If God is in control of everything, can Christians sit back and not bother to evangelize? Or does active evangelism imply that God is not really sovereign at all? J. I. Packer shows in this new edition to the popular IVP Classics how both of these attitudes are false. In a careful review of the biblical evidence, he shows how a right understanding of God's sovereignty is not so much a barrier to evangelism as an incentive and powerful support for it. With over 100,000 copies in print, Evangelism and the Sovereignty of God is truly a classic that should be read by every Christian.
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Editorial Reviews
Amazon.com Review
The mystery and seeming paradox between evangelism and God's sovereignty has been causing disagreements and confusion among Christians since the beginning of the 20th century. In Evangelism & the Sovereignty of God, J.I. Packer reveals that a faulty understanding of the Bible leads to the assessment that these doctrines are foes rather than friends. By debunking the erroneous view that "robust faith in the absolute sovereignty of God is bound to undermine any adequate sense of human responsibility" toward evangelism, the author adeptly moves through the obstacle course of tricky theology with ease and grace, allowing the reader a more complete understanding of the mystery of salvation. Packer manages to tackle an overwhelming piece of doctrinal truth and contain it within the subject of evangelism by concisely determining what evangelism is and what it is not. "It is our widespread and persistent habit of defining evangelism in terms, not of a message delivered, but of an effect produced in our hearers." This error is corrected when one is renewed in his or her knowledge of the sovereignty of God. Of course, fault is found on the other side as well, with those who so heavily rely on God's sovereignty to save the lost that they are lazy in obeying God's command to share the Gospel. Packer insists that love for God, at the very least, should draw one out of this stagnation and that the coupling of these seemingly diabolical doctrines will make one bold in speech, patient in God's timing, and prayerful for the salvation of others. --Jill Heatherly
--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
Review
"A short but exceedingly powerful book. Packer shows that rather than precluding evangelism, God's sovereignty provides the most powerful incentive and support for it. . . . [C]ontains impressive depth and contains a thorough and satisfying treatment of the subject." (Discerning Reader )
"I've often recommended this book to faithful Christians who are confused about how they are to think about prayer, missions, giving--any area in which our efforts could be wrongly pitted against God's own necessary action. Packer introduces us to clear truths, handles Scripture with exemplary care, and supplies us with just the right amount of illustrations and application." (From the foreword by Mark Dever, Senior Pastor, Capitol Hill Baptist Church, Washington, D.C. )
"I've often recommended this book to faithful Christians who are confused about how they are to think about prayer, missions, giving--any area in which our efforts could be wrongly pitted against God's own necessary action. Packer introduces us to clear truths, handles Scripture with exemplary care, and supplies us with just the right amount of illustrations and application." (From the foreword by Mark Dever, Senior Pastor, Capitol Hill Baptist Church, Washington, D.C. )
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More About the Author
J.I. Packer currently serves as the Board of Governors' Professor of Theology at Regent College in Vancouver, British Columbia. An ordained Anglican minister, he hold a D.Phil. from Oxford University. Dr. Packer's many published works include "Rediscovering Holiness, Evangelism and the Sovereignty of God," and the best-selling "Knowing God."
Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
67 of 70 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
The relationship between God's sovereignty and man's responsibility is a very confusing one. On the one hand, we see in the Bible that God is sovereign over even the actions of man, since God has "mercy on whom He will have mercy, and whom He will He hardeneth" (Rom. 9:18). Even Christ's death on the cross was not done outside God's control, but He was "delivered by the determinate counsel and foreknowledge of God" (Acts 3:23). This is all good and glorious as we can rest assured in God's providence and care for us, knowing that nothing will separate us from the love of Christ, not even our own sins.
But some people lean too far toward God's sovereignty and forget all the places in Scripture that refer to commands to *do* something. "Work out your salvation with fear and trembling" (Philippians 2:12). "Give diligence to make your calling and election sure" (2 Peter 1:10). Though we know that Christ is sovereign over our works, we also know that we are entirely responsible for our works, and we mustn't forget either principle.
Having said all this, I really enjoyed this book because J.I. Packer helped me understand all this. He showed that divine sovereignty and human responsibility are really not at odds with each other, but both promote sanctification in God's people. He showed that there is an antinomy between the two (which has been mentioned in another comment) and even though we don't entirely understand this paradox, we must accept it as God's Word shows it to be true.
Having dealt with this issue, Packer then applies it to evangelism. He shows that only assurance of the sovereignty of God can give us true success in evangelism, because then we will not have to come up with clever methods to get people into church, or to entice them into the faith.
... Read more ›20 of 20 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
Packer does an wonderful job of bringing together two subjects which on the surface would seem to be at odds with each other. As he points out in the book, God's Sovereignity and man's call to evangelize are both Biblical principles and therefore have to be considered by Christians. Dr. Packer has a way of clearly explaining both subjects and showing how God's sovereignity drives the Christian to be a witness for Him.
23 of 24 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
A little book that will help the reader understand the relationship between the sovereignty of God and man's free will. Dr. Packer wrote this book as many young preachers in England were leaning towards hyper-Calvinism as a consequence of their discovery of the Puritan writers and reformed theology. Far from diminishing evangelistic zeal, the sovereignty of God empowers our efforts to proclaim the gospel!
23 of 25 people found the following review helpful
By Ed Mor
Format:Paperback
An Antinomy Explained. Antinomy: a contradiction between two apparently equally valid principles or between inferences correctly drawn from such principles. This is what this book is all about. I used to constantly struggle with this issue and I'm glad to say that Packer helped me put it to rest in a logically and biblically consistent manner. If you don't believe that God is in total control of his creation your prayers are futile, and if you don't believe men/women are responsible for their actions it follows that we all should converge into a common destiny. This book will clearly teach you both, that God is Sovereign and that mankind will have to give an account. More specifically, Packer treats this issue in regards to evangelism (the proclamation of the good news of Jesus Christ), as an activity for which each believer is responsible, and the gift of salvation (or gift of faith), as an activity that belongs to God. If you have not read it in five years, you should read it again, it is that good. EGM.
23 of 25 people found the following review helpful
By S. Morgan
Format:Paperback
That God allows a sinfull and fallen creation to join Him in the accomplishment of His eternal plan is an awsome privilege and an irresistable proposition!! J. I. Packer does a very good job of explaining the irrefutable and plain teaching of Holy Scripture, that although God has elected from eternity who shall be saved, it is our responsibility and awsome privilege to be the means which bring that salvation about. We are simply God's mouth-peice, proclaiming the glorious gospel of Christ to a lost and dying world, it is up to God to make it effectual in the hearts of the elect. This is both comforting and encouraging in that: 1.) It assures us that our work is never in vain for God's word will always accomplish exactly what He wants it to accomplish, and 2.) It takes all the pressure off of us in that we do not have to judge the quality of our work by it's success. Every evangelistic encounter is a success because we have been obedient in proclaiming the gospel. This deep truth runs contrary to pathetic and shallow human minds. However, those who truley know God (that is: the God of the Bible, as opposed to a god of their own making), will love and cherish this wonderful truth and come to appreciate God and His amazing gift of grace in a brand new demension that unfortunate and worldly Christians tragically fall far short of. If you are a truth seeker and not just out to validate your own oppinions about God and the Bible, this book will be of eternal blessing to you. God Bless. SM
Most Recent Customer Reviews
5.0 out of 5 stars
Great book on doctrine
This is a great book on the sovereignty of God and evangelism by one of the classic-to-be reformed theologians. Read more
Published 2 months ago by Cynthia
5.0 out of 5 stars
Well written book on the theology of evangelism
Packer spends a great bit of time arguing for both God's Sovereignty and human responsibility. Those that error in the area of human responsibility overemphasize methods, tact,... Read more
Published 19 months ago by John Wolf
5.0 out of 5 stars
Hand in Hand
Point: God's sovereignty and evangelism are friends which go hand in hand.
Path: Packer walks through the basic understanding of Diving Sovereignty, then matches it with... Read more
Path: Packer walks through the basic understanding of Diving Sovereignty, then matches it with... Read more
Published 20 months ago by S. Grotzke
2.0 out of 5 stars
Not a good book for truly understanding God's Sovereignty
God's Sovereignty is everywhere taught in the Bible. Packer makes some genuinely true statements about that issue and what it means for Evangelism. Read more
Published 20 months ago by White
5.0 out of 5 stars
Every Christ Follower Should Read This Book
If you're a follower of Christ and you only read one book this year, it should be this book. By far this book is the best book I've read in respect to the biblical mandate to... Read more
Published 21 months ago by Mark Oshman
5.0 out of 5 stars
A Classic Work
J.I. Packer's classic work, Evangelism and the Sovereignty of God, is a decisive and articulate resource that ought to be digested by every believer seeking a better understanding... Read more
Published 22 months ago by livinJCstyle
5.0 out of 5 stars
We can not convince our fellow man of the truth of Scripture
J.I. Packer has written a great book addressing the topic of evangelizing in the name of our sovereign God.
It is a great privilege to evangelize. Read more
It is a great privilege to evangelize. Read more
Published 22 months ago by Mike Pettengill
5.0 out of 5 stars
Packer a strong mind on this subjec
Packer has lots of clear, straightforward and Bible-believing thoughts and arguments here. He's a strong thinker about this subject. Read more
Published on March 27, 2011 by R. L. Haley III
5.0 out of 5 stars
The Certainty That Our Evangelism Will Be Fruitful
I recently re-read this "classic" (if that word can apply to books while the authors are still living) since this year marks the 50th anniversary of its publishing. Read more
Published on March 5, 2011 by John Gardner
4.0 out of 5 stars
Gods Reminder of His Sovereignty and your responsibility
Evangelism and the Sovereignty of God (Ivp Classics) Packer has always been one of my favorite writers for one reason. He loves the gospel and loves to communicate it. Read more
Published on December 22, 2010 by matthew l wisecarver
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