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
To know that nothing happens in God's world apart from God's will may frighten the godless, but it stabilizes the saints.
Interpretation
What this quote means
Understanding divine will can bring comfort to believers while unsettling non-believers.
This quote reflects the idea that the belief in God's sovereignty offers stability and assurance to those who have faith, while it may provoke fear and anxiety in those who do not share that belief. The contrast between the 'godless' and the 'saints' highlights how different worldviews interpret the same reality in fundamentally different ways.
Themes
GodWillBeliefFaithSovereigntyComfortFear
In practice
Example use cases
In a sermon discussing the nature of divine control, this quote can emphasize faith in challenging times.
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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