Defenders Podcast Defenders: Doctrine of God: Attributes of God (Part 10): God’s Immutability and Incorporeality
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Jan 19, 2022 Dive into the intriguing concept of God's immutability, where His unchanging nature meets dynamic engagement with humanity. Explore the balance of God’s incorporeality, as a spiritual being that remains personal while defying physical representation. Reflect on the intricacies of divine communication, weighing the audible against the inaudible. Unearth the profound distinction between God’s existence as pure spirit and the physicality of human life, setting a foundation for future theological exploration.
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Packer’s Sixfold Account Of Divine Immutability
- J.I. Packer’s sixfold summary reconciles biblical immutability with divine action by limiting change to contingent relations while affirming permanence in being, character, truth, ways, purposes, and the Son.
- William Lane Craig uses Packer to show God can interact historically without becoming a “frozen” deity, preserving moral and existential immutability.
Anthropomorphic Language Doesn’t Imply Divine Learning
- If God possesses exhaustive foreknowledge, apparent learning (e.g., God 'going down' to Sodom) is best read as anthropomorphic narration, not genuine acquisition of new propositional facts.
- Craig distinguishes knowing tensed facts (will happen/is happening/has happened) from gaining new propositional content, preserving omniscience.
Pray To Change Yourself Not God’s Essence
- Use prayer as a spiritual discipline that transforms the petitioner, but do not conceive prayer as changing God's eternal purpose; God foreknows prayers and answers according to his eternal plan.
- Craig allows prayers to make a real difference in outcomes without implying God’s mind is altered mid-course.