As I so often do, I was thinking about something this morning and Dietrich Bonhoeffer came to mind.
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Dietrich Bonhoeffer (German: [ˈdiːtʁɪç ˈbɔn.høː.fɐ] ( listen); 4 February 1906 – 9 April 1945) was a German Lutheran pastor, theologian, anti-Nazi dissident, and key founding member of the Confessing Church.
I had first come to know who Dietrich Bonhoeffer was from a book I read about him back in 2016. How the book came to me, I believe was also by the Spirit’s working. I wrote about this in a previous post “TheProphecies”. As I was reading about him in Wikipedia, a book that he wrote caught my eye, ‘TheCost of Discipleship’. As I was reading about the book it struck me how much the message of the book went along with other things I’ve been thinking about in relation to the church.
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Summary:
“One of the most quoted parts of the book deals with the distinction which Bonhoeffer makes between "cheap" and "costly" grace. According to Bonhoeffer,
cheap grace is the preaching of forgiveness without requiring repentance, baptism without church discipline. Communion without confession. Cheap grace is grace without discipleship, grace without the cross, grace without Jesus Christ, living and incarnate.
Cheap grace, Bonhoeffer says, is to hear the gospel preached as follows: "Of course you have sinned, but now everything is forgiven, so you can stay as you are and enjoy the consolations of forgiveness." The main defect of such a proclamation is that it contains no demand for discipleship. In contrast to costly grace,
costly grace confronts us as a gracious call to follow Jesus, it comes as a word of forgiveness to the broken spirit and the contrite heart. It is costly because it compels a man to submit to the yoke of Christ and follow him; it is grace because Jesus says: "My yoke is easy and my burden is light."
Bonhoeffer argues that as Christianity spread, the Church became more "secularised", accommodating the demands of obedience to Jesus to the requirements of society. In this way, "the world was Christianised, and grace became its common property." But the hazard of this was that the gospel was cheapened, and obedience to the living Christ was gradually lost beneath formula and ritual, so that in the end, grace could literally be sold for monetary gain.”
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Something else that went along with all of this was the sermon that our pastor gave this morning. His message was on Psalms51.
Lexham English Bible
A Prayer of Repentance and Plea for Mercy
For the music director. A psalm of David.
When Nathan the prophet came to him, after he had gone in to Bathsheba.
51 Be gracious to me, O God, according to your loyal love.
According to your abundant mercies,
blot out my transgressions.
2 Wash me thoroughly from my iniquity,
and from my sin cleanse me.
3 For I myself know my transgressions,
and my sin is ever before me.
4 Against you, only you, I have sinned
and have done this evil in your eyes,
so that you are correct when you speak,
you are blameless when you judge.
5 Behold, in iniquity I was born,
and in sin my mother conceived me.
6 Behold, you delight in truth in the inward parts,
and in the hidden parts you make me to know wisdom.
7 Purify me with hyssop, and I shall be clean.
Wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow.
8 Make me hear joy and gladness.
let the bones you have crushed rejoice.
9 Hide your face from my sins,
and all my iniquities blot out.
10 Create a clean heart for me, O God,
and renew a steadfast spirit within me.
11 Do not cast me away from your presence,
and do not take your Holy Spirit from me.
12 Restore to me the joy of your salvation,
and with a willing spirit sustain me.
13 Then I will teach transgressors your ways,
and sinners will turn back to you.
14 Deliver me from the guilt of bloodshed, O God,
the God of my salvation;
then my tongue will sing aloud of your righteousness.
15 O Lord, open my lips,
and my mouth will proclaim your praise.
16 For you do not delight in sacrifice or I would give it.
With a burnt offering you are not pleased.
17 The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit;
A broken and contrite heart,
O God, you will not despise.
18 Do good in your favor toward Zion.
Build the walls of Jerusalem.
19 Then you will delight in righteous sacrifices,
burnt offering and whole burnt offering.
Then bulls will be offered on your altar.
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There were two points to our pastor’s message:
1. Owning our sins.
2. Deeply wanting to change, becoming a new person.
He finished his message with 1 John 1:9
Lexham English Bible
9 If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just, so that he will forgive us our sins and will cleanse us from all unrighteousness.
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There is another post that I did a while back that I believe goes very well with these thoughts:
“GodHates The Deeds and The Doctrines of the Nicolaitans -- Revelation2:6 and 15”
If you would like a fresh change, take a look at the Quakers.
It doesn't matter where you are, who you are, what you believe; all the stuff we think are important. Any group of people can start a meeting. You spend the time together being quiet, emptying yourself, being at peace, and listening to the Holy Spirit.
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I want to share one last thing. Jesus paid a high price for our salvation. Let us not take that lightheartedly.
Lexham English Bible
16 We have come to know love by this: that he laid down his life on behalf of us, and we ought to lay down our lives on behalf of the brothers.
