Learning the Ropes of Discipleship

It is a general rule that before any action can be taken, certain prerequisites are always necessary. One cannot jump into a pool unless he is standing on the edge, nor can one ride the elevator unless he gets in. Ropes courses—groups of tall poles with ropes and cables strung between them—function in a similar manner. At the beginning of the course, climbers are instructed to ascend the cargo net to the top; from there, participants can then proceed into the bulk of the course after being connected to the upper system. When I arrived at the top of the course in 2013, I found myself wracked with doubt and hesitation. I pleaded with the counselor to let me climb back down the net and forget I ever signed up, but she merely gave me a grim smile. I had committed to the experience, and the only way out was forward, even if it was only one step at a time. The course, unfortunately, did little other than traumatize me for life, but I am nevertheless capable of deriving a lesson from it (even though it caused me great distress). While reading Dietrich Bonhoeffer’s The Cost of Discipleship, I was reminded of the tribulations that I underwent as a nine-year-old on that dreaded ropes course. Just as it was necessary for me to climb the cargo net in order to have my courage tested, so too is it necessary for Christians to be obedient to God before He presents them with an opportunity to be faithful. In The Cost of Discipleship, Bonhoeffer places particular emphasis on the necessity of obedience in the pursuit of a faithful, Christian life. While obedience may occur without basis in faith, one cannot be faithful unless he is first obedient in action and in mind, and actual Christianity—discipleship of costly faith rather than cheap faith—is made possible only by the total and deliberate alignment of one’s own will and lifestyle with God.

To address the specifics of living as a faithful disciple, one must first understand how to become a faithful disciple. Bonhoeffer suggests that obedience is the gateway to devoted discipleship, though his placement of obedience before faith in the chronological process of discipleship seems contradictory. After all, is it not necessary to believe in a cause before deeming it worthy of pursuit? To prevent such confusion, one must take care not to conflate mere belief with true faith. Belief is a simple acknowledgment of Jesus’ call, but faith is a consistent adherence to it. Obedience, then, lies between belief and faith and may be defined as an action in accordance with God’s will without any particular faith in His plan. Bonhoeffer draws a distinction between the faith and obedience when he writes that “the response of the discipl[e] [to Jesus’ call] is an act of obedience, not a confession of faith” (57), and that the disciple simply “burn[s] his boats and goes ahead” without a significant amount of contemplation on the matter (58). Because of the virtual thoughtlessness of the act, the choice to take Jesus at his word is a decision “void of all content” and “unworthy of consideration,” rendering it effectively meaningless unless the disciple continues to follow in His footsteps so that he might become more attuned to God’s calling for his life (58). In the same manner, ascending the cargo net to the ropes course is only an impressive accomplishment insofar as it provides the climber with an opportunity to take part in the actual course after reaching the top, not because it is a great feat in and of itself. Upon reaching the beginning of the ropes course, the obedient disciple is certainly “dragged out of his relative security into a life of absolute insecurity,” but he must continue along that path in order to become a faithful disciple (58). However, he (like the climber) cannot progress any further than his current spiritual location unless he first takes certain actions that move him to an area more conducive to tests of faith. The dependency of faith upon obedience is perhaps best illustrated in the Bible, in which James expresses that “faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead” (NIV. James 2.17). While actions taken without faith might not be as beneficial for the actor as they would be otherwise, they still have generally positive side-effects and may eventually lead to a change of heart in the person carrying the good deeds out. In contrast, faith cannot exist without being accompanied by obedient action, as a person is “considered righteous by what they do and not by faith alone” (James 2.24). Even Satan must concede that God exists while “demons believe [i]t and shudder” (James 2.19). Once again, a distinction between faith and belief is drawn; belief can be as insignificant as an inkling of admittance, but faith must be accompanied by whole-hearted action. Therefore, the only way to embark on the course is by first being obedient to God’s commands, as faith will inevitably follow after.

Once a disciple has “abandoned his boats” and accepted the call of obedience, his steady adherence to God’s will can eventually evolve into faith, rather than mere obedience. One of the most tangible methods of observing when obedience transforms into faith is the process of baptism and the life that should follow it. When believers offer themselves up to God for baptism, they willingly act in accordance with scripture and “die” so that they might be born anew “through and with Christ” (231). However, baptism is not a particularly difficult requirement of Christianity, as the believer passively undergoes it while God actively cleanses him. The difficulty arises after the disciple emerges from the waters and is confronted with tests of faith that would lead him astray from the obedience that he previously committed to. Bonhoeffer presents two lifestyles that a Christian may take after being obedient to the point of baptism: a life of cheap grace and cheap faith, or a life of costly grace and costly faith. Cheap grace, as Bonhoeffer writes, “is the preaching of forgiveness without repentance [and] baptism without church discipline” (44). Cheap grace is “grace without discipleship,” a dangerous framework that leads astray many Christians who seek to excuse their immoral behavior (45). The disciple who lives by cheap grace is capable (as most are) of ascending the cargo net, but when faced with the actual challenge of the course, chickens out at the last minute and elects to descend rather than continue forward. The disciple of cheap faith believes that the grace of God excuses his cowardice, but unless he continues to attempt to climb both the net and the course, he cannot be covered by the costly grace which God offers to His true followers. The disciple has conceded that the course exists and is available to him but has chosen to retreat from it, which is a blunder far more damning than pure ignorance. 

The disciples who live by costly grace, on the other hand, recognize the irrevocability of their ascent into Godliness along with its necessity for the betterment of their souls. Costly grace, according to Bonhoeffer, “is the gospel which must be sought again and again, the gift which must be asked for, the door for which man must knock” (45). Costly grace differs from cheap grace in that it does not seek to excuse human behavior; rather, it provides “free and unconditional forgiveness” for those who humbly seek it out (49). One who is wholly devoted to costly Christianity and the life that it entails disregards the prospect of retreating, focusing only on moving forward into a constant state of self-improvement and spiritual discovery. It is inevitable, of course, that the disciple will stumble and hesitate, no matter how much he strives for perfection. However, so long as he continues to press forward in obedience, inch by inch, across the chasms of the course, he exhibits costly faith and is therefore covered by costly grace and its abundance of forgiveness for those whose actions match their intentions. 

Learning the ropes of discipleship requires steady dedication and perseverance, but it also provides priceless insight into life that would otherwise be vapid. On the path of costly grace, there is hope in despair, life in death, and salvation for those who have truly sought it out, even when they have lost their way. At the deepest, darkest moments of any disciple’s lives, it becomes clear that costly grace is not only costly—it is priceless. It is a gift that is undeserved and unwarranted but is presented to us nonetheless. Costly discipleship does not, by any means, make men more deserving of God’s grace. Instead, it bestows upon them a posture of humility so that they may receive and understand it to a greater degree and calls disciples to make a “final, radical renunciation of self-willed life” in exchange for a life of service and joy (50). Though the prospect is undoubtedly daunting and oftentimes overwhelming, it is essential to remember that starting (or continuing) one’s journey of faith has always been as easy as finding the net and beginning to climb.