55 pages • 1 hour read
Dietrich BonhoefferThe Cost of Discipleship
Nonfiction | Book | Adult | Published in 1937A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more.
Key Figures
Dietrich Bonhoeffer (The Author)
Dietrich Bonhoeffer was a German Lutheran pastor, theologian, and anti-Nazi dissident, born in 1906 into an academically oriented family. His early intellectual environment provided him with rigorous training in knowledge acquisition and analytical thinking. As an adult, Bonhoeffer chose an academic and pastoral career, during which he contributed to Christian theology. His most notable work, The Cost of Discipleship, introduced the concepts of “cheap grace” and “costly grace,” critiquing a superficial understanding of faith and advocating for a more committed, action-oriented approach. His theology was informed by his German intellectual upbringing and his experiences in other cultural contexts, notably the United States.
Bonhoeffer’s work is set against the backdrop of Nazi Germany, a context that profoundly influenced his theological and ethical considerations. His writings served as both an academic exploration of Christian teachings and an urgent critique of the ethical decline he observed in German society and the church. Bonhoeffer was not a passive observer; his deeply held convictions led him to join the German resistance against the Nazi regime, an unusual move among theologians and academics of his time. His choice to actively oppose the regime was a complex decision that led to his arrest and eventual execution.
The impact of Bonhoeffer’s work is closely tied to his life experiences and the historical events that unfolded during his lifetime. His theological writings, while academically grounded, were also reflective of his ethical concerns about the trajectory of his society. These concerns and his corresponding actions make his work significant as a theological text and as a record of a particular ethical stance during a social and moral crisis.
Bonhoeffer’s legacy continues to be studied in theological and ethical discussions. His works are not confined to the academic realm but extend to broader questions about the role of religious faith in social action and ethical decision-making. His life and writings present a case for consideration about the complexities of taking ethical stances in times of societal upheaval.
Jesus Christ
In The Cost of Discipleship, Jesus Christ is not merely a subject of theological inquiry but the central figure whose teachings and example serve as the ethical and spiritual compass guiding the entire narrative. In this book, Christ is portrayed as the epitome of “costly grace,” which demands discipleship and life transformation, as opposed to the “cheap grace” Bonhoeffer criticizes as endemic in the institutional church. Christ’s teachings, particularly those found in the Sermon on the Mount, are used as the baseline for examining what it means to live a Christian life in a world often at odds with the values Jesus espoused.
Jesus Christ’s significance in the text is manifold. First, He provides the ultimate example of what it means to live a life of authentic discipleship, an example Bonhoeffer argues is necessary to confront and resist the ethical and spiritual decay he observed in his contemporary setting, notably the rise of Nazism. Christ’s life, teachings, and particularly His crucifixion are interpreted as the ultimate sacrifice that embodies the “costly grace” required of anyone claiming to be His follower. This is the point of departure for Bonhoeffer’s critiques against “cheap grace,” which he defines as grace without discipleship, grace without the Cross, and grace without the living, incarnate Jesus Christ.
Christ’s role in the book also transcends the immediate historical context in which Bonhoeffer was writing. He is positioned as a universal figure whose teachings hold ethical and spiritual relevance for all of humanity across all periods. In this sense, Jesus serves as an eternal moral and spiritual authority, reinforcing Bonhoeffer’s argument that the call to discipleship is urgent and timeless.
The very structure of the book reflects the pivotal role of Jesus Christ. From the explication of the Sermon on the Mount to the book’s culmination in a call to suffer with Christ, every element elucidates what it means to take up one’s cross and follow Him. In doing so, Bonhoeffer uses the life and teachings of Christ as a lens through which individuals can examine their own lives, ethical choices, and what they, too, might be called to sacrifice or endure for the sake of living out their faith authentically.
