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    Cost of Discipleship
    Cost of Discipleship
    Cost of Discipleship
    Audiobook9 hours

    Cost of Discipleship

    Written by Dietrich Bonhoeffer

    Narrated by Paul Michael

    4.5/5

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    About this audiobook

    This book is quite simply, one of the most profound and important books of the 20th century. Dietrich Bonhoeffer lived a testimony of his thoughtful and engaging writers. Focusing on the most treasured part of Christ's teaching - the Sermon on the Mount with its call to discipleship, and on the grace of God and the sacrifice which that demands. // Viewed against the background of Nazi Germany, Bonhoeffer's book is striking enough. At the same time, it shares with many great Christian classics a quality of timelessness, so that it has spoken, and continues to speak powerfully, to the varied concerns of the contemporary world.
    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherChristianAudio.com
    Release dateMar 1, 2009
    ISBN9781596446700
    Author

    Dietrich Bonhoeffer

    Dietrich Bonhoeffer was born in Breslau in 1906. The son of a famous German psychiatrist, he studied in Berlin and New York City. He left the safety of America to return to Germany and continue his public repudiation of the Nazis, which led to his arrest in 1943. Linked to the group of conspirators whose attempted assassination of Hitler failed, he was hanged in April 1945.

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    Reviews for Cost of Discipleship

    4.5/5

    756 ratings26 reviews

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    • 3/5
      Excellent! His pastoral explanation of the Sermon on the Mount was a refreshing drink at the well.

      2 people found this helpful

    • 5/5
      Some books explain for the modern Christian the meaning of calling oneself a Christian. Our present world could stand to read this! Maybe they wouldn’t want to call themselves Christian any more!???❤️???

      2 people found this helpful

    • 5/5
      Excellent reading, very inspirational and from my perspective a good biblical background, the words of Jesus are hard and truthful, Bonhoeffer’s writing reflects a deep and honest search for the biblical truth.

      2 people found this helpful

    • 5/5
      Long time favorite. A rare book I re-read now and again.
    • 5/5
      Absolutely phenomenal! This book changed my life! It answered so many questions I've had for so long about so many things. It's easy reading/listening, and the narrator's voice is great. This book should be required reading for new converts to the Christian faith.
    • 5/5
      Thought provoking and deep. Wonderful book. Highly recommended for any believer desiring a deeper relationship with Christ
    • 4/5
      While there is much to admire in this scholarly book, this collection of sermons didn't really let me into the heart of its author. It was hard to shake the feeling that this makes it hard for someone used to the more modern, personal style of preaching, and this is why it took me over a year to finish it. I know it isn't a biography of Bonhoeffer, who was active in the resistance to Hitler and ultimately executed by him during the war, but his character and indomitability just peek through in glimpses. I highlighted a number of passages which made an impression on me for his conviction of the Christian message which he backs up by citing specific passages out of the Bible.
    • 5/5
      This was a tough read. Not that the translation from the German was obtuse. No, what Herr Bonhoeffer had to say was quite clear. The difficulty arose from my conscience when Bonhoeffer talked about what is and isn't following Jesus. Like many, I like to think that since I trust Jesus to forgive my sins, the sins I do commit really don't matter. That just isn't so. As the book points out, when I sin, I stop following Jesus. That, friends, was a scary concept. I was resting comfortably on my salvation and to have that pulled out from under me was very troubling. So much so that the first time I attempted to read this tome I ended up putting it aside. This year I attempted it again and was able to handle it better. It's not that I'm less of a sinner now, but rather that confronting the harsh reality of the law forced me to take a look at God's grace. I realize that the forgiveness that Jesus offers is for the unfaithful disciple as well as for those who don't know better. Which is not to excuse my failures and rebellions. I certainly deserve to rot in hell for all eternity. I'm grateful that I don't have to, that my eternal life depends on God's mercy rather than my obedience. This is a book written for Christians, so if you believe that God is willing to forgive you for Jesus' sake, then go ahead and read this book. I'm putting it on my shelf, where it's ready to be read again. If you don't believe, go read the Bible instead.--J.
    • 5/5
      I am writing this review in the anniversary of Bonhoeffer's execution in 1945. I can't add much to the many words that have been written about this except to say that Bonhoeffer insists that discipleship must be life changing and life controlling or it is an illusion. Powerful and complex.
    • 5/5
      Absolutely a reason this is a modern classic. This will challenge you and call you to follow Jesus closer.
    • 4/5
      Dense, heavy, and occasionally antiquated theology but filled with brilliant, inspirational insights
    • 4/5
      When you start to read this book, you'll soon learn that Dietrich Bonhoeffer was an amazing man. This novel includes in the introduciton a short biography of his life. If you read only one part of this book, read that--but, do read the rest. Dietrich Bonhoeffer explains that to be a disciple of Christ is costly. Grace is free to us because we are given it by Christ. It is costly, because it cost Christ His life. Here's a bit from it (Spoiler? Is there spoiling when it's laying out the gospel? Just to be sure, I'll let you know this is in the 2nd to last chapter, so maybe you want to wait until you get there if you're reading it):" But we believe and are well assured, "that he which began a good work in you will perfect it until the day of Jesus Christ" (Phil. 1.6). In that day Christ will show us the good works of which we were unaware. While we knew it not, we gave him food, drink and clothing and visited him, and while we knew it not we rejected him. Great will be our astonishment in that day, and we shall then realize that it is not our works which remain, but the work which God has wrought through us in his good time without any effort of will and intention on our part (Matt. 25.31 ff). Once again we simply are to look away from ourselves to him who has himself accomplished all things for us and to follow him.The believer will be justified, the justified will be sanctified and the sanctified will be saved in the day of judgment. But this does not mean that our faith, our righteousness and our sanctification (in so far as they depend on ourselves) could be anything but sin. No, all this is true only because Jesus Christ has become our "righteousness, and sanctification and redemption, so he that glorieth let him glory in the Lord" (1 Cor. 1.30). "
    • 3/5
      I found this book difficult to read. This is more a reflection on my state of mind and religious commitment than of the author and what he wrote. I stuck it out to the end because it's a Christian classic written by Dietrich Bonhoeffer, a German Lutheran pastor, who gave his life when he elected to remain in Germany when Hitler came to power.
    • 5/5
      "Suffering, then, is the badge of true discipleship," Dietrich Bonhoeffer writes in his classic "The Cost of Discipleship." "The disciple is not above his master." This sentiment lies at the heart of an exploration of the nature of mature Christian faith: accepting God's grace requires a lifetime of subsequent sacrifice, instructed by Christ's teachings and exemplified by Christ's death on the cross. Centering on a detailed analysis of the Sermon on the Mount, Bonhoeffer explores the shape and scope of this life of suffering and sacrifice for the mature Christian. Consistently, he argues that true faith is the harder path, not the easier, and that it requires both the sacrifice of consistently serving others and the burden of vigilant self-assessment. Anything short of this, Bonhoeffer insists, is cheap grace and thus no grace at all. As with his other writings, it is impossible to read "The Cost of Discipleship" without noting the overtones of his political struggles against the Nazi regime. Despite several opportunities to leave Germany, Bonhoeffer decided to maintain his Christian witness from within his homeland, eventually becoming heavily involved in the Nazi resistance, which led to his arrest and his execution. Knowledge of Bonhoeffer's martyrdom, as well as his struggle to justify his political resistance, including the consideration of assassinating Hitler, make this book particularly fascinating. There are no easy answers to put faith in practice. While Bonhoeffer finds confidence in the promise of the Gospel, to the extent that there should be no anxiety for the Christian life, he also recognizes the significant obstacles offered by a violent dominant culture and ruling class and the smug piety of those who misunderstand and misappropriate religion. In some ways, the book is poignant, not only for its persistent and earnest search for understanding, but for the way in which it points to the rationale for Bonhoeffer's own death. If the true cost of Christian discipleship is to suffer, the ultimate suffering is death. Even without this overtone, the insistent call to refuse cheap grace in pursuit of a fuller appreciation of Christ's teaching is engaging.
    • 5/5
      Very thought provoking; an eye opener.
    • 5/5
      I absolutely loved this book. While many may be put off by the translator's use of large words, the message is sharp and gets to the point. A must-read for anyone who considers him/herself a disciple of Christ.
    • 4/5
      Having heard the author quoted by various prominent preachers from John MacArthur to John Piper I had heard much said about the book’s power, and I desired to experience that for myself. After finishing it, I can see why “Cost of Discipleship” has challenged so many in their walk with Christ. The book’s major theme centers on what it really means to be a disciple of Christ. This is summed up by Bonhoeffer’s statement “that when Christ calls a man he bids he to come and die.” Christ wants all of us - nothing is to be held back. One is either a disciple of Christ, or they are not. There is no middle ground. The true disciple is dying to his life as a whole, and their old life is being replaced with the life of Christ. Bonhoeffer constantly refers to Biblical passages to make his points, and he does not resort to storytelling or even personal anecdotes. Even though “Cost of Discipleship” was published in 1937, every page in this book counters the “easy believism” and license that tempt and seduce many Christians today. Bonhoeffer attacks “cheap grace” and demands a steadfast, deep loyalty to Christ. However, I did have a couple of minor issues with the book. It is somewhat densely written, and therefore may be daunting to the average layreader. Bonhoeffer was a highly educated theologian, and it shows in his writing style. In addition, Bonhoeffer tends to neglect grace in favor of emphasizing absolute holiness and commitment. His moralistic leanings have the danger of encouraging legalism and asceticism if a reader is inclined toward those pitfalls. I’m sure this was not his intent, since it was Bonhoeffer’s genuine love for Christ that motivated his passion and perseverance. Bonhoeffer was a person of limitless courage and faith. Born 1906 in Breslau, Germany to a prosperous family Bonhoeffer studied theology and completed his doctoral thesis when he was 21. He rose to some measure of fame in the 1930s by virtue of his writings and radio sermons.As is set out in the introductory memoir in this edition, Bonhoeffer understood immediately that Hitler and his national socialist ideology represented a grave threat to Germans, to Christianity, and to western civilization. In a radio adress he gave in February, 1933 Bonhoeffer denounced Hitler and denounced his fellow Germans for accepting a corrupt and inhumane leader and system as its idol. Although Bonhoeffer spent a great deal of time living in England, safe from harm, he understood that he could not in good conscience “participate in the reconstruction of Christian life in Germany after the war if I do not share the trials of this time with my people.” Bonhoeffer returned to Germany in 1939 to take up the struggle against Nazi-ism. He had to have known that his return would lead to his death but he knew he could not do otherwise. He was called and he obeyed that call without question. Bonhoeffer was arrested in 1943 after being caught assisting the escape of a number of Jews from Germany. On April 8, 1945, with Allied troops only days from liberating his prison, Bonhoeffer was executed on the orders of Hitler by the S.S. Black Guards. One cannot read the Cost of Discipleship without an acute understanding that his writings on sacrifice, on obedience, and on the cost of grace were mirrored by his actions. The Cost of Discipleship is one of those rare works of classical Christian writing that points the reader to what it means to be a true follower of Christ. I use the word “true” because in today’s modern church the false doctines of “decisionism” and/or “acceptionism” have taken hold; meaning one “makes a decision to accept Jesus” or one “accepts Christ.” But “from the beginning it was not so.” Both Jesus and John the Baptist preached a doctrine of repentance. This remarkable young Lutheran Pastor makes a compelling statement of what the difference is between the “cheap grace” that is all too prevalent in so-called christendom and true Bible-based “costly-Grace.” Bonhoeffer uses the term “costly” because Jesus Himself demands our all; “If any man will follow me, let him deny himself daily and follow me.” It is enlightening and encouraging that such a book could be penned by one of the great Lutherans of the 20th century. The subject of this book is grace - too often, in Bonhoeffer’s day and our own, people seem to look at grace as something free, instead of something freely offered.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. It is by faith alone that we are saved, but that faith is never alone. As Bonhoeffer said, “Only those who obey can believe, and only those who believe can obey”Bonhoeffer begins his classic commentary with a discussion of what it means to be a follower of Christ. He contrasts the cheap grace (to just believe) with the costly grace by which we are saved, if we continue in obedience to Christ. He brings the reader to the Cross of Christ and takes the Sermon on the Mount as a command rather than an ideal. In conclusion he applies his teaching within the context of the greater community of Christ that is found in the Church.He `counted’ the cost of discipleship and found Grace a Costly Truth. Cheap Grace, as he called it, is grace bestowed on ourselves, preaching forgiveness without requiring repentance, eliminating self denial and the death of self life. Cheap Grace is grace without Discipleship. He states that “Cheap grace is the deadly enemy of our church. We are fighting to-day for costly grace. The sacraments, the foreignness of sin, and the consolations of religion are thrown away at cut prices.” He attempts to demonstrate how the church along with the gospel ha s been diluted by this teaching. See it in his own words “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.” He implores Germany Christianity that they have watered down the gospel into emotional uplift which makes no costly demands and fails to distinguish between natural and Christian existence. Also that if the German Church refuses to face the stern reality of sin, it will gain no credence when it talks of forgiveness.This book will drive home the important Truth that GRACE is NOT LISENCE to sin. It is the Power of God to transform a sinful soul into Newness of Life. Although one would have only a limited vision of Bonhoeffer’s work if one read only the Cost of Discipleship, this is an excellent first Bonhoeffer book to read. Then in which I greatly advise to follow with reading Letters and Papers from prison. Staggering in its theological depth and its unflinching call for the crucifixion of self, “The Cost of Discipleship” is a true classic, an essential book for any Christian library.
    • 5/5
      Even though I have read this atleast five times there are still things I glean from each reading. There are individual points that one can quibble with at this point in Bonhoeffer's theology, particularly in light of his later writing in Ethics and Letters and Papers, but he still remains one of the most influential theologians even 60 years after his death. The Fortress edition is helpful in filling in the gaps in documentation that Bonhoeffer leaves as well as giving some historical context to the work but ideally one only gets to glimpse Bonhoeffer's development by going through his work and Bethge's biography (or atleast Renate Winds much shorter one). Even apart from the background it is a work well worth any thoughtful Christians time.
    • 5/5
      An incredible look at the Christian life. Bonhoeffer does not dodge any issue here, or sugar-coat any word. His message is clear, and it is clearly biblical -- if you will follow Christ, you will follow Him completely and with everything. Anything less is not following at all.It has been a long time since I was so engaged, so awestruck, and so enthusiastic about a book. The Cost of Discipleship is an important book and one that every Christian should read. Being a Christian is not something to be taken lightly, for the Grace that saves us was bought in Blood. That Grace is costly, and so should be accepted as such.Of course, I do not agree with everything in here. The chapter on baptism, I believe, misses the mark quite a bit. And yet one chapter will not squelch my enthusiasm for the whole book, and this one I recommend wholeheartedly.
    • 4/5
      A powerful work by an excellent and lucid theologian. Bonhoeffer does well at exposing the "cheap grace" often present in historic Protestantism and Evangelicalism and does well to show what the Scriptures teach about discipleship. Focus is made on the Sermon on the Mount and Matthew 10 and Jesus' commissioning of His disciples.Unfortunately, sometimes Bonhoeffer's Lutheranism gets the better of him, and I would have found his discussion of Paul to be better had he not been fighting the Reformation conflict over justification by faith only.Otherwise the book demonstrates the depth and greatness of Bonhoeffer and his insights.
    • 5/5
      Dietrich Bonhoeffer's book "The Cost of Discipleship" is a tremendously inspiring, insightful and pentrating look into Christian discipleship. Bonhoeffer, who wrote the book in the midst of struggling to stand up against the evils of Nazi Germany in the 1940's, takes the reader along on a transformational exploration into Jesus' Sermon on the Mount, and what it means to believers in the world today.This reviewer was inspired, given ample food for thought and encouraged on his journey with God after reading this book. Bonhoeffer's message, like the message of the Gospels, when truthfully proclamied, can be difficult to hear and accept. He writes that "When Christ calls a [person] he bids them to come and die...that they might gain new life." This is the radical message of Christian discipleship in miniature. Bonhoeffer writes of the first step of Christian discipleship as putting Christ first, and following- no matter what the cost may be. For Bonhoeffer, his faith cost him his life. He was imprisoned in a Nazi concentration camp for his open opposition to the tyrrany of Nazism, where he died helping others at the age of 39.If you have not done so already- read this book- it may change your life! Or should I say that through this book Bonhoeffer's witness to the transformational power of the Holy One may change your life.
    • 5/5
      Whatever Bonhoeffer was or was not, we can say this about him--he lived what he believed. I love this book. Those who believe that Christianity is a way of life, a discipline, will love this book. Those who want their religion to be easy and uncomplicated will not.
    • 5/5
      The demands of sacrifice and ethical consistency. Bonhoeffer analyzes the dichotomy between "cheap grace" and "costly grace." "Cheap grace," Bonhoeffer wrote, "is the grace we bestow on ourselves...grace without discipleship....Costly grace is the gospel which must be sought again and again, the girl which must be asked for, the door at which a man must know....It is costly because it costs a man his life, and it is grace because it gives a man the only true life."
    • 5/5
      The opening call is the steely reminder of price of freedom. The first part is shot through with flashes of brilliance. The exposition in the second part is forceful, but somewhat gnomic.
    • 5/5
      I first read this book in 1975 and did not understand what I was reading; the phrases "When Christ calls a man, He bids him come and die," and "Only those who believe, obey; and only those who obey, believe," struck a deep chord with me. Good stuff. I have two copies, the one from 1975, and a newer one I shared with my daughter and son-in-law.
    • 5/5
      This book really makes one take a good hard look at his/her own walk with theLord.