One of the most important theologians of the modern era, J.I. Packer sets out his beliefs about the authority of Scripture and the principles that should be applied when interpreting it.
He addresses important topics such as responding to present-day views on Scripture, upholding the unity of the Bible, and addressing challenges in biblical interpretation.
In the context of the intense modern debate about the nature and authority of Scripture, Packer's voice is a welcome respite that brilliantly reaffirms the inerrancy of the Word and the adequacy of divine communication through human categories.
Students, pastors, and anyone who wants to engage more deeply with the Bible and its fundamental nature will appreciate Packer's insights , a man whose wisdom and knowledge of Scripture reinforce his significance as a Christian theologian.
What do J. I. Packer, Billy Graham and Richard John Neuhaus have in common? Each was recently named by TIME magazine as among the 25 most influential evangelicals in America.
Dr. Packer, the Board of Governors’ Professor of Theology at Regent College, was hailed by TIME as “a doctrinal Solomon” among Protestants. “Mediating debates on everything from a particular Bible translation to the acceptability of free-flowing Pentecostal spirituality, Packer helps unify a community [evangelicalism] that could easily fall victim to its internal tensions.”
Knowing God, Dr. Packer’s seminal 1973 work, was lauded as a book which articulated shared beliefs for members of diverse denominations; the TIME profile quotes Michael Cromartie of the Ethics and Public Policy Center in Washington as saying, “conservative Methodists and Presbyterians and Baptists could all look to [Knowing God] and say, ‘This sums it all up for us.’”
In a similar tribute to Dr. Packer almost ten years ago, American theologian Mark Noll wrote in Christianity Today that, “Packer’s ability to address immensely important subjects in crisp, succinct sentences is one of the reasons why, both as an author and speaker, he has played such an important role among American evangelicals for four decades.”
For over 25 years Regent College students have been privileged to study under Dr. Packer’s clear and lucid teaching, and our faculty, staff and students celebrate the international recognition he rightly receives as a leading Christian thinker and teacher.
J.I. Packer teaching Evangelicals how to be Evangelical, which might be what he does best. Typically clear and gospel-saturated. Considering this is a collection of shorter writings, I was surprised at how many were noteworthy, and personally relevant. Highlights included several of the articles on inerrancy (e.g. Chapter 6, The Necessity of the Revealed Word), his balanced treatment of several contentious issues in the middle section (Creation, Women in Ministry, Eschatology) and the entire final section on preaching. Some skimming was necessary as I began to recognise a few familiar treatments of the same issue in different places.
Parts of this book are good, some parts are downright erroneous (chapter 12, The Challenge of Biblical Interpretation: Creation), some parts are muddled (where does he stand on women in ministry?), and other parts are extraordinarily repetitive (the essays in part 3). A real mixed bag, this one.
Some of the pieces in this collection are quite hard reading, perhaps because they refer to theological viewpoints held over 40 years ago. But the material is excellent and his convictions about preaching are supremely uplifting. The third section "Preaching the Word" is the most rewarding.
This is a series of talks and essays by Packer at his best. Clear, articulate and Biblically oriented. For any preachers a must and for those uncertain about the authority of the Word of God, a great reassurance. We need many more people like him today.