a cheap cross

brittle bone :: the normals

Bamboozle. Trick. Deceive. Preach. Cheat. Swindle.


Which word doesn’t fit? It seems obvious, but it can be hard to tell at times.


Cheap grace is sold on the market like cheapjacks’ wares. The sacraments, the forgiveness of sin, and the consolations of religion are thrown away at cut prices…In such a Church the world finds a cheap covering for its sins; no contrition is required, still less any real desire to be delivered from sin…Cheap grace is grace without discipleship, grace without the cross, grace without Jesus Christ. +Dietrich Bonhoeffer, The Cost of Discipleship


Some sell forgiveness on gospel TV shows
And I wonder why anyone's buying
Cause the truth is a hard sell
For it burns out the lies
+ The Normals, Brittle Bone


Besides that, our generation is skeptical of the sales-pitch. Constantly inundated with a barrage of mass-media messages, we have become keenly aware of the sales gimmicks and slick ads vying for our attention and money. We have to be, or we will be swindled by superficial messages with secret underlying motivations.


Maybe that’s why our generation is turned off by some preachers. Hoping to appeal to a pleasure-oriented society, these preachers pitch the gospel as a choice commodity. The gospel is stripped of sacrifice and the responsibilities of a life-long covenant relationship with Christ. But people see right through it. Motives are questioned and interest in Christianity is defused.


Many outsiders actually miss the chance to experience true life in Christ because we cheapen the message of Jesus. + Kinnaman & Lyons, UnChristian


Or worse, when the gospel is pitched as an exciting choice to convert with no context of covenant, people do not respond to the sacrifice of Christ with a life dedication to the kingdom of God that dramatically influences all aspects of their existence.


Too many of the conversion become either “aborted” believers or casual Christians. + Kinnaman and Lyons, UnChristian


Jesus called people to forsake everything, take up the cross, and follow Him throughout His earthly ministry. And the call is no different today.


A Christian is, literally, “Christ’s one,” someone who is not just vaguely influenced by Christian teaching, but who has switched his or her most fundamental allegiance to Jesus. Christians understand the all-or-nothing choice that is forced upon us by the magnitude of Jesus’ claims. +Timothy Keller, The Reason for God


An apostolic invitation to covenant embraces a more holistic idea of what it means to be in covenant with Christ. It is a life-or-death decision to embrace the gospel or deny it.


Now, I want to remind you of the gospel…that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures. +Apostle Paul, 1 Corinthians 15.1, 3-4


To follow Christ will cost you your life.  There really is no other way.  Don’t be bamboozled by the promise of a cheap cross. There is no such thing.