"We must seek, in studying God, to be led to God." - Page 23
The purpose of studying about God is not merely to obtain a head knowledge and understanding of his attributes, his nature, and his being. It is so that with this knowledge we can approach God for who He has revealed Himself to be in His WORD and develop a relationship with Him. It is when this happens that we go from knowing about God, to actually knowing God. As I read this first chapter, the one thing that kept ringing in my ears was: "It is not enough to know the letter of the Word, you must know the Word Himself." As all Christians should know - John chapter 1 reveals to us that in the beginning was the Word, the Word was with God, the Word was God, and the Word became flesh in the person of Jesus Christ. So in spending time in the Word of God we are actually spending time with God, and as we get to know the Word, we are actually getting to know Jesus Christ Himself.
Packer pointed out some very important scriptures to keep in mind when reading, studying and meditating upon scripture. The first is 1 Corinthains 8:1-2
"...Knowledge puffs up...the man who thinks he knows something does not yet know as he out to know." (NIV)
Here Paul is saying that when you obtain knowledge there is a tendency to be prideful and self-righteous, thinking that you know more than others. We should always stay humble keeping in mind that we ourselves know nothing except the Father reveals it to us in His Word by the power of His Holy Spirit.
Packer then quoted Psalm 119 where David is basically asking for understanding and discernment of God's Word, showing how much He loves the law and asks that God Himself teaches him. This brings to mind 1 John 2:27
"But the anointing that you received from him abides in you, and you have no need that anyone should teach you. But as his anointing teaches you about everything, and is true, and is no lie—just as it has taught you, abide in him." (ESV)
It is God who should teach us. We should be filled with and led by the Holy Spirit, who is the revealer of all truth. I am not saying we should not heed to the teachings of men and women in the church, but what I am saying and I believe what John is clearing up, is that it is the anointing that uses these men and women to teach the Word - they are not teaching from their own understanding but are sharing a divine revelation of the Word of God via the Holy Spirit.
Packer does a great job of explaining why we should study about God, why theology is important, and how meditation on the Word is necessary. To sum up the answers to these questions, Packer writes the following:
"How can we turn our knowledge about God into knowledge of God? ... It is that we turn each truth that we learn about God into matter for meditation before God, leading to prayer and praise to God ... And it is as we enter more and more deeply into this experience of being humbled and exalted that our knowledge of God increases, and with it our peace, our strength and our joy. God help us, then, to put our knowledge about God to this use, that we all may in truth "know the LORD"." - Page 23
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