Humility in Preaching (Part 1)

F.B. Meyer wrote, “I used to think, that God’s gifts were on shelves one above another and the taller we grew, the easier we can reach them. Now I find, that God’s gifts are on shelves one beneath the other and the lower we stoop, the more we get.” For Spiritual formation through preaching to be both authentically Christian and authentically postmodern, it will need to display honest humility. The shame of the human race is that people take themselves far too seriously, while not taking God seriously enough. The greatest expression of humility in postmodern preaching is humor. Humor does not necessarily mean funny, but the Latin base of that word, humus, meaning “earth” or “soil.” The most basic meaning of being human is that people are from the earth. Humans are humble, “earthy” creatures. And one of the most basic human experiences is to laugh (and cry), especially at one’s self.

One of the greatest tragedies in Church life is preachers who take themselves far to seriously while not taking God's Word seriously enough. The authentic postmodern Christian preacher will use humor, not to entertain, but to engage his audience. Self-deprecating humor is one of the surest ways to connect to the pathos of the postmodern congregation. The common experiences of life are earthy and humorous. As one humbly shares one’s life and faith journey, one earns a hearing from a generation that is looking for authenticity and integrity. Modernist preachers found a hearing through formality and seriousness. Postmoderns are looking for commonality, humility, and humus.

This is the humble, joyful, life-affirming engagement of humor. C. S. Lewis understood this when he had his demonic character, Screwtape, divide humor into four categories: “Joy, Fun, the Joke Proper, and Flippancy.” The first two are of no use to the demons, Screwtape says, because joy and fun, like music, are actually the stuff of heaven and unintelligible to demons. Lewis also quotes Martin Luther, saying, “The best way to drive out the devil, if he will not yield to texts of Scripture, is to jeer and flout him, for he cannot bear scorn.” Chesterton said, “Satan fell through force of gravity. We must picture Hell as a state where everyone is perpetually concerned about his own dignity and advancement, where everyone has a grievance, and where everyone lives the deadly serious passions of envy, self-importance, and resentment.”