In his book Why We Must Ignore Jesus, John Alexander writes that "Christians spend a lot of time and energy explaining why Jesus couldn't possibly have meant what He said. 

"This is understandable," continues Alexander: "Jesus is an extremist and we are all moderates.  What is worse, He was an extremist in His whole life - not just in the narrowly spiritual areas - but in everything."

"So we have to find ways to dilute His teaching."