Serious Concerns about Christian Comedy and the Christian Celebrity Culture

God is not funny and comedy is not a fruit of the Spirit.

Where has all the reverence gone?

Peter said that we are required to pass the time of temporary travel here on this planet in reverence (1 Peter 1:17). He was not talking about worship only. He meant that our entire lives ought to represent a sense of reverence for the Almighty.

Do we live that way?

Generally, American Christians are theologically illiterate (Scandal of Biblical Illiteracy-Mohler). Even the most learned of laypeople know much more about Bible stories than Bible doctrine—especially theology proper. If we really knew what God is like, we would not speak and act the way we do. Millard Erickson, discussing the practical implications of the doctrine of the transcendence says this,

“Reverence is appropriate in our relationship with God. Some worship, rightfully stressing the joy and confidence that the believer has in relationship to him as a living heavenly Father, goes beyond that point to an excessive familiarity treating him as an equal, or even worse, as a servant. If we have grasped the fact of the divine transcendence, however, this will not happen. While there are room and need for enthusiasm of expression, and perhaps even an exuberance, that should never lead to a loss of respect.” (Christian Theology, 3^rd Edition, p 289).

Irreverence.

Popular Christian comedy often crosses this line. In a convocation at Liberty University, Tim Hawkins led into his comedy routine with this monologue.

“We did not come to mess around tonight. We came to rock the flock, that’s what we came to do. We came to jaaaaam for the lah-ah-ah-ah-amb (lamb baa-ing noises). That’s what we came to do. We came to give you the flavah of the Savior. That’s what we came to do. That was a Christian twerk right there, a little Christian twerk. That’s not a sin. That’s not a sin. You go out farther than that, that’s a sin. You stay right here in the pocket, that’s Christian sanctioned twerk right there.”

Fundamentalists don’t have Tim Hawkins for concerts. They just watch him privately on Youtube. And much of what he says is genuinely and innocently funny. But edgy laughter–that nervous “wow, I cannot believe he said that” laughter–is usually an indicator of something not pleasing to God. I think I can safely say that Tim Hawkins will not perform that bit in heaven. I am not trying to pick on one guy. He is just an easy example. This touches all of us. This irreverent spirit permeates the entire entertainment culture of Christianity and it is wrong. It is not a sin to laugh and there is redeeming merit at poking fun at ourselves. But God is not a joke. His name is not funny. We serve a Holy God. He demands to be loved, revered, and feared. He said so (Romans 3:18, 2 Corinthians 7:1, 1 Peter 1:13-20, Revelation 15:4). This is not just an Old Testament concept.

Unkindness.

Christian comedy can also be just downright mean-spirited–having fun at someone else’s expense. As preachers we have learned to be careful of this when we preach. It is not appropriate for us to make fun of our wives, children or friends. It’s a tricky business. It’s not wrong to tell a funny story. But it is wrong to be demeaning (Ephesians 4:32). It takes some discernment to know the difference. When I was a child it was fairly common practice for some preachers to make their wives the butt of their jokes from the pulpit. My mother would writhe in indignation for these godly women that she loved and admired who were being publicly humiliated by their husbands for the sake of a laugh. She told me that if I ever became a preacher, I should never ever do it. As far as I know, I haven’t. Thanks mom.

Arrogance.

Comedy can easily become irreverent or unkind, but it can also be just plain arrogant. It cannot be godly humility to present yourself as the cool guy and everyone else as idiots (Romans 12:3). Christian entertainment (and some preaching I have heard) crosses this line regularly.

It’s all wrapped together in the “cool Christian” culture. As popular culture encroaches on our daily choices, Christians desire more and more to live in it and partake of it. It is so tempting to want to be hip, popular, in, even sexy. But as a sincere believer I should be asking myself before God at least two very important questions. What part of my nature is wanting to express itself or be entertained in this way? And does this truly please God? I am not presuming an answer for you. You will have to discern that for yourself.

But there is more.

Comedy is not the only problem in the entertainment culture. There is also the disconnect between sexual disobedience, deviancy in entertainment and living the daily Christian life before a Holy God. Voyeurism is not Christian or God-approved. The sex acts, nudity, and indecency that believers visually consume without even being bothered is rather astounding. Years ago, some watched secretly. Now professing believers talk about it openly over coffee on Sunday morning without blushing.

Violence is also a concern. If we believe that God is the sovereign owner of all life, then pretending to snuff out life gratuitously in movies and gaming is in defiance of that truth. There are times when depicting a violent act is essential in developing a story line or portraying a historical event. But the portrayal itself should not be fun or amusing.

I know. There are some who are reading this right now in disbelief. Can I just challenge you to think it through? Paul said to prove all things and discard evil wherever it occurs (1 Thessalonians 5:21). All things. That is all of life. Can you lay your entertainment fix before God and ask Him to approve it? It won’t be me looking over your shoulder, and even if I was, my opinion should not matter to you. We are each going to answer to God for these choices we make. Make them deliberately and prayerfully.

So, what should we do as Christian leaders?

Teach people about God.

It has been our practice to preach against what is wrong, and we do need to do that in order to clarify. But we must communicate WHY it is wrong. The reasons are rooted in the holy nature of God Himself. Very deliberately, consciously explain and worship God. Teach God’s people His attributes and characteristics. People need to understand holiness, justice, righteousness, transcendence, immanence, love, immensity, grace, mercy. How will they know unless someone teaches them? How will they be taught unless we purposefully plan to teach? Every worship service should be doctrinally focused upon God and profoundly reverent. We have to teach these truths over and over and over again.

Live with care.

We must live with care, talk with care, and watch and listen with care.

Be discerning with our children.

We need to be discerning about who we set before our eyes, or our children’s eyes as positive examples of Christian living. Cultural popularity is no biblical standard. The lifestyle matters as much as the words spoken. When we use the world’s standard of popularity seeking Christian celebrities to inspire us, we adopt the error of the world. We create a form of Christian worldliness. Kenneth Myers says that the result is that instead of being “in the world, but not of the world” we create a Christian culture that is “of the world, but not in the world” (All God’s Children and Blue Suede Shoes (Crossway, 1989), pp 17-23).

We love to laugh. It’s such an American thing and it is wonderful in its appropriate context. But we also need to take seriously Paul’s condemnation of those who “not only do these things, but take pleasure in them that do them” (Romans 1:32). This is NOT legalism. It is not about the rules. It is about our heart attitude toward our holy God. It is about desiring to please Him above any worldly pleasures that we might desire for ourselves.

We desperately need revival in this nation. Until American Christians come face to face with God and repent of the mockery that we have made of the Christian faith there will only be well-deserved sorrow and judgment.

That is not funny.