Knowing God

Knowing God brings together two key facets of the Christian faith―knowing about God and knowing God through a close relationship with Jesus Christ.

“If we pursue theological knowledge for its own sake, it is bound to go bad on us. It will make us proud and conceited. The very greatness of the subject matter will intoxicate us, and we shall come to think of ourselves as a cut above other Christians because of our interest in it and grasp of it; and we shall look down on those whose theological ideas seem to us crude and inadequate and dismiss them as very poor specimens. For, as Paul told the conceited Corinthians, “knowledge puffs up… The man who thinks he knows something does not yet know as he ought to know” (1 Cor 8:1-2).”

“The psalmist was interested in truth and orthodoxy, in biblical teaching and theology, not as ends in themselves, but as means to the further ends of life and godliness. His ultimate concern was with the knowledge and service of the great God, who truth he sought to understand. And this must be our attitude too.”

“Interest in theology, and knowledge about God, and the capacity to think clearly and talk well on Christian themes, is not at all the same thing as knowing him. We may know as much about God as Calvin knew -indeed, if we study his works diligently, sooner or later we shall – and yet all the time (unlike Calvin, may I say) we may hardly know God at all.”

“The comprehensiveness of our contentment is another measure whereby we may judge whether we really know God.”

“What were we made for? To know God. What aim should we set ourselves in life? To know God. What is the “eternal life” that Jesus gives? Knowledge of God. What is the best thing in life, bringing more joy, delight and contentment than anything else? Knowledge of God.”

Written in an engaging and practical tone, this thought-provoking work seeks to renew and enrich our understanding of God.

Knowing God was named by Christianity Today as one of the top fifty books that have shaped evangelicals.