A Visit With Jesus

 Difficult Sayings of Jesus

Some statements made by Jesus can sound startling, puzzling, or even contradictory when they are separated from their language, setting, and biblical background. This collection examines those difficult sayings directly.

Each entry explains why the saying has caused difficulty, presents interpretations that have received serious consideration, and offers an assessment of what the saying most likely means.

Illustration of Dogs, Pigs, and Pearls

Dogs, Pigs, and Pearls

  Matthew 7:6
Cultural Context Figurative Language
Do not give dogs what is holy, and do not throw your pearls before pigs.

Why is this difficult? Who are the dogs and pigs, what do the holy things and pearls represent, and when should a disciple withhold them?

  Explore Saying
Illustration of Call No Man Father

Call No Man Father

  Matthew 23:8-10
Figurative Language Ethical
Call no man your father on earth.

Why is this difficult? Does Jesus literally prohibit calling another human being father, teacher, or master?

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Illustration of Judge Not

Judge Not

  Matthew 7:1-5; Luke 6:37-42
Ethical
Judge not, that you be not judged.

Why is this difficult? Does Jesus prohibit all moral judgment, or is he condemning a particular kind of judgment?

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Illustration of Be Perfect

Be Perfect

  Matthew 5:48
Language Theological
Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect.

Why is this difficult? Is Jesus requiring literal sinless perfection, and what does being perfect like God actually mean?

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Illustration of Take Up Your Cross

Take Up Your Cross

  Matthew 10:38; Matthew 16:24; Mark 8:34; Luke 9:23
Cultural Context Figurative Language
Take up your cross and follow me.

Why is this difficult? What would this disturbing image have meant to Jesus' hearers, particularly before his own crucifixion?

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Illustration of Whoever Has Will Be Given More

Whoever Has Will Be Given More

  Matthew 13:12; Mark 4:25; Luke 8:18
Figurative Language Theological
Whoever has will be given more; whoever does not have, even what he has will be taken away.

Why is this difficult? Why does Jesus describe the kingdom in language that appears to favor those who already possess something?

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Reading Difficult Sayings

A difficult saying is not necessarily an obscure saying. Sometimes the difficulty comes from an unfamiliar figure of speech, a first-century custom, or a biblical reference that Jesus' first hearers would have recognized more readily than we do.

Other sayings raise genuine interpretive or theological questions on which careful readers have reached different conclusions.

These studies try to distinguish what can be explained with confidence from what remains debated.

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"For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son,
that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life."