The Call to Discipleship

I apologize for the delay in posting this...I am back on schedule now, so I plan to post weekly now! :)

"...you can only learn about obedience by obeying..." -Bonehofer

In this chapter, Bonehoffer paints such a vivid picture about what a disciple's life looks like,

"the disciple is dragged out of his relative security into a life of absolute insecurity...from a life which is observable and calculable...into a life where everything is unobservable and fruitious...out of the realm of the finite...into the realm of the infinite possibilities."

Thinking about this makes me wonder at how God works in our lives. It does not make logical sense in the world's eyes to say that a life of absolute insecurity=a life with meaning and purpose. I think if you were to ask the average person if they want to live a life that is incalculable and filled with insecurity...most would turn it down. But for the Christian, that is what makes God's grace so amazing and something SO worthy of our thanksgiving and praise. No where else can we live a life like this and produce anything, but in God's kingdom, this is the only life that a disciple lives.

"Christianity without discipleship is always Christianity without Christ."

That is a bold and powerful statement. I know we were raised in two totally different denominations. I know that those of you who are from an extremely works-based salvation background cringe at any hint that our salvation can be earned, but let us not react to bad theology by swinging to the opposite pendulum with equal bad theology.

There is a big difference in saying we can earn our salvation and that discipleship, obedience, and action are deeply necessary for a life that knows Christ. I think the difference here is in the fact that our outward works do not redeem us, but rather it is out of an overflow of a redeemed life (thanks to our Lord's grace) that we honor God with our obedience and He then transforms our desires and passions.

Bonhoffer makes this point through a great comparison,

"If a drunkard signs the pledge, or a rich man gives all his money away, they are both of them freeing themselves from their slavery to alcohol or riches, but not from their bondage to themselves...Peter knows he dare not climb out of the ship in his own strength--his very first step would be his undoing..."

It is not enough to turn away from sin in our own flesh, because our flesh is weak. The sinful man will always revert back to filling his sinful passions. The only way to be rid from this is to realize that it cannot be done on our own strength. We will never, on our own, get past our sinful passions. Only in submitting to God, only in becoming a disciple and allowing him to decide each step and move, will we be delivered from the bondage of our sinful man.

"only he who believes is obedient and only he who is obedient believes..."

Romans 1:5 "...Through whom we have received grace and apostleship to bring about the obedience of faith for the sake of his name among all the nations, including you who are called to belong to Jesus Christ..."

"the obedience of faith" I love how Paul makes them one. He does not compartmentalize them, he does not separate them. When we truly begin to look at obedience and faith as one, we begin to ask ourselves questions that demand uncomfortable answers.

This challenges me to examine what I have "believed" in the past. I would encourage everyone to take some time about beliefs that we really hold dear to our hearts that have no actual influence in our actions and decisions.

A personal example for me comes in how I devote my time. Yes, I believe that spending time daily in prayer and God's word is vital to my spiritual life. I could passionately defend why every believer needs to be delving into God's word and diligently studying it. I could write for hours about prayer and how I have seen it transform lives.

Do my actions consistently line up with those beliefs. I confess sadly, no. Then I have to ask myself, doI really believe? What makes up my beliefs? A belief has to be more then just a concept I agree with in my head, it has to be something my heart grasps ahold of and acts upon. If I truly applied the principle that where I am disobedient, I do not believe...I would have to make some very alarming statements.

I would have to say at the end of a busy day where my prayers consisted of a quick thanks for the meal that "I do not believe prayer is a necessary part of my daily life." When I pass up an opportunity to incarnate God's love to someone who is hurting in exchange for some time to myself, I have to say, "I believe that having time to myself to relax is more important then that hurting person's soul." When I crack open the stack of books I want to read or turn on the TV to watch that movie I have been wanting to see when I haven't opened my Bible in days, I have to say, "I believe that reading books and watching movies is a better use of my time then God's word."

The last part of the chapter again challenged me to think about the life a disciple must live. Often, I hear Christians explain accepting Christ like it will will lead to this incredible life filled with purpose and meaning...it will fill a void...it will complete them, make them truly human. While I agree with each of those statements when Christ called someone to him, he didn't present this pretty, great package. He challenged them, if you hate your father and mother, you are worthy...can I burry my father? no, let the dead bury their own dead, come now... keeping all the commands is not enough...sell it all, follow me. Christianity is an extreme faith that calls for an extreme, radical life that does not quite fit in the box that the world tells us is "the good life."

Discussion Questions:

1. Bonehofer states, "Nothing on earth, however sacred, must be allowed to come between Jesus and the man he has called--not even the law itself."

thoughts? how does this apply to your own life or your families?

2. Why do we separate our beliefs from our actions?

Costly Grace, part three...

Great discussion on the last post!! I just want to bring out a few different thoughts and continue the discussion before I post the next chapter.

Luke, I really liked how you wrapped up the lay minister vs. professional minister discussion…

“So what does this teach us? I think it teaches us our helplessness before the living God. Whether I leave it all behind, or whether I remain content in the world there is a real danger of relying on something OTHER than God Almighty. And this is where the call of Jesus Christ incarnate, crucified, and risen leads: to a shattering of all self-reliance against the hammer of the law and a re-creation and re-birth in the vicarious work of Jesus Christ on our behalf.

If we look to the rich young ruler of the Scriptures we can see this fact. Jesus calls this man to leave his entire life behind to follow Him. Why? Because the man was attached to his life, attached to his job, attached to his family, attached to his accomplishments. Would leaving this all behind solve everything? No, because even then he might even be more firmly attached to his self, to his stubborn self will. Jesus Christ therefore wants to simply strip us down of all these false idols and attachments so that we stand before Him as nothing but helpless and broken beggars. It is then there as unrighteous sinners, as helpless and sick wretches that the grace and comfort that He offers will be so uplifting and full of true peace.”

These are very challenging thoughts. It is so important to realize that it is not just the act of leaving everything physically behind…we need to also be willing to leave our heart, passions, and self-will at the foot of the cross.

The other thread of discussion I would like to follow is Roxana’s:

“Bonhoeffer says we can not choose to be disciples. That being a disciple is something we are called to. I know we are called to make disciples of the whole earth. Yet Jesus called some men to be the kind of discipleship that were asked to give everything up (and I know he asks that of all of us) and others he just preached to wanting them to be born into the kingdom…Jesus’ earnest desire would be that we all live a costly life, but we all don’t get the message clearly because we haven’t stood and cut down the monastic weed that continues to infest our churches”

(mom, clarify if you meant something different…) But I think what you are saying is that all of us are called to be disciples, but not everyone will answer that call. I would like to take it a step further and say that Jesus has called ALL men to be the kind of disciples that will give up everything. I think it is more then Christ’s desire for us to live a costly life, but his demand…anything less is because our hearts are rooted in sin. I think the answer to the “weed” (I am thinking you are talking about false doctrine/teaching) is to powerfully, boldly preach God’s word to each other. As we immerse ourselves in the word of God, our lives should take shape according to the commands in that word. The answer to the areas of our life that we have not allowed costly grace to enter in is a humble heart of repentance before our amazing God who has saved us from having to live a life filled with anything less then being his disciple.

discussion on Costly Grace...

I want to wait to post about the second chapter until those of you who want to participate have some time to comment. I don’t want to jump a head and leave everyone behind!!
My dad made some great comments. I would like to touch on one of them. (click here to read his thoughts first)

Professional Ministry?

Someone who is walking in the flesh and thinking through the flesh, looks at their pastor and thinks, “I’m so glad he is hired, so I don’t have to do that!” That thinking is evil. It is a thought birthed out of our sin-nature. (Romans 8)

Someone who is walking in the Spirit and thinking through the guidance of the Holy Spirit, looks at their pastor and thinks, “I am so thankful to be a part of this body…what is my role in serving in God’s kingdom? Why has God placed me in this community? What can I offer and give to help partner with my brother to see God’s kingdom advance?”


When Christians think the second way and not the first, the problem is not that we have professional pastors; the problem is that we don’t have Christ-followers. The problem does not lay in the existence of pastors, churches, politicians, society, or culture. The problem is in the lack of ownership that I, that we, have taken of God’s gift of grace. This costly, priceless gift should birth within us a desire to throw our lives into the race that God has set before us, not pass the gauntlet to someone else. God forgive us for ever thinking his call to be a disciple and make disciples does not rest on us because we do not get paid to do it. (And, summing up some of my dad’s thoughts, how can there be a “higher calling” then that which Christ has called us to already?)

Romans 8: 12-19
“So then, brothers, we are debtors, not to the flesh, to live according to the flesh. For if you live according to the flesh you will die, but if by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body, you will live. For all who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God. For you did not receive the spirit of slavery to fall back into fear, but you have received the Spirit of adoption as sons, by whom we cry, Abba! Father! The Spirit himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God, and if children, then heirs--heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, provided we suffer with him in order that we may also be glorified with him. For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing with the glory that is to be revealed to us. For the creation waits with eager longing for the revealing of the sons of God”

Costly Grace

"Cheap grace is the deadly enemy of our Church."

This chapter struck my heart in so many ways. I often look at two different extremes in thinking and rank which extreme is worse; however, the reality is that any value or belief that I hold to be true that is not centered in God's word, is false. Cheap grace is just as dangerous as salvation by works.

Depending on our backgrounds, we may be nervous to make that statement. Our past experience may have been filled with legalism, "dos and don'ts", and outward signs of "looking Christian" and the day we found that there was nothing we could do in our own power to earn our salvation was a great day of freedom and a beautiful revelation of God's grace. Or...maybe our past experience was filled attending seeker sensitive churches, church was nothing more then a social gathering where people plastered on fake smiles, no sense of authentic and real relationships and the day we discovered that we had purpose and mission was a day of great awakening for our soul.

The pendulum seems to be going back in the direction of "grace." But I can hardly call it grace, because it is a cheap grace. It seems to me that a generation looked at the church and said, "we are sick of legalism" and instead of going to God's word to define what it means to be a disciple of Christ, we simply spurned a movement in opposition to the current trend. The results are devastating. The recurring theme to me from reading this chapter was that cheap grace and salvation by works both...equally, desecrate the beautiful work of the cross.

"Cheap grace is not the kind of forgiveness which frees us from the toils of sin."

I confess that I have been guilty of seeing grace as an abstract concept, a beautiful, artistic idea and not as something concrete that changes the core and essence of who I am and what I am called to do. What type of salvation are we offering people if we are not offering them a salvation from their toils of sin? If we really believe that sin is as deadly as we say it is, then we need to make sure we explain a grace that really is something that leads to change. We do a disservice to our fellow brothers and sisters when we depict grace as something that gets us into heaven (making that the beginning, middle, and end of salvation)...praise God that grace offers us a life where we can take part in God's kingdom right now, here on earth!

Too often I wake up, go through my day, and go to bed fully knowing that God's grace saves me without giving thought to what this means as a disciple of his. My heart was broken as I read this chapter and realized how little sacredness I often put on "grace" and to know that I too...in my own relationship with Christ...have cheapened God's great gift to me.

Bonhoefer asks the question, "what are those three thousand Saxtons put to death by Charlemange compared with the million of spiritual corpses in our country today?" Almost 70 years later, the question haunts me.

The last paragraph paints a beautiful picture of God's amazing grace. God's ways are so opposite of the way the world would expect/think. It is in pouring ourselves out completely and fully following Christ that we are filled completely and fully. It is only in God's kingdom that you become whole through brokenness. Only in following Christ are you filled with a greater understanding of grace and mercy as you become a disciple in the truest sense.

Discussion:

I loved how Bonehofer integrates grace and discipleship. I think these two words were synonymous for Bonehofer. This is what I would like us to discuss.

Do we act like these are synonyms? Do we live out our daily life truly believing that being a disciple is a reflection of truly understanding God's grace?

"The Cost of Discipleship" by Dietrich Bonhoeffer

"When Christ calls a man, he bids him come and die."

-Dietrch Bonhoeffer

Bonhoeffer was a man that understood discipleship and understood the cost that came with following Christ. I started reading this book a few months ago and the words have greatly challenged and inspired me. I am going to share my thoughts on each chapter (hopefully once a week), but more then anything, I want to hear what you are thinking as you read this...