The first Joke in John’s Gospel

Who is Jesus? part 13

I said there are Jokes in John’s Gospel. But first, let’s see an AI-generated joke based on John 1:15, source punchlines.ai:

John the Baptist bore witness about Jesus. That’s why he was never invited back to dinner at Jesus’ house.

 (John bore witness about him, and cried out, “This was he of whom I said, ‘He who comes after me ranks before me, because he was before me.’”) John 1:15 ESVUK

Humour has been a delightful part of human expression since the dawn of written language, possibly even earlier! One of the earliest known bar jokes brings a smile to our faces, but first this: “A horse walks into a bar and the bartender cheerfully asks, ‘Why the long face?'” The next gem is a remarkable 4000 years old and originates from a fascinating Sumerian clay tablet discovered in Iraq. How wonderful to see that laughter has been connecting us through the ages!

A dog walks into a bar and says, ‘I cannot see a thing. I’ll open this one.’

Not much of a joke is it? OK, neither was the AI joke at the beginning of this post.

The real kicker is that humour is like a bad restaurant—it rarely travels well! So, if that joke flew over your head, don’t worry; it’s probably lost in the clouds along with everyone else’s laughter. It’s like those head-scratchers in the Bible—Have you ever tried unpacking the jokes in John’s Gospel? Believe it or not, it’s half the age the first punchline from the Sumerians! And guess what? The first joke in John doesn’t just walk onto the stage once; it makes a grand return in Chapter 1, verse 15, because who doesn’t love a good sequel?

John is teasing us.

John 1:1-18 is the opening song, a poetic opening setting out what the story of Jesus will be about. This song is in two parts, containing the John the Baptist joke. In the first half, after talking about theoretical philosophical concepts like The Word, light and life John says, “There was a man sent from God whose name was John, but it’s not about him,” (John 1:6-8, abridged).

Imagine this scenario: A Sunday School teacher poses the question to her class, “What furry animal spends its days swinging in trees, munching on nuts, and flaunting a bushy tail?” A hush falls over the room until one brave hand shoots up, shaking like a leaf. “Yes, Johnny?” the teacher prompts. Johnny, clearly uncertain, stammers, “Uh, Miss, I’m pretty sure the answer is Jesus, but honestly, it sounds a lot like a squirrel to me!”

John has introduced us to John the Baptist, who leads the way to a remarkable revelation. In the second half of his opening song, he joyfully states that the Word became flesh, bringing us a person to engage with, moving beyond mere philosophical ideas. This promise fills our hearts with hope, as we anticipate the connection to come, even as John the Baptist humbly reminds us, “It’s not about me,” encouraging us to focus on the greater purpose ahead, resonating with the inspiring message in verse 8.

We’re about to dive into the grand reveal soon, and yes, there’s a spoiler lurking in this post like a ninja, but I’ll keep it under wraps for now—who doesn’t love a little suspense?

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