The Cost of Discipleship

I just wanted to share a few snip-its from the book I just started, The Cost of Discipleship by Dietrech Bonhoeffer. Coming off the heals of reading, Monday Morning Church by Jerry Cook this new book already is so parallel in theme. These quotes are from the introduction alone;
"When we go to church and listen to the sermon, what we want to hear is his Word- and that not merely for selfish reasons, but for the sake of the many for whom the Church and her message are foreign."
"The real trouble is that the pure Word of Jesus has been overlaid with so much human ballast-burdensome rules and regulations, false hopes and consolations-that it has become extremely difficult to make a genuine decision for Christ. Of course it is our aim to preach Christ and Christ alone, but , when all is said and done, it is not the fault of our critics that they find our preaching so hard to understand, so overburdened with ideas and expressions which are hopelessly out of touch with the mental climate in which they live."
"They are convinced that it is not the Word of Jesus himself that puts them off, but the superstructure of human, institutional, and doctrinal elements in our preaching."
"Does not our preaching contain too much of our own opinions and convictions, and too little of Jesus Christ? Jesus invites all those that labour and are heavy laden, and nothing could be so contrary to our best intentions, and so fatal to our proclamation, as to drive men away from him by forcing upon them man-made dogmas."
"When the Bible speaks of following Jesus, it is proclaiming a discipleship which will liberate mankind from all man-made dogmas, from every burden and oppression, from every anxiety and torture which afflicts the consciense. If they follow Jesus, men escape from the hard yoke of thier own laws, and submit to the kindly yoke of Jesus Christ."

What I am amazed at most is that this was written in 1937 first and then revised and Copywrit in 1959 and yet it is so applicable for this day and age. I guess this is a problem that the church has been having for quite some time. Nothing new under the sun.
Wow, I am excited to read this rest. This man's life and death(he was matyered for Jesus) tells such a story.