Knowing God – Part II

J I Packer

Class notes - #1, September 26, 2007

1. Knowing God – A modern classic guide to discovering and knowing the God revealed in Scripture. Packer presents the Christian faith in an engaging style.
1. Firsts half of this class done in fall 2005, covering Chapters 1-6 and 18-22

2. Book is broken in to three sections which make two, equal sections:

                                                               i.      Investigating the privileges and problems of living as a Christian (covered in 2005); and

                                                             ii.      Surveying the attributes of God – Chapters 7-17

1.      What do we mean by “attributes?

a.       Attribute (Oxford English Dictionary): “1) a quality ascribed to a person or thing; b) characteristic quality

b.      Evangelical Dictionary of Theology: “God is an invisible, personal and living Sprit, distinguished from all other spirits by several kinds of attributes: metaphysically God is self-existent, eternal, and unchanging; intellectually God is omniscient, faithful and wise; ethically God detests evil, is long-suffering, and is compassionate; existentially God is free, authentic, and omnipotent; relationally God is transcendent in being, immanent universally in providential activity and immanent with his people in redemptive activity.

The essence of anything, simply put, equals its being (substance) plus its attributes”.

c.       Catholic Encyclopedia – Divine Attributes: “In order to form a more systematic idea of God, and as far as possible, to unfold the implications of the truth, God is All-Perfect, this infinite Perfection is viewed, successively, under various aspects, each of which is treated as a separate perfection and characteristic inherent to the Divine Substance, or Essence. A certain group of these, of paramount import, is called the Divine Attributes.

2.      Can we describe God? What are the limitations and what are our capabilities in this regard?

2. Background & Biography – from first section:

1. James I Packer is one of the preeminent evangelical theologians today.

2. Short biography - J. I. Packer was born July 22, 1926, in Twyning, Gloucestershire, England to James (a clerk) and Dorothy Packer. He was educated at Oxford (BA, 1948, MA and D.Phil., 1954). (He knew CS Lewis, who had a major influence on Packer)

3. He began his career as an Anglican clergyman and served as assistant curate in Birmingham, England in 1952 then as a tutor at Tyndale Hall, Bristol, England, a librarian and later, warden, at Latimer House, Oxford, England. He returned to Tyndale Hall, as principal, in 1970; then associate principal at Trinity College, Bristol from 1971-79.

4. In 1979, after teaching and preaching for 27 years in England, he became Professor of Systematic and Historical Theology at Regent College, and in 1989 he was installed as the first Sangwoo Youtong Chee Professor of Theology.

5. Packer's writings include books such as A Quest for Godliness (Crossway), Growing in Christ (Crossway), and Rediscovering Holiness (Servant) and numerous articles published in journals such as Churchman, SouthWestern Journal, Christianity Today, Reformation & Revival Journal and Touchstone.

                                                               i.      Dr. Packer published his first book, Fundamentalism And The Word Of God in 1958 and has written many excellent books over the years, one of his most famous being Knowing God, featured below, which has been published in several languages.

                                                             ii.      Packer also served as general editor of the English Standard Version of the Bible.

6. Serves as a Senior Editor and Visiting Scholar of Christianity Today

7. Member of Evangelicals and Catholics Together

                                                               i.      He has become an outspoken proponent of the ecumenical movement but believes that unity should not come at the expense of abandoning orthodox Protestant doctrine. Nonetheless, his advocacy of ecumenicism has brought sharp criticism from some conservatives.

8. Named one of Time Magazine’s 25 most influential Evangelicals

9. Packer is married to Kit, has three children, and enjoys tapping his foot to classic jazz.

2. Quote and snippets by Packer:

1. Commemoration of Felix, Bishop, Apostle to the East Angles, 647 continuing a short series on the Bible: God the Father is the giver of Holy Scripture; God the Son is the theme of Holy Scripture; and God the Spirit is the author, authenticator, and interpreter of Holy Scripture.

2. The How and the Why of studying God’s attributes…we start with the bible, and we use it to study God: “the first thing to ask of any scripture is not what it tells me about myself, but what it says about my God”.

3. Knowing God – the Preface

1. Packer himself suggests this book is not a “treatise on God”; but, rather, at best a “string of pearls” – small studies on great subjects” (pp 11)
   
   We want to take this individual pearls and strong them together to make a necklace.

2. Packer says he wrote Knowing God:

                                                               i.      Out of the conviction that ignorance of God lies at the root of the contemporary church’s weaknesses

                                                             ii.      And to help the “sick tree of Christendom ingest a “vitamin rich” diet.

                                                            iii.      To help groups of Christians identify and apply the essential truths of biblical theology.

3. Three sections of the book:

                                                               i.      The first directs our attention to the hows and whys of knowing God

                                                             ii.      The second directs us to the attributes of God

                                                            iii.      The third to some primary benefits enjoyed by a person who is God’s child.

4. This fall and early winter we will do section 2.
   
   

4. Next week – Chapter Seven – The Study of God

1. Big question – What does it mean to say that God is immutable? Why is this important to you?