Murderer in Jester's Clothing

We've all done it: used sarcasm to offer a covert opinion of something. Instead of saying I don't like this presidential candidate, I say, "Oh, yeah, he'll make a good president." That's an easy example, nowhere near as pointed a dagger as it could be, rather silly.

Or is it silly?

When I was a student at Baptist Bible College (now Clarks Summit University in Clarks Summit, Pennsylvania), there were bulletin boards in the mailroom and the four undergrad classes and the student government took turns decorating them. I still remember the title of one: Sarcasm is a Murderer in Jester's Clothing.

* * * *

This morning a photo of Hugh Laurie showed up in my Facebook feed, attached to an article that was actually written five months ago. The title of the article, "Sarcasm is God For Your Health," tells us sarcasm is a good thing. The body of the article explains a Harvard study found both the sarcastic speaker/writer and the listener must use decoding skills to figure out the meaning of the sarcastic quip and become more creative team players as a result. The final line of the article proves the college bulletin board to be true; it says, "Dumb dumbs need not apply."

We like to pat ourselves on the back and say, "I haven't stabbed anyone today, no matter how much they deserved it, so I'm doing good!" But Jesus tells us our words matter. He said in Matthew 5: 21-22, “You have heard that the ancients were told, ‘You shall not commit murder’ and ‘Whoever commits murder shall be liable to the court.’ But I say to you that everyone who is angry with his brother shall be guilty before the court; and whoever says to his brother, ‘You good-for-nothing,’ shall be guilty before the supreme court; and whoever says, ‘You fool,’ shall be guilty enough to go into the fiery hell."

It is easy to slip into sarcasm. I think I am witty and clever, and maybe I can make someone laugh. And maybe Harvard is right, and it makes me more creative. But is it what God wants from me?

In his letter to the Philippians, Paul writes, "Finally, brethren, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is of good repute, if there is any excellence and if anything worthy of praise, dwell on these things. The things you have learned and received and heard and seen in me, practice these things, and the God of peace will be with you." Now, his letter has focused on having peace and rejoicing even in the midst of hardship, so his first purpose is to encourage his readers to not worry (in their minds). But I think this can apply to our words, too. Let us use our words to encourage one another, not murder each other, no matter how amusing the jester's clothing.