Preface

The original version of this book was entitled „How Should We Then Live?" with a subtitle of „Six steps to abundant life in Christ".  I considered it a manual of applied Christian living, a natural progression from the Francis Schaeffer book of the same title.

Since the original version, I have written a small discipleship manual entitled „Building a better life: a pocket-guide for Christian living", which is in essence the succint version of the larger manual.  I have used it successfully in helping new Christians from the ages of 12 to 82 to get a simple overall grasp of what it means to live the Christian life.

This version of the book is intended to be a leader's guide for helping teach others the material in the pocket-guide.  It is in essence the original version reformatted and slightly expanded in some areas to correspond with each of the sections and themes in the pocket-guide.  It thus provides very helpful background material and understanding so that discipleship with the pocket-guide can be as successful and thorough as possible.

But please note, my driving passion is to keep the discipleship process as simple, as comprehensive, as holistic, and as succinct as possible.  I really believe that this material satisfies all these requirements, and in all humility I believe is well on the way to world's best practice.  I know that sounds like a tall statement, but I believe that we are at such a moment in history where we are able, with the benefit of Information Technology and the lessons of 2000 years of Christianity behind us, to produce such a document.  I present this document as my contribution to the process.

May God bless all readers of this book, and especially all those who implement its contents in their own lives and who seek to impart its contents to others.  My prayer is that we all grow into the fullness of the image of Him who fills the heavens - our Lord Jesus Christ! (cf Ephesians 1:22-23; Colossians 1:28 - 2:10)

With much love in Jesus Christ,

Peter Kutschker
Baden, Niederösterreich, Austria.
April 2006.



Preface to original version

For those aware of the writings of Francis Schaeffer, you will notice that I have borrowed the title of one of his works, but added a different subtitle. Furthermore, I use the title not in an apologetic sense (ie How should we then live if we keep on abandoning the foundations we have in the Bible?) but in an applicatory sense (How should we then live after we have come to accept the biblical foundations?). I thus consider this paper a virtual manual of applied Christian living, a natural progression from Schaeffer's own book.

This work grew as a result of a number of factors: my trying to grasp the big picture of what it means to live the Christian life in every respect; my wanting to live fully in accordance with what I knew to be true; my need to put into words the forming and fashioning which the Holy Spirit has been doing in my own life; my desire to help others also come into the full experience of new life in Jesus, without getting sidetracked down irrelevant or destructive pathways or lost in the tonnes of Christian literature in existence. I'm sure you will sense all these aspects in the following pages.

Allow me to say at the outset that I feel hardly any of this material is original. I owe a debt to every single person I have met, whether in person or via media (written, audio, or audio-visual), and to the Holy Spirit, whom I believe has inspired me often. Where there is originality, I believe it comes in the fashion and structure in which the material is presented, and I hope and trust that this structure will be a blessing for many across the world, so that they, too, may simply come to experience the abundant life that Jesus Christ came to bring.

This manual is a living document. The more I mature in Christ, the more it will be refined and added to in depth of insight and content, and I welcome any critique of its current contents. But I trust that for all who read it in its present form it will be a launching pad into ever more fullness of life in Jesus until He returns. I encourage you to consider this document as a 'scaffolding?to help you build the life God is calling you to live.

To our great and loving heavenly Father be all the glory, through Jesus Christ His Son.

Peter Kutschker
Melbourne, Victoria, Australia.
May 2002.

"Finally, brothers, we instructed you how to live in order to please God, as in fact you are living. Now we ask you and urge you in the Lord Jesus to do this more and more."

The Apostle Paul
(1 Thessalonians 4:1)