Knowing God by J.I. Packer
Week 5: The Love of God — Chapter 6
Read Chapter 6 of Knowing God ("He Loves Me"). Key Scripture: John 3:16; Romans 5:6–8; 1 John 4:7–19.
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Of all the truths about God, few are so universally claimed and so rarely understood at depth — Packer presses us to think harder about what divine love actually means.
Discussion Questions
7 questions1.Packer argues that God's love is not a vague general benevolence toward humanity in the abstract, but a specific, personal, costly love for real individuals. How does that distinction change the emotional and devotional weight of a phrase like "God loves you"?
2.Packer emphasizes that God's love is not a response to anything lovely or loveable in us — it is spontaneous, free, and rooted in who God is rather than who we are. How does this understanding of love differ from the way love typically works in human relationships, and why does the difference matter?
3.Packer points to Romans 5:8 — "God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us" — as the definitive proof of divine love. Why is the cross the only adequate demonstration of this love, rather than, say, creation, providential blessings, or answered prayers?
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