Monday, February 25, 2013

Cheap grace is disastrous to our spiritual lives.


Bonhoeffer- Chapter 1 - Costly Grace.   (Continued)

'But the call to follow Jesus in the narrow way was hardly ever heard.' 

My thoughts- This is as TRUE today as it was back when this was written.  To truly follow Jesus in the NARROW way isn't something people want to hear, and certainly not do.

'Where were those truths which impelled the early Church to institute the catechumenate,

((Catechumenate- 1. One who is being taught the principles of Christianity. 2. One who is being instructed in a subject at an elementary level.

...which enabled a strict watch to be kept over the frontier between the Church and the world, and afforded adequate protection for costly grace? What had happened to all those warnings of Luther's against preaching the gospel in such a manner as to make men rest secure in their ungodly living? Was there ever a more terrible or disastrous instance of the Christianizing of the world than this? What are those three thousands Saxons put to death by Charlemagne compared with the millions of spiritual corpses in our country to-day? With us it has been abundantly proved that the sins of the fathers are visited upon the children unto the third and fourth generations. Cheap grace has turned out to be utterly merciless to our Evangelical Church.

This cheap grace has been no less disastrous to our own spiritual lives. Instead of opening up the way to Christ it has closed it. Instead of calling us to follow Christ, it has hardened us in our disobedience. Perhaps we had once heard the gracious call to follow him, and had at this command even taken the first few steps along the path of discipleship in the discipline of obedience, only to find ourselves confronted by the word of cheap grace. Was that not merciless and hard? The only effect that such a word could have on us was to bar our way to progress, and seduce us to the mediocre level of the world, quenching the joy of discipleship by telling us that we were following a way of our own choosing, that we were spending our strength and disciplining ourselves in vain-- all of which was not merely useless, but extremely dangerous. After all, we were told, our salvation had already been accomplished by the grace of God. The smoking flax was mercilessly extinguished. It was unkind to speak to men like this, for such a cheap offer could only leave them bewildered and tempt them from the way to which they had been called by Christ. Having laid hold on cheap grace, they were barred for ever from the knowledge of costly grace. Deceived and weakened, men felt that they were strong now that they were in possession of this cheap grace -- whereas they had in fact lost the power to live the life of discipleship and obedience. The word of cheap grace has been the ruin of more Christians than any commandment of works.'

My thoughts--

'What had happened to all those warnings of Luther's against preaching the gospel in such a manner as to make men rest secure in their ungodly living?'  -- They were obviously done away with, all those warnings tossed away as proven by today's church mindset.  Millions of people go to church secure in their salvation as well as their ungodly living and they are deceived! Millions of people who go to church live no differently than the ungodly.  They have the same interests as those who profess to not even believe in God. They have the same hobbies, the same way of living so that you can't tell them apart and yet one professes to be a Disciple of Jesus, a Follower of Jesus. How did this happen? Men became secure in their ungodly living and grabbed a hold of cheap grace and now live by cheap grace rather than have anything to do with costly grace.

'This cheap grace has been no less disastrous to our own spiritual lives. Instead of opening up the way to Christ it has closed it. ' - TRUTH.

'Instead of calling us to follow Christ, it has hardened us in our disobedience.' - TRUTH.

'Perhaps we had once heard the gracious call to follow him, and had at this command even taken the first few steps along the path of discipleship in the discipline of obedience, only to find ourselves confronted by the word of cheap grace.' - TRUTH.

Cheap grace- the destroyer.

Before any of us believe that we are immune to this, that we haven't been touched by cheap grace we need to really think again. We are far from where we should be, aren't we? Far from separate from the world, far from hating the world and worldly ways. Far, far from denying our selves and picking up our cross.  We have to be honest, to be anything other than honest here is DECEPTION and CHRIST WILL NOT HAVE ANYTHING TO DO WITH DECEIVERS! Christ will not know us if we are liars, deceivers, among those who are caught up in the trap of cheap grace.

'The only effect that such a word could have on us was to bar our way to progress,'  -TRUTH.

'...and seduce us to the mediocre level of the world,' - TRUTH.

'...quenching the joy of discipleship by telling us that we were following a way of our own choosing, that we were spending our strength and disciplining ourselves in vain-- all of which was not merely useless, but extremely dangerous.'  - TRUTH.

'Disciplining ourselves in vain' -- Cheap grace wants us to believe this! Cheap grace wants us to believe that all we are doing is being done in vain when we choose to take our Savior at His word and live life as He has told us He wants us to live it.  The words from HIS mouth were these--

Mar_8:34  And when he had called the people unto him with his disciples also, he said unto them, Whosoever will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me.

But cheap grace will NOT let us take up any cross and it will not let us deny ourselves, so HOW can we follow our Savior as He wants us too?

'Having laid hold on cheap grace, they were barred for ever from the knowledge of costly grace. Deceived and weakened, men felt that they were strong now that they were in possession of this cheap grace -- whereas they had in fact lost the power to live the life of discipleship and obedience. The word of cheap grace has been the ruin of more Christians than any commandment of works.' -- TRUTH.

'The word of cheap grace has been the ruin of more Christians than any commandment of works!'  TRUTH!

Please, we have to look at our lives, we have to examine ourselves --

2Co 13:5  Examine yourselves, whether ye be in the faith; prove your own selves. Know ye not your own selves, how that Jesus Christ is in you, except ye be reprobates?
2Co 13:6  But I trust that ye shall know that we are not reprobates.
2Co 13:7  Now I pray to God that ye do no evil; not that we should appear approved, but that ye should do that which is honest, though we be as reprobates.
2Co 13:8  For we can do nothing against the truth, but for the truth.

Examine ourselves.
Prove ourselves.
Know ourselves.


Do no evil - NOT that we should appear approved- BUT that we should do that which is HONEST.

For we can do NOTHING against the TRUTH, but for the TRUTH.

We have to choose, and know that when we choose to be true followers of Christ that is will mean sacrifice, it will mean NOT aligning with the world and its ways but separating ourselves from them, it will mean denying ourselves and selfishness, and selfish ways, and yes, it means picking up our cross.

And before you begin to DESPAIR and ever hope to be a true follower of our Savior, you have to… WE have to remember that it is HIS righteousness we cling to! It is HIS forgiveness we cling to! Remember yesterday's study? We admit that we ARE sinners and we repent, seeking forgiveness ALWAYS!

Please Lord, please, help us LORD, SAVE us, TEACH us, LOVE US, KNOW US, FORGIVE US!

We long to be YOURS!

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