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Text Box: but more especially because, “it is lawful to do a good deed on the Sabbath days”. He lived the law as it was intended to be lived. His comment regarding the actual payment of taxes, based on the coin used for payment which coin had the likeness of Caesar - Render to Caesar the things which are Caesar’s, and to God that which is God’s - is generally applicable to the laws of men, always remembering both that God’s law is superior and that man’s law can not validly be used as either an excuse or as a reason to commit sin. Jesus also had, and has, a lively sense of humor. His verbal exchange with the woman at the well is one double entente after another both combined with and in the form of alliterational onomatopoeia or alliteration and onomatopoeia. It is quite witty. Each of us can easily confirm that Jesus continues to have a lively sense of humor even to this very day, by simply looking into the mirror. From these and other examples in both scripture and private writings we have a fairly good idea of what kind of person Jesus was, and is. While one should never presume Jesus will not hold them accountable for their life, and will definitely condemn eternally to Hell those whom He judges deserve Hell, one should also never be afraid of Jesus. He is quite likable. Ref: Gal. 3:16-22; Luke 17:11-19 + ++ Lee, S.S.B. God, please help me love You

Text Box: overtly excessive restrictions, punishments, and such, upon ourselves or others, and making overbearingly oppressive assessments of our own holiness or that of others - although this last is less of a problem in these times, than it was in the past; and, here, one must be concerned about laxness just as much as one must be concerned about excessiveness or severity. So, what is a person to do? The answer is simple: imitate Christ. Some people ask the question, “What would Jesus do?” and are ridiculed for asking that question. Those who ridicule in this instance are the ones who deserve ridicule, for while they may deem themselves to be too sophisticated to consider such a question, and while what God would do in a certain situation may not be what is proper or even possible for a human to do, yet a truthful, honest, considered, and insightful answer will at the very least provide a guide to those seeking direction. Though most of the New Testament is concerned with Christ’s teachings and miracles which confirmed His Divinity and His right to teach, and contains little of His every day activities, there actually is a wealth of information about His habits and customary activities. Judicious and proper application or use of this information is a fruitful guide. Prior to engaging in any planned major activity, Jesus prayed and fasted. His prayers were straightforward and to the point, always including His desires and subordinating them to the will of His Father, as exemplified by His prayer in the garden where He asked that He not drink the cup of His passion but that if it was His Father’s will then He would drink of the cup. Jesus preceded the beginning of His public life with a forty day retreat of fasting and prayer in the desert. This was not the type of fasting such as that done at Ramadon which the Moslems practice, wherein no food is eaten during the daytime followed by feasting and partying after sundown. It was fasting which caused hunger and discomfort for the full twenty-four hours of each of the forty days, and reduced the natural carnality of the human nature so-

Text Box: as-to make it more properly subservient to the spiritual. The prayer was not that of mindless generalities, but rather focused, intentional, and purposeful - reminiscent of His prayer in the Garden at the beginning of His Passion. Jesus welcomed crowds, but also welcomed solitude or relative solitude with a few friends. He would often take refuge of sorts in the mountains, the desert, and on boats. It was to one of these three places He would go when overtly pressed by the crowds. The value to Him of a brief respite-retreat was immense. Jesus lead a life of perfect chastity. He did not and does not require others so do, but does require each of us be chaste in accordance with his or her station in life. (Mat: 19:12) Yet, unlike Saint John the Forerunner (the Baptist), Jesus did not lead an especially austere life, for the Jews commenting on Saint John’s austerity in food and garments and saying Saint John had a devil, also condemned Christ calling Him a glutton and a wine drinker, and a friend of publicans and sinners. (Mat. 11:18-19) What Jesus did was to simply enjoy that which was available and also proper for Him to enjoy, in a proper manner, without engaging in excess or being obsessive. Saint John the Forerunner and his followers, as well as the Pharisees, fasted regularly, but while Jesus fasted in important situations, neither Jesus nor His disciples fasted as a routine matter. Jesus definitely did not live a life of luxury - Mary Magdalene, Martha, and Lazarus were much more wealthy than He - and while it can not be said that He lived a “comfortable” life, neither did He live a life of poverty. Perhaps it could be said that fiscally or financially, Jesus lived a life of sufficiency with neither excess not want. Regarding the law - both that of God and that of man - Jesus conformed with the requirements of Mosaic Law, but more especially within Mosaic Law’s propriety, thus working miracles even on the Sabbath, and allowing His disciples to pluck ears of grain on the Sabbath (Mat. 12:1-12). He did so not just because, “the Son of man is Lord even of the Sabbath”

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