The grass withers and the flowers fall, but the word of the Lord stands forever. 1 Peter 1:24-25 (NIV)
Another great advantage of going through a single book of the Bible is that God sets the curriculum. Peter was writing to new believers under the inspiration of the Spirit of God. So we are going to work on the assumption that everything he said is relevant to us.
The problem with many courses on discipleship is that they pick out ten to fifteen themes that the author considers important. This seems logical, but the inherent danger is that the curriculum ends up being slanted by our prejudices and limited by our blind spots.
One writer might say, “If I wrote a course for young Christians, I would include a session on prayer, bible reading, and witnessing.” But another writer might say with even greater conviction, “If I wrote a study for newer Christians, I would definitely not include a session on submission, or freedom, or suffering.”
Yet, according to the Word of God in 1 Peter, these themes are central to the experience of the Christian life. So our aim is to take God’s discipleship manual—unedited; and as this letter gets inside of you, it will give direction to your life.
Are you ready to hear from the Word of God what he wants you to know about the basics of the Christian life?
