If you are a die-hard Bonhoeffer fan or don’t even know how to say his name, much less spell it – this book is for you.
This series by Stephen Nichols (church historian) and Justin Taylor (Crossway/blog guru) is apt to make all of us less stuck in our chronological snobbery (as I think CS Lewis referred to). The other two “thinkers” in this series is Warfield and Schaeffer. The new one is about the WW2-time period theologian Dietrich Bonhoeffer.
The best-selling work of Bonhoeffer, The Cost of Discipleship, is by no means his only work, just his most well-known. The rest of his life and work are highlighted in this book.
One aspect of the book that I enjoy is the historical work that Nichols has put in to it: using the lesser well-known works of Bonhoeffer to justify what Nichols says about the book’s main star. He also uses history to corroborate.
Most importantly, the readers get a true glimpse of the theologian, man, pastor, and martyr. We get a glimpse into his struggles with the theology of the day found in Germany, his love for his homeland, and how he stood up to the anti-God mentality that was so prevalent in the days of Hitler and Nazi Germany.
If you want a readable primer on Bonhoeffer, a good overview of his life, work, and the gospel that filled every thought – you will want to pick up Nichols’ work.