Bonhoeffer begins this chapter with Jesus calling Levi to
“Follow me” in Mark 2:14.
Immediately, Levi followed. No additional information is
provided. Christ called and Levi followed.
We are not meant to focus on the one who followed, but on the one who
called. This immediate obedience to follow has been a stumbling block for some.
They want additional information, they need to understand WHY Levi followed-
perhaps he had previously met Jesus? They cannot humanly understand this act of
obedience. But it is simple, because it
was Christ who called there was authority behind the call.
“Jesus summons men to
follow him not as a teacher or a pattern of the good life, but as the Christ,
the Son of God.”
When Christ calls, He transcends all the stumbling blocks
and all the legalism we try so hard to understand with our minds. He takes us
from the known safety of our worlds into the unknown possibilities of following
Him and while doing this, He shatters all our previous perceptions and takes us
into a relationship that seems crazy to the world, but to the disciple makes
sense.
Bonhoeffer takes great pains in emphasizing the call.
Without the call from Christ it is possible to have a working knowledge of
Christianity and yet completely miss the relationship.
“Christianity without the living Christ is inevitably Christianity
without discipleship and Christianity without discipleship is always
Christianity without Christ…Discipleship without Jesus Christ is a way of our
own choosing…It may even lead to martyrdom, but it is devoid of all promise.”
Next Bonhoeffer takes us to Luke 9:57-62 where we see three examples
of false callings.
1. This person volunteers to follow without
Christ initiating the call. Jesus warns this individual that he does not know
what he is asking…a life of suffering for Christ. “No man
can call himself to such a destiny, says Jesus, and his word stays
unanswered. The gulf between a voluntary
offer to follow and genuine discipleship are clear. But where Jesus calls, he bridges the widest gulf.”
2. This
would-be disciple is bound by the law. He wants to fulfill the law by first
burying his father and THEN following Christ. Here the law is acting as a
barrier to following Christ. When called, “nothing on earth, however sacred, must be
allowed to come between Jesus and the man he has called- not even the law
itself…the law must be broken for the sake of Jesus; it forfeits all its rights
if it acts as a barrier to discipleship.”
3.
Like the first, this man initiates the
call; however this man also puts in his own stipulations for following thereby
putting himself between a rock and a hard place. He wants to follow Christ but
at the same time he wants Christ to “suffer
me first”. He is trying to make discipleship “fit” his agenda by dictating
his terms. “But then discipleship is no longer discipleship, but a programme of
our own to be arranged to suit ourselves, and to be judge in accordance with
the standards of a rational ethic…discipleship
can tolerate no conditions which might come between Jesus and our obedience to
him.”
Bonhoeffer now takes us back to Levi and his call (our
call)- I pray you get this book and read these next few pages- they are profound
and I will not give them justice.
“The call to follow at
once produces a new situation. To stay in the old situation makes discipleship
impossible.”
We are called, we must decide if we will believe in the one
who is calling. If we do not take that first step of faith, we do not learn how
to believe and we do not learn how to follow.
“So long as Levi sits
at the receipt of custom, and Peter at his nets, they could both pursue their
trade honestly and dutifully, and they might both enjoy religious experiences,
old and new. But if they want to believe in God, the only way is to follow his
incarnate Son…Had Levi stayed at his
post, Jesus might have been his present help in trouble, but not the Lord of
his whole life.” (Let me interject that in later Chapters Bonhoeffer talks about
how not everyone is called to change
careers, so please don’t focus this and miss the point that when called we must
be open to what that means for us as individual followers.)
“It is only the call
of Jesus which makes it a situation where faith is possible…a situation where
faith is possible can never be demonstrated from the human side. Discipleship is not an offer man makes to
Christ. It is only the call which creates the situation.”
For those who are unsure if they are called please read 1 Tim 2:4-6 and John 3:16- God wants ALL men to know Him, He loves ALL His creation. You are not excluded.
Next week we will talk about this famous quote from
Bonhoeffer:
“Only he who believes is obedient, and only he who is obedient
believes.”
Questions:
1.
– FOR FOLLOWERS
OF CHRST- Do you remember when
you decided to follow Christ? Do you remember the Savior calling you? Would you
like to share your experience- not everyone who follows this blog is a
Christian.
2.
–FOR
THOSE WHO ARE UNSURE OF SALVATION- Have you ever struggled with knowing
if you are called? With taking that first step of obedient faith? What is holding you back? What are your
concerns?
3. FOR EVERYONE- What do you think
of Bonhoeffer’s explanation of the call to follow? Does it help you understand
the call to follow and why some are unable to follow or are you left with more
questions? What can I (and other commenter’s) help clarify?
