Jesus’ haircut

I would like to know why there are so many pictures of Jesus when there is no record of how He looked. It seems to me that a man with long hair is not what He was like back then. Did men wear their hair long at that time? And why is He always fair skinned and not of a darker tone?

Name withheld by request

Editor’s response: Men at Christ’s time probably wore their hair longer than most men today. As a Middle-Eastern Jew, Jesus’ complexion probably was darker than today’s Caucasian skin.

Sabbath as “Lord’s Day”

Your attempt to equate the Sabbath with the Lord’s day is weak at best. In Mark 2:27, 28, Jesus said that “the Son of Man is Lord even of the Sabbath.” The Greek explicitly states that Christ did not mean that the Sabbath was His to possess, but rather that as Lord of all, He would do as He pleased on the Sabbath. In Revelation 1:10, John did not mean that the Lord’s day was Jesus’ possession but that it was the day dedicated to Him by the early church, not in accordance with the Mosaic law but in accordance with obedience to the Lord’s commandment of love.

James W. Lamb, Chapin, South Carolina

Editor’s response: The religious leaders criticized Jesus’ disciples because they were violating the Jewish Sabbath traditions. But Jesus said that as Lord of the Sabbath He had the authority to define proper Sabbath keeping. Thus, anything He permitted His disciples to do on the Sabbath was lawful. Regarding Revelation 1:10, you are reading a lot into the text that is not there.

Thank you for publishing the article “How Jesus Kept the Sabbath” by Alejandro Bullon (October 2005). I found his article to be so very positive and inspiring. It reminded me of what Jesus did for me. As I read the article I found myself longing to be closer to Jesus, and I’m even more eager for His return.

Judi Blackwell, Arlington, Virginia

When is sin a sin?

In reference to Ron Reese’s article “One More Piece of Pie” (September 2005), if something as small as thinking about eating another piece of pie is a sin then I am very lost and have no chance of getting into heaven.

John T. Chase, Crowley, Colorado

Editor’s response: There’s no sin in eating a piece of pie, or in thinking about it. Mr. Reese’s article was a humorous way to illustrate Jesus’ concept of sin—that it begins with the mind. The sin of intemperance, whether eating too much pie or any other harmful practice, begins with thinking about the intemperate act.

In my view, Mr. Reese’s first and more serious sin was his failure to recognize that his body is the temple of the Holy Spirit. With his weight and LDL profile, desserts such as blueberry pie should have given place to a healthy choice of fruit and a hearty walk.

Eva Nascimento, email

Loving the law

I vehemently disagree with Shawn Boonstra’s article “In Love With the Law” (November 2005). He comments, “It [the law] no longer hangs over us like a sentence, judging our imperfections and barring our way to heaven.” First John 3:4 gives the very definition of sin. It is the transgression of the law.

Robert Davis, Bennington, Vermont

Editor’s response: Mr. Boonstra’s article was about the motivation for obedience, not the necessity for obedience. When we love God’s laws, we won’t see them as “a sentence judging our imperfections and barring our way to heaven.”

Your Thoughts by Letters to editor	From the February 2006 Signs