purpose of adapting the religion they had attested by signs to the
understanding of everyone so that it might be readily received; nor for
exhortations on the subject: in fact, the object of the Epistles is to teach
and exhort men to lead that manner of life which each of the Apostles judged
best for confirming them in religion. (45) We may here repeat our former
remark, that the Apostles had received not only the faculty of preaching the
history, of Christ as prophets, and confirming it with signs, but also
authority for teaching and exhorting according as each thought best. (46)
Paul (2 Tim. i:11), "Whereunto I am appointed a preacher, and an apostle,
and a teacher of the Gentiles;" and again (I Tim. ii:7), "Whereunto I am
ordained a preacher and an apostle (I speak the truth in Christ and lie
not), a teacher of the Gentiles in faith and verity." (47) These passages, I
say, show clearly the stamp both of the apostleship and the teachership:
the authority for admonishing whomsoever and wheresoever he pleased is
asserted by Paul in the Epistle to Philemon, v:8: "Wherefore, though I might
be much bold in Christ to enjoin thee that which is convenient, yet," &c.,
where we may remark that if Paul had received from God as a prophet
what he wished to enjoin Philemon, and had been bound to speak in his
prophetic capacity, he would not have been able to change the command of God
into entreaties. (48) We must therefore understand him to refer to the
permission to admonish which he had received as a teacher, and not as a
prophet. (49) We have not yet made it quite clear that the Apostles might
each choose his own way of teaching, but only that by virtue of their
Apostleship they were teachers as well as prophets; however, if we
call reason to our aid we shall clearly see that an authority to teach
implies authority to choose the method. (50) It will nevertheless be,
perhaps, more satisfactory to draw all our proofs from Scripture; we are
there plainly told that each Apostle chose his particular method (Rom. xv:
20): "Yea, so have I strived to preach the gospel, not where Christ was
named, lest I should build upon another man's foundation." (51) If