This past weekend at Eastbrook, we continued our new series entitled "The Messiah's Mission," based in Matthew 8-12. This weekend I explored Matthew 8:18-22, where Jesus encounters two would-be disciples and rebuffs their apparent commitment to Him. These two case studies reveal a lot about what discipleship is all about. In some ways this message …
The “Must” of Suffering in the Christian Life: Insights from Dietrich Bonhoeffer on Cross-Shaped Discipleship
This from Dietrich Bonhoeffer in The Cost of Discipleship, which I referenced in my message this past weekend, "Baptized with Water and Spirit": Jesus must therefore make it clear beyond all doubt that the "must" of suffering applies to his disciples no less than to himself. Just as Christ is Christ only in virtue of …
Bonhoeffer on Fear
I've been rereading Dietrich Bonhoeffer's classic book, Discipleship, over the past month or so. As I was reading this past week, a paragraph from his reflections on Matthew 10:26-39 stood out to me. Here it is: Human beings should not be feared. They cannot do much to the disciples of Jesus. Their power stops with the …
Matthew Erickson 