like a dig, try to play it off as a joke, while Dave Chappelle it's a joke and we all know it's a joke. I don't know, I just feel like that and that's, and that's why it's so hard. I think intent, intent is that.
Speaker 3:that is something we definitely want to know. Intent matters, Mackenzie.
Speaker 5:Um. So I'll lean more on the side of being just a little bit more cautious rather than um freely with what we speak, especially as a Christian, because when you say something, you can never take it back, even if you have the intention of making it a joke. If there's, um, you know, something behind the joke that wouldn't be appropriate for you to say, let's say hi in front of Jesus or somebody you know, or you know that a non-believer, it might confuse them to hear from a Christian's mouth Then I don't think we should play into that at all. I would.
Speaker 5:I think humor and laughing is a gift from God. You know, it talks about a lot in the Bible of people being filled with laughter and, um, you know, at the feast they would be laughing and having fellowship with people. But when it comes to making jokes, we um, there's a lot of power in our tongue, and so if you look like that deep down at the jokes, if it's anything um, you know responded is determined by race, or it's making fun of people who, like we said, have a disability, or something like that, then it's not really appropriate.
Speaker 3:Okay, so Mackenzie adds audience matters. You got to be careful who is in the audience when you tell a joke. But also just Christian witness. What is appropriate for Christians to say?
Speaker 6:Yeah, and I think another important factor would be like, if you're a part of a certain group like me, I'm a Christian, I'm also a white woman, like I can make. I think it's fair for me to make jokes about that, because I'm that myself.
Speaker 3:So if you're a part of the group, yeah, like.
Speaker 6:but if you're like joking about another group you're not a part of, you might be falling into some stereotypes and things that people might get offended by, so I think that might be at least something to factor in. Yeah, at least a part of where that line is.
Speaker 1:Oh, chloe, if only you knew you're literally just the joke. As Christian white women, you're just a joke.
Speaker 2:Yeah, I know I was going to say so. I have like kind of a story that relates, so I can't remember if I read it in a book or saw it somewhere, but it's these two elderly men or I guess maybe a man and wife, whatever, either way, wait one, two elderly men who are men and white. No, no, or maybe it was a man and wife, I can't remember.
Speaker 4:Either way they're two elderly people, so they both had cancer.
Speaker 2:And so they were joking with each other. They were like, well, you know, how's your cancer doing today. And they're like, well, you know, slowly killing me, how's your cancer doing? And you know that was how they cut, that was they made humor. They're coping, like it's. You know it wasn't a big deal. And people would pass by and be like, oh my gosh, you know, like they're just that's so sad or oh, why are they talking about it like that? But that's, you know the old men are, just that's how they're getting through life.
Speaker 3:So it goes back to what Chloe was saying. If you're part of that demographic to joke about, it is all right. Now, zeke, you had maybe some thoughts.
Speaker 4:I did have maybe some thoughts.
Speaker 3:Do you want to share those? Maybe some thoughts.
Speaker 4:Do I want to share them? That's a good question. We should really think about that. I think I've agreed with everything so far. The hard thing is like knowing where that line is, like you said. But I'm hesitant to do.
Speaker 4:Okay, here's what I was like. I think there's a difference between someone putting on an act at a comedy club to a group of people, to where I mean, some of those are directed at people in the audience, but it's clear that they don't know those people. So I mean, yeah, I think there's a different. I think it's easy to that. We can differentiate between that and me saying something mean on Blake's behalf.
Speaker 4:And that's something I struggle with, because it's really easy for me to just kid around with some buddies and then I sometimes do that with people who I'm not as familiar with and I forget that they don't know my type of humor and maybe that humor is not okay in all circumstances. Kind of like what McKenzie was saying, like our words have power and like I've kind of been convicted that, like if I'm constantly only funny because I'm making fun of others, I don't know if that's how I want to be fine at just other people's expense, that's. But now, with that being said, it comes back to knowing your audience with someone like Chloe. Like I'm not going to joke around with Chloe about looks or stuff like that, not even in a joking sense, because she's my wife. I don't want her to ever think I actually think that, but whereas, nate, I'm like Nate, you look ugly today and he's not gonna think twice about it because he's the most beautiful man on earth.
Speaker 3:I am currently crying. Yes, I know.
Speaker 4:But I mean, like me and Nate can joke around and say stuff to one another and poke at each other, knowing that the other person's like won't be offended and that if we were, we would say something about it.
Speaker 3:Yeah, Blake.
Speaker 1:I guess this kind of piggybacks off of what you think. But I'm gonna ask you a question what about your job? Because that's where I struggle the most, because I work with a church. No, no, no, not the church. I do work for the church, but I also work for a spicing, a fiber spicing company, and you know it's a bunch of blue collar guys and you can just imagine the jokes that get passed around in that.
Speaker 4:Can you give me an example? Sure.
Speaker 1:Nate, you're gonna have to bleep all this out Understood. But no, it's just one of those where it's like, because some of the jokes that we talk about, I do feel convicted at the end of the day sometimes because it's like I am, there's a, there's a pardoning, that is a witness, and as funny as the jokes that I'm not have said that day work. Good, it's like what if my congregation hurt me say some of these jokes? Or what if Rev John or Nate or you know somebody Else heard me say those jokes and I feel like super convicted about it? But at the same time it's like. I think like well, it's that environment, that's how we like. Nobody knows, nobody thinks I'm serious, but I Don't know. It's just one of those conviction things when it's like. I battle with it constantly because it's so. It's just like we're at Walmart distribution, like you know.
Speaker 4:I have the same struggle of. The other thing I'd also don't want is I don't want to come off as a different person around different people, and that's like the thing I think I'm saying is you is like alright, if I make this joke around this group of people? How would I feel if I made that same joke around, maybe my Sunday school class, who? They're also a bunch of old guys and girls, but like, let's say, just the guys, like they're also a bunch of guys, so like we're not perfect, but at the same time, like there's even jokes I wouldn't say around them, cause like I've given them as church members. I'm like, if that's the case, should I be making that joke to begin with?
Speaker 1:and that's exact.
Speaker 4:That's having heard it heard a good opposing arguments like yeah, you should actually I'm like it's just right now, I'm at, I'm just convicted say that shouldn't.
Speaker 5:I think it's hard to, because, even if you're not telling the joke, even if you just laugh at it, that can also come across as you agreeing with it, or you know, I think, as Christians, like I said, we we have to be, we have to be bold and and what we do laugh and what we don't laugh at, and what we say and what we don't say, because that's an area where somebody can see the difference in us. So when it comes to jokes and humor, you know, it may not even I don't really have a temptation to make jokes, you know, I guess I'm not that funny, but I've been convicted to just things that I giggle at even if I'm uncomfortable. Maybe I need to say like, oh, I don't think that's funny, because a lot of times it may be jokes about Christians that are stereotypical, that are harmful, or it may be, you know, like crude jokes or anything that kind of automatically trigger a little giggle, but I don't agree with them. So why am I like laughing at it too?
Speaker 6:Yeah, I was actually about to say that exact same thing that you not laughing at something Could be a way to like stand out and people be like why don't you laugh at that? And then you can explain to them like I, you know, I don't believe or I don't agree with what you're saying, like there'll be times when I'm at school or I'm, you know, out and about and I'll be with people who are like you know they could be making fun of someone or even like just making jokes that are sinful and Just things I don't agree with and I'm like whoa, hang on, no. And sometimes, sometimes I just have to walk away because I just like I can't take part in this because Christians are held to a higher standard and Laughing at that, like McKinsey said, could show that we condone what they're saying and agree with it.
Speaker 2:Yeah, not to be like repetitive, but I definitely relate to what Blake was saying, just because Work environment especially if you're not in a direct, what you know, ministry, church type Working environment it definitely especially as women, like I know. You know men might be known for like crude jokes, but women are definitely known for like the sly backhanded, like comments you hear, or when another woman walks away, I'll hear just things that I'm like Even this week this happened just horrible things that I would never say. Like she was just down the hall, you know we were all working in the same vicinity and it was just like everyone was laughing and it was in a very joking manner, but I was not finding it funny. I was like if they were saying those things about me I would literally cry.
Speaker 4:Yeah, I think. Well, on the one hand, I get there could be some jokes that it's not good to laugh at, I think, however, when it comes to Christian stereotypes, like ones that Nate sends me 24-7 on Instagram, I think it's hilarious whenever some people point out some goofy things we do, I think, as Christians, we should also be able, like you said, there may be some that it's not Appropriate to laugh at, but there's something that Christians do. We're humans, we're goofy, we do silly things sometimes, and I think that's part of humor is being able to laugh at yourself, cuz that's part of the purpose of it is to point out things that it'd be hard to say Like blatantly like. So, if you say it, a joke. Sometimes it gets past the, the walls that people put up and helps to get past some of those, and it can be used in a good way.
Speaker 4:I think a Loose CS loose used in story and then Babylon B says they used it in humor. It's a way that they can sneak past the watchful dragons, the things that people guard their hearts with, and kind of get around those things the walls, the Dragons to kind of attack at that. And that's what humor is good for. Is it kind of takes down shields? I said the same thing about times.
Speaker 5:That's a good point. You know, as Christians we don't want to come off like To buttoned up or like we can't crack a joke at all or anything, because Laughter is such a gift, you know, you see, like maybe you see a little child who's learning to walk and they stumble, but they're okay, but you still may laugh. You know, like it's okay and we have this natural sense to laugh, but the temptation of, yeah, kind of just guarding your heart and mind, and it comes with discernment over time, you know, but we don't always have to be, you know, yeah, we don't think a good point we're bringing up is what's the condition of my heart as I tell the joke?
Speaker 3:What is the point of me bringing this up?
Speaker 1:I think that's really important, like Just one thing I wanted to point out. With like the Chris, with Christian stereotypes and stuff like that, I'm in the same camp as, like Zeke and, you know, nate Nate sent me some stuff too. I just like. I think it's hilarious when we poke fun of Christians who do it wrong. What I draw the line out is when they make jokes about God and Jesus.
Speaker 1:That's the part where I Draw the line. Now I will say now if it's a joke, kind of like how Justin says, like when he's playing Sims, he's like like he couldn't get his Sim character to do what he wanted. He's like I feel like this is God whenever.
Speaker 2:Now, that's not a joke about? No, that's not.
Speaker 1:Exactly, but then that's why I was like that nuanced. But when people actually make like jokes about God, and. Jesus and they take it to just a whole.
Speaker 4:Level. You know it's not a good job.
Speaker 6:Yeah, yeah and I think we need to be careful with social media in general sometimes because, like there was a show I was watching recently and One of the characters on there, someone had posted something just like about how she looked and, like you know, it was really mean and they probably posted it thinking, oh, this is just like you know, for my friends, my family, but that joke exploded and it went like every like I've seen it all, like my social media, whatever cuz you know, your phone listens to you. So when I talk about the show then I start getting everything. But and then I saw her on like a, like the interview silkirk paddles half off I.
Speaker 6:Saw her on like an interview, like after the show was over, and it like it wrecked her. It wrecked her mental health and how she viewed herself and that's just so sad. So I think social media we definitely be really careful, especially when it comes to, you know, people's looks and their beliefs and things like that.
Speaker 4:Yeah, that's a really good point of social media has really it was this thing. Well, they say it was designed to bring people closer together from further apart, and since it's done that. But then it also has the offset effect to where it's easy to not think of that person as a person, like we wouldn't ever say it, but they're just a Personal. My TV there. I know they're real, but they're not in my life, so anything I say doesn't really matter. And like you're saying, like I could just post a picture like that and it'd be easy for me to get some laughs, and then it blows up. It's like, oh no, that actually affected another human being like you think they'll never see.
Speaker 6:Yeah.
Speaker 4:And even if you do know that they'll see it like sometimes you just you don't. It's really hard to think of them as like, like we hear of people like this is another thing. It's kind of off topic, but it kind of goes back to social media of we hear people dying all the time and like dang, this sucks, that's sad. Then we go on our day, which I mean, to be fair, we can only handle so much stuff. Like if we were sitting here thinking about every person I'd die, we'd never get anything done. That's fair. But at the same time it also kind of disconnects the human part of us that if my best friend died, like I'd be heartbroken. I don't get very heartbroken at all. Whenever I hear about you know 11 people and other country, I'm like okay, well, at least it was only 11, but like 11 of my people died, I'm like that's a big deal in my life Devastating yeah.
Speaker 1:Speaking of, like social media and figures like that is there. This is a question for everyone and and I'll uh, I'll say how I kind of feel about it, just in case it's not a very good question. But Do y'all think it's kind of a two-part question? Do y'all think People, depending on their platform and our biases toward those, towards those people, do you think that some of their jokes can be offensive and then some of their jokes can be funny?
Speaker 1:For instance, like when I listen to who's a good, we'll just use been Shapiro. We all like we all naturally just tend to agree with Ben because he's conservative. Well, you know what I mean like we lean towards his side a little bit more and and I don't know if Ben's ever done this, but let's say he just makes fun of somebody like calls him fat, like a fat liberal cow or something like that. And some of us, like to me, even though I like agree with him on his conservative topics, I don't necessarily agree when they make jokes like that, like it's the same thing when, like Donald Trump, does a smear campaign Like I am a Republican but, it's like, at the same time, I don't.
Speaker 1:I don't find that stuff funny, like when they're, when they start making fun of like appearances, character stuff like that, like I mean, some of the stuff that, yeah, our Congress does is hilarious, like it's laughable. But to me it's just like I feel like biases play a huge role in like what we think it is funny and what we think is tolerable because of Joe Biden made a joke about Somebody being fat. We would Mad if he did the same thing. Yeah, I agree.
Speaker 4:I think, as much as I may agree with some of their political takes, I think Matt Walsh is one of the worst ones at this, to where he doesn't care to get attacked the person and not the exactly politics and and that really creates a us versus them. And it, when you say them, that means like them as a whole, not like them as an individual. Or if you were to sit down and talk with one individual from that group, you wouldn't act the way that you do, talking about them as a whole and and uh, you look like you're about to say something.
Speaker 3:So that brings me to the next part of what we're gonna talk about, like mocking groups, people, events. So For those of you who don't know, I am part Asian and I am part Jewish, so growing up. I heard.
Speaker 4:It's not funny, blokes.
Speaker 1:I'm offended and you are canceled.
Speaker 3:No, and and so growing up, I'd hear my fair share of Atomic bomb jokes. Being Japanese, what do you mean growing?
Speaker 1:up. You still hear those now.
Speaker 3:That's accurate, and summer camp jokes being Jewish, anyways, and so I heard a lot of that growing up. And okay, what is off limits when it comes to dark humor? Because Mariah brought up the, the Cancer joke between two older people who have cancer, and so we can go through the list. There's holocaust, there is 9-11.
Speaker 1:Rosa Parks.
Speaker 3:There are those who are. You know, rosa Parks and the back of the bus type jokes. There are racial jokes, disabled jokes, lgbt jokes, etc. Etc. When it comes to groups you're not a part of, when it comes to dark events from the past, is it just wise to be like I'm not gonna joke about any of it? Is it like a little bit of discernment, depending on who you're telling the joke to Like? Where do y'all fall with the darker types of humor? Zeke?
Speaker 4:I was. I mean, you already pointed out you're Asian and Jewish, so you tell us what's the? Where do you draw the line?
Speaker 3:So the tough thing with me is I have a very self-deprecating sense of humor. I will roast myself, I really don't mind. And so people join in and it doesn't bother me because partly I open the door to those things. But that doesn't mean it's right, it doesn't mean those jokes are good, but I kind of allow it to go on maybe further than I should, I don't know. But but anyways, for me I'm not offended. But is that what we use as the scale? If it's offended, oh. If someone's offended, oh, automatically it's wrong. I think that gets into dangerous cancellation type censorship. I guess Conversations as well. But anyways. So just open up to y'all groups that you're not a part of dark humor stuff like that.
Speaker 1:See, I like what you said right there about the scale, because that's exactly what I was thinking of like. For instance, if me and you were joking around and I open the door like I put my foot in my mouth this morning, we cannot tell that joke. We can tell it after the podcast, but I put my foot in my mouth this morning and you got me pretty good. I.
Speaker 3:Don't even remember Good one, no, I don't even remember, but I'll trust that something like that it did it.
Speaker 1:You know it did, don't remember, we'll talk about later.
Speaker 3:Oh, I guess, so man or maybe, like Zeke said, I just hear them so often.
Speaker 1:Yeah, so, but it's like. It's like the scale, like, for instance, and maybe and this is I don't know if there's a very Christian thing of me to do but like if I'm with my friends and they open up the door, like, let's say, one of my friends, like Nate, he opens the door and I make a joke about his nationality or whatever, and we get a good laugh out of it and all that stuff. I don't to me and this is so not. I don't, this is so not a Christian thing to say, but this to me it doesn't feel wrong. Hmm, I don't feel convicted by it.
Speaker 3:I think it's hey, we're getting in the weeds. I like it. Yeah so does it feel wrong, particularly if the person you're telling the joke to finds it funny. Exactly so it doesn't feel wrong because Nate's laughing.
Speaker 1:But if my whole I what I think is the part where I draw the line, if my whole humor is based on putting Nate down, because, like, I'm putting Nate down, not, not, oh, you open up the door for something like my whole entire humor is just being raunchy and dark, I draw the line right there cuz like I feel like there are opportunities amongst friends for a dark joke. But if that's all I say, it just comes across as I don't know. It comes across as cringy to me.
Speaker 2:Yeah, I agree with that. But I was kind of thinking what if you're okay? So you said you're okay with it because you're seeing him laugh. But what if you're one of those people like me? I laugh all the time, like even if I'm severely uncomfortable, even if you're making me angry, like I'm still gonna be giggling like social.
Speaker 3:It's a go-to social response when things are yeah.
Speaker 2:So like, even if I'm like I don't agree with what you're saying, I'm gonna be mad at you later. On the front you're still like, oh, you know the new having fun, you're gonna be the message you problem.
Speaker 1:Fix that, because you're manipulating me If I make you laugh and then you want to be mad at me later.
Speaker 3:You know how confusing that is Is engaging in women shaming right now I am.
Speaker 1:That is like. That is like saying like If I do get out on the grill right now, you go cut the grass and get out on the grill. You need to grill the grill.
Speaker 3:What you cooking and then we send it to gender stereotypes, which you may or may not find People that giggle to cope with things. So I think my brings up a good point. Just someone laughing at your joke depending on who they are Might not necessarily give you the green light.
Speaker 5:they could also be uncomfortable, and so that's a good point, mackenzie yeah, I was just gonna say that I think this is an area where there's not there. You're gonna have to just it's case by case, you know, yeah, and I think the big thing is to be open to asking God to convict you of things. Reflection, going back, you know, asking yourself Well, I really have laughed at that, because it's a process to have come into realize, okay, here is where you know, in this circumstance, the line was the cross or did not. Not. And then learning from that to Because, especially when it comes to making fun of people, groups or just people in general, no matter the topic, we have to realize that everyone is made in the image of God, even if we just say I'm just kidding, that doesn't cover it, it doesn't cover it.
Speaker 5:And, like you said, as Christians were held to a higher standard, so for dark humor, I don't know it's a lot of times you get that quick response because we have this like a name, like cultural. It may be something cultural that we find funny or something, but if it's like glorifying sin or something, as Christians I think we should really be wary of that, especially when we're making the jokes.
Speaker 3:You brought up a great point, which is holy spirit discernment, that sometimes in humor that line is we're not always quite exactly sure where it is. This is where you pray. So alright, lord, I don't want to cross the line and, however, humor is a part of personality. So, holy spirit, please guide me, because I don't want to be rebellious, I don't want to sin, I don't want to hurt people and I don't want to be mean spirited, etc. Etc. So, holy spirit discernment, I'm glad you brought that up.
Speaker 1:Like Just an example of that that I've kind of experienced here recently is like whenever I go and come and intern at my church and I'll stand up and I'll talk before the congregation on, especially in our, you know, morning, morning time worship.
Speaker 1:You know, there are sometimes where I'll have like a quick little quip in my head and I, because I pray a lot before I go out, because we are, we are helping people worship the Lord, this is a holy moment, always pray. I'm like you know God, if I, even if I have a joke beforehand, my God, you know, I'm here's this joke that I have planned, you know, I'm just gonna give it up, give it to you. There will be times where it's like the joke will just like fly and people will laugh and it's like, and I don't feel any hesitation whenever I pray about it. But if there are times when I'm sitting there before I go to talk and I'm feeling this hesitation about what I'm gonna say, I just take that as let's not say it and that's just. I just think that's the Holy Spirit saying like it's just, even if even if it's, and it's not like inappropriate, anything like that it's just like is it good for this moment?
Speaker 5:Yeah, so yeah and I think to something we can learn is, when we do make those jokes, to go back to that person and even if you know they didn't take any offense to it or you didn't think twice about it, still going back to him, say, hey, I probably shouldn't have said that. I'm sorry In us that you know it may have been like hearted, it may not have been. I just want to Clarify that. I'm sorry. I probably should have held my tongue back on that yeah.
Speaker 1:Real quick. Are we good? Are we good with this topic? Like, are we good in this like area? So I have a question about a different kind of joking. How do we feel about self deprecating jokes, because I made jokes all the time and I'm not gonna make it past twenty five, and stuff like that. Like people like hey are you doing? Like, oh, you know, getting kicked like a dog is always you know just beating. Like you know just those dark jokes about ourselves. How do we feel about that?
Speaker 2:I am so good that I think you need to be able to joke about yourself the question what should we do it?
Speaker 4:you said. I agree with that, yes so yes, I think you should be able to.
Speaker 2:I think. I think it gives you inside you need to go grill the grill. No, but I think. But then again it's jokes. Like if someone hears like I have jokes that I'll say about myself, that I, if I heard someone else say I would get my feelings hurt, like I, like I don't know. Like, if it's something like looks based or like maybe like did you take your pills, you know whatever, like something funny, like that you know. But someone else said that I'm like you know, why would you say that? Yeah?
Speaker 5:that's a great point. I didn't even think of that really, about making jokes about yourself, and I think the line for that is what does it go against what God says about us? Because if we're looking in the mirror or telling one of our friends like I'm so fat and ugly, you know, just trying to make ourselves laugh or make them laugh. But God, you know, he calls us wonderfully made, he calls us Beautiful, he calls us perfect in a site like or that were made perfect through in his site, through Jesus. But if it's going like directly against us, and that can be a big conviction, you know, instead of getting a quick laugh, of saying I like, I feel like that could be a doorway where the enemy gets in, and you kinda, yeah, you know, have to stay away from that.
Speaker 3:Yeah, I think we're bringing up a lot of good points.
Speaker 4:Seek yeah, I, I've never really thought about this first this way. So, nate, you're the theologian, tell me if I'm just way off.
Speaker 3:We're all theologians.
Speaker 4:the tell me that's the one with the degree is it?
Speaker 3:is it hold on degrees are? Is that the biblical standard?
Speaker 1:yes, from what I've, heard, sees get degrees yeah okay, see is in Christ, so Okay, possibly the worst joke we've had on the awful, but McKenzie was a good point of?
Speaker 4:are we, when we do the self deprecating jokes, are we trying to say the opposite of what God has already told us? And I know whenever, in acts, whenever Peters on the roof he's sleeping, is hungry, and I know this versus typically about you know, it's okay to eat meat and also it's about the Gentiles, and those are things we go at. But could not also be the sense of like he would? God says to me, said don't call unclean what I've made clean. So in a sense, could we be calling ourselves things that God has already told us that we're not? Whenever we start to self-deprecate and say you know what, I'm not beautiful, I'm not perfect, I'm not loved, but God says that he's made us beautiful, he's made us loved, he's made us perfect in Christ, is that not kind of calling what God's made clean unclean?
Speaker 3:I like what you're doing there. I'd have to stretch it to pause and think about that analogy we're making. But, Mackenzie Zeke, your overall point is true.
Speaker 4:Well, even if that verse isn't true, I still think that there's a sense in which it's easy for the Christian to not live up to what God has called us into.
Speaker 4:I think part of that comes from a healthy understanding of who we are before Christ, and sometimes we continue to live into that They've called a. Whenever someone becomes really wealthy overnight, they get adopted by a king or something. They don't feel like they're royalty, but they are. It just doesn't feel like it calls their whole lives they've been poor or whatever. Or when someone from a poor background gets a college degree and makes a lot of money, they feel like they shouldn't be there. I wonder if we don't do the same thing when it comes to our status before God, in the sense of like before Christ, like yeah, we're filthy rags, we have nothing to boast about nothing. However, paul talks about it again and again how we get to boast in Christ. Now we're children of the highest king there ever was. I just wonder how often these self-deprecating jokes help us to. Satan uses that to rewind and make us start thinking like we aren't saved again.
Speaker 5:Yeah, I think the same thing. There's a pendulum where it can swing over here where you're always making jokes about yourself and you're always putting yourself down, and then over here where you never can laugh at yourself or never take a joke, and that those both can be. You can look at both of those and find concern in that. And you got to go in the middle of where, okay, I'm not going to go, I'm not going to joke about anything. That goes directly against what God says. But also I completely understand that I'm not perfect and there's things about me where I fall short that I may find funny and others may find funny and that's okay, but it's you know.
Speaker 4:Again, it goes back to discernment and yeah, yeah, it's like it's being able to look at yourself honestly and like, yeah, you know what? I am a pretty goofy person. I do some silly things A little silly goose.
Speaker 4:Yeah, a little silly goose, but at the same time like not letting that affect our status of who we are in Christ, in the sense of I can be like, yeah, I made a bad mistake there, guess what, I'm still a Christian. So I don't have to. I'm not going to let Satan drag me down and make me feel worse about it than than I have to.
Speaker 2:That takes, like definitely, though, a certain level of like. I would say it's not only self awareness, but, like I don't know, you're internal, like Christian self awareness of being like, okay, do I really need to be saying that I thought it was funny at one point, but it's detrimental to my health? Or like, maybe even unconsciously, like if you're telling yourself something that they're joking about, I can't do that or I can never. You know, you're telling yourself that constantly and believing it.
Speaker 4:Yeah Well, last thing I'll say is there's also a thing where I think McKenzie said it at the beginning of like our words have power and sometimes we take that for granted in the sense of let's just take. If we were to take the whole Christian thing out of it, like just saying, telling yourself something over and over, you will eventually believe it, yeah, you would be surprised at some of the things you can trick yourself into believing.
Speaker 4:I am Like you see, so many people out there like you've probably met them who like every day is a bad day. Everything that goes wrong, everything that can go wrong, does go wrong. For them, every situation is like oh, I just heard you got good test results, yeah, but I'll probably have something bad come up soon. I'm like no hope, no optimism, no nothing. And it's I think part of that is over time. They just keep convincing themselves oh, bad thing happened, bad thing happened, bad thing happened. Nothing good ever happens.
Speaker 1:Yeah.
Speaker 4:So I think that's just a practical secular view of it would still get you. The point of this isn't helpful, yeah.
Speaker 5:I think too. Yeah, just being vigilant, because especially like sarcasm that's a big one, like even I may not be very quick with the jokes or anything like that, but I may try and be sarcastic, and so again, it's just a doorway where you have to understand, like Zeke said, that your words have power and that you know, just reevaluate and let give it to God, no matter what.
Speaker 3:I think, to summarize the things we've been talking about, it accommodates gift from God. It is a good thing, but you got to check your heart, got to understand your audience and the setting. You have to not which I'll bring it up towards the end Be careful to say or don't say it all things that contradict Scripture, what God said about you and who you are. You want to walk a middle line between joking too much and not joking at all. All those things I think are good to think about. And, long story short, there is no set, perfect, legalistic line. So I'll go back to what McKenzie said, which is you need Holy Spirit discernment. There are good markers and boundaries, but again, that line, what is it? Every time and every situation, on every topic, it's not going to be there, and so this is where we think, we pray and we seek input, and, as Blake is mocking me with my hand, motions over in this in what counts as a studio and anyways. So that's kind of just summarizing where we are.
Speaker 3:A lot of good points have been made. Now let's finish up real quick with the point of humor Zeke brought it up and why humor exists. What's its goal? Why does God give it to us. Yes, laughter is great, but there's something we can do through laughter. So, zeke, can you kind of summarize what you said before? What's the point of humor?
Speaker 4:Well, one to be enjoyed, but two to kind of break down some of the walls that we put up when we're being super serious. That humor can sometimes get past and get around.
Speaker 3:Yeah, just like a storytelling is another thing that I can tell you something in a statement form might not get through to you, but if I tell a story or if I tell a joke, that can work in different ways. Humor is wonderful. To critique people in a way that softens them, along with yourself just different ways of going about it. So it's an incredible tool God's given us. I'm glad he did, anyways. So that concludes our conversation. Let us know what you think of Instagram, facebook, twitter. Leave a comment below the episode and let us know if you did you agree? Did you disagree? Do you have any questions? And we can get back with you there. But anyways, the Dangerous Life team was with me today Zeke, chloe, blake, mckenzie and Mariah. Thankful for all of you and we'll be back more. We'll be back more. We'll be back with more as the weeks go by.
Speaker 1:Talk to you later. Way to watch that one there. Buckler, put it up. Bum, bum, bum, bum, bum, bum.
Speaker 4:Bask.
Speaker 1:Bow, bask Bow, like I was offended. That's the sound of a tsunami crashing into your home.
Speaker 3:Is it Kazamazian?
Speaker 4:Yes, yes.
Speaker 1:First one, Son Dad. Did you get the results of the DNA test back?
Speaker 4:Dad, call me George I feel like I heard another one similar.
Speaker 1:And then, when I die, I want to die like my grandfather, who died peacefully in his sleep, not screaming like all the passengers in his car.
Speaker 2:Nate is holding back so hard.
Speaker 1:Some of these are like right up Nate's alley. I like the.
Speaker 3:Japanese jokes you're going to hit eventually. Oh yeah, tidal wave.