Truthfulness

It's interesting that the main point of this chapter is that oaths are because there's the existance of lies. But if "we know the cross we are no longer afraid of the truth. We need no more oaths to confirm the truth of our utterances, for we live in the perfect truth of God."

So if we claim that we're a disciple of Christ, live truth like you mean it.

Woman

It's interesting that there actually is a chapter called 'Woman' huh? 1 Corinthians 6:13 talks about our body isn't meant for sexual immorality but for The Lord. That's definately something to keep in mind. There's probably some hard stuff that a woman has to deal with that men dont have to deal with, but perhaps one of the most difficult things men have to deal with that women dont really have to deal with is of course 'Women.' Oh Bathsheba...

oaths & truthfulness, not truthy-ness

It's interesting to read how Bonhoeffer analyzes Jesus' words in Matthew 5:33-37. He argues that the reason that Jesus criticized the use of oaths is because of the existence of lies and lying - after all, if everyone told the truth all the time, there would be no need for anyone to swear an oath to "ensure" truth-telling. Instead, Jesus calls on us to be truthful ALL THE TIME - thus, we don't need oaths.

I like this quote:

"The commandment of complete truthfulness is really only another name for the totality of discipleship."

that's a definate maybe

Whenever people in the movies say "I swear to God," or "I swear on my dead mothers grave," they're usually lying through their teeth. Jesus tells us to be truthful, to let our "yes" be yes and our "no" be no. To just simply speak the truth... no need to rationalize it, justify it, or swear by it. To do anything else is leave room for doubt and sin; for the lie to take place of the truth.

"traps"

Reading through chapter 10, it essentially equates women to being "alluring bait" to the opposite gender. So that implies there is a trap behind that occassionally mesmerizing veneer, if not approached accordingly. A trap which has pretty drastic implications according to Matt 5:29-30. The only real solution to this I can think of is to cut it off from the source, to totally eliminate the "bait" from one's thought process. And herein lies the conundrum, since human nature is such that the more something is repressed and bottled up and its very existence denied, the more one is infatuated with whatever "bait" that might be. This leads me to believe that world class self-discipline is the key.

lustful women...guilty man

What bonhoeffer speaks about makes it seem women are the one who commit adultery. That they are the cause of sin. I also was shocked where it said that the innocent one of a bad marriage cannot remarry in order to prove the sanctity of marriage. This really bites that there are all these rules to obey. In the next chapter, truthfulness is described as transparancy of oneself to God. You are to show everything, good and bad. And that if you do so, there shall be no need to lie.

the righteousness of Christ

"For I tell you, unless your righteousness exceeds that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven." Matt. 5:20

The scribes and the Pharisees were the "elitists" of their day, the people who had viewed themselves as accomplishing much when they looked in the mirror, and wielding high status within society. It made me think about where the hatred of Jesus ultimately stems from, because the only real person whose righteousness exceeds that of the scribes and the Pharisees is Jesus himself. People intrinsically / naturally long to find their own way through the dangerous minefield known as the world, driven to be self-sufficient and believing their works and achievements should justify their status in others' eyes along with their own. There are people who shun Jesus because believing in him means denouncing righteousness as a commodity.

"I AM the Law!"

What stood out to me in this week's reading is in chapter 8 where Bonhoeffer emphasizes that Jesus fulfills the old law, therefore those who believe are righteous in God's eyes. Previous to Christ, people veiwed the law in a way that put in place of God, and that's not good. The law became God and not God alone. So God had Jesus set that all straight. Thank you God.

the law brother connection.

It was kind of hard for me to see what the connection between the topics and it really took some thought. After thinking about it for awhile, I guess it occurred to me that when you think about the 10 commandments, the first 4 laws deal with our relationship with God; the next 6 laws deal with our relationship with other people.

That helped me to make the connection in that Bonhoeffer reminds us that Jesus came as the fulfillment of the law - that the law was originally designed as guidelines for human beings to have fellowship with God, and fellowship with each other. Even though it's difficult for we as fallible human beings to keep the law, it doesn't mean that it's unimportant or that we should ignore it. Only with the help of Christ can we obey the law and have true fellowship with our "brothers".

the law and the brother

to respect and to love. this is like how life should be. to respect and follow the law and to love and treat as a brother. it is an intersting balance and should be worked on. sometimes it's easier to respect that to love. this is how we should be. to love man and to life Jesus up.

peacemaker

"The followers of Jesus have been called to peace. When he called them, they found their peace, for he is their peace. But now they are told that they must not only HAVE peace, but MAKE it." -Bonhoeffer


.:.


I really found Bonhoeffer explanation of this beautitude to be really meaningful, at least in the way that it's reminder of what it really means to be a "peacemaker". Being a gun nut, I sometimes associate the gun with the name "peacemaker", but thinking about the idea of "peace", I realize more and more that the reason our world lacks peace is because it lacks faith and it lacks Christ. Peace comes first from having it within ourselves, and only once we have it within ourselves, can we truly "make it" through showing God's love and compassion. Without having it within ourselves, we're powerless to really "make peace".

powerlessness

I think the one thing the stuck out to me while reading these chapters is the concept of having to "lose yourself" in order to "gain yourself" so to speak. The disciples had nothing to their names; no belongings, no home, not even an identity they could lay claim to on Earth. They gave up everything for the implied odds that following the Lord offered them, which is something along the parameters of infinity to one. And I personally feel the ability to empathize w/ that on multiple levels, sometimes one has to be consistently be willing to give it all up on a moment's notice to truly feel a profound purpose.

Blessed are the meek:

for they shall inherit the earth.
I never really understood why the meek shall inherit the earth, and I can't say that after reading Bonhoeffer's thoughts has helped me to fully understand, but I guess it's a little more than before. When I think "meek," I guess I usually think of it having a slightly negative connotation, like being weak and quiet. Letting the big guy stomp all over you. But Bonhoeffer brings the perspective of the meek leaving their rights to God alone and relying on that alone.

Still can't say I quite understand it for myself...seems more like a passive lifestyle to me. But in this age of "stand up for your rights!" being "meek" is something that's worth thinking about, I suppose.

still have a long ways to go

blessed were they who follow Christ. I remember Pastor Lam also giving a sermon on this too; as followers of Christ, we should encompass all the beatitudes. That when Jesus was talking about the beatitudes, he wasn't talking about various groups with one of the beatitudes, He was talking about the disciples themselves. Looking in the mirror, I don't really see my life reflecting any of the beatitudes. For sure I feel the very opposite of a peacemaker right now. I'd rather not bring peace, but a sword. I would rather have a peacemaker right now, than be a peace maker. yeah, still have a long ways to go...

to become or to BE

I liked when Bonhoeffer how Jesus says to the disciples that they ARE the salt and light not that they will become the salt and light or that they have the salt and light. Do you guys feel that you ARE the salt and light? That's a pretty big challenge. It's not like we can take a break from BEING salt and light. It's like can I sometimes stop being Asian? If we ARE salt and light then why are we not showing it?

the down and out

From reading the chapters, Bonhoeffer portrayed the desciples as the one that have nothing nor want nothing. There sole purpose is to follow Jesus and does as told. They have no regard for possesions and their own beliefs and feelings. It must be really hard to being one of Jesus' desciple. You must really be convicted and wholy believe in Jesus and Christianity. It all about the end and the afterlife in which they long for. The time on earth is just temporal and had no real foundations. It is just a way for the desciples to practice their descipleship and oneness with God. And in the next chapter, the blessed ones are just salt and light. I like how he describes how salt helps preserves things and keep things good but once salt loses it's flavor then it is useless. I guess it reminds you not to burn out and over extend yourself....i hope i am understanding the authors points.

Chapter 4

In this chapter, the emphasis is clearly stated. The call to follow is closely tied into Jesus' passion leading up to and on the cross, and as disciples we are called on to share this same passion. The life of a true disciple is one of constant rejection and suffering in the face of a worldly, lascivious environment. To deny one's self for the greater good, there is no greater calling than the one Jesus has paved for us to follow.

a passion for Christ

Chapter 4 reminds me of Kristine's lesson on the Passion of Christ. When we use the word passion, we usually think along the lines of:

5a : ardent affection : LOVE b : a strong liking or desire for or devotion to some activity, object, or concept c : sexual desire d : an object of desire or deep interest (Webster's online Dictionary).

Things that we have a passion for or are passionate about; be it teaching kids, mountain climbing, pets, playing video games, eating chocalate, etc. Someone who has a passion for basketball can spend everyday practicing their jumpshot and freethrows until they can hit it even with their eyes closed. People with a passion for eating can eat to the point they risk severe obesity, heart disease or other health ailments. Things that we are truly passionate about... we place a higher priority on them, make time for them, making sacrifices for, even forgoing food or sleep for them at the risk to our own health.

There is another definition of passion, from which we talk about the Passion of Christ. The latin root from which the word stems from is pati - to suffer(from which we get the word patient). The Passion of Christ; the suffering of Christ on the cross. Bonhoeffer talks about how Jesus had to suffer on the cross and be rejected by the ones He came to save, so that the Word of God could be fulfilled, and we be saved from our sins. That we crucified Jesus on the cross, and rejected Him as the King of Kings and Lord of Lords is the ultimate proof of God's love for us, even though we don't desire it nor deserver it. And so we proclaim our faith in Him - that Jesus is the messiah; the truth, the way, the light.

But Jesus says this... that if we call ourselves followers of Christ, If we truly love Him, we must deny ourselves and take up the cross, His cross... and follow Him(Matt. 16:24). Truly, if we have a passion for God, we would make God(and His will) a high priority in our lives. So great a passion we would give up our own desires, and even suffer pain and indignity in His name. So great a passion for Christ did the disciples have that most were persecuted and killed because of their faith.

We are a passionate people, with a passion for many things, some healthy and some not. You can tell what a person is passionate about by looking at their life, what they spend a majority of their time on; through their actions and words.

For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.(Matt. 6:21).

The Mediator

When it comes to recognizing Jesus as the mediator between God and ourselves, this is usually easy to remember. But I'm reminded that He's also the mediator between man and man, and man and reality. Much like how we have certain relationships or encounters with people that affect us in ways that are more than ordinary. But then, we often even overlook the more normal occurances in life as mediated by God, such as everday life issues and struggles - good or bad. Many times we just try to live life and deal with the "normal" things on our own and only come to God with more special or difficult issues in life.

comprehension

Hehe don't exactly remember all of what I just read and sometimes I'm not sure what to make of it. But I liked at the end of Chapter 4 where he quoted Luther where Luther illustrated Abraham and his lack of comprehension when God told him to just go and He would lead the way. I can't really see what lies ahead of me, and that is really difficult and frustrating at times. Ok that's all I can think of.

timing...

i got a chance yesterday to share with a non-believer friend about what i am reading about in the book. i talked about how it relates to how we live our lives; about the relation between faith and obedience. that there must be the act of obedience to allow for faith and the faith alone will not suffice unless obediently acted upon. i also touched on what the author talks about in chapter 3 about not acting upon what you think God would want or ask but rather to do just what the Lord requests. So don't give up all your possession because it is Godly to do so but rather when he asks for you to sacrifice, then give up to him with no hesitation and with earnestness. In chapter 4, he speaks about the suffering and the death of Christ. What i am understanding is that we do not have to do what Christ has done for us but rather to continually focused on Christ and to maintain balance in life on how we can best obey and be like him.