Faithful Living

“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.”
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Costly grace is the treasure hidden in the field; for the sake of it a man will go and sell that he has.  It is the pearl of great price to buy which the merchant will sell all his goods.  It is the kingly rule of Christ, for whose sake a man will pluck out the eye which causes him to stumble; it is the call of Jesus Christ at which the disciple leaves his nets and follows him.” -Dietrich Bonhoeffer

For those who do not know Dietrich Bonhoeffer, he was a German theologian, Lutheran pastor who grew up in the era of Nazi Germany.  He was resistance to the Nazi dictatorship.  He was arrested and imprisoned, had a role in a plot to assassinate Hitler and died by execution by hanging. 

He was largely influential with Martin Luther King Jr. and the Civil Rights movements, anti-communism movements, and anti-Apartheid movement in South Africa.  I would say that he was largely influential towards conservative Christians but also influential to people commitment to doing justice work.

Personally, he is influential in my life, and my faith.  His readings were a large reason at what gave me the encouragement to be a pastor.  I have been continuing to read his book The Cost of Discipleship for the last month.  I encourage anyone to read that book, whether it is the first time or regularly.

His quote above the entry, puts a lot of perspective at what it means to be a Christian; at least for me.  When Easter rolled around this time of the year, I cannot ignore the message of Christ, His life, His death, and His resurrection.  All three of those aspect matter to my life as a husband, father, son, Christian, and pastor. 

Being a Christian isn’t supposed to be easy.  It takes work.  Hard work.  For the season of Lent, at Ward Ave Presbyterian Church, we uncovered each week the work that God put in to create covenants with people.  Each covenant broken, not because God broke it, but because we just didn’t get it.  It came to the point that God had to find a way in which salvation, everlasting life, resurrected life, can be possible for all people who accept it.  God’s grace is given, through Jesus’ service to the world, and His ultimate sacrifice on the cross; is God’s grace given to us.  Nothing we can do to break that covenant.

However, this does not mean we just sit back and do nothing.  As Christians we are committed to the cause of Christ that is found in His life.  We take up that cross to continue the good news to people.  Our life, our actions, our words must be a reflection of what we are taught, which is our commitment to discipleship work.

The cross is a symbol of our power of giving up our life for others.  The cross took away Jesus’ life.  We must do the same.  We put in the sacrifice to make this world into a better place.  Leave this world cleaner and better than when we arrived into the world.  Our faith is so vital in living a life that is perfect harmony with ourselves, others, and God. 

The Gospel is not about believing and life one way and ignoring other aspects.  Our life in faith cannot be compartmentalized but must be viewed as a whole.  Being a Christian, living a life of faith, worship, discipleship is exhausting; it should be.  We must continue to grow, continue to learn, continue to treat all people, regardless of who they are, with impeccable respect.   Life isn’t easy, life isn’t cheap.