J. I. Packer (1926 - 2020)
J. I. Packer (1926 - 2020)
Few would disagree that J. I. Packer is a modern day Puritan, squarely in the tradition of the historical Puritans of the 1600s, Whitefield in the 1700s, Spurgeon and Ryle in the 1800s, and Lloyd-Jones in the 1900s. He has faithfully, clearly, and forthrightly, presented and maintained the historic Biblical positions.
One of his first books, "Evangelism and the Sovereignty of God", is a classic presentation of evangelism in light of Gods Sovereignty: Why evangelize if God is sovereign? How do we evangelize if God is sovereign? What principles should guide our evangelistic practice if God is sovereign?
His translation of Luther’s "Bondage of the Will" from the Latin is recognized as the best English translation available today, and his introduction to Owens "Death of Death, in the Death of Christ", is in itself a classic presentation of Calvinistic doctrine, so highly esteemed, it is now available on its own.
But who is J. I. Packer? He was born in Gloucestershire, England in 1926, educated at Oxford, and held various ministerial, teaching, and institutional positions over the years. He ended his career as Professor of Theology at Regent College, Vancouver, British Columbia, an Anglican College. He was a prolific writer, with nearly twenty books to his credit, while also being a frequent contributor to various theological periodicals, and a Senior Editor with Christianity Today. He also preached and lectured world wide. Several of his more popular books are "Knowing God", "God has Spoken", "Knowing Man", and "Gods Words".
He consistently sought to address the central malady of Christians today: a general ignorance of the historic Biblical (Reformation) truths, and the subsequent acceptance of the semi-truths which are so widely held today.
In his book "Knowing God," he seeks to teach a right understanding of the Living God, as can be seen from several of the chapter titles: God Unchanging, The Majesty of God, The Love of God, The Grace of God, God the Judge, The Wrath of God, Goodness and Severity, and The Jealous God.
In his book "God Has Spoken", he seeks to teach us the awesome fact that God has revealed Himself, and that "Deep contentment with the Living Lord, into whose presence the Bible takes us, is a joy which only His own true disciples know."
In his book "God's Words" he defines, explains, and applies key Bible words like revelation, grace, faith, sin, justification, regeneration, election, and holiness. It is a very good primer for those young in the faith, or young in years, or even those who simply wish to hear the old truths re-taught with freshness and clarity, in order to strengthen their understanding.
His book "A Quest for Godliness," is an excellent introduction to the general thought, principles, and theology of the Puritans, while also introducing the leading Puritan men. His very personal "Introduction" ends with this strong statement that we need the Puritans today because, "the Puritans are giants compared with us, giants whose help we need if ever we are to grow. Learning from the heroes of the Christian past is in any case an important dimension of that edifying fellowship for which the proper name is the "communion of saints." The great Puritans, though dead, still speak to us through their writings, and say things to us that we badly need to hear at this present time." The "Afterword" is equally to point, with the summation that the Puritans were "great thinkers," and "great worshipers," and "great hopers," and "great warriors," with this summation statement: "I believe that in the providence of God some ages have special messages for other ages, and that as the New Testament era provides a model for the life of all churches and Christians everywhere, so the Puritan era has particular lessons to teach the Western Christian world at the end of the twentieth century."
I could quote at length from this wonderful book, but let me simply give you several of its chapter titles to spark you interest: The Puritans as Interpreters of Scripture, The Puritan Conscience, The Witness of the Spirit in Puritan Thought, The Puritans and the Lord's Day, The Puritan Approach to Worship, Marriage and Family in Puritan Thought, and Puritan Evangelism.
Will we agree with every one of Dr. Packer's positions? No, but neither do we agree with all the positions of any man. His Anglicanism might offend some of us, and his Ecumenicism might upset others, but all in all he has proved himself a champion of Truth in our very dark and ignorant age.
Anyone interested in learning more about Dr. Packer should read Alister McGrath's biography of him, "To Know and Serve God."
8 July 2025