The Theology of the Christian Life in J.i. Packer's Thought

by Payne, Don J.; Noble, Thomas A.

• ISBN13: 9781597526920
• ISBN10: 1597526924
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2006-06-01
• Publisher: Wipf & Stock Pub

Summary

This study offers a critical analysis of J.I. Packer's theology of the Christian life. Packer has achieved international acclaim and wielded widespread influence within evangelicalism for more than three decades, particularly through his writings on the doctrine of sanctification. His approach to sanctification is examined in light of the theologicalanthropology and theological method that constitute its unique structure and assumptions.J.I. Packer has been one of the most recognized evangelical theologians of the late twentieth century. Among his theological passions is anchoring the Christian life in the legacy of Reformed theology,particularly that expressed by seventeenth-century English Puritanism. Yet, his treatment of the doctrine of sanctification is shaped by twoother influences: theological anthropology and theological method. This hermeneutical exploration of Packer's treatment of sanctification offers fresh insight into his thought and demonstrates the oftenunnoticed impact of theological anthropology and theological method within evangelical theology.

Author Biography

Don J. Payne is Associate Dean and Assistant Professor of Theology and Ministry at Denver Seminary

Table of Contents

Foreword	p. xiii
Acknowledgements	p. xv
Preface	p. xvii
Abbreviations	p. xix
Introduction	p. 1
J.I. Packer and American Evangelicalism	p. 3
The Writings of J.I. Packer	p. 5
Definitions	p. 7
Theological Anthropology	p. 7
Theological Method	p. 9
Piety	p. 9
J.I. Packer's Evangelical Context	p. 15
Evangelicalism	p. 16
Definition	p. 16
Development	p. 21
English Puritanism and the Westminster Assembly	p. 21
Eighteenth- and Nineteenth-Century Evangelicalism	p. 23
Twentieth-Century Evangelicalism	p. 30
Intellectual Features	p. 39
Scholasticism	p. 39
Common Sense Realism and the Princeton Theology	p. 41
American Evangelicalism as a Context for J.I. Packer	p. 46
J.I. Packer's Personal and Theological Development	p. 51
The Early Years	p. 51
Christian Conversion and Theological Formation	p. 52
The Oxford Inter-Collegiate Christian Union	p. 52
Puritanism	p. 53
John Owen	p. 55
Richard Baxter	p. 56
John Charles Ryle	p. 58
David Martyn Lloyd-Jones	p. 59
Princeton Theology	p. 63
Formal Education	p. 67
Contributions	p. 68
The Anglican Church	p. 68
Regent College	p. 71
The Nature of Piety	p. 75
The Place of Piety in Packer's Thought	p. 75
Piety and Experience in Packer's Thought	p. 76
Piety in Packer's Theological Structure	p. 78
The Profile of Piety	p. 80
In Relation to the Character of God	p. 83
In Relation to the Law of God and Scripture	p. 87
In Relation to Soteriology	p. 92
Predestination and Election	p. 93
Atonement	p. 96
Original and Indwelling Sin	p. 109
In Relation to the Image of God in Jesus Christ	p. 123
The Means of Piety	p. 131
Divine Activity	p. 131
The Holy Spirit	p. 133
Grace	p. 141
Human Responsibility	p. 143
Faith	p. 145
Repentance	p. 152
Mortification and Vivification	p. 157
Endurance	p. 163
The Experience of Piety	p. 167
Progress through Struggle	p. 168
Renewed Motivation	p. 169
Engagement with Creation	p. 170
Hope	p. 176
Theological Anthropology	p. 183
The Imago Dei in Historical Perspective	p. 185
The Imago Dei in J.I. Packer's Theology	p. 195
The Imago Dei as Responsive Righteousness	p. 195
The Imago Dei as Rational, Relational, and Representational	p. 198
Implications of the Structural and Material Imago Dei	p. 207
Conscience	p. 207
The Law of God and Scripture	p. 208
Experiential Phenomena	p. 215
Christological Anthropology in J.I. Packer's Theology	p. 217
Incarnation	p. 217
Kenosis	p. 224
Theological Method	p. 231
Development	p. 234
Characteristics	p. 240
Assumptions	p. 240
The Authority and Inerrancy of the Bible	p. 240
The Analogy of Faith as Rational Coherence	p. 245
The Covenantal Framework of the Bible	p. 246
The Canonical Character of the Bible	p. 248
The Christological Focus of the Bible	p. 250
The Nature of Hermeneutics	p. 256
The Relationship of Interpretation and Application	p. 256
The Role of the Holy Spirit	p. 265
The Nature of Theology	p. 268
Conclusion	p. 277
Bibliography	p. 281
Index	p. 315
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