“One reason for our failure to laugh [at the humor of Jesus] is our extreme familiarity with the received text. The words seem to us like old coins, in which the edges have been worn smooth and the engravings have become almost indistinguishable. . . . The main effort must be an effort on the part of the contemporary student to confront Christ as actually portrayed rather than as we have imagine Him to be. Only then will we feel the sharpness of His wit.”

-Elton Trueblood, The Humor of Christ, pp. 18-19