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Matthew 5:27-32 (NIV) 27  “You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall not commit adultery.’ 28  But I tell you that anyone who looks at a woman lustfully has already committed adultery with her in his heart. 29  If your right eye causes you to stumble, gouge it out and throw it away. It is better for you to lose one part of your body than for your whole body to be thrown into hell. 30  And if your right hand causes you to stumble, cut it off and throw it away. It is better f

Matther 5:21-26  21  “You have heard that it was said to the people long ago, ‘You shall not murder, [ a ]  and anyone who murders will be subject to judgment.’ 22  But I tell you that anyone who is angry with a brother or sister   will be subject to judgment. Again, anyone who says to a brother or sister, ‘Raca’, is answerable to the court. And anyone who says, ‘You fool!’ will be in danger of the fire of hell. 23  “Therefore, if you are offering your gift at the altar and t

Chapter 7 Matthew 5:13-16 13  “You are the salt of the earth. But what good is salt if it has lost its flavor? Can you make it salty again? It will be thrown out and trampled underfoot as worthless. 14  “You are the light of the world—like a city on a hilltop that cannot be hidden. 15  No one lights a lamp and then puts it under a basket. Instead, a lamp is placed on a stand, where it gives light to everyone in the house. 16  In the same way, let your good deeds shine out for

Reflections on THE COST OF DISCIPLESHIP by Dietrich Bonhoeffer Section II – The Sermon On The Mount Chapter 6, The Beatitudes - Of the “Extraordinariness” of the Christian Life – Matt. 5:1-12 (NLT) “5 One day as he saw the crowds gathering, Jesus went up on the mountainside and sat down. His disciples gathered around him, 2  and he began to teach them. 3  “God blesses those who are poor and realize their need for him,     for the Kingdom of Heaven is theirs. 4  God blesses t

Luke 14:26-27 (NLT)   26  “If you want to be my disciple, you must, by comparison, hate everyone else—your father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters—yes, even your own life. Otherwise, you cannot be my disciple. 27  And if you do not carry your own cross and follow me, you cannot be my disciple.” See also Matt. 10:32-39 “Every man is called separately, and must follow alone. But men are frightened of solitude, and they try to protect themselves from it by mer

The Cost of Discipleship – Chapter 4 Discipleship and the Cross . Luke 9:23 23  And he said to all, “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me.  (NAS) 23  Then he said to the crowd, “If any of you wants to be my follower, you must give up your own way, take up your cross daily, and follow me. (NLT) See also Mark 8:31-38 (especially vs. 34-38). I have been musing on these verses for several weeks, trying to grasp what they me

Call to Discipleship – Ch 3 Single-Minded Obedience Unless otherwise indicated all quotes are taken from The Cost of Discipleship by Dietrich Bonhoeffer Consider this conversation paraphrased from Matthew 19:16-22. A man approaches Jesus and asks. What must I do to get eternal life [into heaven]? Jesus says. Keep the commandments. Which ones? Start with don’t murder, commit adultery, steal, lie, honor your father & mother and love your neighbor as yourself. Done that, so what

“The call goes forth, and is at once followed by the response of obedience. The response of the disciples is an act of obedience, not a confession of faith in Jesus.” Consider the call of Matthew (Levi). It started with a call and his response to the call immediately followed by obedience. “Follow me,” Jesus said. Matthew responded with obedience. When Jesus calls us to follow him, we do not first contemplate our spiritual condition, give a statement of faith or express a doc

The following prayer is adapted with permission from the book. 100 PRAYERS FOR WRITERS by Bob Hostetler. When I first read this I...

Wednesday, 20 August 2025 The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of his hands.   – Psalm 19:1 This past Monday...

All quotes, unless otherwise specified, are from THE COST OF DISCIPLESHIP, 1959 ed. The thoughts and comments stated here are my own based on my reading and understanding of Bonhoffer’s book. “Cheap grace is the deadly enemy of our church. We are fighting today for costly grace.” “Cheap grace is the preaching of forgiveness without requiring repentance… Cheap grace is grace without discipleship, grace without the cross, grace without Jesus Christ, living and incarnate.” When

Understanding Healing                                                                                             7-21-25 This subject...

On 21 June 2025 we were in Idaho, closing in on the end of a three-week road trip/vacation. I drove to Meridian to top off the gas tank...

A key understanding about Jesus is that he is both fully divine and fully human (Matt. 1:23-25; John 1:14; 1 Tim. 2:5). What caught my...

(Hebrew: הַגָּדָה, "telling"; plural: Haggadot) is a foundational Jewish text that sets forth the order of the Passover Seder. I enjoy...

Extracted from an article by Danielle Wallace, Fox News - 24 April 2025 First let me say, I am not a Catholic. There are some issues in...

I don't anticipate reaching the notoriety of these authors but here are a few of my personal recommendations (I'll add more as time goes...