The Cost of Discipleship

Quite simply, The Cost of Discipleship is a timeless, treasured, and an elite book that stands head and shoulders above most of its peers.The book is a theologically rich yet practical exposition on discipleship and the Christian walk by a genuine suffering servant of Christ. (The author voluntarily returned to Nazi Germany from the United States to preach the good news, only to be executed for his beliefs). This book not only challenges your imagination to consider what discipleship truly means, but also reveals how costly that choice becomes in contemporary society. In Bonhoeffer’s own words, “When Christ calls a man, he bids him come and die.”In contemplating what the words of Christ mean for believers in the 20th century, Bonhoeffer develops a gorgeous argument separated into four sections. Part I, “Grace and Discipleship” brings the reader back to the Biblical tradition to explore that grace cannot be separated from sin, and that genuine discipleship essentially means a rejection of one’s very life in pursuit of God. It is here that the author develops his profound idea of “costly grace.” In other words, “what has cost God much cannot be cheap for us.” Part II, “The Sermon on the Mount” ends up being a wonderfully orchestrated exegesis of Christ’s words in Matthew chapters 5 through 7. Here, what discipleship actually means in our day-to-day lives is explored, and this further expands on Part I. Parts III and IV, “The Messengers” and “The Church of Jesus Christ and the Life of Discipleship,” expand into interpersonal and group dynamics of discipleship. The book concludes with the chapter “The Image of Christ” where we learn how to regain our humanity by relinquishing our individualism.The Cost of Discipleship is a gripping commentary on the demands of sacrifice and moral stability from a man whose life and reflections were idyllic articulations of Christ-centered leadership, driven by the force of committed Christian neighborliness and an imaginative sense of civic duty. In a modern world full of opinions, Bonhoeffer’s words written more than 50 years ago are as potent and powerful now as they were then. No longer are we fit to call ourselves “Christians” when we incessantly hop from branch to branch. As the author makes very plain, there are only two ways—Christ or the world—and to choose the latter invariably leads to death.This is a highly inspirational, intellectually stimulating and empowering masterpiece that should be on the bookshelf of anyone who wants to embrace what it truly means to be an imitator of Christ. Read it, take notes, reflect on it, cherish it, and then read it again.Prepare to be convicted.

Excellent book. And if you’re going to get it, make sure to get the companion study guide. Good for a Bible study or just individual reading.

I love and appreciate all of his work, this book arrived in perfect condition.

Good book

The Cost of Discipleship – Dietrich BonhoefferI found this book to be significantly instructive on how to be a disciple of Jesus Christ. However, Bonhoeffer does not make a clear distinction between being saved by grace through faith and following Jesus as His disciple in obedience to His commands. He does not distinguish the salvation passages from the biblical warning passages to Christians. Nevertheless, if Bonhoeffer’s exhortations are taken by the believer to embrace costly discipleship as an invitation to follow Jesus there is great benefit.Dietrich Bonhoeffer succinctly explains justification in chapter 31, “The justification of the sinner consists in the sole righteousness of God, wherein the sinner is utterly and completely unrighteous, and has no righteousness whatever of his own, side by side with the righteousness of God…But when we are brought to faith in the death of Christ, we receive the righteousness of God triumphant on the cross in the very place where we receive our own condemnation as sinners.” Yet later in the chapter we read statements that contradict the truth of faith alone in Christ alone. “Discipline in a congregation is a servant of the precious grace of God. If a member of the Church falls into sin, he must be admonished and punished, ‘lest he forfeit his own salvation’ and the gospel be discredited.” When a Christian sins, he never forfeits his salvation, but severs his fellowship with God and harms his relationship with other believers.Above all I was drawn to Dietrich Bonhoeffer’s life as he lived it sold out to Jesus Christ as described in the Memoir section given by G. Leibholz before the text. He was truly a man of God who gave his life as a martyr for the sake of Christ. But he was full of life, a believer who served the Lord by serving others. This description by Leibholz gives the reader a look into Bonhoeffer’s heart:“Bonhoeffer was as open as any man could be to all the things which make life beautiful. He rejoiced in the love of his parents, his sisters and brothers, his fiancée, his many friends. He loved the mountains, the flowers, the animals- the greatest and the simplest things in life. His geniality and inborn chivalry, his love of music, art and literature, the firmness of his character, his personal charm and his readiness to listen, made him friends everywhere. But what marked him most was his unselfishness and preparedness to help others up to the point of self-sacrific. Whenever others hesitated to undertake a task that required special courage, Bonhoeffer was ready to take the risk.”Bonhoeffer believed that only a turn to Christ could save a nation, “Dietrich Bonhoeffer more than anybody else realized that nothing less than a return to the Christian faith could save Germany.” I believe that his words are true for us in the United States today. Our only hope is revival in Christ Jesus.Here are some lessons in discipleship that I took from reading The Cost of Discipleship:-“’Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends.’ That is the love of the Crucified. Only in the cross of Christ do we find the fulfilment of the law.”-“Adherence to Jesus allows no free rein to desire unless it be accompanied by love.”-In agreeing to pray for our enemies (his enemies, the Nazis would ultimately martyr him) Bonhoeffer sees a prayer of love: “It will be the prayer of earnest love for these very sons of perdition who stand around and gaze at us with eyes aflame with hatred, and who have perhaps already raised their hands to kill us.”-More on prayer: “It matters little what form of prayer we adopt or how many words we use, what matters is the faith which lays hold on God and touches the heart of the Father who knew us long before we came to him.”-“Earthly goods were given to be used, not to be collected”Finally, Dietrich Bonhoeffer in these words speaks prophetically of himself: “A few, but only a few, of his followers are accounted worthy of the closest fellowship with his sufferings—the blessed martyrs. No other Christian is so closely identified with the form of Christ crucified.”