Humor in Conflict

“But Jesus, knowing their evil intent, said, ‘You hypocrites, why are you trying to trap me? Show me the coin used for paying the tax.’ They brought him a denarius, and he asked them, ‘Whose image is this? And whose inscription?’ ‘Caesar’s,’ they replied. Then he said to them, ‘So give back to Caesar what is Caesar’s, and to God what is God’s.’ When they heard this, they were amazed. So they left him and went away.”
Matthew 22:18-22

I don’t know about you but I haven’t often thought about what kind of sense of humor Jesus had. I do imagine He has a good one though, having to deal with all of us humans all the time. As a seminary student I needed to write a paper describing one of the many conflicts found in Scripture and decided to use this week’s passage. As I read it I thought I caught a glimpse of Jesus’ mischievous side.

Perhaps a bit of background would be helpful. Jesus and His disciples had just the day before made the triumphal entry into Jerusalem. Jesus wasted no time in irritating the religious leaders. Jesus had caused a scene in the temple courts and made it clear the temple was not a place for corrupt business practices. Then when the religious leaders questioned by what authority He was doing this, Jesus turned the table on them making them look foolish and causing further offense. That brings us to this week’s passage.

Can you imagine Jesus in conversation with His disciples when He looks up and sees a group coming? I see him shaking his head with a slight smile and a “are you kidding me” attitude. Maybe you can see Him turn to His disciples and give them a “watch this” wink before laying into the group now standing there wanting His opinion on taxes. 

He turns it back on them when He tells them “well it looks like the coin belongs to Caesar so you best give it back to Caesar” and also lets them know that there are more important things - God things - that they should be concerned about. The group leaves, heads down, having been made fools of. Can you see Jesus shaking His head and laughing as he turns back to His disciples?

Keeping a sense of humor in the midst of conflict is important. Even though Jesus fully understood why He was in the city that week, the way he chose to handle some of the conflicts He faced reflected not only a sense of humor, but also His humble spirit. He didn’t let anyone walk all over Him but He also didn’t take Himself too seriously. In every conflict that He faced Jesus brought glory to His Father. 

Do we bring glory to God in the ways we deal with conflict? Maybe keeping our sense of humor would help to glorify God in the midst of whatever conflict we face. 

A Prayer
Father, thank you that Your Son has a sense of humor in dealing with us. Thank you that He showed us some creative ways of dealing with conflict. Help us, in the face of whatever conflict we might face, to keep our sense of humor and to act in such a way as to bring glory to You. In the name of Jesus, Amen.