Jesus: firebrands, arrows and death?

Among various theological commitments I have, one of them is a complete repudiation of the “Jesus was only joshin’ ya” school of exegesis. 
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Now, I know what you’re thinking, and you’re absolutely right. No one says Jesus, Paul, God, or whomever was joking. What we really do is give a high-minded philosophical explanation for why whatever Jesus was saying doesn’t really apply to us.
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So it’s really not so much that you think Jesus was joking. You just found a loophole.

- Fearsome Comrade, Jesus, The Great Kidder

 
I’m trying to take Jesus seriously even when it hurts. He claims to be the truth, so how can I assume that he doesn’t mean what he says*. If he says one thing, and I choose to do the opposite, I’m not treating him as the lord that I claim him to be.

RodeoClown: can’t accept a saviour who lies.

* That doesn’t mean every word is to be taken literally – common sense shows Jesus using hyperbole, allegory and imagery from time to time – but I’m trying to accept his words at face value rather than trying to twist whatever he says to fit my own desires.