From atop J.I. Packer’s shoulders once again, I submit that not many of us who know plenty about God actually know God very well. For the people who know God intimately “losses and ‘crosses’ cease to matter; what they have gained simply banishes these things from their minds.”[1]

Packer summarizes four characteristics of people who know God.[2]

1. “Those who know God have great energy for God.” When lethargy and apathy rule our spiritual lives and our churches, there can be little doubt that God is certainly not known. Where are the men and women who will stand and pray with undying zeal for the things that matter most to God?
2. “Those who know God have great thoughts of God.” When our thoughts about Him revolve around wondering if He will improve our lives, there can be little doubt that God is certainly not known. Where are the men and women who will daydream about God’s “high majesty and moral perfection and gracious faithfulness”?
3. “Those who know God show great boldness for God.” When fear and doubt shape our expressions of faith, there can be little doubt that God is certainly not known. Where are the men and women who will live fearlessly because they realize they’ve already died?
4. “Those who know God have great contentment in God.” When consumerism and materialism run rampant in the church, there can be little doubt that God is not known. Where are the men and women who will find their satisfaction in fellowship with God and stop searching for it at the mall or the office or the classroom or the athletic fields?

Like perhaps no other culture in history, we know plenty about God. We listen to songs about Him. We read books about Him (well, most of them are actually about us, but they talk about Him, too). We watch television shows about Him.

Yet, how many of us exhibit the characteristics of a person who knows God?

[2] Ibid, 27-31.