hope to achieve in this volume is to explore some of them, leaving their correlation to other, more detailed, studies. Why is it so important and helpful to investigate these ideas? I have long found that a phrase I first encountered when beginning to study theology at Oxford University in 1977 is helpful at this point. It comes from the writings of the German Lutheran Phillipp Melanchthon: ‘To know Christ is to know his benefits.’ These words, written in 1521, suggest that our understanding and