Packer's chapter, Sons of God, in his book, Knowing God, captures the meaning of our adoption.

J.I. Packer’s book Knowing God, first published in 1973, has surely been around long enough now to be considered a classic. I remember reading it as a new Christian, riding a train back from New Mexico to Wisconsin after visiting my grandparents. The soothing, rhythmic clicking of train on track melds in my mind with the rich, mind-stretching truths about God I was discovering as I read this book.

At least one endorsement of Knowing God affirms that the chapter “Sons of God” alone is worth the cost of the whole book. Through all my reading about our being adopted by God, this remains my favorite. Packer says that “If you want to judge how well a person understands Christianity, find out how much he makes of the thoughts of being God’s child, and having God as his Father. If this is not the thoughts that prompts and controls his worship and prayers and his whole outlook on life, it means that he does not understand Christianity very well at all.”

Packer claims that adoption is “the highest privilege that the gospel offers” and then thoroughly draws out what this can and should mean to us. He revels in the wonder of being adopted by God, and will make you revel, too.

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