The Cost of Discipleship

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Summary: Grace Revisited
Review: The cost of Discipleship by Deitrich Bonhoeffer.
The first impact of his powerful work unravelling the difference between cheap grace which we bestow on ourselves and costly grace which may ultimately cost a disciple his life but in the end offers him the only true life sets the bar that this is indeed a serious work. Typical of his forceful expression is the passage where he shows how cheap grace becomes just another law to bind people to a selfish lifestyle while all the time masquerading as the gift of God. In his own words "Grace interpreted as a principle, pecca fortiter as a principle, grace at a low cost, is in the last resort simply a new law, which brings neither help nor freedom.Grace as a living word, pecca fortiter as our comfort in tribulation and as a summons to discipleship, costly grace is the only pure grace, which really forgives sins and gives freedom to the sinner.
We ........have gathered like eagles round the carcase of cheap grace, and there we have drunk of the poison which has killed the life of following Christ."
The fine distinction between following a correct doctrine but abusing it and following Christ in the dynamic of grace is masterfully handled in this work which desperately needs airing in this day of cheap grace.
Discipleship takes on a new meaning as he discusses the differences between being obedient to Christ by prescription and following Christ in a living relationship with him in a contemporary world. All the more remarkable is this book as we recognize the circumstances under which it was written and the price which Bonhoeffer ultimately paid in order to live by what he had written.

"When Christ calls a man, he bids him come and die"- Dietrich Bonhoeffer, The Cost of Discipleship


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Summary: More than Surface Christianity
Review: The Cost of Discipleship covers several topics, all of which touch on basic Christian doctrine. It centralizes around whom Jesus is and his relation to us. The book begins with a chapter on the difference between cheap and costly grace. This chapter sets the tone for the rest of the book. Bonhoeffer realized that once given to Christ, an individual must do more than just claim religion and attend Sunday church services. He describes the call to discipleship and how we are to relate to Christ after becoming Christian disciples. A hint of an existential perspective can be sensed as the book progresses. Bonhoeffer gives his insights into scripture as he goes through the Sermon on the Mount. The book also relates the purpose of the church and the individual within the church. Bonhoeffer's tone has a preachy quality to it as though one is reading a long sermon. Throughout his book, he inserts Latin and Greek words which may mean more to the scholar, but do not do much good for the layman. However, this does not detract from Bonhoeffer's points, and the book is not too terribly hard to understand. There is a detailed but brief biography of Dietrich Bonhoeffer's life at the beginning of the book. Reading through this helps to put the rest of the work in perspective.

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Summary: Excellent Life Example
Review: The Cost of Discipleship should be read by all Christians and theological students. I have found this book marked down and away. But once I began to read it I could not put it down. It is amazing how a good man as Dr Bohhoffer could have given so much of his life and devotion without fear. He follows his faith and the book gives an excellent read. I recommend this book for those like myself who are confused of he gospel. He will reinvigerate your soul. It is a book that will give you confidence and peace.

Mark from New Mexico

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Summary: Why did Jesus die for you?
Review: The exposition of the Sermon on the Mount is fantastic. Boenhoeffer is straight-forward and leaves you no wiggle room in terms of conviction. He has a gift for communicating our thought processes as we try to justify sin in our lives, and I was amazed that his insight was written decades ago in a different country, because they perfectly described the way I think today.

The last fourth of the book was a little "thicker" to me, and I did not get as much out of it. The author's thoughts were not as lucid once he got out of the Sermon on the Mount passage, and they did not communicate as much to me personally. However, the first 3/4 of this book is so powerful that I would recommend it to anyone.

Be prepared to face your comfortable habits and ways of thought in a new light if you read this book. The Word is a sword, and Bonhoeffer uses it to penetrate us.

Rating:
Summary: Cost of Discipleship
Review: The exposition of the Sermon on the Mount is fantastic. Boenhoeffer is straight-forward and leaves you no wiggle room in terms of conviction. He has a gift for communicating our thought processes as we try to justify sin in our lives, and I was amazed that his insight was written decades ago in a different country, because they perfectly described the way I think today.

The last fourth of the book was a little "thicker" to me, and I did not get as much out of it. The author's thoughts were not as lucid once he got out of the Sermon on the Mount passage, and they did not communicate as much to me personally. However, the first 3/4 of this book is so powerful that I would recommend it to anyone.

Be prepared to face your comfortable habits and ways of thought in a new light if you read this book. The Word is a sword, and Bonhoeffer uses it to penetrate us.

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Summary: The Cost Of Discipleship - PeterSmith Pub Hardcover
Review: The purchase of the Hardcover edition by publisher Peter Smith was to replace my paperback copy from 1974, which has fallen apart from use and age. For me, The Cost of Discipleship is among the most profound and spiritual disturbing books I have read. It is Christianity for adults only. This edition failed to meet my expectations of a quality hardback. While it may barely last me until my death I had wanted a copy in which I had placed my notations to pass on to my sons. Except for the hardcover this edition is of paperback quality including acid paper and glued in pages. Purchase The Cost of Discipleship if you are willing to chance having a superficial faith illuminated, but purchase it in paperback or in a different hardcover edition.

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Summary: Do you believe what you believe?
Review: There are some books that leave a person humble and still. Books that make one look deep within themselves and force on to answer hard questions that most avoid.In the Forward we read: "When Christ calls a man, says Dietrich Bonhoeffer,"he bids him come and die". As the we are reminded this man was a martyr many times before he died. And in reading this book I never felt such an intimate bond with someone I had never met before. Or a more intimate bond with G~d. It was if I was being allowed into a dialogue and being forced to watch and being forced to ask myself just what am I willing to die for? My faith in G~d? The book forces you to take that burning, not so pleasant look at whether one mouths the words or actually believes what they say. Reading the Who Am I poem he wrote from his prison cell is priceless. Throughout the book I was constantly reminded that Christ died for his faith. I had never considered this before. And in fact it is what those who profess to be followers of Christ, are also called to do. But how many if pushed to the wall would do so? This book left me quiet. I am still quiet. I cry and am still fighting with myself because I say "yes" I would die for my faith in G~d, but then I wonder..... At least I admit I question myself.I appreciated the GRACE AND DISCIPLESHIP section as it caused me pain. Needed pain.THE MESSENGERS spoke to the harsh realities of the faith and the cost.In an era especially here in the states where Christianity is often seen from a tele-evangelist mode this book slaps you in the face and reminds you that TRUE faith is more along the lines of the lone person in a one on one mode with G~d. That it is little hype and materialism and LOTS of simplicity.Even if you are not a religios/spiritual/christian/whatever read this book. It will make you a more mature and thoughtful person.

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Summary: The truth about grace and discipleship
Review: This book changed my life. It completely altered the way I looked at grace, the cross, Christ, and discipleship. I have learned so much and it has not been easy reading, but every minute spent with this book and studying the Bible along with it has been well worth it. If you are serious about God changing your life then this book is for you.

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Summary: Must Reading for All Christians
Review: This book is a must read for anyone who calls himself a Christian. I particularly like Bohnhoeffer's concept of 'cheap grace' and how it is our mortal enemy.

Cheap grace? To quote Bonhoeffer himself, "It is the preaching of forgiveness without requiring repentance, baptism without church discipline, Communion without confession, absolution without personal confession. Cheap grace is grace without discipleship, grace without the cross, grace without Jesus Christ, living and incarnate." In contrast, 'real grace' will cost a man his life.

This concept of grace, as Bonhoeffer showed by the example of his life and just as importantly his death, stands in stark contrast to the pop Christianity 'Happy Church' movement we so often see on Sunday morning TV - or just down the street.

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Summary: THERE IS NO DETOUR!
Review: This book is an excellent treatise on the necessity for all true believers to follow the Lord Jesus Christ on His pathway of humiliation and shame, pain and suffering, and ultimately death. The author leaves no room for detour around this awful truth but confronts it head on. A definite wake-up call to all of us who claim the name of Christ for salvation! The cost is everything that we are, everything we have, and everything we desire. Christ alone is all-in-all!