Once you become aware that the main business that you are here for is to know God, most of life's problems fall into place of their own accord.
J. I. PackerRead
The Almighty appeared on earth as a helpless human baby, needing to be fed and changed and taught to talk like any other child. The more you think about it, the more staggering it gets. Nothing in fiction is so fantastic as this truth of the Incarnation.
Interpretation
What this quote means
The quote highlights the profound mystery and significance of the Incarnation, emphasizing the divine becoming human in its most vulnerable form.
J. I. Packer's quote reflects on the extraordinary concept of the Incarnation, where the Almighty, typically perceived as all-powerful, took on the form of a vulnerable human baby. This idea is presented as not only astounding but also more remarkable than any fictional narrative, inviting deeper contemplation about the nature of divinity and humanity and the relationship between the two.
Themes
IncarnationDivinityHumanityMysteryTruth
In practice
Example use cases
In a sermon discussing the nature of God, I quoted Packer to emphasize the importance of the Incarnation in understanding Christian theology.
More from J. I. Packer
All quotes →He that has learned to feel his sins, and to trust Christ as a Saviour, has learned the two hardest and greatest lessons in Christianity.
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We need to discover all over again that worship is natural to the Christian, as it was to the godly Israelites who wrote the psalms, and that the habit of celebrating the greatness and graciousness of God yields an endless flow of thankfulness, joy, and zeal.
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The fruit of wisdom is Christlikeness, peace, humility and love. And, the root of it is faith in Christ as the manifested wisdom of God
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Were I asked to focus the New Testament message in three words, my proposal would be ADOPTION THROUGH PROPITIATION, and I do not expect ever to meet a richer or more pregnant summary of the gospel than that.
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Only when it is seen that what decides each individual's destiny is whether or not God decides to save him from his sins, and that this is a decision that God need not make in any individual case, can one begin to grasp the biblical view of grace.
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