Participants: John Bradshaw
Series Code: IIW
Program Code: IIW001277
00:07 It has stood the test of time.
00:11 God's book, the Bible, 00:16 still relevant in today's complex world. 00:21 It Is Written, sharing hope around the globe. 00:37 [Music] 00:47 JB: I'm John Bradshaw. 00:48 This is It Is Written. 00:49 Thanks for joining me. 00:51 He was born in a little town in what is now southwest 00:54 Poland. 00:55 It was Germany then. 00:57 The year was 1906. 01:00 He as the sixth of eight children that would be born 01:03 into the family. 01:04 His father, Carl, was a prominent neurologist. 01:08 His mother, Paula, was the daughter 01:10 of a German countess. 01:12 Her grandfather was one of Kaiser Wilhelm's court 01:15 preachers. 01:17 For the first seven or so years of his life, he was raised 01:20 in a home right here on this very street. 01:24 You can imagine it being a tranquil time. 01:27 Breslau was a lovely town, an average town, and as his 01:31 mother home-schooled him during his early years, 01:34 nobody could have imagined that he would go on to become 01:37 one of the 20th centuries true Christian giants. 01:45 [Music] But things change. 01:53 Breslau isn't Breslau anymore. 01:55 It's known today as Wroclaw. 01:57 And it isn't in Germany. 01:59 Today it's in Poland. 02:01 Germany's borders were altered following World War II. 02:04 And in Wroclaw today there's a monument erected 02:09 in honor of a man who would pay the ultimate 02:12 price for his faith in God. 02:15 And even though he might not be a household name in his 02:18 own home town anymore, Dietrich Bonhoeffer 02:21 was a man who became a champion for the Word of God. 02:25 And he came to understand by experience the cost 02:30 of discipleship. 02:31 [Music] 02:41 One of Dietrich's brothers would die fighting 02:43 in World War I. 02:44 One of his sisters would go on to marry a lawyer who, 02:48 like Dietrich, would join in a plot against Hitler 02:52 and the Nazi regime. 02:54 His family expected that Dietrich would follow 02:56 his father into medicine, but he surprised and, in fact, 03:00 disappointed his father when he announced that he intended 03:03 instead to become a pastor and a theologian. 03:07 His oldest brother told Dietrich not to waste his 03:10 time in such a boring, petty, feeble, bourgeois 03:15 institution as the church. 03:17 Dietrich's answer hinted at the type of individual 03:19 he would become. 03:20 He said, '"If what you say about the church is true, 03:24 then I shall reform it." 03:29 In the meantime, his family had moved to Berlin. 03:33 After studying at the University of Berlin, and after graduating 03:36 with distinction, Dietrich spent time in the United States, 03:40 returning to Germany in 1931 to lecture in systematic 03:44 theology at the same university. 03:47 He was ordained when he was 25 years old. 03:51 Berlin was then and is now German's capital, the center 03:56 of its culture, its genius and its power. 03:59 Today, Berlin is modern, edgy, hip, trendy, 04:03 fashionable. 04:04 When the Bonhoeffers lived here in the early 20th 04:06 century, Berlin was largely an elegant sort of a place. 04:10 But between then and now, Berlin has been the scene 04:15 of a titanic battle between good and evil. 04:18 And Dietrich Bonhoeffer found himself right 04:21 in the middle of that battle. 04:26 It is impossible to escape reminders of Berlin's 04:29 colorful history. 04:30 The Brandenburg gate was built in the 18th century 04:33 by King Frederick William II of Prussia as a sign of peace. 04:38 Remnants of the Berlin wall still stand. 04:41 It wasn't long ago that Germans of both sides of what was then 04:46 a divided Germany celebrated here that the Berlin 04:50 wall was coming down. 04:51 Checkpoint Charlie is the most famous Berlin wall 04:55 crossing point. 04:58 It's now one of Berlin's major tourist attractions. 05:01 Even though nothing of the original Checkpoint 05:03 Charlie stands today, 5,000 people escaped to West 05:07 Berlin from East Berlin while the wall was up. 05:10 More than 100 died trying. 05:13 But the figure that looms largest in Berlin's history 05:19 is undoubtedly Adolf Hitler. 05:22 Two days after the Nazis ascended to power 05:24 in Germany, on January 30, 1933, Hitler was appointed 05:29 Germany's chancellor, or fuhrer. 05:31 And Dietrich Bonhoeffer realized right away 05:34 something of the danger Germany was facing. 05:39 Just two days after Hitler was appointed chancellor, 05:42 Bonhoeffer attacked him in a radio address, warning 05:46 against the cultive personality that Hitler 05:48 was fostering. 05:49 Going after Hitler like that was certainly a bold move, 05:53 but it was simply the shape of things to come for 05:56 Bonhoeffer. 05:57 In April of that same year, Bonhoeffer spoke out against 06:02 the Nazi attitude toward Jews, saying that Christians 06:06 should not simply bandage the victims under the wheel 06:10 of Nazi injustice, but should instead jam 06:13 the spoke into the wheel itself. 06:16 It wouldn't be long and Bonhoeffer's anti-Nazi 06:21 zeal would take that principle to the highest level possible. 06:26 [ominous music] In that first year of Nazi rule, 06:30 Dietrich began organizing opposition to the Nazi 06:34 regime among the Protestant churches of Germany. 06:36 But even among those standing up against what the Nazis 06:40 were doing, there were many who lacked Dietrich's 06:43 courage in speaking out against the Nazis' 06:46 mistreatment of the Jews. 06:48 When Dietrich and others began organizing the movement 06:51 that became known as the Confessing Church 06:54 in opposition to the Germany Christian movement, a document 06:58 was offered called the '"Bethel Confession." 07:00 It urged Christians to stand up for biblical principles in spite 07:05 of what was going on in Germany. 07:07 But the authors of the '"Bethel Confession" 07:11 refused to include in that document positive 07:15 statements about God's dealings with the Jews. 07:17 In the end, Dietrich decided the document was so watered 07:21 down, he refused to sign it. 07:23 Dietrich Bonhoeffer was on a collision course with history. 07:31 Under Hitler, his country was going in a definite 07:34 direction. 07:35 Under God, his conscious was going in another. 07:40 He'd have decisions to make--decisions that would 07:43 ultimately cost him his life in a Nazi concentration camp. 07:48 I'll have more in just a moment. 07:50 [Music] >: In Matthew 4:4 the Word 07:55 of God says, '"It is written, man shall not live by bread 07:58 alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth 08:01 of God." '"Every Word" is a one-minute Bible-based 08:05 daily devotional presented by Pastor John Bradshaw 08:08 and designed especially for busy people like you. 08:11 Look for '"Every Word" on selected networks, or watch 08:14 it online every day on our website, itiswritten.com. 08:18 Receive a daily spiritual boost. 08:20 Watch '"Every Word." 08:22 You'll be glad you did. 08:23 Here's a sample. 08:27 [Music] 08:33 JB: I get asked every now and then about this. 08:36 We're saved by grace through faith. 08:38 Right. 08:39 But then Revelation 22:12 says, '"And behold I come 08:42 quickly and my reward is with me, to give every man 08:45 according as his works shall be." Sounds to some people 08:49 as though this is saying we're not saved by God's 08:51 grace, but by our works. 08:52 Well, let's look at this carefully. 08:54 John writes that we are judged by our works, 08:56 not saved by our works. 08:58 The point is that our works, how we live our lives, 09:01 demonstrate or give evidence regarding the reality of our 09:06 profession. 09:07 Anyone at all can claim to be a follower of Jesus, 09:09 but it isn't what you say that really matters--it's how you 09:12 live. 09:13 That's where the evidence really is. 09:15 In the judgment, it isn't just a profession God 09:17 is looking for. 09:18 He's looking for the real thing. 09:21 I'm John Bradshaw for It Is Written. 09:23 Let's live today by every Word. 09:29 JB: Planning for your financial future is a 09:30 ital aspect of Christian 09:32 stewardship. 09:33 For this reason, It Is Written is pleased to offer free 09:35 planned giving and estate services. 09:38 For information on how we can help you, please call 09:41 1-800-992-2219. 09:44 Call today, or visit our special website, 09:47 www.hislegacy.com. 09:58 [Piano music] 10:06 JB: This is It Is Written. 10:07 I'm John Bradshaw. 10:08 Thanks for joining me today. 10:10 Today, the cost of discipleship. 10:12 The story of a true champion of grace, Dietrich Bonhoeffer. 10:17 While in Berlin, the Bonhoeffer family lived 10:20 here, #43 Marienburger Allee. 10:23 And while the Bonhoeffers were living here, along 10:26 with Martin Niemoller, Dietrich formed an organization known 10:30 as the Confessing Church. 10:32 It was never very large, but it represented the strongest 10:36 opposition against the Nazi government on the part 10:39 of German Christians. 10:40 Swiss theologian Karl Barth drafted a declaration 10:44 in which he stated that Jesus Christ, and not Adolf 10:48 Hitler, was the true head of the church. 10:51 Now, you might think it shouldn't take a declaration 10:53 to make that plain, but because of the idolatrous 10:56 cult of personality that Hitler had built around 10:59 himself, in which he appealed to a deep devotion 11:02 to duty and power and nationalism, there weren't 11:06 many German Christians who were prepared to stand 11:10 in opposition to Adolf Hitler. 11:12 At about this time, Bonhoeffer accepted an offer 11:16 to become the pastor of two German-speaking churches 11:20 in London. 11:21 He'd become discouraged with the collaboration 11:23 of so many German Christians with Hitler, and felt it 11:26 was time, in his words, to go for a while into the desert. 11:31 But his friend Karl Barth, himself driven into Switzerland 11:34 for opposing Hitler's policies, rebuked Bonhoeffer 11:38 for running away from his post while, in Barth's words, 11:42 '"the house of your church is on fire." In 1935, 11:48 Bonhoeffer returned to Germany.@ In spite of fierce 11:51 opposition from the Nazi authorities, the seminary 11:54 Bonhoeffer headed continued for two years. 11:57 But eventually it was shut down by the Gestapo, 12:00 and many pastors and former teachers were arrested. 12:08 [Music] 12:13 Not far from the Bonhoeffer home in Berlin is the Olympic 12:17 Stadium, built for the Olympic games of 1936.@ 12:21 It was here that African-American athlete 12:24 Jesse Owens won four gold medals while Adolf Hitler 12:28 looked on. 12:29 Hitler infamously refused to shake the hands of black 12:33 athletes, and he snubbed Jesse Owens and others. 12:38 Hitler was on his way to what he hoped would be European 12:41 dominance. 12:43 While the Olympics were taking place here, few could have 12:47 imagined that within 10 years, Germany's megalomaniacal 12:51 leader would stand astride the continent of Europe. 12:55 He would threaten the peace of the world, commit some 12:58 of the most horrific crimes ever witnessed in the history 13:02 of mankind, then at last end his own life 13:06 in an underground bunker just miles from here. 13:10 It was while the Olympics were taking place 13:14 that Bonhoeffer wrote what's perhaps his most widely 13:17 recognized book, '"The Cost of Discipleship," in which 13:20 he expounded upon the Sermon on the Mount. 13:24 Understanding something about the background against 13:26 which the book was written helps us to understand how 13:30 the book was framed. 13:32 Bonhoeffer believed in costly discipleship. 13:35 And when you realize what following Jesus cost 13:39 Bonhoeffer, you can see why. 13:42 A classic today, he wrote at length about the problem 13:45 of what he called cheap grace. 13:50 He argued that much of German Christianity 13:52 had permitted itself to be secularized due 13:55 to an understanding of God's grace that emphasized 13:58 forgiveness at the expense of repentance and obedience. 14:02 Here's what he said: '"Cheap grace is the preaching 14:06 of forgiveness without requiring repentance. 14:10 Baptism without church discipline. 14:12 Communion without confession. 14:15 Cheap grace is grace without discipleship, grace without 14:20 the cross, grace without Jesus Christ." Bonhoeffer 14:26 believed that it was this minimizing, or maybe even 14:28 belittling, of Christian discipleship and sanctification 14:32 that brought about the docile acceptance on the part 14:35 of so many German Christians of the Nazi ideology. 14:38 In Bonhoeffer's view, Martin Luther had made an important 14:41 correction to the monastic movement of the Middle Ages 14:45 when he had emphasized faith and God's forgiveness 14:48 as the only remedy for sin, rather than works 14:52 that do nothing to change the heart. 14:54 But Bonhoeffer believed@ that it was God's pardoning 14:58 grace that had been emphasized almost to the exclusion 15:02 of sacrifice, self-discipline and service to others 15:07 in the centuries that followed Luther. 15:09 Here's Bonhoeffer again:@ '"The price we are having 15:13 to pay today in the shape of the collapse of the organized 15:16 church is only the inevitable consequence of our policy 15:20 of making grace available to all at too low a cost. 15:25 We gave away the Word and sacraments wholesale. 15:28 We baptized, confirmed and absolved a whole nation 15:33 without condition. 15:35 Our humanitarian sentiment made us give that which was holy 15:39 to the scornful and unbelieving. 15:41 But the call to follow Jesus in the narrow way was hardly 15:47 ever heard." Could it be that a cheap grace gospel has removed 15:53 the transformative power of the Gospel from much 15:56 of Christian preaching and teaching today? 15:59 Might it be that many people have surrendered their 16:01 Christian beliefs to popular culture, societal trends 16:06 and personal priorities? 16:08 Is there still a call today to costly discipleship? 16:12 Do we still see courage when majority opinion 16:15 no longer demands it? 16:18 Bonhoeffer spoke strongly against cheap grace, 16:22 and so did the Bible writers. 16:24 In the Bible there is no such thing as cheap grace. 16:27 Now, salvation is free, no question about that. 16:30 We are saved by grace through faith in %esus Christ. 16:34 Salvation cost God everything. 16:36 It costs us nothing. 16:39 Paul wrote in Romans 6:23, '"The gift of God is eternal 16:43 life through Jesus Christ our Lord." But the cost@@ 16:47 of discipleship? 16:48 Now, that's another matter. 16:50 Bonhoeffer once wrote, '"When Christ calls a man, He bids 16:54 him come and die." Which is consistent with what you 16:58 read in the Bible. 16:59 Paul wrote that when a person comes to Christ, 17:01 the old person dies and a new person is created. 17:06 You see, the Gospel involves transformation. 17:10 The Gospel contemplates our completely recovery 17:13 from the power of sin. 17:15 Rightly understood, grace is power. 17:19 It's God's power at work in the life of a sinner,@ 17:22 bringing that sinner to the measure of the stature 17:25 of the fullness of Christ. 17:28 And that's good news. 17:30 [Music] So in a sense it's no surprise 17:35 that so many German Christians, when faced with Hitler's rise 17:40 to power, failed to recognize what that might mean 17:43 in terms of the exercise of their Christian faith. 17:47 Most Germans at that time professed some form 17:49 of Christianity. 17:51 And today there are those who say that if more people 17:53 had taken a stand like that taken by Bonhoeffer 17:56 and his courageous colleagues, the world may well have been 18:00 spared the slaughter of so many millions during those Nazi 18:04 years. 18:05 I'll have more in a moment. 18:07 [Music]@ 18:15 JB: '"Eyes for India" is giving sight to the blind, 18:18 and you can be a part of this amazing work 18:20 that God is doing. 18:22 Fifteen million blind people live in India, more than any 18:25 other country in the world. 18:27 And many of the blind in India could see again 18:30 if only they could have simple cataract surgery. 18:33 It Is Written is making that happen. 18:36 Would you support '"Eyes for India"? 18:39 For just $75 you'll be giving the gift of sight to someone 18:43 who desperately wants to see. 18:46 Here's all you need to do. 18:47 Call 1-800-253-3000 18:51 to donate and support '"Eyes for India." Or you can write 18:55 to It Is Written, Box O, Thousand Oaks, CA 91359. 19:01 You'll also find '"Eyes for India" online 19:04 at itiswritten.com.@ 19:09 [Music]@ 19:18 >: [German] Fuhrer, heil Hitler, [German] [Crowd cheers] 19:24 >: [German] [Crowd cheers] >: [German] [Crowd cheers] 19:31 [German]@ JB: In the 1930s here 19:35 in Nuremburg, Germany, Adolf Hitler was conducting 19:39 the Nuremburg rallies--massive Nazi party propaganda events. 19:45 Vast crowds in the hundreds of thousands would gather 19:50 right here to honor Hitler as Germany's savior. 19:54 Support for Hitler was rising; in fact, it was reaching 19:58 fever point. 19:59 Hitler was demonstrating to the world that he 20:02 was a force that would not be stopped. 20:05 It was while Hitler was showing his strength 20:08 that Dietrich Bonhoeffer, who had returned to 20:10 the United States, decided it was time 20:14 to come back here to Germany. 20:16 Here's what he wrote: '"I have come to the conclusion 20:20 that I made a mistake in coming to America. 20:24 I must live through this difficult period in our 20:27 national history with the people of Germany. 20:31 I will have no right to participate 20:33 in the reconstruction of Christian life in Germany 20:36 after the war if I do not share the trials 20:40 at this time with my people. 20:42 Christians in Germany will have to face the terrible 20:45 alternative of either willing the defeat of their 20:49 nation in order that Christian civilization may survive, 20:53 or willing the victory of their nation and thereby 20:56 destroying civilization. 21:00 I know which of these alternatives I must choose, 21:03 but I cannot make that choice from security." 21:07 He returned to Germany on the last scheduled steamer 21:11 to cross the Atlantic. 21:12 Soon after returning to Germany he joined 21:16 the Abwehr, a Germany military intelligence organization 21:20 deeply involved in plots against Hitler. 21:23 Before long, his discovery of the Nazi atrocities 21:27 against the Jews and others would drive him to decide 21:30 that any means of overthrowing Hitler's rule, 21:33 even violent means, were morally justifiable. 21:36 Bonhoeffer was finally arrested on April 5, 1943. 21:44 The actual reasons for his arrest are a little unclear. 21:49 But while he was in custody, evidence surfaced of his 21:52 involvement in several plots aimed at assassinating 21:56 the Fuhrer and overthrowing Nazi rule. 21:59 [Music] 22:06 Although Bonhoeffer had been in prison for over 22:09 a year by the time the plot was attempted, documents 22:12 proving his involvement soon surfaced in Berlin. 22:16 He was transferred to Buchenwald concentration camp 22:20 and there here to the concentration camp 22:22 in Flossenburg, Germany, where before long, he would be put 22:27 to death. 22:28 While he was here, Bonhoeffer wrote his famous 22:32 '"Letters From Prison," in which he urged Christian 22:35 believers to be true to biblical principles 22:38 and faithful to God in spite of the difficulties they 22:41 were facing. 22:42 His courage remained strong and his faith unshaken, 22:47 as he waited for what he knew was inevitable. 22:51 [Music] On April 8, 1945, in a trial 23:01 held without witnesses, Dietrich Bonhoeffer 23:04 was found guilty of conspiracy against the Nazi regime, 23:08 and was sentenced to death by hanging. 23:11 The next morning at dawn, just two weeks before the United 23:14 States Army liberated Flossenburg, the faithful 23:19 pastor and theologian was executed. 23:23 One man who witnessed Bonhoeffer's execution 23:26 said this: '"I saw Pastor Bonhoeffer, kneeling 23:31 on the floor, praying fervently to God. 23:35 At the place of execution he again said a short prayer 23:38 and then climbed the few steps to the gallows, brave 23:42 and composed. 23:45 His death ensued after a few seconds. 23:48 In the almost fifty years that I worked as a doctor,@ 23:52 I've hardly ever seen a man die so entirely submissive 23:56 to the will of God." 23:59 So what about grace? 24:01 Is grace simply permission? 24:04 Is it permissiveness? 24:06 Is grace license? 24:08 Is it some kind of get-out-of-jail-free card? 24:10 Is grace, well, it doesn't really matter what I do 24:12 because, after all, Jesus has got it covered? 24:15 Or does grace involve power? 24:17 Does grace bring transformation? 24:20 The gospel of Jesus Christ calls for a commitment 24:23 to Jesus, a total commitment to Jesus. 24:26 Jesus says that we are not to be of this world. 24:29 He said in Matthew 22:37 that you should love the Lord 24:33 your God with all your heart, with all your soul, 24:37 and with all your mind. 24:38 And quite simply, that's just Jesus saying, if you'll 24:43 let Me, if you'll want Me to, if you'll surrender 24:48 to Me, I'll come into your life and impact you so radically, 24:54 so totally, that I'll make a completely new person out 24:59 of you. 25:00 Jesus says, I'll do that for you, and I'll do that 25:03 for you today, if you'll let Me, if you want Me to. 25:10 Do you want that today? 25:18 [Music] 25:38 [Change of music] 25:49 JB: '"Revelation Today" will help you understand 25:51 the great prophetic movement of Earth's final days. 25:54 And I want you to have this book. 25:57 I wrote '"Revelation Today" so that it would be easy 25:59 to understand and yet powerful, unfolding the major 26:04 prophecies concerning the final movements 26:06 of Earth's history. 26:08 To get your free copy of '"Revelation Today" from It 26:10 Is Written, call 1-800-253-3000 and ask 26:17 for '"Revelation Today." 26:19 That number to call is 1-800-253-3000. 26:23 If the line is busy when you call, please, keep calling. 26:27 Your call will be answered. 26:30 Or you can write to us at It Is Written, Box O, 26:33 Thousand Oaks, CA 91359, and we'll mail a copy 26:39 to your address in North America. 26:41 Also be sure to visit our website, itiswritten.com, 26:45 where you'll discover additional helpful resources 26:48 on a host of life-changing topics. 26:56 JB: Let me pray with you today. 26:57 Our Father in Heaven, thank you for the power of grace, 27:02 which allows us to be yours in reality, not just in 27:06 name, not just in profession, which transforms 27:10 us and makes us truly yours. 27:12 As we reflect upon the cost of discipleship, I pray that 27:16 we will experience the power, not of cheap grace, 27:18 but of your real, saving, transforming grace. 27:23 We ask your blessing now, and we pray in Jesus' name, 27:27 Amen. 27:38 [Music] 27:48 Thanks for joining me today. 27:49 I look forward to seeing you again next time. 27:52 Until then, remember, '"It is written, man shall not live 27:57 by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the 28:01 mouth of God." 28:03 [Music] |
Revised 2015-02-05