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Packer on God's Self-Existence
"In theology, endless mistakes result from supposing that the conditions, bounds, and limits of our finite existence apply to God. The doctrine of his aseity [meaning that God has life in himself and draws his unending energy from himself] stands as a bulwark against such mistakes. In our life of faith, we easily impoverish ourselves by embracing an idea of God that is too limited and small, and again the doctrine of God's aseity stands as a bulwark to stop this happening. It is vital for spiritual health to believe that God is great (cf. Ps. 95:1-7), and grasping the truth of his aseity is the first step on the road to doing this."
— J.I. Packer, Concise Theology, page 27
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Comments (7)
I would have loved to have had this quote two years ago when I did this research project on God and Science. One of the questions I was asked was how I dealt with science and God and made them cohesive, especially after learning so much in my project about the brain and how it communicates. I wish I could have just held this quote up.
Posted by Anonymous | August 2, 2008 1:05 PM
amen! fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge and wisdom. let us not make a mistake of putting a false image/images of who God is.
Posted by joe lee | August 2, 2008 3:39 PM
This is an amazing quote. Far too often we like to limit God by reducing him to some kind of "superhuman" -- that is, we think of Him as just an amplified version of ourselves. It is only when we realize that God is completely *other* than ourselves, that we begin to realize just how great He is.
Amazing quote.
Posted by Bridget | August 2, 2008 10:54 PM
Josh
Would you be willing to give a list of books that would help someone who is suffering and troubled and how they can find healing in God.
Posted by Anonymous | August 4, 2008 8:24 AM
I'm not sure what else to say except "amen".
It definitely put my mind God-ward throughout today, which is always needful.
Thanks.
Posted by Heather | August 4, 2008 5:53 PM
This concept is very interesting if applied to how we view God's Love and Faithfulness. I've heard a lot of people (nominal "Christians" or non-christians) talk about the suffering in the world or in their lives and how they don't believe that God truly Loves them or is Faithful. We need to realize how BIG God is and how small, ignorant, and finite we are. We do need to realize that God's Existance and Power cannot contained by the comprehension of our finite human intellect -- and as we realize that, we also need to realize the same of His Love and Faithfulness.
If we are walking uprightly -- if we love God -- when bad things happen, it is for our good; when there are losses, it is that we might be made whole in Him; when there is death to what we are, it is that we might come to know His Resurrection; when are weak and we fail, it is that we would discover His Strength and the Victory He already won which is fully available to us by His Grace; when there is suffering that breaks our hearts, it is that we might know His Compassion for each of us at the Cross; when there is persecution, it is that we might discover His Eternal Protection of us... even when it seems hardest to understand His Work, we can be assured that He is -- beyond our human abilities of comprehension -- endlessly wise, powerful, and good.
We truly must understand that God is greater than our understanding -- even our understanding of greatness. Oh that we would let Him be our all in all -- how He would satisfy us if we would but open our hearts with abandon, make ourselves living sacrifices, and seek Him until we REALLY know Him as He longs to reveal Himself to us by His Holy Spirit!
Posted by Nicole T. | August 5, 2008 12:25 AM
That is such a great quote. It reminds me of another great quote that I would love to share with you:
Adam Parker / www.compelledbyreality.com
Posted by Adam Parker | August 7, 2008 3:49 AM