1 Peter was written for this reason:

To remind and encourage Christians what God has done for them, and in light of that, encourage them to trust God, grow and live Godly lives in the midst of trials and sufferings, which all Christians have been called to endure for good and holy reasons.

This is a book for real people, living real lives, facing real problems, in a society and culture that really hated Christ and everything His Gospel stands for. Peter is a very practical man:

• He wrote 1 Peter to tell us why trials and suffering comes our way, and how to deal with them.
• He wrote 2 Peter to tell us why false teachers and deceivers come our way, and how to deal with them.

Peter gives us a Christianity completely different from the glossy, pop-Christian shallowness that largely characterizes the evangelical world in the West. Peter lives in a world that is very hostile to Christ and the Gospel. So do the people he writes to.

This background informs the way he writes, what he emphasizes, and the warnings he gives. Peter is a very serious man, a very sober man, a very concerned man – and he says all Christians should be, too

This seriousness, this soberness, this practical and “real” mindset is the worldview, the lens, through which he views the world and the faith. It should be ours, too.

Here are my detailed notes for an introduction to 1 Peter.

Below is the audio from the Sunday School lesson: