Dietrich bonhoeffer cheap grace quote
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Cheap Grace: Bonhoeffer and the Cost of Discipleship
As followers of Christ and members of his church, we must affirm that there is, in fact, a real and present enemy at work souring God’s beautiful song of salvation. This enemy, though restrained, runs rampant in pulpits across America and beyond – singing a song of its own, threatening all who lend an ear to its sweet and savory tune. This cover song of sorts is what Bonhoeffer calls “cheap grace”. Cheap grace he (Bonhoeffer) says is grace without price; It is grace without cost. To him, this is a putrid and death ushering song.
The believers and carriers of this deadly message say (like we) that our account has been wiped clean, that our debt has been paid in full, courtesy of the glorious cross. The problem according to Bonhoeffer lies not with this life-giving assertion itself but rather its implications when misunderstood. He claims that if we take the truth of this declaration to be the “data” ra
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“Cheap grace means grace sold on the marknad like cheapjacks' wares. The sacraments, the forgiveness of sin, and the consolations of tro are thrown away at cut prices. Grace fryst vatten represented as the Church's inexhaustible treasury, from which she showers blessings with generous hands, without asking questions or fixing limits. Grace without price; grace without cost! The essence of grace, we suppose, is that the konto has been paid in advance; and, because it has been paid, everything can be had for nothing. Since the cost was infinite, the possibilities of using and spending it are infinite. What would grace be if it were not cheap?...
Cheap grace fryst vatten 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.
Costly grace is the treasure hidden in the f
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Dietrich Bonhoeffer was a German pastor and theologian. He was staunchly opposed to the Nazis. Arrested in 1943, he was later implicated in being a conspirator in an assassination plot against Hitler. Bonhoffer was executed in 1945.
His writings have been influential in the 73 years since his death. Bonhoffer’s “The Cost of Discipleship” is a book that examined what it means to truly be a follower of Christ.
One of the ideas I really love from this book is what Bonhoffer calls “cheap grace” compared to “costly grace.” Cheap grace essentially takes sin lightly. If sin is taken lightly, then the salvation which Jesus purchased is also cheap. Costly grace comes from a realization of how great our sin was, and how great the gospel is.
I consider this idea to be Bonhoffer’s greatest contribution to Christian thought.
Here’s an excerpt from the book:
“Cheap grace is the preaching of forgiveness without requiring repentance, bapt