Practical Use of the Epistles of Paul.
I. The remarkable man whom God specially raised up to carry the Gospel to the Gentiles must himself be familiar to us if we would study his epistles profitably. In order to have an intelligent idea of what Paul was and what work he had to do, we must extend our reading in some measure over the history of the time, and, indeed, over that of the ages which preceded. Again, besides forming in our minds some sufficient idea of the circumstances of the writer, we should also know those of the persons to whom these Epistles were written. Very much, indeed, of the doubt and difficulty which hangs over many passages of St. Paul, arises from persons not being able to enter into his character and the circumstances under which the words were written.
II. For every Gospel, for every Epistle, it is absolutely necessary that we should have a consistent, intelligent idea of the person and office of our Lord. He is the centre of them all; in all He is set forth. Unless we know Him, we cannot know them. The spiritual mind must not stand alone in the study of Scripture, but it is of all the chief and crowning qualification. Though it without others may be weak and limited, others without it are altogether powerless. The cottager with the spiritual mind knows more of the Bible than the theologian without it, but the theologian with it stands in the highest position of all.
H. Alford, Quebec Chapel Sermons,vol. v., p. 291.