I was on the atheist experience :)

[robvalue]

I think you might be starting from the conclusion that what Jesus says must make sense, or must be generally "good advice".

The fact that you're throwing up very real and logical objections shows that this isn't the case, and I think you're trying to let Jesus off the hook rather than say his words are not always very good.

Just my opinion. I've seen similar thinking from almost every religious theist, that the bible must make sense, so any concession or excuse is automatically justified.